Keeping an online network and general I.T. infrastructure secure isn’t always an easy task, and it’s one that’s time consuming and often costly. Hackers know this, and this is why they generally target small to medium sized businesses when looking to steal your data and infect your software. This is because they know smaller businesses are less likely to have good security measures in place.

This is one of the main reasons as to why unified threat management is so vital and so popular for small businesses. We’ve taken a look and this and have listed some of the key benefits of it below.

They’re a simple solution to a complex problem

Without a doubt, the main advantage of opting for a unified threat management appliance over alternatives in a small business is because of how simple they are. They do the job of many devices in one, meaning there’s only one device to install, run, maintain and to be concerned with. A single purchase covers every security need, and all the security features can be controlled and configured from a single management console which will help to save a lot of time and office resources.

They’re significantly cheaper than alternatives

Even unified threat management solutions from the most reputable companies such as Dell are significantly cheaper than if you were to find individual solutions for all of your security issues. If you were to do them individually, you then also have the issue of ensuring they all work together to keep your data and software safe, which can be difficult. They are just one box so they don’t take up much office space or use much power, either.

They provide security for remote workers

It’s really common for lots of small or start-up businesses to employ workers on a freelance or remote basis. Another advantage of unified threat management appliances is that you can cover these types of workers on them, so they too remain safe and so you’re not left vulnerable to hackers through them. This is because they provide secure remote access; enabling employees to connect to the company network while out of the office. There’s a useful article here regarding remote workers in a small business, too.

They can update automatically

Depending on the option you go for, but generally speaking, unified threat management solutions offer the ability to update automatically with the latest security updates, anti-virus definitions and new features so that minimal manual intervention is required beyond initial set-up. This is another great time-saving solution that means you won’t have to worry about having someone physically updating the system regularly, as you can rest knowing that’s taken care of, and your security is as up to date as possible.