Free Newsletters for the Channel
Register for Your Free Newsletter Now
Meta Networks Enhances NaaS Software, a Corporate VPN Alternative
The updates are to security, management and usability.
Lynn Haber
February 26, 2019
2 Min Read
Shutterstock
Newcomer Meta Networks on Tuesday announced new security, management and user enhancements to its Meta network as a service (NaaS) software-defined perimeter.
Founded in 2016, the vendor came out of stealth mode last year with its software-defined perimeter, user-centric approach to applications in the data center and clouds. The NaaS solution is an alternative to corporate VPNs.
Meta Networks’ Micha Rave
“VPNs are site-centric, users connect to sites, sites connect to the internet or public or private infrastructure, which leads to a poor user experience, and they’re complex to manage, trust-based and offer broad access,” Micha Rave, vice president products at Meta Networks told Channel Futures. “Our philosophy moves away from the site-centric world and to a user-centric approach.” The software-defined perimeter is user-centric, zero-trust, identity-based, microsegmented and is cloud-native.
The product’s security enhancements include:
Enhanced behavioral alerts and notifications: These provide more comprehensive monitoring and alerting of events such as user access to sensitive data, unauthorized/forbidden connection attempts and/or failed user logins.
Posture checks on the user device: These allow administrators to institute policies that check device posture before authorizing its connection. Policies can also be implemented that periodically conduct checks, including the running of processes such as OS patch reviews, certificate installations, antivirus deployments, registry entries and more.
MetaConnect web recording: Meta NaaS now provides the ability to generate a complete audit log of all activity during clientless web application access. The log can also be used to set alerts and monitor user behavior.
Management enhancements include:
The introduction of smart groups: This allows administrators to tag, for labeling, all network elements in order to create dynamic, heterogeneous groups to use in defining policies.
SCIM support: This accelerates user provisioning and on-boarding to enable ongoing, real-time synchronization of users, groups and attributes within the system.
Dynamic split tunneling: This allows user access to disparate network zones with dissimilar security domains using one or more preferred network connections, according to organizational policy.
And user enhancements include:
New client apps: These are business-class client applications with fast, simple user access, improved usability and a modern new interface.
Direct MetaConnect access: This enables transparent connectivity to web applications over MetaConnect directly from a hyperlink. For example, access links can be embedded in the user’s email so that they can quickly and easily access mission-critical applications. Application use can take place inside a secure, MetaConnect session.
Meta Networks sells direct as well as with a few partners but is in the process of building its indirect sales channel.
“We’ve started working with channels and we believe that in the cybersecurity space this is a better way to go,” said Rave.
The ideal Meta partner is one that deals with networking infrastructure and security – preferably MSSPs – and companies that sell SD-WAN as well as networking equipment.
About the Author
You May Also Like
Mar 24 - Mar 27, 2025
Mar 24 - Mar 27, 2025
The Channel Partners Conference & Expo, co-located with MSP Summit, is the gathering place for the technology services community. Agents, VARs, MSPs, integrators and service providers will converge to share ideas and drive discussion on the topics shaping our industry.
REGISTER NOW