For security, your network needs malware protection, application visibility and control, acceptable use policy controls, insightful reporting and secure mobility. Cisco offers this protection, all on a single platform: the Cisco^® Web Security Appliance (WSA).

In our highly connected and increasingly mobile world, more complex and sophisticated threats require the right mix of security solutions. Cisco delivers security for all layers of network infrastructure with the strong protection, complete control, and investment value businesses need. We also offer a broad set of web security deployment options, along with market-leading global threat intelligence. The Cisco WSA simplifies security with a high performance, dedicated appliance, and the Cisco Web Security Virtual Appliance (WSAV) lets businesses deploy web security quickly and easily, wherever and whenever it's needed.

The Cisco WSA was one of the first secure web gateways to combine leading protections to help organizations address the growing challenges of securing and controlling web traffic. It enables simpler, faster deployment with fewer maintenance requirements, reduced latency, and lower operating costs. "Set and forget" technology frees staff after initial automated policy settings go live, and automatic security updates are pushed to network devices every 3 to 5 minutes. Flexible deployment options and integration with your existing security infrastructure help you meet quickly evolving security requirements.

Virtual appliance

With the growth of video and other rich media, traffic has become less predictable, resulting in overages and degraded performance. Addressing these and other issues, administrators face long lead times when buying and installing hardware, remote installation challenges, customs duties, and other logistical issues, especially in multinational organizations.

The Cisco WSAV significantly lowers the cost of deploying web security, especially in highly distributed networks, by letting administrators create security instances where and when they are needed. The Cisco WSAV is a software version of the Cisco WSA that runs on top of a VMware ESXi, KVM hypervisor, Microsoft Hyper-V and Cisco Unified Computing System^™ (Cisco UCS^®) servers. You will receive an unlimited license for the Cisco SMAV with the purchase of any of the Cisco Email or Web Security software bundles, along with the corresponding SMA software license.

With the Cisco WSAV, administrators can respond instantly to traffic spikes and eliminate capacity planning. There is no need to buy and ship appliances; new business opportunities can be supported without adding complexity to a data center or requiring additional staff.