Cloud-native security products are cropping up to mitigate cyber security’s “M&M” problem — firewall protection at the parameters with vulnerable data at the center. As companies amass increasingly huge datasets to differentiate themselves in the data-driven Digital Age, the problem of protecting it all remains.

Wouldn’t it be great if they could just throw a giant “security blanket” over their entire infrastructure? Ken Xie, founder, chairman of the board and CEO of Fortinet Inc., said the company’s network security fabric acts in just such a way.

Xie outlined the evolution of cyber security to Lisa Martin (@Luccazara) and Peter Burris (@plburris), co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile live streaming studio. He said that while the first and second generations of security were about securing connections, the third generation, which we are now entering, presents a radical shift. (*Disclosure below.)

“This is all about changing from securing just some systems or some connections now to securing the whole infrastructure,” Xie said.

Data’s leaving home

With data flowing to copious endpoints outside the firewall, such as mobile devices, full cover is now needed, according to Xie. “Just securing a few connections is not enough. So you need to look at where the end point is, where the access is, where the connection is — network is still important there — and also what’s the application?” he argued.

Xiestated that certain industries need different approaches based on their individual application types. “Healthcare is different than finance; service is different than eCommerce,” he said.

Covering the (data) bases

Xie argued that Fortinet’s Latest Security Fabric release may be the answer. “That’s where the fabric gives you some broader coverage — make sure different parts are covered, communicate together, and also make sure they are fast enough,” he said.

He concluded that as a business’ value becomes increasingly tied to its data, securing the data wherever it flows is becoming imperative.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of Fortinet Accelerate 2017. (*Disclosure: Fortinet Inc. and other companies sponsor some Accelerate 2017 segments on SiliconANGLE Media’s theCUBE. Neither Fortinet nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo by SiliconANGLE