Anycast for Security Providers

Many security providers use anycast to ensure their users still experience 100% uptime and fast connectivity when a security layer is added to their connections. A wide range of security services utilize BGP anycast to increase performance and eliminate downtime.

Web Application Firewall (WAF) Providers

WAF providers deploy a firewall application in front of their customers’ web servers in order to monitor access, protect against hacking, and collect log data. Anycast is used to connect end users to the nearest available firewall application server quickly and reliably. If one application server is taken offline for maintenance, or fails for another reason, users are seamlessly rerouted to the next closest available server.

VPN and Secure Access Providers

Many providers offer VPN and other secure access services to help users safely browse the web. Using anycast, VPN providers make sure customers can access their service whenever and wherever they need to. User connection requests are routed to the closest available VPN endpoint for low latency connectivity. If there is a failure or outage, users are seamlessly rerouted to the next nearest server.

Recursive DNS Providers

Another way providers help users safely and securely browse the web is through secure DNS services, such as Google’s 8.8.8.8 and Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1. You can learn more about how anycast facilitates fast, reliable DNS resolution on our Anycast for Recursive DNS page.

DDoS Mitigation Providers

One of today’s most common security threats is a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, where users in one or more locations overload a server with more traffic than it can process, causing it to crash. When an attack is detected, anycast can be used at the network level to re-route all incoming requests to the nearest available mitigation server. These mitigation applications then “clean” the incoming traffic, only letting legitimate requests through to their original destination. 

Some providers offer “always on” mitigation services for those with high security needs. For “always on” mitigation, anycast is used to route every incoming request to the closest available mitigation server for verification before sending them to the customer’s infrastructure. Anycast minimizes the latency introduced when this type of mitigation service is being utilized, ensuring a fast, reliable experience for end users.

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Providers

In-house IT security staff often partner with a SIEM provider to monitor activity within their IT environment. SIEM applications provide real-time analysis of security alerts generated by applications and network hardware, so that staff can take fast, appropriate action. To provide the speed and reliability needed for real-time analysis, anycast is used to route incoming data from geographically-distributed firewalls and other security appliances to the nearest application server for logging and analyzing.