Firewall Settings to Stop You Getting Hacked in 2018

Best Practices for Configuring Firewalls to Avoid These Top 10 Threats

Common Cyber Threats — An Introduction

In the digital world that we live in today, every business, regardless of its size, falls victim to one cyber threat or another that can disrupt its operations, reputation, and its bottom line. The most common and dangerous of these threats include malware, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, and phishing attempts. A proper defensive strategy, first and foremost, is to know your threats!

• Malware: There are many malware such as ransomware, spyware, and Trojan horse that have been designed to either harm computers or capture sensitive information from it.
• DDoS Attacks: These are responsible for flooding victims’ online services, blocking genuine users from accessing them, and leading to potential loss of business value.
• Phishing: Assumes the identity of a trustworthy entity by hackers in order to steal sensitive information — which can result in a data breach.

Utilise a threat prevention firewall: To protect your network from these cyber threats, you need to implement a threat prevention firewall. Discover how firewall configuration can empower your cyber threat security.

Deploying Threat Prevention Firewalls

An effective firewall configuration is the staple in defending against these very common cyber threats. This means understanding both the types of vulnerable issues associated with your organization and the custom setup for easing out these issues.

1. Analyze the Network Needs: The initial step involves determining the unique requirements of your network. This consists of conducting a well-rounded vulnerability evaluation to recognize the regions that are more likely to be attacked with malware, DDoS, or phishing attempts.
2. Define Access Permissions: Ability to define and limit access depending on roles and requirements. This is also beneficial for controlling internal threats and external unauthorized access.
3. Frequent Updates and Patching: Firewalls should be updated frequently to protect against new threats. If vulnerabilities are fixed well before attackers find a way to exploit them, they become de-facto harmless.
4. Segment Your Network: This involves splitting your network into small segments to limit a breach, stopping it from spreading throughout the system.
5. Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS): Use IDPS to analyze network traffic and respond to threats promptly before they cause damage.

Turn on Key Security Features

Strengthen your firewall setup by activating some security features. Let’s go over some features that are crucial for every secure firewall setup.

• Deep Packet Inspection: This tool deeply inspects packet data to eliminate threats lurking in legitimate traffic.
• Antivirus Integration: An embedded antivirus solution in the firewall, updated regularly, can block all known malware before it enters the network.
• Anti-phishing Modules: These modules filter out phishing attempts to prevent them from reaching user inboxes or redirecting network traffic.
• DDoS Protection: Special third-party traffic management tools can recognize and eliminate indicators of DDoS attacks, such as unusual peaks in web traffic, keeping your business services afloat.
• Logging and Reporting: The capability to log and report on network activities allows visibility into attempted breaches or anomalous behavior that should be investigated further.

P J Networks Threat-Based Configuration

We, at P J Networks, understand the crucial role of a well-configured threat prevention firewall in your life. To better respond to the ever-increasing complexity of cyber threats, we designed our solution for comprehensive protection.

1. Granting Streaming Protection Integration Lease Services: These services, including those for firewalls, servers, and routers, provide the ability to leverage next-generation security without the costs or compliances involved with ownership. This flexibility also allows you to grow with the service as your security requirements change.
2. Expert Deployment: Our team specializes in deploying the right firewalls to protect against vulnerabilities your business faces. We simulate real-world threat scenarios to forge strong defense systems.
3. Configuration Checks Every Few Months: We audit the status of your firewall, proactively tweaking configurations to keep pace with new and emerging threats.
4. Education & Training: Besides creating a secure firewall, we help build and reinforce your workforce by sharing knowledge about IT-Security, supporting better technical solutions through the right training to protect themselves.
5. 24/7 Monitoring and Response: Maintain continuous surveillance of network security using 24-hour monitoring services that can identify and respond to threats in real-time.

Conclusion

Properly configuring your firewalls can act as a guardrail for your organization and help protect against prevalent types of cyber threats, including malware, DDoS, and phishing attacks, which I will detail later. Combined with state-of-the-art technology and expert guidance, your business can achieve a much higher level of cyber threat security by understanding its unique threat landscape.

P J Networks believes that a one-size-fits-all firewall solution is insufficient. Leveraging our firewall configuration services, complemented by infrastructure rental options, delivers the desired combination of agility and security required in the ever-changing business landscape.

An adaptive secure firewall setup with peace of mind — Select P J Networks for immaculate services. Secure the future of your business; configure your firewall with our team.