Cato SASE Cloud Platform vs Menlo Protect comparison

Cato Networks is a leading SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) platform, combining SD-WAN and network security to obtain a cloud-native service. Cato Networks optimizes and secures application access for users and identities. The platform delivers a next-generation secure networking architecture that minimizes legacy IT infrastructures’ complexity, costs, and risks. The goal of Cato Suite is to connect any user to any application securely and optimally.

Cato Suite runs on a private global network of more than 65 PoPs (points of presence) connected via SLA-backed network providers. The service can connect branches, data centers, users, and clouds. Cato can be deployed in stages to augment legacy network services.

Cato Suite delivers end-to-end route optimization for WAN and cloud traffic. The architecture is self-healing, enabling a high service uptime.

Cato Features

Cato Cloud has a global backbone to deliver a reliable, global network. Here are some key SD-WAN features of Cato Cloud.

• Optimizes traffic flows: The Cato Suite can individually optimize traffic flows in the last mile - from the customer’s location to the point of presence, and also between PoPs. This feature eliminates the need for internet providers to hand off traffic to each other, avoiding the resulting latency and congestion.
  
• Controls and manages bandwidth: The software-defined overlay is encrypted across the entire cloud infrastructure. This overlay uses application-aware routing, analyzing latency and loss data to choose the best route according to network conditions. These features, like protocol priority marking, enable the system to ensure the performance of real-time applications.
  
• Delivers redundancy and failover: By connecting the points of presence with multiple Tier-1 IPs, Cato builds the redundancy needed to ensure security and highly available service.
  
• Cloud-native: Cato is built as a scalable, resilient, and elastic cloud service.
• Converged: The platform converges SD-WAN and network security into a single infrastructure framework.
  
• Secures all edges: Cato Network can secure and optimize traffic from all users, locations, applications, and clouds.

What challenges does Cato Network solve?

• Migration to SD-WAN

MPLS (multi-protocol label switching) networks are usually expensive and limited in their capacity. Cato simplifies migrating to a faster, higher-capacity internet and SASE cloud. Cato SD-WAN appliances enable customers to improve usable capacity and resiliency.

• Global connectivity optimization

Customers who suffer from the challenge of high latency and network inconsistency can use Cato to deliver a consistent connection and user experience to access on-premises and cloud applications.

• Securing branch internet access

Cato’s complete network security stack connects all branch locations to the Cato cloud, therefore protecting all traffic, both internet-bound and WAN, with enterprise-grade, cloud-based security services. This capability avoids having to backhaul internet traffic to a data center or hub or having to implement stand-alone cloud security solutions.

• Cloud acceleration and control

Organizations using Cato notice an acceleration of cloud traffic. Cato achieves this by routing all traffic from the edges to the PoP closest to the data center. Because of the close distance between the two, the latency is near zero.

Reviews from Real Users

An IT manager/project coordinator at a healthcare company says that “[Cato is] a cloud-based solution that integrates well with everything. They are the classic SaaS solution.”

Yeong-Gi L., a network engineer at Snetsystems, notes that “The solution is very stable. The scalability is quite good. Technical support was always helpful and responsive. The integration capabilities are not a problem at all.”

"The most valuable feature is that it also works as a next-gen firewall because it has security features," says Lorenzo S., senior solutions consultant Lead at MDI.

Menlo Secure Cloud Browser

The Menlo Secure Cloud Browser works with HEAT Shield and the Menlo Posture Manager to transform any browser into a secure enterprise browser. By fetching and processing web content within a cloud-native platform, it protects endpoints from internet-borne threats like phishing and evasive malware. AI-powered cloud content inspection, coupled with a wide range of protective features, enables administrators to enforce granular usage policies based on user, content, or website categories, ensuring a secure and risk-free browsing experience across the enterprise.

Menlo Security HEAT Shield

Menlo Security HEAT Shield detects and protects against highly evasive advanced malware threats and targeted zero-day phishing attacks. HEAT Shield puts AI-powered “eyes” on browser and dynamic web content, so users can focus on work, not threats. Working in tandem with Menlo Secure Cloud Browser, HEAT Shield provides an additional layer of security, enabling real-time threat detection and prevention. Through a combination of object detection, URL risk scoring, and correlated analysis of web page elements, HEAT Shield effectively identifies and neutralizes evasive threats, significantly reducing the exposure window compared to traditional security solutions. Menlo HEAT Shield can catch zero-day threats and brings modern protections to every single user, no matter where they work.

Remote Browser Isolation

Menlo Security Remote Browser Isolation provides a prevention-first approach, allowing users to work without worry by protecting them against targeted phishing and evasive malware threats. Menlo Security gives IT teams peace of mind without sacrificing speed for security and provides a seamless browsing experience for users, allowing them to work across any website, SaaS platform or private application. Menlo Security Remote Browser Isolation provides unmatched scalability for any size organization and fluctuating traffic loads for remote browsing sessions, applications, or digital documents. It doesn’t matter if you have 300 or 3 million users. Menlo scales across all users, entire organizations and all applications with zero impact to end user performance or the native browser experience.