Earlier this year, we featured a story on MSP Today about Cato Networks. (Read it here.)
Here’s the general gist: Aligned with Gartner’s Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) frameworks, the name “Cato Networks” has become near-synonymous with SASE-related excellence. With Cato’s cloud-native architecture and global private backbone, organizations can securely connect any user to any application, anywhere. Cato also provides a fully converged, continually enforced suite of threat prevention and data protection capabilities. (Not to mention its AI-assisted analyst workbench that enables prioritization and response to incidents based on battle-tested tools and playbooks, to boot.)
As stated, this is an org we’ve featured on our MSP Today news site.
So, why here on IoT Evolution World today?
It’s simple — Cato Networks officially announced its industry-first SASE-native Internet of Things (IoT)/operational technology (OT) security solution. With Cato IoT/OT Security, enterprises can “dramatically simplify the secure management of IoT and OT devices with the click of a button.”
Why has Cato branched out in this way, though?
Well, IoT/OT devices represent what is unfortunately an oft-critical weakness in overall enterprise security posture. According to one Gartner report, “By 2025, over 85% of enterprises will have more smart edge devices on their network than laptops, tablets, desktops or smartphones.” That’s significant, given how many devices lack proper security features and/or operate on outdated hardware and software. Then, if/when advanced attacks on vulnerable IoT/OT devices occur, teams may face production downtime, financial losses, reputational damages and even worker safety incidents. Facing these proactively is a must.
That’s why Cato IoT/OT Security has entered the arena. Its features include the following:
- Instant Device Discovery and Classification: Get instant visibility into IoT/OT environments, and with no additional integration(s) required. Cato’s purpose-built AI and ML capabilities identify IoT/OT devices and provide visibility into their characteristics, such as their type, manufacturer, and version. This removes security blind spots and accelerates IoT/OT device identification.
- Granular Policy Enforcement: Define and enforce specific access policies. Rules can be set based on characteristics for a specific IoT/OT device, or based on grouping by type, manufacturer, and model for groups of devices. Controlling IoT/OT device access bolsters the enterprise network and reduces the attack surface.
- Holistic Threat Prevention: Protect IoT/OT devices with Cato's advanced threat prevention capabilities, including Cato DNS Security, Cato IPS and Cato NGAM. This provides reliable safeguards against both known and unknown threats.
“Cato Networks is the only SASE leader to build an IoT/OT security solution from the ground up and deliver it natively from a single, cloud-native platform,” explained Shlomo Kramer, co-founder and CEO, Cato Networks. “Some SASE portfolio companies address IoT/OT security by repackaging acquired point solutions and requiring customers to handle complex deployment and integration. This approach increases costs, operational burden and security gaps, which undermines the promise of simplification with a SASE platform. With Cato IoT/OT Security, we are making it easy for customers. There is no integration required. It just works.”
Learn more about security-focused Internet of Things innovation at IoT Evolution Expo 2025! This will be taking place from February 11-13, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Part of the #TECHSUPERSHOW experience, this event combines conference programming with a robust exhibit hall, networking events and other activities, promoting educated togetherness between buyers and providers of business technology products and services that are huge for the Internet of Things.
Edited by
Greg Tavarez
