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F5 Named a Visionary in EMA’s 2023 Vendor Vision Report

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Jay Kelley
Published April 25, 2023

F5 is pleased to share that leading industry analyst and consulting firm Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) has named F5 as a Visionary in its recently published 2023 Vendor Vision report.

EMA publishes its Vendor Vision report to help readers quickly prioritize which vendors’ booths to visit on conference show floors. (Visit F5 at RSA Conference 2023 in Moscone North Expo, Booth 5435.) The 2023 Vendor Vision report highlights ten select vendors that deliver some of the best solutions in the industry, which EMA feels are a “must-see.”

In their report, EMA underscores the commitment by F5 to create a better digital world through its multi-cloud application services and security solutions. EMA states that F5 is a leader “when it comes to cloud, application, and network security.” The report emphasizes F5 as empowering organizations to enable outstanding, secure digital experiences for their customers through advanced delivery and security of apps and APIs anywhere.

What sets F5 apart from other application and API security vendors, according to EMA, is F5 Distributed Cloud WAAP. F5 Distributed Cloud WAAP is a SaaS-based offering that integrates F5’s “industry-leading web application firewall (WAF), bot mitigation, DDoS protection, and API protection capabilities into a single, easy-to-deploy solution that enables SecOps and DevOps teams to enforce consistent security policies wherever their applications are deployed.”

In its report, EMA states that F5 Distributed Cloud WAAP “brings together the best of F5 application security technologies, delivering flexible deployment options that support multiple applications, robust API security with behavioral analysis and anomaly detection, high-efficacy bot defense, protection that extends beyond traditional WAAP security, and a pur­pose-built platform to secure hybrid app environments.”

Deployment and management of today’s containerized applications are streamlined with F5 Distributed Cloud WAAP, “with cloud-native manage­ment, consistent security, and end-to-end observability—from the data center to the cloud and the edge.”

EMA also stresses the flexibility that F5 offers organizations when securing their specialized applications and infrastructure. F5 also delivers specific connectors that simplify integration with leading cloud plat­forms, including AWS, Salesforce, Adobe Commerce Cloud, and ForgeRock, as well as connectors that enable simple setup, seamless interaction, and enhanced security between F5 BIG-IP appliances and virtual editions and F5 Distributed Cloud security solutions, including Distributed Cloud Bot Defense, Distributed Cloud Authentication Intelligence, Distributed Cloud Account Protection, and Distributed Cloud Client-Side Defense.

APIs are the digital connective tissue that drives today’s digital-first world. API security is top of mind for most organizations today and will be a key discussion topic at RSA Conference 2023. And, regarding the practice of API security, in their report, EMA states that “F5 invented it, improved it, and pushed the rest of the secu­rity world to pay attention to it.”

“We look at hundreds of security companies every year, and F5 is one that consistently stands out,” says Chris Steffen, Vice President of Research for information security at EMA. “Apart from practically inventing API security, they deliver on the promise of a full stack security solutions provider. Businesses and organizations of every size would do well to consider partnering with F5.”

While most vendors are focused on delivering point security solutions that can lead to overwhelmed organizations left with separate, sometimes disparate solutions to address security requirements, F5 offers a holistic approach to security, with the experience and product portfolio to enable effective security for apps and APIs anywhere.

The final statement by EMA in their 2023 Vendor Vision report says it all:

“When looking for network security, WAF/WAAP, and cloud security solutions, F5 is one of the best complete solutions to consider.”

Please click here to read what EMA wrote about F5 in their 2023 Vendor Vision report.

For more information on F5 Distributed Cloud Services, please click here.