SonicWall Recognizes Partners, Distributors for Outstanding Performance in 2021

/0 Comments/in , /by

2021 was a banner year for SonicWall, and we owe a lot of our success to our partners and distributors in EMEA. This dedicated group has worked tirelessly to help safeguard our customers for well over a decade, leveraging SonicWall solutions and unmatched customer service to protect against the rising tide of cybercrime — and for this we offer our sincere and heartfelt thanks.

Even among this highly accomplished group, however, a select few have distinguished themselves. Out of a wide pool of nominees, one partner per region was chosen in each category to be recognized for outstanding performance in 2021. These selections were made based on factors such as annual turnover, portfolio distribution, online activities, project success rate and certification level, along with their level of commitment and feedback from their team.

“SonicWall’s success has always been dependent on delivering highly efficient security solutions through its valued partners and distributors,” said SonicWall Vice President EMEA, Terry Greer-King. “We are thrilled to acknowledge these extraordinary SonicWall SecureFirst partners who provide world-class security services to organizations of all sizes. We value the loyal relationships we’ve built with our partners and customers – and these awards are one way to recognize their outstanding work.”

We are pleased to announce the FY2022 SonicWall Award winners in the following categories:

United Kingdom

Ireland

Norway

Germany

Switzerland

Austria

Spain

Italy

France

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

South Africa

Netherlands & Belgium

 

SonicWall offers our utmost congratulations to all the award recipients — along with our considerable thanks for your outstanding achievements in 2021. Together, we can make 2022 even more successful!

Want to find out more about the benefits of the SonicWall SecureFirst Partner Program and how to join our valued partner team? Click here for all the details.

CRN Recognizes Three SonicWall Employees on 2022 Women of the Channel List 

/0 Comments/in /by

SonicWall is thrilled to share that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named three global channel team members on CRN’s 2022 Women of the Channel List. SonicWall’s Sr. Director, Global Field Marketing Nicola Scheibe; Sr. Channel Account Manager Terra Paisley; and Sales Manager Misty Warhola were included on the annual list, which honors the incredible accomplishments of female leaders in the IT channel.

“The recognition of Nicola, Terra and Misty is a reflection of their commitment to our partner network and demonstrates the breadth and depth of talent at SonicWall,” said SonicWall Vice President, North America Channel Sales HoJin Kim. “I am grateful to CRN for recognizing their outstanding contributions, as these leaders have been integral in driving our channel expansion over the last several years.”

By bringing innovative concepts, strategic business planning and comprehensive channel initiatives to life, these extraordinary women support partners and customers with exceptional leadership. CRN celebrates these women, who are so deserving of recognition, for their constant dedication to channel excellence.

“We are proud to once again recognize the remarkable leaders on this year’s Women of the Channel list. Their influence, confidence and diligence continue to accelerate channel success significantly,” said Blaine Raddon, CEO of The Channel Company. “Their accomplishments will inspire others, and we look forward to witnessing their future contributions to the channel.”

Those named on this annual list come from all corners of the IT channel — including vendors, distributors and solution providers whose vision, expertise and contributions make an impact on the industry every day.

CRN’s 2022 Women of the Channel list will be featured in the June issue of CRN Magazine and online at www.CRN.com/WOTC.

Four Cybersecurity Actions to Lock it All Down

/0 Comments/in /by

You are not paranoid; cybercriminals really are trying to hack your security and steal your information. And the proof is in the numbers.

According to the 2022 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report, there were 623 million ransomware attacks globally, a 105% increase over 2020. There was also a sharp triple-digit increase in encrypted threats, rising to an astounding 10 million attacks. And as if you didn’t have enough to worry about, cryptojacking is on an upswing with 97 million incidents recorded, a 19% increase year-over-year.

Some people may choose to ignore the data and throw caution to the wind. If they’re lucky, a hack will be a minor inconvenience, and their anti-virus software will stop the malware before it can cause serious damage. However, if they’re among the growing thousands of victims each year, hackers will force them to pay a ransom for their precious data, steal their identity or just wipe out their devices completely.

And you wonder, what could be worse?

One hack of a single individual can lead to a cascade of hacks and much larger problems. For instance, hackers can break into your personal computer without you knowing it, add malware to one of your devices that unpacks wherever you go, bypassing firewalls and other security, straight into your home network, friend’s home, the library, and your workplace.

We all could stand to be a little more careful. A “cybersecure mindset” protects you, your devices, and your data and everywhere you connect your devices. So, when we say, “Be Cyber Smart and Lock It Down,” what we mean is taking personal responsibility for not only how you connect but also actions you take to keep yourself secure.

Here are FOUR COUNTERMEASURES that everyone can use to level up and lock it down:

1.    PROTECT yourself.

Start with passwords and lockdown your devices, software and information with strong ones that protect you from becoming an easy hack. There are some basic rules for good passwords. The first is the length – a minimum of 14 characters but 16 is better, with a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, plus numbers: security experts recommend at least 4 non-repeating numbers. And don’t forget symbols (ex: @ # $), at least one but two is better. Check with your service provider; they may have specific requirements like the length and number, and type of symbols. One very important rule: ensure that your passwords are unique for each use. Avoid obvious sources like your address, recognizable names, dates, and phone numbers. Avoid any information that someone may learn by reading your social media profiles. Another important rule, USE YOUR PASSWORDS and turn on two-step authentication (2FA) wherever you can. Many phones allow biometric recognition to validate you and simplify logging in for each access. There’s more to know about passwords, check out this article we found from Help Net Security.

2.    PROTECT your personal identification.

Privacy is a matter of personal choice. We want to open some things for the sake of convenience (shopping and health apps, for instance). However, the privacy settings you set on your devices and apps could also open you up to hacks. Being “smart” about your cybersecurity means knowing how hackers attack devices and steal information from open apps. It also means being aware of where your personal information winds up. Security experts recommend that you set your privacy settings based on actual need for specific tasks. For instance, change your privacy settings when conditions change, like when traveling or using public networks (e.g., coffee shop Wi-Fi, more on that later).

3.    PROTECT your data.

Maybe it seems obvious, but your data (photos, reports, accounting, proprietary documents) are your most vulnerable possessions. We also want to take extra care of our social security numbers, bank accounts, and credit card numbers. And all of that is at risk when we leave it in open apps (no password) or send it on unencrypted emails. So please keep it safe and LOCK IT DOWN! And be very wary of phishing campaigns. Hackers use any means they can to break into your devices and network. For example, they’ll spoof organizations you trust, friends, family members, co-workers, or even your boss. Phishing messages can come by email or phone text. Some of these messages look very authentic. We’ll go into more detail about how to detect phishing messages in another post, but you can make a personal policy to never share private information via email or text with anyone.

4.    PROTECT your devices.

If you didn’t know already, public Wi-Fi hotspots are not secure. Unfortunately, that means the public hotspots at your favorite coffee shop, restaurants, shopping malls, libraries, and especially airports. With minimal knowledge and equipment, hackers can scan unencrypted data streams that contain passwords and account information that you send and receive. Several years ago, scammers took it further and created elaborate spoof Wi-Fi networks with name and branding marks similar to what people expected. However, there are several things you can do to lock it down:

  • Turn off the Wi-Fi auto-connect feature on your devices. Turn it back on when you need it and choose the networks you want to use.
  • Use secure wireless networks that have WPA or WPA2 password protection. Unfortunately, these are uncommon for places like the local coffee shop or the airport, so they may be challenging to find.
  • Install mobile security software with malware and virus detection for laptops, pads, and phones. You may also install a VPN (a virtual private network) that encrypts your data stream even if the Wi-Fi network does not.

Do what it takes to adopt a Cybersecure Mindset.

Remember that when it comes to cybersecurity, the human element can be the strongest or weakest point in the armor.

Human behavior is without doubt the biggest culprit in IT security incidents. This is evident in email phishing. It deceives people into clicking on malicious links or attachments. This makes it difficult to distinguish between legitimate emails and potential threats. According to a study by Myers-Briggs, a research company based in the UK, 80% of companies believe human factors, such as mistakes or leniency with login security, are a major cause of cybersecurity risk. Therefore, it is vital that we do what it takes to adopt a ‘cybersecure mindset’ to protect our homes, communities and our workplaces.

Being aware is not being paranoid; it recognizes that cybercriminals really are trying to hack our security, steal our property, and do us great damage.

#BeCyberSmart

Five Times Flawless: SonicWall Earns Its Fifth Perfect Score from ICSA Labs

/0 Comments/in /by

It’s exactly one week after National High Five Day, and exactly one week before Cinco de Mayo. But this year, SonicWall has its own reason to celebrate the number five: SonicWall Capture Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) with patented Real-Time Deep Memory Inspection (RTDMI)™ just earned its fifth consecutive perfect score in independent ICSA testing.

Starting in Q1 2021, SonicWall Capture ATP has found 100% of malicious threats in quarterly test rounds without issuing a single false positive. This means that for 160 days of continuous testing, consisting of 6,719 total test runs, SonicWall Capture ATP found all 3,131 malicious samples — the majority of which were four hours old or less. And it did so without misidentifying a single one of the 3,588 innocuous apps scattered throughout.

“SonicWall has now received an amazing five consecutive perfect scores when tested against some of the most unknown and rigorous threats — an unprecedented achievement among tested vendors,” said SonicWall President and CEO Bill Conner. “These third-party, real-world tests validate SonicWall as a clear leader in the cybersecurity space and play a significant role in our efforts to deliver quality-driven security products.”

As the latest in a streak of perfect scores, SonicWall’s Q1 2022 test results reflect not only excellence, but also consistency. From Jan. 19 through Feb. 19, 2022, a SonicWall NSa 3600 next-generation firewall equipped with Capture ATP and patented RTDMI™ technology was once again put through its paces. And once again, it correctly identified all 553 of the malicious samples (100% detection rate) without alerting on any of the 578 innocuous apps (0% false positive rate).

ICSA Advanced Threat Defense: Real-World Results

Standard ICSA Labs Advanced Threat Defense (ATD) testing evaluates vendor solutions designed to detect new threats that traditional security products miss.

Eligible security vendors are tested quarterly for a minimum of three weeks. During that time, ICSA Labs subjects the vendors’ advanced threat solutions to hundreds of test runs consisting of a mixture of innocuous applications, new threats and little-known threats. These threats are delivered via the primary vectors that lead to enterprise breaches, according to Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report. The test cycles evaluate how good vendor ATD solutions are at detecting unknown and little-known threats — and whether they can do so while minimizing false positives.

100% Efficacy. One Solution.

The continued success of SonicWall Capture ATP with RTDMI is due to two main factors: the solution’s ability to identify even the most sophisticated and obfuscated threats, and its ability to use what it learns doing so to improve itself over time.

SonicWall Capture ATP is a multi-layer sandbox service designed to mitigate new forms of malware capable of circumventing traditional network defenses.

Included as part of Capture ATP, RTDMI™ leverages proprietary memory inspection, CPU instruction tracking and machine-learning capabilities to become increasingly efficient at recognizing and mitigating never-before-seen cyberattacks — including threats that traditional sandboxes will most likely miss.

And since RTDMI can detect malicious code or data in memory and in real time during execution, no malicious system behavior is necessary for detection. In other words, the presence of malicious code can be identified prior to any malicious behavior taking place, allowing for a quicker verdict.

Best of all, because it incorporates AI and machine learning technologies, RTDMI™ is continuously becoming more efficient and effective.

In 2021, the technology identified a total of 442,151 never-before-seen malware variants, a 65% increase over 2020’s count. And while 2022 numbers have not yet been tallied, in 14 of the last 16 quarters through the end of 2021, the number of new malware variants identified has exceeded that found in the previous quarter.

“In today’s fast-moving and unpredictable threat landscape, it is really hard to earn consistent third-party validation,” said SonicWall Vice President of Software Engineering & Threat Research Alex Dubrovsky. “Our five consecutive perfect scores are a confirmation of our vision and a significant milestone to the SonicWall team’s dedication to providing organizations with the very best threat intelligence technology.”

SonicWall SMA 1000 Series Earns Best-Of Enterprise VPNs Award from Expert Insights

/0 Comments/in /by

SonicWall is pleased to announce that it has been awarded an Expert Insights “Best-Of” award for its enterprise VPN solution: SMA 1000 Series.

SonicWall earned this coveted award thanks to its ability to empower remote workforces without sacrificing security or ease of use. The SonicWall SMA 1000 Series easily handles the influx of remote users on large, distributed networks by enabling organizations to scale up to a million remote VPN users.

“The SMA 1000 Series appliances enable organizations to deliver best-in-class secure access to any network or application, anytime, from anywhere and any device — all while minimizing attack surfaces,” said SonicWall Executive Director of Product Marketing Kayvon Sadeghi. “We are incredibly honored to see our enterprise VPN solution be recognized by Expert Insights.”

Expert Insights’ Best-Of Awards are designed to recognize cloud technology providers across multiple software categories including cloud software, security and storage, highlighting up to 11 vendors in each category.

Best-Of award winners are chosen by Expert Insights’ editors, based on extensive research into each solution’s merits as a solution provider, customer reviews and how they compare to their competitors.

All recipients of these awards were specifically selected for their impressive features, strong capabilities, and positive user experiences. Expert Insights also takes into consideration pricing, target markets and the deployment process when selecting the top vendors.

You can view the full list of Expert Insights award winners here.

Award image

Shields Up: Preparing for Cyberattacks During Ukraine Crisis

/0 Comments/in , , /by

SonicWall provides real-time protection against HermeticWiper malware and Conti ransomware expected during escalating conflict in Ukraine.

With the recent escalation of events in Ukraine and the resulting sanctions imposed by various Western administrations, there is a dramatically heightened risk of cyberattacks on organizations in the United States, Europe and elsewhere.

State-sponsored threat actors and other cybercriminals will be actively targeting the U.S. and other businesses in an attempt to interfere with their operations, steal or destroy data, and damage infrastructure.

Your organization needs to have a heightened sense of awareness and security during this crisis.

In January 2022, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued Alert (AA22-011A): Understanding and Mitigating Russian State-Sponsored Cyber Threats to U.S. Critical Infrastructure. CISA also began urging U.S. organizations to prepare for data-wiping malware attacks (more below).

At that time, the “Ukraine Cyber Police say they are investigating the use of Log4j vulnerabilities and stolen credentials as another means of access to the networks and servers,” according to Bleeping Computer.

On Feb. 18, CISA shared that the New Zealand National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-NZ) released a General Security Advisory (GSA) on preparing for cyber threats relating to tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

CISA: Time to ‘Shield Up’

It is critical that you take preemptive measures in anticipation of a surge in cyberattacks targeting your business or organization. CISA has published ‘Shield Up,” which is helpful guidance for organizations of all sizes and their leaders. Some of the steps detailed by CISA include:

  • Reduce the likelihood of a damaging cyber intrusion.
  • Take steps to detect a potential intrusion quickly.
  • Ensure your organization is prepared to respond if an intrusion occurs.
  • Maximize your organization’s resilience to a destructive cyber incident.

Other important steps can make a big difference in deterring and/or detecting attacks, such as setting robust inbound policies on your network perimeter (e.g., preemptively blocking connections or sign-ins originating from Russia or other risky nations) and otherwise taking a highly cautious approach to all inbound traffic, even if it means trading off some performance for security.

SonicWall strongly urges that your organization be in touch with your internal and external cybersecurity professionals and resources to ensure that you are as prepared as you can be for the inevitable increase in cyberattacks.

SonicWall also stresses the importance of layered defenses, like IPS, email security, two-factor authentication and real-time sandboxing, such as Capture ATP with RTDMI. With a defense-in-depth strategy in place, your organization will be better prepared to detect the impact of a zero-day attack or other targeted threats.

SonicWall Protections Against Notable Cyberattacks

Zero-day attacks are becoming a common threat. While they may exploit previously unknown weaknesses, defenders have the advantage of being able to detect anomalous activity in real time, and contain and recover before destructive zero-days disrupt your business or organizations.

SonicWall actively protects organizations from cyberattack types known or feared to be used during the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

HeremticWiper Malware

SonicWall helps organizations proactively defend against emerging threats like HermeticWiper. For instance, SonicWall Capture ATP, with RTDMI, detected HeremticWiper as documented in our SonicAlert, “HermeticWiper Data-Wiping Malware Targeting Ukrainian Organizations.”

HeremticWiper Malware Signature Protection

  • GAV: HermeticWiper.A (Trojan)
  • GAV: HermeticWiper.A_1 (Trojan)

Conti Ransomware

The Conti ransomware gang publicly announced that they would attack any organization that launched a cyberattack against Russian infrastructure. As such, it’s important organizations have protection against Conti ransomware. Both SonicWall Capture ATP with RTDMI and active SonicWall firewall with current signatures are protected from Conti ransomware.

Conti Ransomware Signature Protection

  • GAV: Conti.RSM (Trojan)
  • GAV: Conti.RSM_2 (Trojan)
  • GAV: Conti.RSM_3 (Trojan)
  • GAV: Conti.RSM_4 (Trojan)
  • GAV: Conti.RSM_5 (Trojan)
  • GAV: Conti.RSM_6 (Trojan)

PartyTicket Ransomware

Believed to be deployed in conjunction with the aforementioned data-wiping HeremticWiper malware, SonicWall Capture Labs analyzed the PartyTicket ransomware in the SonicAlert, “A Look at PartyTicket Ransomware Targeting Ukrainian Systems.” The ransomware arrives as an executable Windows file, but overall appears to be unsophisticated ransomware created quickly to take advantage of the current climate.

SonicWall customers are protected from the PartyTicket ransomware variant via the below signature, as well as by real-time Capture ATP with RTDMI and Capture Client endpoint protection.

PartyTicket Ransomware Signature Protection

  • GAV: PartyTicket.RSM (Trojan)

For additional information, please visit sonicwall.com/support or the SonicWall Capture Labs Portal. You may also join discussions on the SonicWall Community.

Break Free with SonicWall Boundless 2022

/0 Comments/in , /by

SonicWall is proud to announce Boundless 2022, a worldwide virtual event, Feb. 23 & 24, connecting SonicWall partners with our elite innovators, experts, leaders and special guests. Join us for our largest partner event of the year, offering access to executives, global thinkers in cybersecurity, partner-focused content and the very latest updates on our technology vision.

With cyber threats of almost all types on the rise, the work of cybersecurity professionals has never been more important and potentially more rewarding. Threat vectors have widened so much that the daily battle of keeping our hybrid networks safe now includes securing infinite endpoints buried within multi-variable environments.

We’ve never lost sight of the fact that our partners are on the frontlines doing this hard work every day. Boundless 2022 is SonicWall’s opportunity to huddle with our partners and engage our mutual futures.

We’ve learned a lot, and it’s time to share.

Boundless 2022: A Virtual, Multi-Lingual Experience

Created and produced exclusively for SonicWall partners, we offer unparalleled content, insight, and expert analysis to help you succeed in 2022 and beyond. This year, we are running three regional events to ensure that partners can attend sessions in their time zone. Presentations will be available in multiple languages including English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, German and Italian.

Boundless 2022 offers:

  • Engaging and Informative Keynotes
  • Special Celebrity Guests Penn & Teller
  • Executive Leadership Sessions
  • Threat Landscape Update
  • Product Innovation Insights
  • Regional Partner Breakouts

Hosted by Celebrity Guests Penn & Teller

Boundless 2022’s entertainment comes from the renowned magic team, Penn & Teller, which complements the theme of our partner-focused event.

The legendary magicians have made a long career cutting the magic rulebook in half (they’ve also burned it, boiled it, made it vanish several times). They surprised audiences with their comedy and shocked the performing community with their fun and unabashed approach to presenting, while revealing secrets of stage magic as part of the entertainment.

Similarly, SonicWall seeks to empower its partners to break away from constrained security methodology toward unbound techniques with faster and more cost-effective technology. And like Penn & Teller, we’re removing the shroud of mystery and offering detailed and frank discussions from cybersecurity thought-leaders and SonicWall executives.

PLUS Penn & Teller ask that attendees bring along a deck of cards to the live virtual event so that they may participate in a live magic trick.

Join Us in Your Time Zone and in Your Language

Boundless 2022 registration is now open. Visit the Boundless 2022 website to reserve your virtual seat today!

To learn more about SonicWall and Boundless 2022, please visit www.Boundless2022.com.

SonicWall’s Bob VanKirk, HoJin Kim & David Bankemper Earn 2022 CRN Channel Chief Recognition

/0 Comments/in , /by

SonicWall is thrilled to share that CRN has named three of its sales leaders to the 2022 Channel Chiefs list: Bob VanKirk, HoJin Kim and David Bankemper. CRN’s annual Channel Chiefs project identifies top IT channel vendor executives who continually demonstrate expertise, influence and innovation in channel leadership.

“CRN’s 2022 Channel Chiefs recognition is given exclusively to the foremost channel executives who consistently design, promote, and execute effective partner programs and strategies,” said Blaine Raddon, CEO of The Channel Company. “We’re thrilled to recognize the tireless work and unwavering commitment these honorees put into fostering outstanding business innovation and building strong partner programs to drive channel engagement and success.”

As Chief Revenue Officer for SonicWall, Bob VanKirk is responsible for driving top-line sales across SonicWall’s global distribution network and oversees the teams, strategy and execution related to SonicWall’s global partner success.

HoJin Kim, Vice President, Worldwide Channels for SonicWall, is responsible for driving the development of SonicWall’s global channel efforts. He leads the implementation of the company’s modern channel strategy to build a sustainable competitive advantage for SonicWall’s partners.

David Bankemper is the Senior Director, Channel Sales for SonicWall and has helped to guide continued investment in and adoption of SonicWall’s MSSP program. David is also responsible for ensuring that SonicWall’s channel partners have the products, tools, incentives and training to profitably deliver cost-effective solutions to their customers.

“It is an amazing feat to have three employees from the same organization recognized by CRN as Channel Chief honorees,” said SonicWall President and CEO Bill Conner. “SonicWall is proud to be a 100% channel company and having three people recognized speaks to the caliber of program SonicWall has built over its 30-year existence.”

The 2022 Channel Chiefs are prominent leaders who have influenced the IT channel with cutting-edge strategies, programs and partnerships. All honorees are selected by CRN’s editorial staff based on their dedication, industry prestige, and exceptional accomplishments as channel advocates. SonicWall has been consistently included in recent CRN awards including Executive of the Year, Women of the Channel and Channel Chief and Rising Female Stars.

CRN’s 2022 Channel Chiefs list will be featured in the February 2022 issue of CRN Magazine and online at www.CRN.com/ChannelChiefs.

Celebrating Three Decades of Employee Excellence

/0 Comments/in /by

When Sonic Systems entered the firewall market in 1996, the company had fewer than 40 employees. Today, the company we now know as SonicWall employs more than 1,600 people in 37 countries.

There are a number of unique benefits for choosing a career at SonicWall, including having the chance to work on the cutting edge of cybersecurity. But while a great cybersecurity portfolio can attract top talent, it takes good leadership and a great corporate culture to keep them.

As we interviewed our employees in celebration of our 30th anniversary, four factors repeatedly emerged as integral to SonicWall’s culture: Opportunity, Family, Diversity and Philanthropy.

Opportunity

“At SonicWall, each of our people can advance their careers through hands-on experience and constant learning while receiving highly competitive compensation and rewards,” SonicWall Chief Administrative Officer Matt Neiderman said.

Ruby W., a SonicWall sales engineer (SE), agreed, citing her willingness to learn as key to both her career development and her ability to continue providing higher levels of customer service.

“Learn as much as you can: Security is ever-changing and you have to change, learn and grow with it,” Ruby said. “Keep up with the changing technology and teach your customers — they will appreciate you and trust you even more.”

Ruby was one of several employees who appreciated that their roles offered opportunities to hone their craft among groups of like-minded individuals. Another was Graphic Designer Mike B., who joined SonicWall in 2019.

“My experience at SonicWall has helped me develop as a designer and improved my career as a whole,” Mike said. “The team is the most skilled and professional group of individuals. Everyone is positive and focused on improving the company’s performance.”

This positive, team-oriented philosophy provides an environment ideally suited for helping employees succeed.

“My favorite thing about SonicWall is that everyone is dedicated to our Boundless Cybersecurity mission. This shared vision results in an amazing collaborative environment where everyone can make an impact,” said Terri O., VP of Marketing.

Family

Even among newer employees, many reported that the tight-knit environment felt more like a family than a group of co-workers.

“We have a good mix of hard-edged accountability and a warm, fuzzy, family-like atmosphere in our company,” said Senior Technical Lead John L.

This view wasn’t limited to just one or two departments, however. Social Media Manager Jamie L. credited her coworkers with creating an environment conducive to both professional and personal growth.

“I have loved my experience at SonicWall. It feels like a big family,” Jamie said. “Everyone that I have come into contact with is kind and willing to help me further my knowledge and help me grow.”

While employees enjoy SonicWall’s close-knit atmosphere, they also expressed appreciation for family-friendly policies such as flexible hours and remote work.

“Over the years, we have watched not only employees grow, but also their families. We all work very hard, but it’s knowing that my SonicWall family is behind me every day that makes it all worthwhile,” Sarah C., VP of Human Resources, said.

This support extends far beyond the daily 9-5. Several employees said their SonicWall family had been there to celebrate things like weddings or the arrival of a new baby, and had also lent their support during life’s challenges.

“A huge standout for me was when my son was diagnosed with cancer,” Tiffany H., Sr. Manager, Inside Sales, said. “I came back to the office and everyone was wearing green (the color for lymphoma) to show me that they were there to support me and my family.”

Diversity

SonicWall employees may all be working together toward a shared goal, but their varied experiences mean that each person brings to bear their own unique contribution. SonicWall has long focused on fostering an inclusive and equitable environment, and this begins with the recruiting and hiring processes.

“We are committed to hiring people from diverse backgrounds and cultures and providing each member of our team meaningful opportunities to contribute to the success of the company,” Neiderman said.

As a result, there is no “typical SonicWall employee” — the company prides itself on both bringing together a diverse group of employees in each of its offices, and on celebrating the different beliefs and values of all its employees.

For decades, SonicWall employees and their families have enjoyed celebrating holidays from across the world, as well as participating in special events with music, food, games, costumes, contests and more.

Due to SonicWall’s global presence, some roles offer an opportunity to experience other cultures more directly.

“I have enjoyed the travel opportunities I have been afforded during my time here at SonicWall,” said Technical Support Sr. Advisor David W. “I’ve been to India and South Korea to complete training and to support major customer deployments. Most of all, I really enjoy learning about different cultures and working with people from diverse backgrounds.”

Sr. Test Principal Engineer Keith C. agreed. “I love SonicWall’s diversity and the opportunity to work with people from all over the world,” he said.

Philanthropy

Senior Director of Demand Generation Diane W. summed up SonicWall’s approach to giving as such: “SonicWall thinks globally and acts locally.”

SonicWall offers employees several opportunities throughout the year to help make their communities a better place. Each December, offices support a local charity with donations — for example, the SonicWall headquarters in Milpitas, Calif., donates to the Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, while the Dallas office supports the North Texas Food Bank.

But while many of our charitable endeavors are built around the idea of “helping out at home,” employees are always willing to answer the call when disaster strikes — regardless of where it occurs.

In spring 2021, for example, India experienced a massive wave of severe COVID-19 infections. During this time of widespread suffering and loss of life, SonicWall employees worldwide came together with donations to help ease the hardship of both fellow employees and the area as a whole.

… and in return, Loyalty

“Our decades of working with channel partners to deliver scalable security solutions means that we are big enough to deliver cutting-edge and cost-effective technology, but small enough to never forget the value of the people behind our success,” Neiderman said.

This is reflected in the number of SonicWall employees who choose to spend their career at SonicWall. Out of 1,600 employees, there are 130 who have been with the company for 10-15 years, 67 employees who have spent 16-20 years working for SonicWall, and 16 who have spent over a fifth of a century with us.

During our 30th anniversary celebration, SonicWall wants to take the opportunity to thank our employees for their hard work and their dedication, but most of all, for their loyalty: Whether it’s your second day or your 20th year, your continued efforts at helping safeguard the world’s networks from cybercrime have helped make SonicWall the company it is today, and your contributions will continue to drive improvements on every front over the next 30 years.

SonicWall: 30 Years of Partnering to Win

/0 Comments/in /by

SonicWall has always been 100% channel-driven. Today, we’re honored to work with more than 17,000 channel partners worldwide — but even before SonicWall was known as SonicWall, we were working to build partnerships based on trust, loyalty and mutual success.

As early as the mid-1990s, SonicWall (then known as Sonic Systems) had already begun onboarding top resellers, value-added resellers (VARs) and systems integrators. By seeking out partner companies that focused on providing educational institutions and SMBs with high-quality, affordable inter-networking solutions, Sonic Systems was able to achieve tremendous growth in a short amount of time. This growth, in turn, fueled innovations that helped our partners and their customers continue to succeed.

SonicWall Launches Partner Recognition Programs

In recognition of these successful partnerships, in the late 1990s a newly rebranded ‘SonicWALL’ began developing a dedicated partner program. By 2000, this program had five distinct partner program levels — Reseller, Silver, Gold, Platinum and International Distributors — that would later become the foundation of today’s SecureFirst Partner Program.

The partner structure SonicWall currently employs dates back to 2004, when the Medallion Program was launched. This program was refreshed in 2007 to coincide with the launch of SonicWall’s first partner portal, PartnerLink.

In recognition of the unique needs of its Managed Security Services Provider partners, SonicWall announced its first MSSP program in 2005. This program was designed to help its channel partners grow their share of the managed services market and signaled a recognition of these partners that continues to the present day.

Partnering for a Successful Future: Today’s Programs

SonicWall’s partner programs have evolved a great deal since their inception, and today’s programs are more comprehensive and offer more benefits than ever before.

“At SonicWall, we listen,” said HoJin Kim, SonicWall SVP, Worldwide Channel, North American Sales. “We work incredibly hard to provide partners with everything they need in order to not only meet their yearly objectives, but exceed them.”

SecureFirst Partner Program

In 2016, SonicWall introduced the SecureFirst partner program. In the first 150 days, more than 10,000 partners registered to sell within the new program — 20% of which were new to SonicWall. Within a year, the program had grown 500% as partners around the world jumped at the opportunity to reintroduce SonicWall products to their comprehensive offerings.

The program’s ongoing success is due largely to its philosophy of partnering to win. In addition to the program’s goal of accelerating partners’ ability to be thought leaders in the ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape, it also offers a number of perks. These include competitive margins, deal registration protection, technical training, sales enablement, marketing and lead-generation support, and more.

In recognition of our commitment to going above and beyond for our solution providers, in 2021 the SonicWall SecureFirst partner program received a 5-star rating in the 2021 CRN Partner Program Guide. This annual guide provides a conclusive list of the most distinguished partner programs from leading technology companies that provide products and services through the IT channel.

SonicWall University

SonicWall University, an online partner enablement platform designed to keep SecureFirst partner sales representatives, pre-sales and support engineers at the forefront of both cyberthreats and security solutions, was unveiled in 2017. This free, on-demand online training portal offers pathways for partners to earn SecureFirst Sales and Technical Accreditations that directly influence increased revenue attainment.

SonicWall MSSP Program

In 2020, SonicWall’s MSSP program was modernized to empower MSSPs with the resources and tools they need to protect their customers while improving operational efficiency and costs. In addition to branding and customization options, the new MSSP structure empowers SecureFirst partners to consume SonicWall services on either a monthly or annual basis, matching the way they do business.

SonicWall relies on its expansive base to fuel its momentum and is dedicated to continuing to grow programs like these to further meet the needs of our partners in the future.

As SonicWall moves into its third decade, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank our partners for their loyalty and commitment. It is both our mission and our privilege to continue working toward our mutual success in the years to come.