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Cloud firewalls offer an excellent security solution for many businesses and offer many benefits over traditional firewalls. That being said, there are some additional risks and concerns when it comes to using cloud firewalls, which is why you need to educate yourself on the best practices for these types of firewalls. Keep reading as we share our top cloud firewall best practices and things to keep in mind to avoid further issues when using this type of firewall. Learn more here about the firewall solutions we offer and to discover more about how you can improve your network security this year.

Configure Your Firewall Properly

When you first choose a new SonicWall small business firewall, the most important thing to do is take the time to properly configure your new cloud firewall. As you are investing money into your security, you want to make sure you use it to the best of its ability to offer you the protection you need. Our team will be here to support you in understanding the security features SonicWall firewalls offer to business owners and to help you select the right firewall on cloud for your unique concerns and needs. When you configure your firewall to suit your business setup, you’ll find that you have all the security measures in place to ensure that you are protected from common cybersecurity risks.

With the advancements in technology over recent years, a cloud based firewall can now offer you more personalisation and protection than ever before. We notice that many business owners often rush to set up their firewall without asking for SonicWall firewall support. This might leave you open to risks with your firewall or could just stop you from benefitting from all the great technology and features on offer to you today. That’s why this is the most important best practice in this area before you go any further with using a new firewall.

Limit Management Access

A cloud firewall offers you a flexible solution which can also be ideal for companies where you have workers remotely working from home. However, one thing you need to avoid is offering access to too many administrators to control your cloud firewall and ensure your network remains secure. We encourage business owners to think very carefully about who is allowed access to your firewall settings, so you don’t end up putting yourself at more risk by opening your firewall controls up to the wrong people. Just choose one or two designated employees who can be trusted with this job and ensure they are fully trained in what they can and cannot adjust when it comes to your firewall settings.

Educate Your Employees About Your Firewall

If you are looking to upgrade or adjust your firewall usage in your business, you need to make sure you take the time to educate your team members who might be impacted by this firewall. As well as having a firewall in place, you should also share with your team on a regular basis the common threats and concerns associated with cybersecurity. You never know when an employee might innocently click on a link that could end up getting them into a huge amount of trouble in the long run. The more people you have looking out for suspicious activity and concerning behaviours online and within your network, the easier it will be to avoid falling victim to cyberattacks. With these threats always changing, make sure you keep your team updated about current trends.

Firewalls for Businesses of All Sizes

One of the reasons we recommend cloud firewalls to many business owners is that they are ideal for people working alone or running small businesses from home. The recent pandemic has changed the way in which many of us work, but it has also put more people than ever at risk of cyberattacks. While you might think your small business is unlikely to be a victim, that couldn’t be further from the truth. We notice that more and more small companies are being targeted today, which is why we encourage all small and medium-sized businesses to work with us to find a SonicWall firewall to fit their needs. These products are designed with smaller businesses in mind and will help to secure any type of business operations.

By keeping these cloud firewalls best practices in mind at all times, you can ensure that you avoid some of the common issues that businesses are experiencing today with network security. If you are looking to upgrade your current firewall, our team will be here to support you in discussing the new features on offer to you. Contact our team today with any questions you have about using cloud firewalls or browse through our selection of firewalls to find a solution that fits your needs.

Read the next article: Proxy Server Firewall

As a business owner, security is something you need to put as a top priority in your everyday operations. One of the best ways to improve your network security is with SonicWall firewalls, which are designed for businesses of all shapes and sizes. Even when you invest in firewalls for businesses, you need to make sure you take the time to learn about firewall change management best practices and keep on top of current trends in the industry. Keep reading as we discover some of the current best practices and ways to keep your business secure this year.

Find the Right Firewall for Your Business

The first consideration when it comes to best practice firewall rules is to ensure you have the right protection in place for the type of business you operate. If you work alone, you may not need the same protection that an international company would consider necessary to protect their networks. One of the biggest misconceptions when it comes to SonicWall firewall support is that firewalls are only needed for larger companies. This isn’t the case at all and any business could benefit from additional network security. If you don’t have this security measure in place, make sure you reach out to our team today to discuss the best SonicWall small business firewall for your unique needs.

Work with a Team of Professionals

Once you’ve invested in a firewall, you want to make sure you set it up correctly in order to benefit from all the features it offers. A SonicWall firewall is designed with many state-of-the-art features and new technology to help protect any type of business. That being said, there’s no point investing in a high-quality firewall if you aren’t going to take the time to learn about how to use all of its features. Our team will be here to support you when installing the firewall and discuss any questions about the settings and features you should be using based on the concerns you have surrounding security in your business. As your business grows, we can also suggest adjustments you might want to make to your firewall management practices.

Keep on Top of Current Threats and Trends

While having a firewall in place is one of the best ways to protect your network, it’s also important that you continue to educate yourself about current threats in your industry or the world as a whole. Over the last few years, we’ve seen hackers become even more sneaky in their tactics, bringing a whole new set of risks to businesses around the world. You and your employees should always keep a watchful eye out for any malicious behaviour on your network or when working online. This can add an extra layer of protection alongside the firewall to make sure you are ready to protect your network should a security concern appear.

Discuss Security with Your Team

When you upgrade your security solutions, you also want to take your time to educate your employees about the firewall you are using and general information about security risks. Employees sometimes make silly errors and click on malicious links or open up documents and links that could infiltrate your network. Especially when you have new employees, share with them the importance of keeping their passwords safe and protecting themselves in an emergency. You never know when or where a hacker could try to enter your system, so by having more watchful eyes on your computer systems, you can work together to combat the risks that every business is concerned about today.

Upgrade Your Firewall When Needed

There comes a time when using any type of hardware or software that we must accept that the solution we are using at the current time is outdated and needs replacing. If you’ve been using an old firewall for some time now, then maybe it’s time to look at the new options from SonicWall and consider an upgrade. Outdated technology is unlikely to be offering you the full protection you need and may lead to issues in the future. Our team will be here to support you in discussing your current security solution and whether there is a better option for you based on the industry you work in and the protection you need.

By following these firewall management best practices, you can work to offer protecting your business no matter what type of company you run. Our team can support you in upgrading or installing a new firewall and will work with you to find a solution that’s right for you. Don’t hesitate to contact us today to discuss any questions on the topic we’ve shared here today or to start the process of finding the right firewall for you. Take a look through our range of products for more information about how to upgrade your current protection.

Read next article: Cloud firewalls best practices

When it comes to firewall management, the options for managing this type of security solution have continued to progress over the years. When working and travelling, you might be wondering how to keep security as a top priority even if you aren’t based in your physical workplace at all times. The good news is that remote access firewall solutions are now more commonly offered and allow you to increase the control you have over your security setup. Today we’re going to discover more about remote management firewall options and how your SonicWall firewall can protect you no matter where in the world you are.

What is Remote Firewall Management?

Before we can go deeper into the topic of remote firewall management, you might be wondering what remote firewall management is and how this varies from more common management solutions for firewalls. Remote firewall management typically means that you have the option of managing your security setup from a different location. Instead of needing to be physically present to adjust the settings on your firewall, you have the option to do this from elsewhere. This is a great option for anyone who needs to remain in control of their firewall settings but doesn’t necessarily spend all of their time in their main office or work building. You’ll be able to make adjustments as and when you need to without needing to travel to a building that may be hundreds of miles away.

With more business owners than ever working from home, SonicWall firewall support has only continued to grow and adjust to the changing needs of businesses today. We know that many people still want to work remotely or don’t visit the office every day like they used to, which is why we are still seeing an increase in interest in remote firewall management. It offers a flexible solution which allows businesses to still put security as a top priority without having to review the way in which you are managing your business. It also allows business owners or administrators to take quicker action in emergency situations and ensure that their business is protected with a SonicWall small business firewall no matter what day of the week it is.

The Benefits of Remote Firewall Management

As you can probably imagine, there are many benefits of SonicWall firewalls being managed remotely, which is why so many people discuss this solution with us and are interested in learning more about remote firewall management. The top benefit of this type of management is the option to change settings more freely without being fixed to one location. Of course, this does have the potential to come with some risks, which is why you always need to be very careful about who has access to the system and ensure that you protect yourself from allowing anyone else to make adjustments to the settings.

If you are someone who manages multiple systems or buildings, it will allow you to keep an eye on what’s going on without being physically present. You might also have an administrator who works with you who can adjust settings based on current concerns and ensure that your business stays on top of their security needs at all times. All in all, it offers you the most flexibility when it comes to your network security. Our team will be able to support you when it comes to setting up your remote firewall management and help you to keep on top of your security needs.

SonicWall Firewalls for Businesses

SonicWall firewalls are the best solution for small and medium-sized businesses looking to improve their network security this year. If you’ve been wondering about remote firewall management, the most important thing to first consider is ensuring you are using a modern firewall that offers you the protection you need. There’s no point setting up remote management if your firewall doesn’t offer you the right features, and a SonicWall firewall will offer everything you need and more to keep your business safe and secure. No business is too small to consider upgrading their security, as small and medium businesses are often the victims of cyberattacks as they are seen as easy targets. That’s why we are so passionate about supporting business owners with this task.

Are you looking to improve your network security or start using remote firewall management this year? If so, get in touch with our team today. As you can see on our site, we have a full selection of firewalls on offer to suit businesses of all shapes and sizes. We’ll be here to support you in choosing the right option for your needs and in helping your business go from strength to strength this year. Contact us now with any questions you have or to upgrade your firewall and security solutions.

As a business owner, there are many things you need to consider when it comes to buying an enterprise firewall. This is one of the best investments you’ll make for your business, but you want to take the time to ensure you find an option that’s right for your unique needs. Today we’re going to discover some of the best enterprise-scale firewalls for business, such as the SonicWall business firewall. We’ll also review the main features to look for when buying any firewall, so that you have all the protection you need.

What is an Enterprise Firewall?

Before we look at the features you need for the best enterprise firewall, it’s important to understand what we mean when we use this term. A firewall is a tool that’s designed to protect your network security and is a barrier that goes between your computer network and the internet. They work to monitor the incoming and outgoing traffic based on the rules you configure the firewall to follow when you first purchase it.

Enterprise networks are more complex than smaller companies or sole users, which is where enterprise firewalls come into play. They are designed with extra features and improved specifications that offer a higher level of security based on your more complex needs. That being said, even small businesses really need to think about using a SonicWall business firewall as there are just so many concerns and risks for business owners today. Our team will be here to support you in finding the right solution based on the size of your business and the most common concerns you have.

What Size Business are Firewall Enterprise Models Designed For?

One of the most common issues we notice with companies buying firewalls is that small business owners often think they don’t need to invest in the best SonicWall small business firewall on offer as they are a smaller company. While your business operations may be less complex, the risk of attack is still just as high nowadays as it is for larger businesses. In fact, cyberattacks are now increasingly commonplace within small businesses, as they often don’t have the right security measures in place, making it easier for hackers to target them. As many small businesses have limited finances and resources to play with, you’ll also find that they are easier to attack as the hackers know you will be less likely to retaliate or stop the attack from taking place.

Enterprise Firewall Security Features

The first thing to consider when it comes to buying an enterprise firewall is the level of protection you’ll be offered. No matter the size and type of company you operate, this is something that every business owner needs to look at. There’s no point buying a SonicWall firewall if it doesn’t offer you the protection you are looking for. Many of the older firewalls on the market don’t offer the modern technology and improved features that help to protect you from current concerns. Legacy models often lack traffic decryption features, which allow the firewall to detect malicious code that may be hidden within encrypted traffic.

We recommend trying to buy the best firewall that you can for the budget you are working with. This is a long-term investment for your business, so it’s worth spending a little extra to get a few more features and much better protection. Technology today continues to advance year after year, so if you haven’t upgraded your firewall in a few years, it may be time to look at the options that are on the market today.

SonicWall Firewalls

When it comes to choosing the best enterprise firewall, we highly recommend that you have a look at the range of SonicWall firewalls on offer today. On our site, you’ll find the latest models and options from the company, which use advanced technology to ensure every business owner has the protection they need from the common threats out there today. Our team can recommend the best model based on your company size and daily operations. SonicWall's firewalls are ideal for businesses of all sizes, ranging from sole entrepreneurs up to large companies with hundreds of employees and devices on the network.

Are you looking to purchase a new enterprise firewall for your business? SonicWall's firewalls offer the best protection for businesses today, helping to protect you from the common threats we see around the world. Our team is here at any time to support you in choosing the right firewall for your needs and can answer your questions about which is the best firewall to use in your daily operations. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us today, as the sooner you protect your business to the best of your ability, the easier it will be to focus on the daily tasks involved in running a business.

As a small business owner, the security of your network and business operations should be one of your top concerns. While we know resources and finances can be a challenge for small businesses, this is one of the best investments you’ll make to protect the future of your business. Today we’re going to have a look at why it’s so important for small businesses to use a firewall and the best options on the market today. A SonicWall small business firewall could be the thing that saves your business from ruin in the future, so keep reading to learn about the top products we stock in our online store.

Why Do Small Businesses Need Firewalls?

Before we get into what you should look for when it comes to choosing a firewall for small businesses, a question we are often asked is why would a small company need a SonicWall business firewall? Your business is never going to be too small to require protection from fraud and hacking. Over the past few years, these attacks have only become more and more common, especially with the pressures of the recent pandemic on many people. While you might think that large businesses are the only ones who would need enterprise-scale firewalls and heavy protection, it’s never too early to start taking measures with a SonicWall small business firewall to protect your livelihood.

Even if you are a sole entrepreneur and work by yourself online, you are still putting your business and income at risk every day you aren’t protected by a SonicWall firewall. While we know finances are tight for many business owners, this investment is something that could save you tens of thousands of pounds in the long run. By choosing the top firewalls to use in 2023 that are designed for small and medium-sized businesses, you’ll find that you have all the features that you need for added protection.

The Best Firewall for Small Business Owners

Our team is here to support you in finding the best firewall for small business 2023. You’ll find that SonicWall is our recommended company of choice, as they primarily focus on offering firewalls that are designed for small and medium-sized businesses. They understand the challenges you face as a business owner and will work with you to overcome these issues you risk facing on a daily basis. The good thing about the SonicWall range of firewalls is that they are very user-friendly and easy to set up. We offer a variety of different products and can help you to choose the one that has all the protection you need and fits within your budget.

SonicWall firewalls offer a firewall for small business owners that will help you to protect the network and what is allowed to enter your computer systems. We can configure the firewall to protect the number of devices you use and can even suggest options for anyone working remotely or without an office base. Remote workers can also benefit from an additional layer of protection, as when you are working on different internet connections all the time, you put yourself at even higher risk of attacks.

It’s Never Too Late to Invest in a SonicWall Firewall

If you are wondering whether you’ve left it too late to invest in a firewall for your small business, we’re here to tell you it’s never the wrong time to make this upgrade to your security solutions. Our team works with businesses in all fields and will help to support you with the installation and configuration of your firewall. Even if you are working alone or don’t have a team of IT professionals, you’ll find these firewalls are very easy to install, and you’ll soon understand how to change the settings to fit your unique needs.

One of the things we love the most about the SonicWall products is that you can choose a product that offers you protection at a level that’s suitable for your current concerns. We can work with you to change the settings as needed to overcome your most common worries and ensure you can focus on doing the work you do best in the future without thinking about the risk of cyberattacks.

Are you looking for a small business firewall? If so, take a look through our full selection of products and review the features and benefits of each firewall to find a solution that’s right for you. Our team is passionate about helping other small businesses to remain safe and secure at all times, so don’t hesitate to contact us today with any questions you have about the products we offer. We’ll be happy to support you in making this year the most successful one yet for your business when you have peace of mind knowing your network is protected.

How many times do our security and IT teams ask us to update our antivirus software? Check that the implemented firewall is still meeting our business needs and is configured appropriately.

Cybersecurity, like these questions, is ongoing and essential.

Essential to protect business data, information, and reputation.

This is where antivirus and firewalls come in. Both vital pieces of hardware and software working together to form a robust cyber security strategy (check out our page for information relating to Next Generation Firewalls).

Providing specific layers of protection and distinct solutions, in this post, we delve into the areas of firewalls and antivirus software further, exploring their differences and the benefits they offer.

Firewall and Antivirus

What is a firewall?

A firewall is a security system/shield that provides a wall between your internal network and external threats, identifying trusted and untrusted data and applying the right security protocol to each data packet.

These packet filtering capabilities allow you to apply set rules that are appropriate to your business, allowing you to block specific traffic from certain IP addresses.

For example, data will pass through a firewall, which, upon inspection, the firewall will decide whether or not to allow the data through.

Taking it one step further, are the Next Generation Firewalls (NGFW), including SonicWall firewalls. Dynamic hardware that provides everything a standard firewall offers and then adds more, protecting against password guessing, DoS attacks, and other application vulnerabilities.

This additional level of security is provided by features such as sandboxing, content filtering, SSL inspection, VPN, advanced malware protection, and intrusion protection and detection.

In addition, NGFW can also detect malicious activity quickly and with more precision. Providing network segmentation, access control, remote access VPN, email security, web security, and intrusion prevention systems, making it more effective than traditional firewalls.

Ultimately, a firewall controls the flow of data in and out of your business as you set boundaries between your private network and the public internet.

The benefits of choosing the right firewall type:

• Increased privacy – a firewall will block unauthorised access
• Control – you can control who can access what parts of your system
• Regulate traffic – with port forwarding tools

Antivirus Software

Preventing harmful virus intrusion, one of the key differences between firewalls and antivirus software is antivirus software is a programme that protects your computer systems from viruses, worms, trojans, etc, by scanning your internal systems for threats and deleting or quarantining any suspicious programmes it comes across.

Antivirus software does require regular updating as new threats are found; however, this piece of software will continue to monitor and inspect files, compare against set malware signatures, and then if the system identifies a suspicious programme or a match with malware, the source can be quarantined or immediately deleted.

Providing a high level of security from internal and external threats, antivirus protects endpoints from malware, scanning and identifying so you can respond accordingly.

Firewall vs antivirus

One of the key differences between firewalls and antivirus software is purpose. The purpose of a firewall is to prevent unauthorised access, whereas the purpose of antivirus software is to detect malicious programmes and internal activity.

Firewalls help to stop hackers in their tracks, protecting sensitive information and defending against trojans, all without interfering with any of your system's functions.

Whereas antivirus software will conduct a detailed analysis of your system, blocking and removing malicious content, spam, and even adverts. By blocking spyware and phishing attempts, you can also restrict websites and eliminate damaged data. Antivirus software is also extremely cost-efficient.

Other differences between firewall and antivirus software include:

Antivirus:

• Deployed at endpoint
• Manages both internal and external threats
• Software only
• Antivirus software is more straightforward to deploy
• Inspects files and software on servers
• Can't check `read-only` files
• Identifies and removes malicious software
• Scans in real-time
• Removes weaknesses in computer systems

Firewall:

• Deployed at network level
• Programming is complex
• Available as both hardware and software
• Only manages external threats, meaning it can't protect against internal attacks
• Filters and inspects all data packets
• Inspects incoming data
• Monitors and manages network traffic
• Safeguards against any unwanted intrusion

Anti virus and firewall

To ensure that your business, data, and information are suitably protected, it's essential that you have both firewalls and antivirus protection to protect from both internal and external threats.

Taking a proactive approach to cybersecurity is the best approach to maintaining high cybersecurity levels. At SonicWall, we help to create an effective strategy for you and your business, providing the right solutions that strengthen your network infrastructure.

With various types of SonicWall firewalls available, we're confident we have a solution that meets your business needs.

As the cyber world continues to grow, make sure to call us today on 0330 1340 230 or email your requirements to enquiries@sonicwall-sales.com.

We have just received the latest October price list from SonicWall and many Gen 6.0 and Gen 6.5 models have had their subscription prices increased. This mainly due to the increased cost to support these older appliances.

SonicWall have also launched the latest 3&FREE promotional tradeup which makes moving to the latest generation firewall much more cost effective.

Latest upgrade options here: https://www.sonicwall-sales.com/3-and-free-promoti...

There are a lot, and we mean a lot, of various features to a firewall, which often makes choosing the right one for your business a daunting task.

For example, which features should you be focusing on? What do your systems/business actually need?

In addition, with cybercrime continuing to grow, you need to safeguard your business in the best and most suitable way.

The good news is we're here to help.

Our guide provides some of the key areas to look out for and features of a good firewall, and there's, of course, an array of information on our website – make sure to check our page dedicated to firewalls and SonicWall firewall support.

SonicWall firewall support

Firewalls monitor all incoming and outgoing network traffic and allow and deny entry based on the rules set up on the network.

Firewalls can be hardware, software, or cloud-based solutions, all with the primary aim of providing the first line of defence against online threats, preventing harmful traffic from infiltrating your network's systems, acting as a barrier, and responding to attacks quickly and effectively.

Small business firewall solutions

What are the most critical firewall capabilities to effectively secure your network and stay with you as your business grows?

Firewall speed

The speed at which traffic can pass through the firewall at any one time is known as firewall throughput and is important for internal network segmentation, as you manage and control the traffic between your internal networks.

This is an important feature to be aware of as, as a business avoiding bottlenecks in the systems network can be essential.

SSL VPN throughput

SSL VPN throughput supports employees who access your network and systems remotely, monitoring and managing traffic through external firewalls. Within this section, we advise you to think about bandwidth requirements and access to applications, as this will affect your traffic levels and, in turn, affect speed.

Do you require remote access?

How many people are working remotely? Can your firewall cope with the increase in remote connections? Do you have space for growth? Systems that can scale with you? Are you working with the best firewall for small businesses?

Are there risks to individual devices, too? How can you implement the right security solutions in these areas?

SSL inspection

How much traffic is the SonicWall firewall capable of scanning? Scanning, decrypting data, scanning information for malware, and then re-encrypting traffic.

Protect SaaS apps

Ideally, you need control over the usage of all software as a service apps; look for firewall features where you can implement granular controls such as download permissions, file transfers, etc.

Implement antivirus and intrusion prevention systems

Scanning for viruses and malware and protecting you from harmful cyber-attacks, antivirus, and intrusion protection systems limit traffic through your network and form incredibly important features of small business firewalls.

Within this area, you must consider connection speed, usage profile, etc.

Firewall Latency

How long does it take for traffic to pass through set up rules and firewalls? A good firewall is one that avoids bottlenecks by filtering traffic in less than a few milliseconds.

Volume of open connections

From web pages to apps, emails, etc. – your chosen firewall must support and protect all open connections.

Stop threats in their tracks

Does the firewall allow you to analyse traffic in real-time? Provide you with robust analytics that can also integrate with other security features in your network.

Allow additional connections

How quickly can your firewall allow additional connections and run these through the same security processes? You need to be up and running immediately with security high from the moment a new connection becomes part of your network.

Firewall management

How will you monitor and manage firewalls? For example, web access is more common, however, CLI management is suitable for more complex networks.

You will also need to consider if configuration will take place in-house or if outsourcing to a specialist would work best.

In addition, do you need single location firewalls or management of multiple firewalls across multiple sites from a single location?

Hardware vs. virtual

Whichever you choose, neither will reduce the level of security provided, but if opting for virtual, you will have to route your network traffic through a virtual environment.

Note: Virtual firewalls do require a high level of expertise.

Application visibility/web filtering

This feature is supported by most firewalls, with SD Wan allowing you to use a range of connections, multi-factor authentication, and geo-location, i.e., you can restrict network access to specific countries.

Do you have centralised visibility? Can you automate the onboarding of new firewalls?

Local Storage

Local storage gives you better reporting, increased responsiveness, and improved log capabilities.

Third-party certifications

Has the firewall been tested independently to prove its capabilities and level of protection?

Firewall for small business

Look for a firewall system that provides you with:

• Monitoring and alerting
• Access control options
• Protection of databases
• Protection of cloud-based solutions
• Virus protection
• Secure local networks, and
• Ability to verify remote connections.

Due to the nature of firewalls and their importance, it's essential that you do your research. Research into different vendors and the different types of firewalls available.

Our team has years of experience managing and monitoring SonicWall business firewalls, offering comprehensive security solutions that suit a range of business needs.

Call 0330 1340 230 to see how we can secure your business networks further.

SonicWall’s most popular promotion has just been upgraded – the limited-time ‘3 & Free’ offer now includes more options for your unique business needs. Starting August 28, you can get a free TZ, NSa, or NSsp Series firewall when you upgrade from a competitor or legacy SonicWall appliance with the purchase of our 3-Year Essential Protection Service Suite (EPSS).

When you make the move from a competitor product or your legacy SonicWall appliance, you’ll gain the latest in next-generation security technology, anti-virus protection and content filtering plus SonicWall’s Capture Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) with our patented Real-Time Deep Memory Inspection (RTDMI™).

Datasheet: The Ultimate 3 & Free Promotion (sonicwall.com)

All products available

Perimeter security is your best defence against cyber attacks and online hackers, securing access to your system from the outside and preventing unauthorised access at all times.

Taking a high-level, operational view, we can think of perimeter security as a boundary, a wall of security guards surrounding your network.

And it is vital to have these boundaries in place, sitting alongside best practices that incorporate the SonicWall Firewall, to ensure individual and business data and information are protected.

Today, companies are now prioritising the security of their networks and systems infrastructure, which means implementing best practice controls.

Below, we provide some of the best practices we would recommend to enhance and continually ensure high network perimeter security.

Benefits of securing network systems

Perimeter firewalls and routers are the first line of defence for stopping cyber threats or malware from reaching your network.

The benefits these firewall systems offer include:

• Protection from cyber threats outside of the system perimeter
• Protecting individual and business data
• Providing the necessary security to stop an attack in its tracks
• Continuous monitoring that allows you to meet new vulnerabilities.

Business network perimeter security is designed to support your business. To provide structure, working with systems that offer scalable growth, making businesses more proactive in their approach to security, and keeping you compliant with UK guidelines.

Take a look at our recent post on Small Business Firewall Guide for the features to look for in a good firewall.

Network perimeter security best practices

Secure your network design

It's essential that you integrate security throughout your network design, which means deploying firewalls at all connectivity and entry points, maintaining firewall settings, opting for VPN for remote access, authenticating all users' access, ensuring encryption is in place, seeking out SonicWall firewall support, and more.

Monitor your network

Investigating any failed login attempts, analysing usage trends, and any other appropriate activity that might raise a red flag allows you to be proactive in your approach to security, fix vulnerabilities and put in place patches asap.

Carrying out regular management of system weaknesses highlights areas of risk, allowing you to implement the right solution. All risk or weak spots identified should be logged, allocated a level of prioritisation, and the outcome recorded, i.e., how it was resolved.

To support you in this area, you will find various monitoring tools available, all providing numerous benefits and features, for example, having the ability to audit your system and network in real-time can help you to make the most appropriate changes immediately.

Work on device security

Sometimes, it's not enough to secure the network and systems; you must also secure people's devices, because if these are compromised, then regardless of your network security, this will be, too.

Device security can include:

• Installing anti-virus software.
• Ensuring all updates are carried out.
• Updating all operating systems.
• Ensuring disk encryption and any software you install comes with user restrictions.
• Ideally, you want to apply good security practices across all devices and then manage these responsibly.
• Record all entry points

Entry points are the connection that allows traffic to and from external sources, and the more points of entry you have, the greater the chance of missing a vulnerability in the network.

To avoid this issue, you must implement full network visibility where you can see from one central point, a device's connection, firewalls, wireless access points, routers, etc.

Having all of this information available will then allow you to take reasonable steps to secure your network. Of course, firewalls and the SonicWall business firewall are key, filtering incoming and outgoing traffic, using VPNs to encrypt traffic, and installing and integrating security monitoring systems to run alongside these.

Restrict access to users

With more and more people working remotely, you must implement security rules such as every device that attempts to access the organisation's systems needs to verify their identity first.

Identities can be set based on certain data attributes, for example, work email address or job role.

You can also implement multi-factor authentication, creating network rules that ensure individuals only have access to what they need to have access to.

This leads us to…

Segmenting networks

Segmenting your networks to create sub-networks allows you to add multiple layers of protection. For example, could you develop sub-groups such as virtual private cloud networks, security groups, groupings of IP addresses, access control groups, and more?

From here, you can then apply different layers of security and rules to each group.

Be proactive

Hardware should be appropriately configured and up to date, not just because you've been at threat of an attack, but because it's the right thing to do.

To help, look to install end-point detection response software to alert you to potential attacks before they happen. You can then isolate any suspicious activity and block it from further movement.

Maintaining high network security should be a shared responsibility throughout the organisation; there is no quick solution or one-click fix, simply a series of network security best practices.

Helping to plug the gaps in your systems perimeter security, call our team today on 0330 1340 230.

Got a question about perimeter security for your network? Email enquiries@sonicwall-sales.com.

Improving security within your business networks is a critical task if you want to overcome the various risks out there today for business owners. Network perimeter security is a term you may have heard used, and today we’re going to share our complete guide on this topic to help you understand why it’s so relevant for anyone looking to improve their security. Visit our page here to learn more about the SonicWall VPN firewall options we have on offer or to get in touch with our team to learn how we can support you with improving your security this year.

Network Perimeter Security – What Is It?

A network perimeter is a way of creating a dividing line that sits between an internal LAN and any external communication. This usually means it is a barrier for data that comes from the internet, but it can also support with VPNs, WANs, and other incoming communication. There are various ways to create a network perimeter, including routers, prevention systems, and firewalls. When you buy a SonicWall VPN firewall, you’ll find that you increase your network security and create this extra level of protection to filter the data that comes in and out of your network. Performance levels will still be high, but you’ll benefit from added security.

What is the Network Edge?

Another term you might hear used when discussing this topic is network edge. This is the point between your external and internal network, and usually this is a firewall or a router. You can have a software or hardware network edge nowadays, as there are many different options on offer to business owners. The network edge works to keep your network safe and is an important part of the network perimeter security policy. A VPN firewall is one of the best investments you can make for your company no matter what type of business you operate. Adding this security solution will help you to become more in control of your security in the future.

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Network Perimeter Security

Perimeter network security offers benefits to anyone using the internet or working with a large network in their workplace. Regardless of the size of your business, there are threats to every company today, which could leave you bankrupt or result in a huge loss of data. These are a few of the benefits of network perimeter security and why every business owner needs to have something in place to support their security.

Network perimeter security acts as an extra layer of defence for any network. You’ll be able to monitor the data that’s coming in and out of the network, using security tools which allow you to control what is allowed to pass in and out. This boundary will inspect the data that comes in, allowing you to see any threats to your network and stop them before it’s too late. You can set the boundaries yourself based on the unique requirements you may have as a business owner. Keep in mind that you’ll want to work with our team first to find the right security solution based on your unique needs and the size of the business you are operating. We can support you in choosing a firewall that’s designed for the current security concerns you have.

Of course, as with almost any security solution, there are some drawbacks to keep in mind. When you rely too much on your network perimeter security, then you may find your employees become complacent about monitoring security threats. Make sure you keep educating them about the potential risks to your company, so that you are able to identify any risks that do slip through. You can’t trust absolutely everything that passes through this perimeter, as sometimes errors occur with even the most advanced technology.

As well as educating your team, you can employ other tools and security solutions that will help to add even more layers of protection. We recommend security software for individual networks and programs and micro segmentation as two solutions that could support network perimeter security. The more measures you have in place to improve security, the easier it will be to support your business and employees in the future.

Network perimeter security is something that every business owner needs to consider in this day and age. With the increase in security threats and more advanced hacking ploys in the last few years, it’s time to ensure that you don’t lose your business and future to cybersecurity threats. Our team will be here to support you when it’s time to improve your network perimeter security or invest in a new firewall. Take a look through our full selection of products on our site today and don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team for more information.

Over recent years, cyberattacks have become more complex and advanced than ever before. As a proud stockist of the SonicWall firewall range of products, we work hard every day to help companies stay secure. Advanced persistent threats are a huge area of concern for many business owners today, with cyberhackers working to get into your system and target sensitive data. Keep reading to discover the advanced persistent threat definition and how you can work to avoid this issue in the future.

What is an Advanced Persistent Threat?

An advanced persistent threat is a term used to describe an attack on your system where the aim is to create a long-term impact and access your highly sensitive data. These attacks primarily concern larger business or government organisations and require a lot of research and planning before they can be undertaken. They might be looking to steal a patent, compromise a database, or completely take over a site. As you can imagine, the consequences of an advanced persistent threat are massive, leaving companies in complete disrepair. They often realise they’ve been the victim of this type of attack once it’s too late, which is why every business should have a SonicWall VPN firewall in place to avoid these types of issues.

An APT requires more resources and planning than a typical cyberattack and is usually carried out by very experienced cybercriminals. These attacks can even be funded by the government or used as warfare weapons within the cyber world. Compared to many other types of cyberattack, the aim is to spend time in the system and try to get as much information as possible. APTs are manually executed and usually have a large range of targets, working to take over your entire network.

The Stages of an APT

Now you know what advanced persistent threat detection is, you’ll want to discover the different stages of this type of attack. These can be broken down in many ways, but we’ll keep it simple by focusing on the three main parts of the attack.

Network Infiltration

The first stage of an APT is network infiltration, which involves the compromising of either web assets, authorised human users, or your network resources. These can typically be achieved via phishing, malicious uploads, or other types of social engineering attacks. Cyberhackers may work to create a sort of distraction that will confuse the network personnel and weaken the security systems in place, which helps to make it easier to continue with the next parts of the attack. Once this access has been granted, attackers then use malware to gain further access and continue onto the next stage of an APT – expansion.

Expansion

Once a presence has been established within the network, the next stage of the APT attack is to expand their presence within a network. Hackers work their way up through the hierarchy of an organisation, working to gain access to sensitive data that’s held by top employees. This might offer them employee data, financial information, or information about the range of products and services on offer. There is likely an overarching goal in place for this whole operation, and the advanced persistent threat list could be sold to a competitor or used to destroy a whole organisation. These attacks are naturally quite nasty and require a lot of time and effort to meet their end goals.

Extraction

The third and final stage of an APT is to extract the data and information that has been found throughout the attack. Stolen information is usually secured within a secure location inside the network, and then the cyberhackers work to extract all of this information without getting detected. They may use various tactics at this point to try and distract anyone who has noticed anything suspicious going on in the system, such as with a DDoS attack. Once this stage is completed, the data can be sold or used to bring the company down as planned.

As you can imagine, a lot of time and planning goes into an APT. As a business owner, you need to do all you can to ensure you have security measures in place that will protect you from any type of advanced attack. A VPN firewall is one of the best protection options on offer, helping you to secure your network and stop unwanted visitors from gaining access to anywhere in your system.

Are you looking to improve your security within your business this year? If so, we recommend you buy a SonicWall VPN firewall and work with our team to find the best option based on your current security concerns. Take a look through the full selection of products on offer on our site or contact our team today for more information about how we can protect you from APTs.