WatchGuard Replaces Legacy NDR as Orders of St John Care Trust Transitions to the Cloud
Challenge
The Orders of St John Care Trust (OSJCT) is a leading not-for-profit healthcare charity in the UK, caring for over 3,500 residents with nearly 4,800 staff across six counties. Protecting sensitive resident data and defending against cyber threats is a top priority. Previously, OSJCT relied on a legacy network detection and response (NDR) solution to monitor network risks. However, as the Trust shifted to an all-cloud IT model, its existing NDR solution became costly and impractical.
Like many organizations, OSJCT transitioned away from a multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) network to a cloud-first architecture. This shift made traditional appliance-based NDR unfeasible, as it would require expensive hardware deployment at each site. “As a charity, those costs would have been intolerable,” explains Lewis Carrington, IT Manager.
Instead, the Trust sought a cloud-based security solution that could integrate seamlessly with its cloud infrastructure while maintaining robust threat detection.
Solution
After evaluating WatchGuard’s NDR capabilities, the OSJCT team, including Carrington and Infosec Officer Steven Pumford, saw clear benefits. Unlike appliance-based NDR, as a 100% cloud solution, WatchGuard requires no hardware for reduced operational complexity and effortless integration with their current Fortinet security tools.
“We compared WatchGuard feature for feature with our legacy NDR and found it provided nearly identical risk detection but in a much simpler, more cost-effective package,” says Carrington.
Results
Built on Amazon Web Services (AWS), WatchGuard delivers enterprise-class threat detection without the burden of any hardware deployment. OSJCT quickly realized the advantages:
- AI-driven anomaly detection to identify ransomware, insider threats, and unauthorized network activity.
- Visibility across on-premises devices, cloud applications, and IoT environments.
- Automated reporting on network risks, making security data accessible for both IT teams and executives.
Beyond functionality, the price difference was a game-changer. “It cut our costs by two-thirds compared to our previous NDR solution,” Carrington notes. One standout feature was WatchGuard’s intuitive reporting. Unlike its previous NDR, which required sifting through excessive technical data, WatchGuard presented key insights in clear, actionable formats.
“Before, our reports were overwhelming. Now, we can provide executives with straightforward ransomware risk assessments and network security updates without unnecessary complexity,” explains Pumford.
The OSJCT team is now exploring ways to expand WatchGuard’s role in its security framework. With seamless Fortinet integration and continued enhancements, WatchGuard has proven to be a long-term partner in securing OSJCT’s cloud-driven future.
“WatchGuard delivered 90% of our legacy NDR’s capabilities at a fraction of the cost,” says Pumford. “For any organization considering cloud security, my advice is simple: embrace the change. WatchGuard makes it easy, secure, and cost-effective.”