Securing data as it travels over computing networks is a challenge that can be compared to securing loot-laden trains as they crossed Wild West territory back in the days of Jesse James. Just like bullion locked up in Fort Knox, secure stacks within traditional data centers were simple to manage. But then the cloud rolled in.

Similar to the transport of gold from coast to coast, previously static data resources became mobile and security took second place to accessibility.

With multicloud solutions, data is dispersed across environments — on-premises, in the cloud, on the edge and back again. This makes management an increasingly complex task. In an effort to adapt, companies have adopted multiple solutions designed for specific case uses, stringing them together in convoluted chains.

But the base issue persists: Agility increases the risk of data breaches, and secure data is slow data.

“Then you have Open Systems … who says, that’s not necessarily the case,” said David Nuti (pictured), head of channels, North America, at Open Systems AG. “You can have world-class deployment in an agile platform where all that complexity and service chaining unification is handled for you.”

Nuti spoke with John Furrier (@furrier), host theCUBE, at SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio in Palo Alto, California. In a separate interview, Furrier spoke with Silvan Tschopp, head of solution architecture at Open Systems. They discussed how Open Systems platform integrates software-defined networking in a wide area network and managed security services to provide secure and agile network and data management (see the full interviews with transcript here and here.) (* Disclosure below.)

Watch the complete interview with Nuti below:

A seasoned provider moves into North America

Open Systems is a new name in Silicon Valley, but the Swiss-founded company has 30 years of experience in managed security services and an impressive global customer service record.

“We’re in 183 countries with customers today. We have a 98% retention rate, a 58 Net Promoter Score,” Nuti said.

The move into the North American market has been accompanied by a change in sales model from direct sales to partner-only sales.

“What’s exciting for the partners is that they have a new supplier in the portfolio in the form of Open Systems that while it is a new name to them, is anything but new in experience and execution,” Nuti stated. “The partner network is breaking down barriers to entry in a number of security categories … [through the] networks of hundreds and thousands of trusted advisors out there that we’re engaging with today.”

SD-WAN and cloud go hand-in-hand

Since 2012, Open Systems has focused on providing secure SD-WAN. Enabled by software-defined networking, SD-WAN is a critical innovation that makes the inflexible network agile and eliminates the bottlenecks and high costs associated with traditional networking.

“SD-WAN stepped in and said, ‘Hey, look. Now we’re not centered around the headquarters anymore; we’re centered around where the applications are. We’re centered around where the data is, and we need to find means to connect to that data as quickly as possible,’” Tschopp explained. “SD-WAN actually benefits from the cloud as much as the cloud benefits from SD-WAN, because they go hand-in-hand.”

Watch the complete interview with Tschopp below:

Convergence is the name of the game

Coupling the flexibility of SD-WAN with its decades of experience in security is the “secret” behind Open Systems’ claim to eliminate the complexity of maneuvering in a cloud-based environment.

“Open Systems has taken a very diverse set of services and network and security categories and unified it into a single platform,” Nuti stated.

The current platform has evolved over the past 20 years and incorporates the human expertise of a team of “115 level-three+ engineers” with the latest advances in intelligent technology, according to Nuti. “Eighty-five to 90% of our detected incidents are handled by artificial intelligence, automation, and machine learning,” he said.

Describing how the Open Systems platform was custom-built for SD-WAN, Tschopp said, “We integrate feature sets; we know how to monitor it, how to configure it, how to manage it, life-cycle management, technology risk, technology management. All this is purposefully built into it. We have experts, our experts, operating the network for you as a customer and, therefore, our experts are your experts.”

Be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s CUBE Conversations. (* Disclosure: Open Systems AG sponsored this segment of theCUBE. Neither Open Systems nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE