Location-based security appliances no longer cut it in a cloud-based business world, according to Shlomo Kramer, CEO of Cato Networks. His company's response to that is Cato Cloud, a network security service being launched today, geared for midsized companies.

“Appliance-based protection is really the wrong way to go,” he said in an interview with SDxCentral in January. “Security in general is an overlay to IT. Whenever you’ve got shifts in the underlying IT, it changes the security world. We’re facing two huge changes in IT: the move to the cloud and mobility.”

Cato Cloud connects branch locations, mobile workers, and physical and cloud data centers in an encrypted cloud network, which is based on a global network of PoPs.

Both wide-area network (WAN) and public Internet traffic are consolidated in its cloud network, where Cato then applies its set of security services, such as a firewall with application control, global VPN, and URL filtering.

IT administrators have visibility into the cloud network and can apply a unified policy across all users, locations, data, and applications.

Israel-based Cato Networks has secured $20 million in series A funding led by U.S. Venture Partners and Aspect Ventures. Cato recently hired Glenn Esposito as VP of sales for the Americas. He was previously senior vice president of sales, Americas, for Barracuda Networks.