AT&T added Cisco’s Meraki platform to its extensive list of secure access service edge (SASE) options. The managed offering builds on the carrier’s already established SASE and SD-WAN deals with Cisco.

The new agreement will see AT&T provide its customers with a managed SASE product that leverages the vendor’s Duo technology. This allows the platform to verify user identity and validate device health before granting access to the network.

The package also includes AT&T’s Business WiFi product that provides SD-WAN, wireless access points, switches, cellular access points, and teleworker appliances. AT&T also offers its Secure Remote Access with Cisco for zero-trust network access, and AT&T Secure Web Gateway with Cisco for secure internet and cloud app access.

The Meraki addition builds on past SASE and SD-WAN work with Cisco.

AT&T, which Vertical Systems Group cited as a leading managed SD-WAN provider, added Cisco’s Secure SD-WAN platform in mid-2020, tapping into the carrier’s own network-based SD-WAN platform. Late last year, AT&T added Cisco’s SASE product that included cloud-based security from Umbrella and identity management services via Duo.

The AT&T SASE with Cisco Meraki option also joins the carrier’s managed SASE services offered by Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks.

The carrier recently has moved its SASE focus to edge locations, noting a strong shift in use cases to a more distributed network model.

Theresa Lanowitz, head of cybersecurity evangelism at AT&T Business, recently told SDxCentral that the network is no longer in a hub-and-spoke topology, which introduces complexity.

“SASE combined with zero trust are certainly two things that everybody is concerned about,” Lanowitz said. “SASE becomes really important as we see more and more use cases moving to the edge.”

The AT&T expansion also further highlights Cisco’s position in the SD-WAN and SASE market.

The vendor last week expanded its SD-WAN reach into Comcast Business, signing a deal to add its Viptela platform to Comcast Business’ managed SD-WAN option sheet. The deal also added Cisco’s more robust Viptela option to Comcast Business’ already offered Meraki SD-WAN service.

The vendor remains one of the markets larger players, but its SASE model is labeled by Dell’Oro Group as a “disaggregated” platform instead of a more cohesive “unified” platform.

The analyst firm describes a unified platform as offering all five core networking and security functions — SD-WAN, secure web gateway, zero-trust network access, cloud access security broker, and cloud firewalls — integrated into a single converged product. A disaggregated platform is one where a vendor has chosen to offer a multi-vendor SASE architecture in collaboration with partners.