Cloudflare Acquires BastionZero to Add Zero Trust Infrastructure Access Controls for Cloudflare One, the World’s Largest Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Network
Cloudflare, a leading connectivity cloud company, has acquired BastionZero to enhance its Cloudflare One platform by adding Zero Trust infrastructure access controls. This acquisition aims to bolster remote access security for critical IT systems, benefiting hybrid and remote work environments.
Cloudflare One will now include advanced Zero Trust controls for infrastructure such as servers, Kubernetes clusters, and databases. This move is intended to replace traditional VPN setups, which often grant overly permissive access, with more secure and flexible options. The integration promises increased security, compliance, control, and reduced complexity for IT teams.
This acquisition aligns with the growing demand for secure access service edge (SASE) solutions, a market projected to reach $25 billion by 2027 with a compound annual growth rate of 29%, according to Gartner. The addition of BastionZero is expected to strengthen Cloudflare's position in this rapidly growing market.
- Enhanced security for remote access to critical IT systems.
- Integration of advanced Zero Trust controls with Cloudflare One.
- Increased compliance through just-in-time permissions.
- Reduced complexity by eliminating legacy workaround security patches.
- Growing SASE market projected to reach $25 billion by 2027.
- Improved control with 'just-in-time' policy options.
- Strengthening of Cloudflare's position in the SASE market.
- Potential integration challenges between BastionZero and Cloudflare One.
- Increased operational costs related to the acquisition.
- Risk of over-reliance on a single-vendor approach for SASE solutions.
Insights
Cloudflare's acquisition of BastionZero provides a significant opportunity to enhance its Zero Trust infrastructure access capabilities. This addition aligns with the increasing demand for secure remote access and strengthens Cloudflare One's position in the fast-growing Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) market.
Financially, this move could prove beneficial for Cloudflare, as it addresses a critical need in the market and potentially attracts new enterprise customers. By integrating BastionZero's technology, Cloudflare can offer a more comprehensive security solution, making it more competitive in a market projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of
However, investors should consider the integration risks and the potential for increased operational costs. The success of this acquisition will depend on Cloudflare's ability to effectively integrate BastionZero's technology and realize the anticipated synergies. In the short term, this acquisition is likely to have positive implications for Cloudflare's revenue growth and market position. In the long term, successful integration and customer adoption will be key to sustained financial benefits.
From a technology perspective, acquiring BastionZero is a strategic move for Cloudflare. BastionZero's Zero Trust infrastructure access platform addresses a critical aspect of modern IT environments: secure, remote access to core systems. This is especially relevant in the current hybrid work model, where traditional VPN setups fall short in terms of security and efficiency.
By eliminating the need for long-lived passwords and credentials, BastionZero's technology reduces the risk associated with overly permissive access controls. Additionally, the integration of just-in-time (JIT) permissions and identity-aware logging enhances compliance and security control. These features are important for enterprises managing complex hybrid IT environments, making Cloudflare's offering more attractive.
This acquisition also reduces the complexity of managing infrastructure access, as it removes the need for legacy security patches and jump hosts. The technological synergy between Cloudflare One and BastionZero could lead to an improved user experience for IT and security teams, ultimately promoting higher productivity and better security outcomes.
The acquisition of BastionZero by Cloudflare is a notable development in the SASE market, which is anticipated to grow substantially in the coming years. This move reflects Cloudflare's commitment to expanding its cloud security capabilities and solidifying its position as a leader in the SASE market. The inclusion of BastionZero's technology enhances Cloudflare One's value proposition, making it a more robust solution for organizations seeking comprehensive security tools on a single platform.
Market-wise, this acquisition could be a differentiator for Cloudflare, enabling it to capture a larger share of the growing SASE market. The integration of Zero Trust infrastructure access controls addresses a pressing need for secure remote access, which is increasingly important in a world where hybrid and remote work have become the norm.
However, the market success of this acquisition will depend on Cloudflare's ability to effectively communicate the enhanced value of its services to potential customers and to execute a seamless integration of BastionZero's technology. The ongoing competition in the SASE market means that Cloudflare must continue to innovate and provide superior security solutions to maintain its competitive edge.
Acquisition adds secure remote infrastructure access to Cloudflare One, safeguarding customers’ most critical systems
Combined with existing Cloudflare One capabilities, the acquisition of BastionZero gives IT and security teams Zero Trust controls for infrastructure like servers, Kubernetes clusters, and databases. This expands the scope of Cloudflare’s VPN replacement solution beyond apps and networks to infrastructure resources. As a result, security teams can centralize management of even more of their hybrid IT environment, while using standard Zero Trust practices to keep DevOps teams productive and secure.
With traditional virtual private network (VPN) security set-ups, developers and systems architects are granted overly permissive and long-lived access to a company’s most sensitive systems, such as servers and databases. In a world of hybrid work, this is an increasingly costly, risky, and outdated approach, hindering the ability to securely deploy new systems and react to a fast-changing business environment.
“The world of work has changed dramatically. Employees have the expectation that they can effectively do their work from anywhere. There’s no reason why teams managing an organization’s most important systems can’t have the same flexibility,” said Matthew Prince, co-founder and CEO, Cloudflare. “Incorporating BastionZero into Cloudflare One gives IT teams access to an organization's most critical inner workings securely, wherever they are. Millions of organizations around the world trust Cloudflare to protect their systems and data so they can focus on their business and their customers. The addition of BastionZero is just one more way we can protect them like no one else can.”
Adding BastionZero’s technology to Cloudflare One will give hybrid and remote IT teams access to their most critical assets remotely, resulting in:
- Increased security: Eliminating the need and risk of long-lived passwords and credentials by making it even easier to abide by Zero Trust principles for system access.
- Increased compliance: Ensuring just-in-time permissions for every person trying to access core systems and servers—such as developers and systems administrators—even if they’re working remotely, while following centralized policy controls with identity-aware logging.
- Increased control: Enabling individuals to have access to information and systems only when they need it with “just-in-time” policy options.
- Reduced complexity: Removing the need for legacy workaround security patches between systems (e.g. jump hosts) and more quickly granting access across complex infrastructure with policy controls and observability.
“Scalable and secure remote access to company servers and other infrastructure is table stakes for every IT and development team,” said Sharon Goldberg, Co-founder and CEO at BastionZero. “But home-grown solutions increasingly create security risks and operational costs. This acquisition enables us to deeply integrate BastionZero’s unique cryptographic approach for simple passwordless infrastructure access into the world’s largest secure access service edge (SASE) network. We’re proud to join Cloudflare to help companies provide Zero Trust access to their most critical infrastructure assets.” Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acted as exclusive financial advisor to BastionZero on this transaction.
Launched in 2020, Cloudflare One is one of the fastest-growing platforms for secure access service edge (SASE) and security service edge (SSE) services. Companies worldwide rely on Cloudflare One to ensure only the right employees have access to the right internal systems and data at the right time with minimal burden on employees. This acquisition will expand Cloudflare's cloud security capabilities in the SASE market.
According to GartnerⓇ, “Over the next five years, the market for secure access service edge will grow at a compound annual growth rate of
Cloudflare One is a key part of Cloudflare’s connectivity cloud, enabling organizations to bring more IT security tools onto a single platform and making it easier to implement secure access to all their resources, from developer access to technical infrastructure to ever-expanding cloud services.
To learn more, please check out the resources below:
- Blog: https://blog.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-acquires-bastionzero
- Sign up for updates: https://www.cloudflare.com/lp/infrastructure-access/
Gartner Forecast analysts: secure access service edge, worldwide, Nat Smith, Neil MacDonald, Christian Canales, Andrew Lerner, Jonathan Forest, John Watts, Shailendra Upadhyay, Charlie Winckless, 10 October 2023. GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the
About Cloudflare
Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE: NET) is the leading connectivity cloud company on a mission to help build a better Internet. It empowers organizations to make their employees, applications and networks faster and more secure everywhere, while reducing complexity and cost. Cloudflare’s connectivity cloud delivers the most full-featured, unified platform of cloud-native products and developer tools, so any organization can gain the control they need to work, develop, and accelerate their business.
Powered by one of the world’s largest and most interconnected networks, Cloudflare blocks billions of threats online for its customers every day. It is trusted by millions of organizations – from the largest brands to entrepreneurs and small businesses to nonprofits, humanitarian groups, and governments across the globe.
Learn more about Cloudflare’s connectivity cloud at cloudflare.com/connectivity-cloud. Learn more about the latest Internet trends and insights at https://radar.cloudflare.com.
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Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “explore,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “could,” “intend,” “target,” “project,” “contemplate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” or “continue,” or the negative of these words, or other similar terms or expressions that concern Cloudflare’s expectations, strategy, plans, or intentions. However, not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements expressed or implied in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the capabilities and effectiveness of Cloudflare’s secure access service edge (SASE) platform and other products technology and BastionZero products and technology, the benefits to Cloudflare’s customers from using Cloudflare’s SASE platform and other products and technology and BastionZero products and technology, the timing of when Cloudflare’s SASE platform and BastionZero products and technology and or any of their related features will be fully integrated and generally available to all current and potential Cloudflare customers, Cloudflare’s plans and objectives for, and the timing of, the integration of BastionZero products and technology into Cloudflare’s SASE platform, Cloudflare’s technological development, future operations, growth, initiatives, or strategies, and comments made by Cloudflare’s CEO and others. Actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to, risks detailed in Cloudflare’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including Cloudflare’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on May 2, 2024, as well as other filings that Cloudflare may make from time to time with the SEC.
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Cloudflare, Inc.
Daniella Vallurupalli
Vice President, Head of Global Communications
press@cloudflare.com
Source: Cloudflare, Inc.
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