Client Story: Jerry Gaffney Ministries

Nothing is more important to us than our customers. Every day, Guardian Digital solutions help organizations around the world secure their most business-critical email assets from hackers and phishing attacks.

We are proud to have loyal customers, many of whom have been with us for more than a decade. They’ve shared their success stories with us and we’d like to share them with you and others in the IT community — we want your business to have the same email safeguards and peace of mind that others have found with Guardian Digital.

Whether it’s the comprehensive engineered security designed by our engineers, the cost-effectiveness of open source software, or our unparalleled customer support, Guardian Digital customers across the world rely on our expertise and ability to deliver value.

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Gaffney Ministries Protects Email, Stays Ahead of Threats with Comprehensive Support Solution

Jerry Gaffney Ministries

jerry gaffney ministries

 

 

 

Challenges

  • Restricted Budget
  • Limited Experience
  • Strained IT Resources

Requirements

  • Simplified Administration 
  • Automatic Security Updates
  • Monitoring Capabilities
  • Enterprise support services

Solutions

  • EnGarde Cloud Email Security: Control Email Usage and Eliminate Spam
  • Managed Services: Monitor Firewall and Network Activities, Troubleshoot and Resolve Technical Incidents
  • Unparalleled Support: Automatic Updates, Built-in Alerts, Customized Security Improvements

Results

  • Bulletproof email protection 
  • Secure email for communication with members
  • Ability to monitor and prevent email intrusion attempts
  • Elimination of system compromises and phishing attacks
 

Security, Scalability, Ease of Management, Enterprise Support

christian services ministry protects users and congregation from malware and phishing attacks

With the natural chaos of everyday life, Internet users put modern technology to work, relishing in the convenience and practicality of having the entire world at their fingertips. Even religious groups are benefiting from the merits of the Internet, attracting congregants with convenient faith and continuous spiritual support easily accessible behind the glow of a computer monitor.

As the largest religious communication connection on the Internet, Jerry Gaffney Ministries provides a modern approach to those seeking respite from the influences of the outside world and who are in need of real-time encouragement from others with similar beliefs and values. A non-profit Christian organization, Gaffney Ministries effectively uses their online site to bring faith and prayer to the organization's thousands of members.

Founded in 1944, Gaffney Ministries caters to just fewer than twenty thousand members nationwide. As the most prominent prayer request forum-based website on the Internet, Gaffney Ministries is always a foremost target for system intrusion and compromise.

With a large majority of communication among their members handled through email and the numerous resources available on their website, the security of their network is not a luxury, but instead an integral component in the continued success of the organization. Guardian Digital EnGarde Email Security Gateway delivered the services and support needed to safeguard their users from the ever-increasing threats present in email today.

Secure Email, Comprehensive Support, Exceptional Results
"The level of attention to detail that Guardian Digital Master Support team provided to us could only be possible from an organization that understands the importance of service to a community; our congregation is beholden to them for their efforts."
- Jerry Gaffney, Pastor, Jerry Gaffney Ministries

Requirements: Security, Scalability, Ease of Management, Enterprise Support

Ensuring the site is always available to the public is an often time-consuming and complicated task for Shawn Gaffney, the organization's CTO. With only seven employees making up the organization, and not a single expert system administrator on staff, Gaffney Ministries needed a platform that would grow with their changing needs, offering simplified administration capabilities, comprehensive support and a robust email security system. "We are a very small organization and a large portion of our budget is invested in our Internet presence. If we are ever compromised so badly that we lose everything, there is no way we could ever start over again. We simply do not have the funds to recover from a major attack," Gaffney stated.

Seeking a Secure Alternative

In spite of following the manufacturer's instructions on previous installations including those from Microsoft and Symantec, their users were constantly being attacked with phishing emails and malicious code. After enduring a significant number of security breaches, including one that took their entire site offline, Gaffney knew it was time to seek out a more secure alternative. "I needed to find a system that would offer the highest levels of security and be easy to use and maintain, especially given my lack of knowledge regarding security," Gaffney stated.

Guardian Digital: A Heavenly Solution

Having "big business" requirements and a limited budget, Gaffney turned to Guardian Digital for a cost-effective solution incorporating enterprise-grade security and functionality. Assessing each of their concerns and requirements, Guardian Digital EnGarde Email Security Gateway satisfied all their needs and worked seamlessly with their individual environment. Further, the flexibility offered by Guardian Digital's open source approach allowed Gaffney to make customized changes to the system so it would constantly adapt to the ever-changing needs of his organization.

Needing a secure mail server to protect the hundreds of thousands of email messages that pass through the organization's network on a daily basis, Guardian Digital Email Protection Suite Enterprise Edition was the ideal choice. EnGarde Email Security Gateway provides essential confidentiality among email communications between employees and outside members. "We receive messages on a daily basis regarding everything from basic business functions to spiritual guidance requests. In many cases, we are entrusted with our members' deepest thoughts, fears and feelings and it is essential to me that the information we receive is restricted to its intended destination," Gaffney stated.

Large Business Requirements, Small Business Details
"To anyone considering Guardian Digital products, all I can say is you must try this system, especially if you do not have the staff to monitor the security of your servers. It will give you the peace of mind you need at night to know that everything is running secure and efficiently."
- Jerry Gaffney, Pastor, Jerry Gaffney Ministries

Unparalleled Enterprise Support Services

Guardian Digital Master Support services fulfilled their system requirements with comprehensive technical support, the convenience of automatic updates, set-up and configuration assistance, and much more. With a limited knowledge of Linux, Gaffney was eager to learn how to configure and maintain his system and the Guardian Digital expert Master Support team was ready to help. "The support I have received is the best I have ever had from any company. I had no special arrangement regarding support and even so, every single question I asked was resolved immediately," Gaffney said. "They were kind and understanding of my individual abilities, and they took the time to teach me along the way so I could become self-sufficient. Instead of just fixing the issues, they would explain to me line-by-line what they suggested we do so that I would personally understand the changes we were making. If there was something I could not handle, I knew I could count on them to step-up and get my system up and running quickly," he continues.

Understanding that support is an integral part to ensuring secure set-up and configuration, Guardian Digital technical support team went above and beyond, consistently making themselves accessible to Gaffney Ministries. "The level of attention to detail that Guardian Digital Master Support team provided to us could only be possible from an organization that understands the importance of service to a community; our congregation is beholden to them for their efforts," Gaffney said.

Result: Permanent Bulletproof Security, Efficient Online Presence

Looking no further then Guardian Digital, Gaffney ministries implemented a number of Guardian Digital's award-winning open source applications to create a cohesive and ideal solution. Without a single successful compromise so far, Guardian Digital has supplied the organization with a solution that met all their needs, including a seamless transition, simplified management and maintenance, bulletproof security and flawless functionality. "The availability of automatic updates and the simplified web-based management features have proven to be invaluable to our organization. Before Guardian Digital, we were completely reliant upon ourselves to scour the Internet looking for vendor security updates and tweak the email security system. We do not have the resources to hire a system administrator nor do I have the time to  maintain the system on my own. Guardian Digital lets me concentrate on my core responsibilities, which is a priceless asset," Gaffney said.

A Divine Partnership

Already seeing a significant system performance increase, Gaffney Ministries could not be more pleased with the services and product offerings of Guardian Digital. Due to the reliability, security and the endless benefits of Guardian Digital's products and services, Gaffney Ministries is now confident in investing more resources to their online presence and as a result, have devised aggressive plans for growth in this area. Planning to continually upgrade and purchase new product offerings, Gaffney Ministries and Guardian Digital have formed an unbreakable partnership.

Gaffney concludes by saying, "To anyone considering Guardian Digital products, all I can say is you must try this system, especially if you do not have the staff to monitor the security of your servers. It will give you the peace of mind you need at night to know that everything is running secure and efficiently. I would never leave Guardian Digital, they have provided us with so many new security tools, I would be lost without them. They have not only provided us with a fast and secure operating system, but their Master Support is second to none."