Secure Internet Access Is Needed Everywhere
Today’s digital world has transformed work, learning, and leisure, but it has also increased exposure to internet threats. Cyberattacks are often in the news, but it’s typically because a large organization suffered a major data breach or was the target of a huge distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.
Cyberattack vulnerabilities: both enterprises and SMBs
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are also vulnerable to cyberattacks, and many SMBs lack the resources or internal expertise to maintain an effective security posture, which can affect how they recover from an attack.
SMBs collectively employ many hundreds of millions of workers everywhere in the world, and many play important roles in supply chains. Protecting them, therefore, helps protect the greater global economy.
Comcast Business partners with Akamai
We’re pleased to partner with Comcast Business, deploying their SecurityEdge™ service based on Akamai Secure Internet Access, to protect SMBs. They recently published their 2022 Small Business Cybersecurity Report, which is based on anonymized threat data gathered from their service and offers useful insights about the threats SMBs face — like phishing, malware, and bots — and the scale at which they are deterred.
Expand your service portfolio with Secure Internet Access
Akamai Secure Internet Access services protect against emerging threats in the cloud, minimize risks of legitimate traffic being blocked, and rapidly respond to attacks with advanced defenses to protect business’ assets and accommodate remote workforces.
Other benefits include:
Increased coverage — protection against diverse exploits using unique detection algorithms
Precise quality control — tests deliver near-zero false positives; providers can choose from five domain classification levels to increase blocking rates
Improved agility — identifying and protecting provider networks from new threats in live data takes seconds
Akamai Secure Internet Access allows internet service providers (ISPs) and mobile network operators (MNOs) to expand service offerings, run more cost-effective networks, and protect business-critical and customer-facing resources with features that block unwanted content to support usage policies, business compliance requirements, and family preferences. Consumers and businesses of all sizes can access agile and robust security defenses, and gain visibility of their entire network.
Four key insights from cybersecurity breaches surveyThe United Kingdom’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport publishes an annual survey that provides data about the costs and impacts of cyber breaches on SMBs. The U.K. government’s “Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021” offered the following insights:
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Protecting underserved markets and devices
Protecting less-served markets and devices makes the internet a better, safer place for everyone. Akamai Secure Internet Access services delivered with our ISP and MNO partners provide foundational security defenses that are easy to use. They can protect all the devices that their subscribers use to connect online, wherever they are: at work, at home, or on the go. Even connected devices such as cars can be protected.
Third most targeted by cyberattacksIn “ENISA Threat Landscape 2021,” the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) reported that the general public is the third most targeted by cyberattacks. The report goes on to say that the trend toward remote work “has increased the attack surface and, as a result, we have seen a rise in the number of cyberattacks targeting organisations and companies through home offices.” |
Secure Internet Access is designed to protect consumers, too
Consumers also face security exposure on the internet, especially since remote work and digital learning environments have become more prevalent. Protecting consumers’ homes and the smart devices they’ve installed to enrich entertainment options, automate interactions with appliances, upgrade home security, monitor health, and manage energy consumption reduces the attack surface, and, thus, the incentives for attackers.
Today, protecting subscriber identity module (SIM)-based devices is often an afterthought, even though mobile phones have become indispensable for work and personal use. Mobile security solutions aren’t even available for most Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and, even for phones, security clients can be difficult to install and hard to manage.
54% of smartphone users said they were very or somewhat worried about privacy and security on their smartphones.”
The Deloitte Center for Technology, Media & Telecommunications
The substantial growth of subscribers and connectionsAccording to GSMA Intelligence in their 2022 report “The Mobile Economy,” mobile internet subscribers will grow from 5.3 billion in 2021 to 5.7 billion in 2025. IoT connections will grow from 15.1 billion in 2021 to 23.3 billion in 2025, and some estimates have numbers as high as 50 billion in the next 10 years. |
Safeguarding billions of SIM-based, and other, devices
Businesses have also embraced the IoT to increase efficiency and responsiveness, improve visibility into manufacturing and business processes, and reduce costs. A recent blog post, “It’s Time to Protect Every SIM,” offers a helpful perspective on the scale of the cellular-connected device world and makes a compelling case for protecting the billions of SIM-based devices in the world today.
As part of a complete Zero Trust portfolio, Akamai partners with MNOs to enable Secure Internet Access services that protect all kinds of cellular devices (2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G), using both eSIMs and physical SIMs, without the need to integrate software, use VPNs, or purchase equipment. Businesses gain full visibility into their mobile traffic across all mobile devices while being able to customize the internet experience of users on their network and continue to protect them against phishing, malware, and ransomware.
Address unique security needs
SMBs and consumers need security solutions that are compatible with each of their unique needs and constraints. Cellular devices need to be secured, too. Service providers are well positioned to assist overstressed managers (and consumers) with:
Networks, processes, and the expertise to deliver and manage security services at scale
Trusted contractual relationships, contacts, and billing connections
Resources that can act in an advisory role to provide basic IT guidance for businesses
Development teams that focus on security
Akamai has large development teams that are focused exclusively on ISPs and MNOs to build products that allow them to expand their service offerings, run networks more cost-effectively, and protect business-critical and customer-facing resources.
The threat intelligence used by Secure Internet Access services is developed by a team of 20 data science and security experts who process real-time Domain Name System (DNS) resolution data sourced from around the world, so providers can move beyond speed and reliability and differentiate based on security, and subscribers get tangible value with enterprise-grade security solutions that are pervasive, comprehensive, and easy to use.
Secure Internet Access is designed to protect consumers, too
Consumers also face security exposure on the internet, especially since remote work and digital learning environments have become more prevalent. Protecting consumers’ homes and the smart devices they’ve installed to enrich entertainment options, automate interactions with appliances, upgrade home security, monitor health, and manage energy consumption reduces the attack surface, and, thus, the incentives for attackers.
Today, protecting subscriber identity module (SIM)-based devices is often an afterthought, even though mobile phones have become indispensable for work and personal use. Mobile security solutions aren’t even available for most Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and, even for phones, security clients can be difficult to install and hard to manage.
Secure Internet Access is designed to protect consumers, too
Consumers also face security exposure on the internet, especially since remote work and digital learning environments have become more prevalent. Protecting consumers’ homes and the smart devices they’ve installed to enrich entertainment options, automate interactions with appliances, upgrade home security, monitor health, and manage energy consumption reduces the attack surface, and, thus, the incentives for attackers.
Today, protecting subscriber identity module (SIM)-based devices is often an afterthought, even though mobile phones have become indispensable for work and personal use. Mobile security solutions aren’t even available for most Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and, even for phones, security clients can be difficult to install and hard to manage.
