Atomic Cartoons Chooses Abnormal as More Effective SEG Alternative

Atomic Cartoons, a Thunderbird Entertainment company, produces some of the best-known animated shows at its three studios in Vancouver, Ottawa, and Burbank, California. With a unique artist-driven culture, Atomic has built a reputation for reliability and creativity that has led to partnerships with Netflix, Disney+, DreamWorks, and Nickelodeon and opportunities to work on popular franchises like Lego Star Wars, Night at the Museum, Minecraft, and more.

Atomic Cartoons faced targeted phishing attacks, scams, and malicious messages designed to steal and leak episodes. The studio and its parent company struggled to extract value from their SEG, as the IT team had to invest extensive time in creating and updating SEG policies and manually remediating attacks.

IT Manager Robert Crowther wanted relief from the workload required to manage the SEG, especially given Atomic Cartoons' use of Google Workspace for email and its parent company's use of Microsoft 365. “Some people have email addresses with both companies, and the SEG’s impersonation protection generated lots of false positives and false negatives.”

“Abnormal’s behavioral AI-based solution detects more attacks than our former SEG, and it works seamlessly so I can sleep at night. Abnormal was the easiest solution for us to implement, and it keeps us incredibly secure.”
—Robert Crowther, IT Manager

Crowther wanted an email security solution that would integrate better with Workspace and reduce the need for continuous oversight. “Our trusted technology vendor, Clutch Solutions, suggested we talk to Abnormal,” he said.

Abnormal’s API-based design made it easy for Crowther and the IT team to run a proof of concept with the SEG still in place. At first, Abnormal’s rapid integration with Workspace raised eyebrows. “I was skeptical because it was so easy—three clicks per tenant,” he said. Then he saw how many advanced threats Abnormal caught due to its behavioral AI capabilities. “The SEG was missing more attacks than I had realized,” he said. “With Abnormal, we could see that we had stronger protection.”

Crowther and his team have also benefited from Abnormal’s product add-ons. Abuse Mailbox Automation saves the team time and delivers quick responses after artists report messages. “Before, we could only add those messages to the GSuite block list, but it kept happening.” Account Takeover Protection gives the team visibility into remote logins to help maintain security no matter where artists are working. “Seamless email functionality, visibility, and protection are critical for a deadline-driven business like ours, especially one with high-profile projects and major IP security concerns,” Crowther said.

Atomic Cartoons’ parent company, Thunderbird Entertainment, also uses Abnormal now. “Abnormal’s support is great, and the documentation is easy to use, so it’s easier to train our team,” Crowther said.

“Abnormal’s behavioral AI solution just works, and Abnormal delivers cost savings through time savings. Before Abnormal, every time we had an incident, the IT team and pretty much all of management had to be involved or needed updates on our response. Additionally, Abnormal is easier to work with. They are very understanding and not pushy, and they want to know how they can help us. Abnormal focuses on their customers and believes in their product.”
—Robert Crowther, IT Manager

Now, Atomic Cartoons has behavioral AI-based email security that protects artists and the intellectual property they work with, so they can focus on deadlines instead of email worries. The IT team also has more time and greater peace of mind. “With the SEG, I always had a window open. With Abnormal, I don’t. I spend less time managing our email security while it works and evolves,” Crowther said. “When we need something, we get fast and accurate support. Most of our vendors are awesome, but Abnormal is phenomenal.”