INTELLIGENT ENTERPRISE SECURITY
Why firewalls are still an important element of organisational security
Innovative security architectures using firewalls to create zones may be a good approach, but selection of the right vendor is equally important explains Ian Kilpatrick from Nuvias Group.
In 2016, we are subject to near constant headlines detailing the latest big data breach or hacking scandal. Many of us probably think we have a pretty good handle on the different types of security risks that can threaten our businesses. But the reality may be a little different.
The introduction of new technologies, the growth of cloud computing and changing employee working practices have all opened the door to a raft of new security vulnerabilities – often without us realising it.
The security perimeter that was once in place no longer exists. Bring your own Device, remote working or working across multiple sites, combined with an increasing reliance on cloud-based applications such as Office 365 and Salesforce, and public cloud services like Amazon AWS or Microsoft Azure, have contributed to a decentralised environment where company data and applications can be freely accessed from almost any device, on any network.
Without knowing it, many organisations have repeatedly punched holes into their once-secure perimeter, potentially leaving themselves not only vulnerable but fully open to attack.
However, because these changes have happened over time, in some cases several years, many firms have missed, or have under prioritised the potential risks they face. This in some instances has led to complacency regarding legacy security systems.
If something has always worked, and was secure in the past why mess with it? But of course, this does not take into account the new wave of attacks coming from outside the weakened perimeter. One of a number of areas that this applies to is firewall technology, which has had to evolve to counter this next generation of security threats. The firewall that has done a perfectly good job over the past five years, may not be enough to protect your business in the future.
For example, firewalls deployed across a multi-site environment, should be able to offer extra features such as the ability to optimise and protect business, critical traffic from being swamped by less important network activities. So, ideally your active firewall
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