Zscaler Offers 360 Degree Solution to Ease Microsoft Office 365 Deployments

Zscaler, the global security cloud for the mobile enterprise, today announced Zscaler for Office 365, a new cloud-based service that enables security and visibility for Office 365 without the increased bandwidth and security limitations of traditional hub-and-spoke MPLS networks that can negatively impact user experience.

According to Microsoft, “Using Office 365 service offerings may increase your organization’s Internet traffic, so it is important to evaluate and assess the network impact of the services.”¹ As office applications move into the cloud and its users connect through encrypted SSL channels, traditional on-premise security appliances cannot effectively scale to provide security and visibility into network traffic.

Additionally, Microsoft notes, “Some network hardware may have limitations on the number of concurrent sessions that are supported.”² Microsoft Office 365 creates multiple connections from the client to the Microsoft data center, increasing the load on network firewalls. As a result, many organizations are forced to heavily invest in increasing MPLS bandwidth to mitigate network chokepoints and the negative impact of increased latency on users.

Zscaler Delivers Undiminished Performance
Zscaler for Office 365 enables any user on any device to connect directly to Microsoft Office 365 cloud services without backhauling traffic over expensive MPLS networks or mobile traffic VPNs. Routing Microsoft Office 365 traffic through Zscaler minimizes the burden of multiple connections on network firewalls. Dynamic bandwidth controls prioritize Microsoft Office 365 over non business-critical applications, such as YouTube and Facebook, delivering an enhanced user experience.

Additional benefits of Zscaler for Office 365 include:

• Advanced Security & Control – Set policy to allow or block Office 365 usage. Implement data leakage prevention (DLP) controls to ensure compliance with corporate policy. Extend advanced threat protection against modern malware, including zero-day attacks, botnets and APTs.
• Real-time Visibility & Reporting – Obtain granular insight into Office 365 activity from an organizational or user level, even SSL traffic during encrypted sessions. View Office 365 bandwidth and transaction analytics for bandwidth capacity planning and monitoring.

“As organizations adopt Microsoft Office 365, it is illogical to force cloud-bound traffic through old hub-and-spoke networks and on-premise security appliances that create high costs and a negative user experience,” said Jay Chaudhry, co-founder and CEO, Zscaler. “Zscaler for Office 365 enforces security, provides real-time visibility and delivers an unparalleled user experience, enabling organizations to easily continue using the applications they know and love.”

Zscaler for Office 365 is available now.
For more information, please visit www.zscaler.com/cloud-security/office-365-security.php

¹ http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh852542.aspx

² http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh852516.aspx