Barracuda CloudGen WAF for AWS - PAYG

We primarily use Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service  for raising security incidents by proactively blocking malware, ransomware, and phishing attacks to reduce breach risk and response time. Apart from that, we use it for streamlining added sites without performance drops, which also helps to support the growth of our teams. Additionally, we reduce hardware costs by decommissioning on-premises firewalls during our cloud migration with minimal disruption and a familiar UI for quick adoption.

When I mention reducing breach risk and streamlining added sites, there is one specific case I want to tell you about where Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service  helped us directly. About three to four months back, there was a ransomware attack where it reportedly sent notifications to the admin panel, and Barracuda blocked the malware and phishing attack, sharing an advanced report with our team. This allowed us to directly contact the team, minimizing the risk of data breach. This was one case where we observed the benefits, and there have been multiple instances since we started using it.

The best features that Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service offers are an intuitive centralized dashboard, allowing us to manage policies, Internet protocol servers, antiviruses, anti-DDoS attacks, and traffic shaping across multiple sites. This feature enables seamless scaling of our environments, especially as we work within Amazon Web Services . Additionally, real-time threat intelligence helps us to detect threats in real-time. Another major feature I love is application control and VPN support, providing granular visibility and protection without needing separate appliances.

The centralized dashboard is helping us streamline visibility across our admin panels and provides site-to-site visibility deployed directly to our AWS  environment, securing VPC traffic and ensuring the firewall is in place. The real-time threat intelligence is an advanced feature helping us track real-time attacks, such as anti-DDoS attacks, ransomware, or viruses that can compromise system integrity. Through the intuitive centralized dashboard, we can manage policies and set rules, assisting us effectively.

I see that cost can be a limitation for small businesses. Additionally, if they can provide more advanced features and customization for specific use cases, that would be beneficial. Apart from that, I do not feel there are any other problems. From our perspective, there is not an issue. All the data I have shared is in favor of Barracuda because the ROI they have given us is tremendous, and they are doing really well in terms of product, scalability, and service. We have seen that it is a great solution with no issues from our end.

I have been working in my current field for more than ten years.

Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is definitely a stable solution, and I give it a ten out of ten as we have not faced any downtime, crashes, or lag.

Scalability is good for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service; we can scale up or down based on our needs, as it comes with this model directly from the AWS Marketplace , which is really great.

Customer support for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is rated ten out of ten. We had an incident requiring direct support, and the representatives were really helpful, resolving our query within forty-five minutes, so it stands at ten out of ten for me.

We did not use any other solution prior to Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service; this is the first time we have used this service.

The initial deployment of Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service was really smooth. The team collaborated with our team and assisted with configuration. As we use a pay-as-you-go model, the licensing and every detail is managed well, backed by the AWS Marketplace , making it an excellent experience. Everything from provisioning to policies was set up on time, so my initial deployment experience was very positive with no issues at all.

The integration of Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service with other AWS services is seamless. Whatever services we are using with it, including non-related software, it integrates excellently. We have not faced any downtime, crashes, or lags while using this solution.

Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service has positively impacted our organization by reducing cyber threats like ransomware and phishing by ninety-five percent. This is a significant thing because we have seen a major drop in those numbers. Earlier, we faced many threats, but now I can say we see ninety to ninety-five percent fewer attacks. Additionally, centralized management has decreased by twenty-two to thirty percent, and costs related to avoiding breaches have decreased by at least seventy percent. On the ROI side, proactive blocking has led to efficiency gains and bandwidth optimization, boosting productivity and reliability for our distributed teams by thirty-three point eight percent.

The reduction in cyber threats and the increase in productivity I mentioned earlier are measured based on incident reports. Barracuda provides good data, and as I have said, it offers a clear dashboard where we can track progress. This data is a collective set from our admin and other teams closely working with engineering and other departments.

We have seen a return on investment of at least a million dollars, which could have been lost due to data breaches or attacks on the organization by effectively blocking threats. The downtime has decreased significantly, and our efficiency has improved by twenty-two point five percent thanks to real-time monitoring and traffic optimization. Additionally, we have reduced hardware costs by fifty percent by decommissioning on-premises firewalls during cloud migration with minimal disruption and a familiar UI for quick adoption. Productivity has increased as teams can focus more, leading to a rise of forty to fifty percent.

The metering and billing experience is really good because it operates on a pay-as-you-go model through hourly AWS billing, which includes features like the firewall and VPN. We also have a buy-your-own licensing option, which we do not utilize, sticking to AWS billing. This system allows us to pay only for what we use, saving a lot of money, so I give it a ten out of ten as it is both a money and time saver for the organization.

The pricing, setup cost, and licensing not only follow the same pay-as-you-go model but are also billed hourly by the AWS Marketplace. We select it based on our requirements, scaling up or down accordingly. This flexibility is how we have chosen this model.

Before selecting Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service, we evaluated other options, including AWS Network Firewall, Palo Alto Network VM-Series, Fortinet VM, a Force Firewall, and pfSense.

I rate Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service a five out of five overall. The reason I choose five out of five is that all the things I have mentioned earlier represent a great solution for our organization. It has effectively blocked malware and phishing attacks while optimizing bandwidth for our development environment. The deployment to our client network segmentation was really great, and the SD-WAN integration with on-premises and auto-scaling clusters for loads has been working well in our Agile ceremonies. Moreover, it leverages hybrid environments, helping to reduce unauthorized access during our CI/CD pipelines and ensuring compliant data flows.

I advise anyone looking for dedicated protection for their organization, aiding in threat prevention and unifying the threat management system with high performance at low cost, to go for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service. They are a really good service.