19 Oct Harnessing the Power of NGFW Capabilities for Enhanced Network Security
NGFWs can recognize applications at a deeper level than ports and protocols and enforce policies based on specific application characteristics or behavior. This granular visibility and control help to prevent security threats from undetected, unauthorized applications. Cloud-based NGFWs provide software to secure distributed networks and remote users, reducing hardware costs and complexity. They can also support centralized security management.
Integrated Intrusion Prevention System (IPS)
An IPS is designed to monitor and protect network traffic to detect and respond to cyber threats. It aims to block malicious attacks and stop the damage before they can cause significant problems, all without requiring round-the-clock monitoring by security personnel. An IPS typically scans network traffic as it passes through, then identifies and blocks threats based on configured rules and policies. Depending on the type of IPS, it may use various detection methods. For example, a signature-based IPS maintains a database of attack patterns and compares them against network packets to identify and deflect known threats. An anomaly-based IPS instead uses machine learning to create and refine a normal network activity baseline model. It then springs into action when it finds deviations from that pattern, such as a device opening a usually closed port.
In addition to blocking external hackers, an IPS can help protect against actions by authorized employees who don’t follow security policies. For example, an IPS can prevent employees from accessing sensitive data by blocking their IP address or sending them to a virtual jail. IPS solutions can be network-based or host-based. A network-based IPS (NIPS) provides an overview of the entire organization’s networks, while a wireless IPS (WIPS) is specifically geared toward detecting threats in a company’s wireless network.
Application Awareness
In addition to granular policy enforcement and monitoring by application, content, traffic source, and destination, true NGFWs also automatically integrate threat intelligence to update protections based on newly discovered threats. They can detect hacking attempts by analyzing the behavior of applications to determine their purpose, a capability that traditional firewalls cannot provide. Integrated attack prevention technologies include deep packet inspection, IPS functionality and web security. Modern NGFWs can be deployed in physical or virtual form factors to meet the needs of various deployment scenarios and performance requirements and offer flexible licensing options. Some offer a Firewall as a Service (FWaaS) model that simplifies management by outsourcing the maintenance of the device to a third-party provider. With integrations such as remote browser isolation, NGFWs can support the Zero Trust security strategy by verifying every connection to reduce the risk of unauthorized access to sensitive data. They can also identify and counter advanced attacks by detecting the evasion techniques used to bypass standard defenses.
Most importantly, true NGFW capabilities can provide adaptive security to address the demands of the hybrid work environment. This includes securing cloud-based applications and infrastructure, supporting employee mobility and using personal devices for business. It can also offer user identity awareness by integrating with authentication systems to associate network activity with specific users for more effective security protocols.
Deep Packet Inspection (DPI)
Each packet carries a wealth of information as data moves across a network. This includes the type of application or protocol used, how much bandwidth it is using, and more. Firewalls with DPI capability can monitor this information and use it for traffic management, security monitoring and detecting and blocking attacks against the network. In contrast to conventional packet filtering, which only looks at the header information in each data packet, DPI examines a wider range of metadata and content associated with each package. This allows it to spot otherwise hidden threats like malware, data exfiltration attempts, violation of security policies and more. While DPI provides a powerful defense against buffer overflow attacks, denial-of-service attacks and other common threats, it can also be used for more nefarious purposes. For example, governments often employ DPI to execute internet censorship by scanning data attempting to enter or exit the country and blocking transmissions from sites the government deems harmful to its people. DPI can also be utilized to manage and prioritize network traffic based on the types of applications and protocols being used or even to identify and reroute data to and from specific online services or IP addresses. This helps businesses avoid costly lags in performance and ensures that only high-priority messages reach their destination while improving overall network efficiency.
Virtual Private Network (VPN)
As companies embrace remote working and telecommuting to reduce costs, secure remote access VPN technology is critical. VPNs protect data in transit from hackers, cybercriminals, and other attacks by using encryption to keep data private, even over public Wi-Fi networks. A VPN creates a secure tunnel between a network and a remote device, which connects to the VPN server using a variety of protocols. This is important because it allows remote users to work from home or the office without worrying about being snooped by a hacker or infected with malware on their devices. VPNs are also important for business-to-business communications. For example, a branch office can use a VPN to connect with the corporate headquarters network. This alternative to a leased line makes communication between offices much easier to manage. There are several VPN types available for enterprise security systems. For example, the BIG-IP system supports Internet Protocol Security (IPsec) VPNs. It also supports Layer Two Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) VPNs and can be used to support Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS). MPLS is a packet-switching technique that uses short path labels instead of network addresses. A PE (provider edge) router is a device that connects to customer sites over a VPN and presents its view of the network to the CE devices.
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