14 DAY TRIAL // Bitdefender’s hardware security device Box has been launched on Friday in San Francisco without the slightest noise from the company.
The product is designed as an antivirus solution that protects all the devices connected to the home network by standing guard at the entry point. It inspects all traffic flowing in or out and identifies the malicious packets.
Security appliance relies on cloud data
Bitdefender Box was announced back in November 2014 and touted as a security appliance that integrates router functionality and gets along with such devices if present, as it can sit in front or behind them.
Even if this is the first product of this kind launched, it may seem overpriced at $199 / €185, especially since it comes with a yearly subscription of $99 / €90.
However, the company’s selling strategy may be that this cost is significantly less than purchasing separate security solutions for each of the protected devices, although it is unclear if the protection level remains the same.
Box relies heavily on information pulled from the cloud, which is used to detect patterns of malicious streams, block bad IP addresses or other threat risks with indicators in the cloud database.
Box offers security for connected devices in the household
One of the benefits provided by Box is that its protection extends over multiple Internet-connected devices in the household (smart appliances, smart TVs, gaming consoles, thermostats), running different operating systems (Windows, Mac, iOS, Android).
According to the webpage set up for the product, the configuration process is completely automated on supported routers. On the other hand, the network performance is limited to 100Mbit/s, which may be not be sufficient for all users.
On the same note, traffic scanning activity could also impact network performance.
Among the features included in Box, apart from protection against threats, there is remote control from mobile phones, allowing installation of operating system updates, identification of system issues and management of data roaming on family devices.