Compare the Cloud Interviews Tim Ayling, UK Channel Director of Trend Micro
CTC: Tim tell us your all about yourself?
I’ve been in the IT security game for over 15 years now (where’s that time gone?!), working for software vendors & consultancies in various roles. I’ve got a couple of kids, lived abroad for several years, and am a big Brighton fan – these are not linked!
CTC: Most people view Trend as a consumer anti-virus vendor what is Trends offering in the cloud?
That was my perception before I joined, but the things we’re doing with virtualisation and cloud are really ground-breaking in my opinion. The benefits for Deep Security for Cloud Service Providers is almost a no-brainer, allowing CSPs to offer Virtual Patching, anti-malware, integrity monitoring, firewalls (and more) in a multi-tenanted fashion as a tick-box exercise with a pricing model that fits. Our policy-based encryption technology, Secure Cloud, is also hugely popular in the US especially – but that will become more important locally next year when the EU Directive comes into play.
CTC: So can deep security be provided as a managed service by partners?
Absolutely. We have a multi-tenanted version that allows MSP’s to offer everything we have in Deep Security as a service. We’ve also learnt that traditional pricing models don’t work and now fit into the new Service Provider’s method.
CTC: How can partners get a demonstration of the deep security suite?
Give me a call! It’s actually really easy. We have a team of people in Cork, our EMEA Headquarters, who spend their time running demo’s etc. They’re a great team and we’re lucky to have them.
CTC: Where do you see revenue gains and return on investment from migrating to Deep Security?
I could go on for ever here, but I’ll try to keep it simple.
Deep Security frees staff from continually configuring, updating and patching agents…
Deep Security frees staff from continually configuring, updating and patching agents, provides a more manageable way to secure virtual machines, increases consolidation ratios, protects virtual servers as they move between a data centre and public cloud, and provides a security suite that can’t be matched. An ROI built on improved consolidation ratios alone is usually enough.
CTC: Where are you seeing the product deployed?
That’s a hard question as there is no vertical that stands out. Having said that, since the release of our multi-tenanted version, the CSP and data centre markets have boomed for us. One of the key business cases appears to be the virtual patching capabilities, meaning the infrastructure team don’t have the same pressures to regularly patch anymore. I never realised the scale of the patching problem until I joined Trend!
CTC: What management and orchestration panels do you integrate with?
Our open architecture means we can integrate with a huge raft of orchestration panels, so it’s an open-ended question really. There are some we’re going a step further with, such as Abiquo, but we obviously can’t afford to go solo with this.
CTC: Tim, if you was the CEO of a cloud or managed service provider how would you deploy Deep Security both commercially and technically?
Well you would obviously expect me to say that it’s best to install the lot and quickly! The truth is that everyone is different and they have different priorities. You have ultra-secure providers, such as The Bunker, who would benefit from deploying everything and making sure the world knows. Others may be providing a low-cost alternative and will be looking for up-sell opportunities, and in that case it may be best to deploy a version that allows the end-customer to choose which security components, if any, they want. I wouldn’t ever recommend a deployment path that is good for all.
CTC: have you got any links or helpful guidance for people wishing to explore further?
Yes, indeed:
- Deep Security
- Deep Discovery
- Research Papers
CTC: Here is a challenge Tim in 150 simple words describe why a cloud provider or MSP should deploy Trend over your competition!
Trend are known to be two years ahead of the competition when it comes to Service Provider security. Putting the security question aside, our architecture enables huge performance increases when securing virtualised environments enabling service providers to fit more VMs on each host. Our multi-tenanted approach and flexible service provider licensing model also ensures we fit both technically and commercial into the way service providers want to work.
From the security standpoint, our Smart Protection Network is the largest threat database in the world, covering traditional threats on the web, email and files, as well as the emerging threats around mobile applications – we’ve downloaded every app on Google’s Play Store and given them a reputation score. This is big data before big data existed.
Before I joined Trend I thought of the company as an AV vendor. I now see Trend as the key innovators in the security space – years ahead in many aspects, especially virtualisation and cloud.
CTC: Tim, what resources are available in terms of technical training, sales guidance and commercial modelling from Trend for new partners or existing partners wishing to use Deep Security?
Trend are 25 years old, and have been a channel-led company that whole time. We’re a billion dollar company with over a billion in the bank, so it’s clearly worked! We provide regular technical training, we have events specifically for our channel, we have flexible commercial models and much more. Anyone who has been to our EMEA HQ in Cork who would understand the machine we have working behind us to make sure our partners succeed. I’ve never worked for a company with the human resources Trend has working for the good of the company and its partners.
CTC: Tim, a question we ask everyone, what is your definition of cloud computing?
For me cloud computing is where an organisation entrusts their data and systems with a remote service, and that data is accessed through the web. That’s it in a nutshell, but of course that is very open-ended & probably doesn’t encapsulate everything.
CTC: Tim, have you got any events or shows coming up where you can interface with partners and customers?
We were at Infosec in London last month in a big way. We do a raft of events though, and are especially prevalent at the VMUG events across the UK. We’re also doing the VMware PEX events in the UK, and can be found somewhere at most cloud events. We also have a channel-specific event coming up which interested partners can talk to me about.
CTC: and finally Tim for anyone reading this blog what security tips would you offer them?
Having worked in both software and consultancy, I understand the importance of tools and processes. One doesn’t work without the other, though processes need to be mapped first. I would also suggest a proactive approach to security, rather than reactive. Too many companies spend vast amounts of money after an incident, which seems absurd to me. Like it or not, your company will be a target.
To get in touch with the Cloud Team at Trend Micro email [email protected] to be introduced.