Organizations are frequently hesitant to replace IT infrastructure that appears to be operating without a hitch because of the constant constraints of time and money. Don’t fix something that isn’t broken. In today’s atmosphere of cyber danger, however, the fact that anything looks to be operating is insufficient.
Consider firewalls as an example. The primary purpose of a firewall is to provide a fortified perimeter by which specific types of traffic are barred from the network and its resources. Traditional firewalls accomplish this by blocking particular IP addresses and ports. However, the majority of cyberattacks today are started at the application layer. Older firewalls that are unable to inspect data packets to determine whether they are malicious can easily be bypassed by application-layer assaults.
Have you considered taking advantage of SonicWall’s trade-in trade-up Secure Upgrade Program?
In many cases, your current firewall appliance(s) can be traded in and upgraded to the latest, most advanced security solution for just a fraction more. Click on the “My Upgrade Options” link below to find out what appliances are eligible for an upgrade.
Why upgrade? SonicWall next-generation firewalls (NGFW) provide:
- Lightning-fast performance with security processors optimized for speed
- Network Security Manager (NSM) – a comprehensive centralized firewall management system to help you configure, and deploy all of your firewalls remotely
- Real-Time Deep Memory Inspection (RTDMI™) to gain a deeper level of threat prevention against the latest cyberattacks.
- Capture Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) sandbox service, awarded ICSA Labs’ highest level of firewall, anti-malware, and advanced threat defense certifications.
- Ability to access resources behind the firewall remotely and securely using native 802.11ac wireless SSL VPN
Next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) offer advanced functionality that better protects your organization from attack:
- Web Usage Control. NGFW vendors have gone through the process of categorizing websites according to the type of content. Organizations can use these categories to block or limit access to certain types of sites — pornography, child abuse, dating, gambling, social media, shopping, etc. This prevents users from going to sites that could be malicious or create legal issues or simply have no business relevance.
- Malware Detection. NGFWs recognize that even legitimate websites may unknowingly harbor malware. Also, organizations may want to give certain users access to social media platforms, which often have malicious files or links. NGFWs inspect network traffic to detect malware and prevent it from being delivered to the user.
- Automated Intervention. Best-in-class NGFWs don’t just passively block traffic based on known signatures and predefined policies. Deep packet inspection and intrusion prevention are used to scrutinize regular network traffic on a much more granular level. NGFWs actively look for patterns that could indicate malicious activity.
- VPN Support. Given today’s highly mobile workstyles, most organizations need to allow users to access network resources remotely. A virtual private network (VPN) creates a secure, private connection over the public Internet to protect the data moving between the remote user and the data center. NGFWs simplify and secure remote access with built-in support for IPsec and SSL VPNs.
- Application Awareness. NGFWs are application-aware, allowing legitimate applications to traverse the network while blocking others according to business policies. For example, organizations can block applications such as Bit Torrent, which is commonly used to download content illegally, as well as consumer-grade file-sharing applications that can put data at risk. Organizations may also want to block video streaming and other non-business applications that can cause bandwidth bottlenecks and hamper employee productivity
Ease of management is a key feature to look for when selecting an NGFW — particularly for organizations that have multiple remote sites. Cloud-based NGFWs allow IT teams to administer multiple firewalls and make configuration changes from one web-based console.
Many GDS customers are making the transition to newer technology but a lot of companies are still using legacy firewalls that don’t provide adequate protection. It can be hard to justify investment in a new firewall when traffic is moving to and from the network. However, a security breach is much more expensive in terms of direct costs, business disruption, and reputational damage. The security experts at GDS can help you select and implement an NGFW that will put your organization on a firmer footing.
