SSE vs. SWG: Why SWG Is Essential for SSE Solutions

What Is a Secure Web Gateway (SWG)?

A SWG (pronounced "swig") is essentially a security checkpoint that inspects and filters web traffic to protect users from web-borne threats. It defends against malware, phishing, and other advanced threats while allowing organizations to enforce web access policies. Most SWGs also support data loss prevention (DLP), inspection of encrypted traffic, and other features.

With the global shift toward cloud-first and hybrid work strategies, SWG has become a critical layer of the SSE framework. SWG’s capabilities fit seamlessly into SSE, unifying web protection at scale with other holistic security measures.

Read the full article: What Is a Secure Web Gateway (SWG)?

What Is Security Service Edge (SSE)?

SSE is a cloud-delivered framework that consolidates access control, threat protection, and secure connectivity in a unified solution. It enhances security and user experiences through four primary components:

• Secure web gateway (SWG) to filter web traffic and enforce policies
• Zero trust network access (ZTNA) to control access to private apps
• Cloud access security broker (CASB) to monitor and protect access to cloud apps
• Firewall as a service (FWaaS) to deliver firewall functions from the cloud

By migrating security and access controls to the cloud, SSE offers a flexible, scalable alternative to network-centric architectures. While those legacy models were built to secure traditional network perimeters, SSE is built to secure users and applications across modern, distributed environments.

Read the full article: What Is Security Service Edge (SSE)?

Benefits of SWG Within the SSE Framework

SWGs work to ensure web traffic is secure and optimized, aligned with the overall zero trust and cloud native aims of the SSE framework. To these ends, SWG provides:

• Threat mitigation at scale: SWGs filter web traffic to block malicious websites, prevent malware infections, and enforce policies in real time.
• Visibility into encrypted traffic: SWG delivers scalable TLS/SSL inspection to pinpoint and block threats hidden in encrypted sessions—a must now that over 95% of web traffic is encrypted.
• Unified policy enforcement: SWG helps organizations seamlessly implement and enforce consistent traffic policies across user devices, applications, and cloud services.
• Cloud native scalability: Cloud SWGs are built to operate in cloud native SSE frameworks, offering high-performance web protection that scales globally with the demands of distributed workforces.
• Enhanced user experience: Cloud-based SWGs use globally distributed points of presence (PoPs) to inspect traffic locally, reducing latency compared to backhauling methods.

Why SSE Can't Work Without an Effective SWG

SSE delivers a secure, flexible framework with which to protect users and data while supporting modern, decentralized architectures. SWG, then, functions as the foundation of that framework. Not just any SWG is sufficient to get the job done, however. SSE relies on an effective, capable SWG to uphold much of its core functionality.

Without scalable TLS/SSL inspection, web traffic becomes opaque, creating blind spots where malware and phishing threats can thrive. An effective SWG must provide visibility and protection across all web traffic—even encrypted traffic, where more than 87% of today's threats hide. Lack of visibility leaves the entire SSE framework vulnerable to countless web-borne attacks.

On-premises and virtualized SWGs fall short in distributed environments, providing fragmented, weak security. Built for perimeter-based architectures, legacy SWGs struggle to enforce consistent policies for remote users and cloud applications. Only a cloud native SWG can deliver the unified, scalable oversight SSE needs to secure decentralized operations.

Traditional SWG architectures also hurt performance and user experiences by backhauling traffic through centralized infrastructure for enforcement, introducing latency and disrupting workflows. A cloud native SWG can leverage globally distributed infrastructure to inspect traffic closer to the user, reducing latency and delivering fast, seamless access.

To keep pace with the demands of modern businesses, SSE requires a scalable, advanced, and cloud-ready SWG. Anything less leads to operational inefficiencies and critical security gaps.

Choosing the Right SWG and SSE Solution

With a powerful cloud native SWG at its core, SSE offers an efficient platform to keep your organization productive, agile, and secure. However, not every SSE solution delivers the same level of service. As you consider your options, it's important to look for SSE offerings that provide:

✅ Scalable Global Performance
To deliver high scalability for optimal performance and availability in any location, your SSE solution needs to operate on a proven global infrastructure.

✅ Zero Trust Architecture
Only an SSE solution built from the ground up on zero trust principles can ensure least-privileged access and effectively minimize your attack surface.

✅ Scalable TLS/SSL Inspection
To effectively protect against emerging threats and sensitive data loss, your SSE solution must inspect 100% of traffic, including encrypted data.

✅ Flexible Deployment and Management
SSE is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Your platform needs to be customizable to your organization's needs and growth, including hybrid and cloud-first operations.

✅ Strong User Experiences
All your traffic will flow through the SSE framework. Paired with robust experience monitoring, it should offer deep visibility to help you optimize user experiences in real time.

✅ Seamless Integration
A flexible SSE platform helps you extend efficiency and simplicity into SD-WAN connectivity, automation, orchestration, identity, and more.

✅ Clear Value During Pilot Testing
Consider SSE vendors that offer seamless pilots, global service edges, a centralized UI, and a smooth path to full implementation.

How Zscaler Can Help

Zscaler Internet Access™ incorporates a decade of SWG leadership into the world’s most deployed SSE solution. With Zscaler, organizations can replace cumbersome legacy architectures with scalable zero trust security that delivers robust connectivity and visibility.

Combining proven expertise and advanced solutions backed by years of innovation, our AI-powered SSE platform provides:

• Advanced threat protection: Minimize the attack surface and stop compromise, lateral movement, and data loss threats like ransomware.
• Reduced costs and complexity: Take advantage of fast, secure, direct-to-cloud access that removes the need for edge and branch firewalls.
• Comprehensive data protection: Prevent accidental exposure, theft, and double extortion ransomware across SaaS apps and public cloud platforms.
• Superior user experience: Empower employees and third parties, wherever they are, with high-performance connectivity to web and cloud services.