Dubai, UAE, October 7, 2025 – Fortinet, the global cybersecurity leader driving the convergence of networking and security, today announced that DESS Primary Academic City (DESS) has implemented the Fortinet Security Fabric platform at its new primary school campus in Dubai Academic City. The deployment helps DESS expand access for its growing student population while keeping the learning environment secure and digitally connected.
The solution brings together FortiGate Next Generation Firewall, FortiSwitches, FortiAPs and FortiVoice into one centrally managed platform for networking and communications. This approach simplifies daily IT operations, unifies security across wired and wireless networks and provides full visibility for the school’s IT team. It also improves troubleshooting, enhances threat detection and supports hybrid learning with the flexibility to scale as DESS’s needs evolve. By consolidating networking, security and voice infrastructure, the school has reduced IT workload, improved reliability and built a strong foundation for modern, connected education.Educational institutions face a variety of security challenges, from external attacks to internal risks. Students and visitors bringing multiple devices onto campus can introduce vulnerabilities. At the same time, hybrid learning and potential AI misuse create new demands for protection. Fortinet’s Unified Threat Management supports organizations by simplifying networking security for organizations with challenging networking requirements, as particularly found in educational institutions with its multitude of different access points.
“At DESS, our priority is to create an environment where students and teachers can focus fully on learning, without worrying about connectivity or security,” said Malachy McGrogan, Assistant Headteacher and Director of Technology, at DESS. “Fortinet’s platform allows us to manage our infrastructure more efficiently while making sure our community can benefit from digital learning in a safe and reliable way.”
“This deployment is part of Fortinet’s wider work with the education sector across the Middle East. By converging networking and security into a single platform, Fortinet’s technology and solutions help educational institutions overcome operational and cybersecurity challenges, so they can stay focused on their core mission of teaching and learning,” added Shadi Khuffash Senior Regional Director of South Middle East at Fortinet.
Delivered in close collaboration with Fortinet’s regional partner ecosystem, the project ensured that DESS benefited not only from advanced technology but also from tailored implementation and ongoing support. This partnership helped the school achieve a smooth deployment while keeping day-to-day operations uninterrupted.
“Our work with DESS demonstrates the value of combining Fortinet’s technology with our regional expertise,” said Ramesh Belani, CEO from Maxtouch. “With a strong product portfolio, reliable support and competitive pricing, we’re able to deliver solutions that give schools confidence in both their security and their day-to-day operations.”
Fortinet continues to empower educational institutions across the Middle East with reliable, secure digital infrastructure. By addressing both operational and security challenges, Fortinet enables schools to remain focused on their core mission, delivering high-quality teaching and learning in a digitally connected world.