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SaaS-Based Console for Multicloud Networking from F5 Simplifies Telco Cybersecurity Operations with Visibility across Hybrid and Multicloud Environments

Chad Davis Thumbnail
Chad Davis
Published July 18, 2024

Telecoms understand that multicloud connectivity is essential for delivering modern technologies, from the core to the edge, for both IT and mobile networks. In this dynamic landscape, telcos are always seeking scale and resiliency to improve their security posture across legacy and modern systems while securing distributed environments. As security threats rapidly change and evolve, visibility and policy management are essential for preventing attacks as well as improving mean time to response (MTTR). Multi-vendor hybrid and multicloud environments add complexity to maintaining robust cybersecurity and ensuring operational integrity. A key feature of our secure multicloud network (MCN) solution is its streamlined, independent console, which brings comprehensive visibility regardless of the cloud configuration or scale. 

Secure MCN SaaS console for enhanced multicloud environment visibility control

For IT telco teams, manually overseeing distributed environments is hampered by massive volumes of traffic, continuous work cycles, and a lack of automation. Separate performance and vendor management for each hyperscaler compounds this complexity. Our MCN solution, in contrast, offers a SaaS-based console to connect your clouds and policies in one place. 

Representative screenshot of F5’s SaaS-based secure multicloud networking console.
Representative screenshot of F5’s SaaS-based secure multicloud networking console.

With this console, layered security architecture can show consistent security policies across all IT environments and stacks, so IT teams can properly identify and remediate critical threats like the Log4j 2 vulnerability. This vertical security framework offers complementary controls such as application layer 7 distributed denial-of-service (DDoS), identity management (IAM), and web application and API protection (WAAP).

Learn how the above console connects to the cloud in this demo guide and video series.

Case study: F5 telco customer adds automation to multicloud networking

Automation in service provider networks has accelerated due to worsening cybersecurity staffing shortages; telcos are increasingly aiming to incorporate modern architecture elements to enhance agility, reduce costs, and simplify operations. One of F5’s innovative and thought-leading service provider customers, SoftBank, based in Japan, has adopted F5’s SaaS-based, secure multicloud networking services (SMNS). SMNS emerges as a strategic choice to simplify the complexities associated with multicloud management. With better simplification, like an API-first infrastructure solution that can offer a unified interface, institutions like SoftBank gain more control over their entire application stack with solutions that are platform independent. This also enables policy governance through automation and accelerated fault remediation.

A reference architecture for F5’s multicloud solution.
A reference architecture for F5’s multicloud solution.

The growth of cloud services introduces many vulnerabilities for telcos. Losing visibility and having less granular control over their portfolios are serious concerns to consider. In fact, 9 out of 10 organizations report multicloud challenges, including difficulties with tools, troubleshooting procedures, and APIs.

API security for service providers is increasingly critical

API growth is driven by telcos’ efforts to define and deliver innovative services, such as simplifying network complexity with APIs. Organizations such as CAMARA are pivotal in this evolution, working collaboratively to align and standardize API requirements and publish comprehensive API definitions.

The CAMARA project, of which F5 is a participating member, is an open-source endeavor under the Linux Foundation. Focused on defining, developing, and testing APIs, CAMARA's collaboration with the GSMA Operator Platform Group ensures that API requirements are not only aligned but also rigorously tested and standardized across mobile operators. 

The urgency of this focus is underscored by:

  • Recent, impactful data breaches within the telecom sector, which have predominantly been API-related attacks. 
  • The need for a centralized platform for managing security policies across various distributed environments, utilizing an end-to-end, cloud-based strategy. 
  • The benefits of a streamlined exclusion list, like a specific false positive or API reputation filter, which can easily be deployed consistently from a central console. 

Adding F5’s Secure MCN solution is an easy-to-implement SaaS-based tool for IT departments to confidently navigate the complexities of distributed environments with greater visibility and streamlined security operations, mitigating the risk of sensitive data loss, such as customers’ personal identifiable information (PII). Also, multicloud deployments operate much more efficiently through purpose-built SMNS solutions designed to automate processes and, in turn, ease the building of multicloud connectivity.

Learn more about simplifying operations with secure multicloud networking.

This blog shares select content with additional pieces focused on other industry sectors.

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