Fortinet adds management, AI features to network security platform

Fortinet is adding a ton of new features to its flagship operating system, including expanded support for SD-WAN and secure access service edge (SASE) and new generative AI assistance to help customers effectively manage network and security administration.

The latest version of its FortiOS operating system includes hundreds of enhancements aimed at helping customers eliminate the complexity of managing disparate systems and letting them implement consistent enterprise-wide network and security policies, according to John Maddison, chief marketing officer and executive vice president of products for Fortinet.

FortiOS is the vendor’s operating system for the FortiGate family of hardware and virtual components. FortiOS also implements the vendor’s overarching Fortinet Security Fabric platform and includes integrated network security capabilities such as firewalling, access control, and authentication in addition to SD-WAN, SASE, switching, and wired and wireless services.

On the security side, the company has added a managed security service that lets Fortinet deploy, configure, monitor, and manage customized FortiGate deployments. And a new managed SASE/Zero Trust Network Access service lets Fortinet onboard SASE components and configure the company’s SASE package, FortiSASE, which offloads the task of managing this element of the cybersecurity organization from local NOC or SOC teams, Maddison said.

In addition, FortiOS now includes Data Loss Prevention features to detect and block sensitive data from leaving distributed data resources in its FortiGate and SASE packages. Centralized data protection combined with enforcement points across the Fortinet Security Fabric will enable more enterprises to adopt and manage a complete DLP strategy, Maddison said.

Additional security enhancements include:

• The FortiClient unified protection agent is gaining endpoint detection and response (EDR) features to add ransomware protection, behavior-based detections, and automated response, as well as deeper visibility, control, and ZTNA remote access capabilities. FortiClient now features VPN, ZTNA, endpoint protection (EPP), EDR, DEM, network access control (NAC), and SASE support, effectively reducing the need for multiple agents which complicate many distributed environments, Fortinet stated.

• The vendor’s FortiGate NGFW now includes real-time inline detection and prevention of AI-powered attacks and can recognize and block even the most intricate and novel threats, Fortinet stated. An upgrade to the AI-powered Inline Malware Prevention Service includes new features such as real-time anti-phishing and an accelerated AI pre-filter.

FortiAnalyzer, which is the vendor’s security analytics and log management platform, also gained AI-based enhancements. The new features include the ability to learn and detect network configurations, events, and alerts, along with advanced threat visualization, according to the company. It also introduces a Security Automation Subscription that offers features such as premium reports, event handlers, and incident response playbooks, the company stated.

Other Security Fabric AI enhancements improve threat analysis and response and streamline network and security operations by tying the Fortinet Advisor (FortiAI) system into the vendor’s core data lake. This is aimed at helping security operations teams make more informed decisions, respond to threats faster, and simplify routine and complex tasks. The AI-based FortiAI assistant is available as part of Fortinet’s FortiSIEM security information and event management platform and FortiSOAR security orchestration, automation, and response product.

Expanding FortiAI across the Fortinet Security Fabric and into the data lake expedites decision making, and helps detect and remediate incidents quickly, the company stated.

Other AI-related enhancements include:

• A new FortiAI assistant utilizing generative AI can help organizations transition to public clouds and provide guidance on planning and deploying applications and services within specific cloud platforms. This service will be available within cloud provider offerings, such as FortiAI for AWS and FortiAI for Azure, the vendor stated.

• Another genAI-based assistant, FortiAI for Management, Provisioning, Docs, & Support can help with platform management, new product and feature deployment, network monitoring, and accessing documentation and support assets. FortiAI facilitates faster decision making, helps detect and remediate incidents quickly, and ensures organizations can easily adopt the technologies they require for effective management, according to Fortinet.

Finally, FortiOS 7.6 adds more than 20 new SD-WAN support capabilities to streamline operations and improve user experience. Enhancements to Overlay Orchestration simplify and automate connectivity across multiple clouds to streamline operations. Improvements such as Underlay Bandwidth and Quality Monitoring Service provide link, path, and application performance monitoring to optimize user experience and simplify operations, according to the vendor.

“Our SD-WAN technology basically self-configures and connects applications right away, but it doesn’t always know what the best connection is—what we are doing is adding more intelligence around how and where it sends the application traffic,” Maddison said. “In addition, if an ISP is down we can direct traffic elsewhere around the problem.”