Software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) is the cloud security solution of choice for around half (49%) of UK businesses, who have either deployed it or are planning to do so in the next 12 months, according to a report by Barracuda Networks.
The research also found this approach is being used by 27% of UK decision makers, who have added security to their public cloud, whilst 33% said SD-WAN is their preferred additional security solution to add to the public cloud.
In the study, global IT decision makers from a broad range of sectors across EMEA, APAC and the US were surveyed about their attitude to SD-WAN; a targeted, software-defined approach to the traditional wide-area network.
Nearly half (48%) of UK respondents thought SD-WAN improved overall connectivity, while 45% said it increased network flexibility and agility. None of those surveyed from the UK said there were no benefits in deploying the software.
The sector with the highest uptake of SD-WAN in the EMEA region was construction and property, with 80% of respondents from this area saying they have already deployed it, or expect to in the next 12 months. This was followed by the IT technology and telecoms industries (76%).
There is currently zero deployment of SD-WAN in EMEA public sector organizations, although 35% are in the process, or expect to do so in the next year, according to the analysis.
Microsoft Azure was the most popular SD-WAN product; it was 50% more favored globally than Amazon AWS and 125% more preferred than Google GCP. The survey indicated that Microsoft Azure was perceived to be more secure and user friendly than AWS and GCP.
Klaus Gheri, VP, network security, Barracuda, commented: “As more organizations move to the public cloud, SD-WAN technology is a critical part of securing these cloud deployments. By deploying an all-in-one, secure SD-WAN solution natively built into the public cloud network, organizations can reap the full benefits of public cloud.”