Case Study

Wrexham County Borough Council

What we did for Wrexham County Borough Council

Wingman Firewalls

Published: 02/12/2021

Project Overview

SEP2 are the preferred cyber security partner for Wrexham County Borough Council. SEP2 provide and manage their Check Point firewalls, a critical element of their cyber security posture. In this case study, we speak to the team at the council to see how this cyber security partnership came about, the scale of the project and exactly how the two partners work together.

The Challenge

Vast amounts of personal data to protect
Outdated infrastructure
Obsolete hardware

The Solution

Absolute security maintained without impact to users
Seamless migration
Proactive and knowledgeable support

The Challenge

Wrexham County Borough Council is the governing body for Wrexham County Borough, a local government principal area based in Wrexham – the largest town in North Wales. As with most county councils, they deal with a variety of services for the public, from schools and education to planning and health and social care. The borough council encompasses 47 wards in total. Peter Grimley is the Infrastructure Manager; he manages a team of engineers and network specialists.
Cyber security is a huge priority for the council. They manage vast amounts of personal data for the community, all of which must be protected from the increasing volume of cyber threats. As such,
it is critical that the council work with the very best people and technology to stay ahead of the threat.

From the council’s perspective, the project is all about protecting personal data. This includes electoral roll, social care and schools. The amount of data held by the council is vast, and it is of a very sensitive nature. Cyber security is not an aspiration – it is an absolute necessity. Thus, the council not only need the very best in technology but to work with experts capable of ensuring that the tech is doing what it needs to.
The existing infrastructure was outdated and the policies needed an update. Hardware was becoming obsolete, and there were around 15 years of rules that needed consolidating. The project was vast, and of course, all of this work needed to take place whilst ensuring absolute security every minute of every day without impacting the day to day delivery for the users.

The Solution

Mike Goodwin is one of SEP2’s directors. With Check Point, Mike met Peter and his team, and explained his vision of what SEP2 could do to assist the council. With an emphasis on support, Mike was able to explain to Peter that the migration to a new system and all of the associated compliance work would be carried out professionally and at zero risk. SEP2 are experienced in exactly this sort of migration project, so could detail the process with absolute conviction. SEP2, with Check Point, won the business and started working with Wrexham Council in mid-2020.

SEP2, who also needed to integrate with the incumbent network and internet providers. Peter describes this collaboration as ‘fantastic’, with Mike and other SEP2 staff being instrumental in this. Migration from the old firewall to the new firewall started in December 2020, and was successfully implemented the first time, with no additional exposure to risk throughout.
This was a bespoke project that relied on SEP2’s rigorous and process-driven approach. For example, the legacy rules, which all needed updating and reconstructing, numbered over 300 in total. So, intense project management was key to a successful outcome.
Onboarding is also the key to success. This can only be done with a comprehensive skills and technical review, knowledge transfer and clear communication. SEP2 are ‘Tech Driven and People Powered” and pride themselves in a seamless and smooth onboarding process involving technicians and account managers from across the business.

Working with SEP2

So, what is it like working with SEP2? There are several themes that emerge in conversation with Peter and his team at the council. The first of these is trust. Through their expertise and brilliant customer service, SEP2 were quickly able to engender trust with Wrexham council. As Peter puts it: “Once the trust is there, the conversations are easier to have.” Another theme is being easy to work with. “With SEP2, it never feels like a hard sell. They were always willing to be patient with us.”
Finally, SEP2 are lauded by the council for their pro-activity.

Looking ahead with SEP2

By identifying key areas for investment, Wrexham County Borough Council are set to strengthen their cyber security posture and protect their digital assets. With SEP2’s expertise and the council’s dedication, they are building a foundation for a safer digital landscape.

Client Testimonial

“SEP2 are not merely a firewall partner, they are a cyber security partner. They take a strategic approach. They are approachable and offer additional value outside of their support contract. Working with SEP2 means we are no longer fire-fighting; rather we can now take a step back and proactively get things sorted.”

Peter Grimley, Infrastructure Manager

Testimonials

Hear From Those We Protect

You’re vendor agnostic, which is key for growth, and your team are providing really good insights in terms of the alerts raised. They also provide meaningful context behind them, which is great for us as an organisation,”

When we hit the limits of our knowledge, it’s having SEP2 there to say, ‘Try these things first.’ That expertise on hand is really important to us.

To have people like that around our account that we can pick the phone up to and ask questions was refreshing. Ultimately, we trusted SEP2 and we trust you with our cyber security.

Often the term used is ‘you can’t see the wood for the trees’. Most organisations implement security tooling tools and you’ve got different dashboards. The idea is you put them into a single place, and leverage expert resource such as the SEP2 SOC that actually understands that data and work with it on a daily basis. They can assess it case-by-case and escalate it back to us at Funding Circle only when necessary. And that whole process has been really, really smooth.

They are phenomenal: both personable and very knowledgeable. Our main contact is like a fountain of knowledge. If you ask him a question, he always comes back with ten answers – all the shades of grey, not just a ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ To me that shows the level of passion he has, and that he really wants to do things properly.

The original group of people who founded SEP2 were very deep in their knowledge of this type of technology, which can be complicated. It’s become the whole field of firewalls, intrusion prevention, antivirus, ransomware, etc. Cyber security as a whole has really ballooned, and there’s lots of dimensions to it, but you’ve managed to keep up.

During the evaluation process it was clear to me that SEP2 were the strongest candidate from a technical standpoint. During our first meeting, their ability to give immediate solutions to ongoing issues we were experiencing at the time was a breath of fresh air.

SEP2 are knowledgeable, motivated and switched on; they take ownership and they have a drive for resolution. They know their stuff! They are not merely a firewall partner, they are a cyber security partner. They take a strategic approach. They are approachable and offer additional value outside of their support contract. Working with SEP2 means we are no longer fire-fighting; rather we can now take a step back and proactively get things sorted. SEP2 say they are tech driven and people powered, and that’s exactly what they are! It all comes down to the people you are dealing with.

They live and breathe the technology. It comes from the top, however, everyone is an expert within SEP2, from sales through to the service desk. We don’t want to wait to be told what more we can get from vendors’ products. SEP2 are great in pro-actively helping us achieve value-add solutions. They aren’t about chasing revenues, they are about providing best possible value.