
WatchGuard updates XTM appliance line
Threat management appliance given stronger protections

Security firm WatchGuard has introduced a new line of its XTM unified threat management (UTM) appliances.
The company said that the XTM 5 series, which targets firms ranging from 50 to 500 users, would start at a £1,259 price tag.
The XTM 5 appliances will sport improved performance speeds as well as support for secured connections with mobile appliances. The company estimates that the device will run 150 pre cent faster, with tasks such as antivirus scanning improved by 190 per cent over the previous generation of XTM appliances.
Mobile support, meanwhile, will come in the form secured connections for the iOS and Android platforms. WatchGuard said that the appliance will allow users to establish VPN connections with enterprise networks.
The company said that the mobile support would allow firms to support employees who seek to bring their own handsets and tablets into the workplace.
The appliance will also bring support for the company's Application Control management platform. The company said that the tool, designed to manage social networking and web-based applications, would allow administrators to set access for sites and manage permissions for employee usage.
While WatchGuard is hailing the XTM 5 as both a security and productivity solution, recent work from security researchers has cast doubt on the overall effectiveness of network security platforms for blocking attacks.
Research presented at the Black Hat conference found that in some cases, security appliances overwhelming failed to detect and block potential advanced persistent threat (APT) activity.
V3 Latest
First plant to grow on the Moon, err, dies
Cotton seedling freezes to death as Chang'e-4 shuts down for the Moon's 14-day lunar night
Fortnite news and updates: Fortnite made $2.4bn in 2018, according to SuperData
Fortnite easily out-earns PUBG, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2018
Japanese firm sends micro-satellites into space to deliver artificial meteor showers on demand
Meteor showers as a service will be visible for about 100 kilometres in all directions
Saturn's rings only formed in the past 100 million years, suggests analysis of Cassini space probe data
New findings contradict conventional belief that Saturn's rings were formed along with the planet about 4.5 billion years ago