WatchGuard getting partners up to speed on Panda

WatchGuard is encouraging its partner base to get to grips with the Panda product line now the acquisition is closed.

The security vendor made a move to pick up Panda Security back in March, with the deal closing earlier in June.

WatchGuard has launched an early-access programme for its resellers to get their hands on Panda products to start to understand how the endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools work.

At the same time WatchGuard has been reaching out to Panda’s channel, particularly those that do not work with both vendors, to alert them to its wider portfolio.

Jonathan Whitley, sales director for Northern Europe at WatchGuard, said that the channel had been asking it to extend its capabilities around the endpoint and had welcomed the Panda deal.

“We talk to our channel regularly to see what they want us to do better. The channel has been consistently [asking for more activity] around endpoint,” he said.

He added that that desire was not just confined to its traditional partners, but was also a view expressed by managed service players (MSPs).

“Customers want one supplier that can provide endpoint and perimeter and then manage it from a one single pane of glass,” he said.

Panda Security has been in business for 30 years and has come to WatchGuard with a history that includes periods of double- and single-tier channel approaches and an established base of resellers.

The early-access programme has given WatchGuard partners a chance to get hands-on with the Panda technology and start to understand EDR and how it would fit into a wider solution. Efforts are also being made with Panda’s channel.

“We are embracing all of those Panda resellers, some are already shared partners. We want to start talking to Panda resellers and introduce WatchGuard products to them,” Whitley added.

With many firms embracing home working during the coronavirus pandemic, the shift away from traditional enterprise perimeters has been accelerated, with Whitley adding that there was a growing need to protect endpoints.

He said that the upside of the past few weeks had been that employee productivity at most customers had remained high, but the downside had been a surge in security attacks trying to pick off vulnerable home workers.

“Those behind the threats and the malware writers are opportunistic – and home workers are not always educated and the solutions they are using are not readily up to the job,” he said.

He added that the company had been trying to increase its education and had seen high levels of interest in its recent webinar series on securing home-working environments.

At the same time as getting partners involved with the Panda products, WatchGuard is also refreshing its T Series to provide resellers with a fresh pitch to put in front of existing customers.

The enhancements include improved performance and the ability to add new services as they become available.

“We are refreshing the new T Series of appliances, the tabletop appliance, which is a huge chunk of the business in the UK,” said Whitley.

The next stage of the Panda integration is to integrate more of the acquired technology, with Whitley adding that “there is a lot happening there”.