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September 22, 2010 - Fortinet® - a leading network security provider and a worldwide leader of unified threat management (UTM) solutions - today announced that BHI Advanced Internet, a leading managed security service provider (MSSP), offering a wide-range of Internet security, managed network and PCI compliance services, has deployed Fortinet appliances at customers' sites as part of its SecureConnect® managed firewall offering.

Focusing on customers in the restaurant, retail and banking verticals, BHI offers a complete network security solution. After reviewing a number of network security vendors for its SecureConnect offering, BHI selected Fortinet's FortiGate® product line to help provide intrusion prevention (IPS), logging and reporting, antivirus and Web content filtering (WCF) as part of its base offering and additional security features such as data loss prevention (DLP), multiple service set identifiers (SSIDs), wireless access and bandwidth prioritization as part of its enhanced SecureConnect package offerings.

With the need to offer its customers a cost-effective yet secure network solution, the FortiGate appliances were a perfect fit as they offer multiple network security functionalities within a single appliance. In addition, the FortiGate product line's vulnerability management feature was an added benefit for BHI and its end users. Without having to deploy an expensive vulnerability management appliance at the customer site, the FortiGate appliances offer an extra layer of protection by being able to mitigate vulnerabilities throughout the entire network.

"The FortiGate appliances allow us to offer our customers customized network security protection to help meet their security, compliance and budgetary needs," said Blake Huebner, director of Information Security at BHI. "Fortinet was the only vendor to offer a plethora of network security functionality - including vulnerability management - without having to deploy multiple appliances. We can offer a complete solution that our customers don't have to worry about; we maintain, manage and monitor their entire environment."

After evaluating different FortiGate appliances and choosing those appropriate for the needs of its customers, BHI has deployed FortiGate appliances to locations throughout the United States. In addition, some customers are also using FortiWifi appliances for wireless network security. The appliance configurations are tailored for the specific needs of each customer, while adhering to security best practices and meeting the requirements of the PCI Data Security Standard.

To centrally manage, administer and monitor the FortiGate appliances, a FortiManager™-appliance has been deployed at company headquarters in Minneapolis, MN. The FortiManager allows the MSSP to provide better network management and usage reports for its customers while leveraging the solution in its change management process to ensure review and approval of security policies.

"Fortinet's proven expertise in network security and the robustness of our solutions are a great fit for MSSPs such as BHI, who want to offer customers cost-effective unified threat management in a single appliance," said Pete Brant, vice president of enterprise sales at Fortinet. "We are happy to have BHI as a strong MSSP partner adding value to retail customers."