Pharmaceutical Company Prescribes a Dose of WatchGuard Security
Challenge
Having been in business since 1980 and evolving from a family company to a corporation with 10 international offices, Stein Laboratories is a Costa Rican company dedicated to the production and commercialization of medicines for its global customers. Stein Labs knew that they needed to protect their network and that their outdated firewalls would put them at risk from today’s threats. The search was on for Stein Labs to find a solution that provided affordable, secure and easy-to-deploy VPN access to all its branch offices. “We used to work with Cisco and Fortinet. WatchGuard is easier to use, easier to maintain and easier to configure,” explained Jonathan Cruz Hidalgo, manager of infrastructure and communications at Stein Labs. “It was simple once we found a partner willing to train and work with us.”
Solution
The servers at Stein Labs were handling large amounts of traffic across their international offices, to the point where servers had to be restarted every third day. As a first step, Stein Labs began evaluating security options from different security brands, including WatchGuard, Cisco and Fortinet. Based on affordability, ease of use and maintenance, Stein Labs chose WatchGuard as the right partner to secure their network. “All the other brands were eliminated due to cost and the long-term need for recurring maintenance services,” Jonathan evaluated.
When the M500, XTM 26, XTM 33, and XTM 535 Firebox appliances were deployed, Stein Labs was able to provide secure VPN solutions to all its international locations. For a business protecting valuable patient information, it’s critical that these security solutions are updated quickly and easily. “The most useful and amazing part of the deployment is that updating a WatchGuard appliance takes 5 minutes, which is very important for us,” Jonathan noted. Stein Labs also opted to secure all wireless connections by the deployment of WatchGuard AP120s and AP200s.
Result
By switching to WatchGuard, Stein Labs consolidated all servers and as a result, deployed one appliance per location, without the security concerns that come with an outdated firewall. Complete with support and ease of usability, Stein Labs is not only saving money but time and resources as well. “The partner’s follow-up is what’s the most valuable to us. Of course, the money saved is a nice value as well,” concluded Jonathan. “I would have to say, the cost benefit is incredible, and let’s not forget, the timely response of WatchGuard support is amazing.”