F5 and CrowdStrike announced a new alliance that embeds the CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor directly into F5’s BIG-IP family of network operations hardware and software.

The companies say the integration brings AI-driven detection and response to the network perimeter – a layer that increasingly carries sensitive API traffic yet often lacks the same protection applied to traditional endpoints.

The Falcon Sensor is CrowdStrike’s agent that collects real-time security telemetry and enforces detection and response policies across endpoints, cloud workloads, and now network appliances.

CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz explained that F5 customers will also be able to use CrowdStrike’s Falcon Adversary OverWatch managed threat detection service for security that extends beyond endpoint devices to network appliances.

“Today’s threat landscape demands taking the power of the Falcon platform beyond the endpoint,” Kurtz noted. “We’re taking a bold step to move cybersecurity forward: normalizing the deployment of detection and response sensors across every attack surface, including network appliances.”

The integration is delivered through F5’s Application Delivery and Security Platform (ADSP) and offers enterprises earlier detection of lateral movement, visibility into perimeter activity, and incident response.

F5 president and CEO François Locoh-Donou agreed that network gear has historically been left behind in enterprise security strategies.

“For too long, network devices have lacked the same protection as other endpoints, even as they sit in front of the world’s most critical applications and APIs,” Locoh-Donou said. “This integration helps security teams reduce blind spots, accelerate response times, and raise the security bar across the industry.”

F5’s internal systems were recently the subject of a state-sponsored attack believed to have been orchestrated by Chinese-linked hackers who may have had access to F5’s network for at least a year.

More than 200 customers were already running Falcon on BIG-IP prior to the formal launch of the Crowdstrike partnership. The new integration is available immediately for BIG-IP Virtual Edition (VE), with hardware support expected by year-end.

F5 said eligible customers can deploy the functionality at no charge through Oct. 14, 2026.