Do You Need Firewall And Endpoint Security?

As someone who’s been in cybersecurity for quite a while, I’ve had the pleasure of watching trends come to the forefront and fade away, only to return like bad fashion trends at times. But one argument that refuses to go away is Firewall vs Endpoint Security.

Do you need both? Is one better than the other? Can one replace the other?

Let’s break it down. And perhaps finally settle this debate once and for all.

What is a Firewall?

Firewalls are the bouncers at the club — filters that keep out the unwanted. They are placed at the network perimeter (or in some cases internally) and serve to block unauthorized access.

In the 1990s, when I was hand-configuring network firewalls, this was easy. You had a corporate perimeter, a distinct inside and outside network border. A carefully crafted set of rules, perhaps some ACLs, and you were good to go. That was before the cloud, apps went distributed, and remote work eroded the perimeter security model.

Now? They remain vital, but they’ve changed. No longer are we just blocking ports and monitoring IPs—modern firewalls are doing things like:

• Deep packet inspection (DPI) to analyze network traffic well beyond headers.
• Intrusion prevention (IPS) real-time detection and blocking of exploits.
• Application-layer filters to reject malicious traffic based on behaviors instead of just addresses.
• Zero-trust access controls to require least privilege—because trust should be verified, not assumed.

I’ve recently assisted several banks in their migrations from traditional firewalls to next-gen firewalls (NGFWs), largely Fortinet’s FortiGate series, as the burgeoning threat landscape necessitates more than legacy traffic filtering techniques.

But here’s the thing: firewalls only safeguard what flows through them. If an attacker gets through (through phishing, infected USB drives, or VPN compromises), the firewall is now blind. That’s where endpoint security comes in.

What is Endpoint Security?

Where firewalls are the party’s bouncers, endpoint security is your personal bodyguard. It sanitizes devices against threats, regardless of whether they originate within or beyond the corporate perimeter. Laptops, desktops, servers — If it’s an endpoint, it’s a target.

When the Slammer worm struck in 2003, I witnessed how quickly an unprotected system could plummet. There was no firewall that could save you — once it got inside, it was like wildfire, setting Windows servers on fire in minutes. That was a wake-up call for the industry.

Modern endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools are more than just antivirus:

• Behavioral analytics identifies attacks based on anomalies rather than signatures.
• Policies on device access — zero trust — limit running of apps only to those that are approved.
• Automated response mechanisms isolate compromised devices before further infection propagation occurs.

I’ll be the first to admit, early endpoint solutions created headaches. They were slowdowns, filled systems up high with alerts, and were a management nightmare. But today? Solutions like Fortinet’s FortiEDR are far smarter, lighter, and closely integrated with NGFWs. That’s a game-changer.

Do You Need Both?

Short answer? Yes.

Longer answer? Still yes. But let me explain why:

As you can see, there is a firewall protecting the network. The device is protected by endpoint security:

• Your firewall keeps out the threats from the outside, but once an attacker is in the walls (and it always happens, sooner or later), your firewall does not protect you.
• Your endpoint security prevents threats at the device level and any activity coming from inside and outside the network.

Nothing is perfect, except for firewalls. So endpoint security does not see everything:

• Phishing? If an employee clicks on a fake login page, the firewall can’t protect him.
• Malware via USB? A firewall generally does not inspect what’s occurring inside the endpoint.
• Unpatched vulnerabilities? And traditional network defenses don’t stop attackers from forcing local people to trigger software bugs.

The rules of engagement don’t apply to attackers. Neither should your defenses.

Perimeter-based security is not a concern for cybercriminals. They leverage everything—weak credentials, leaked cloud accounts, insider threats, social engineering. It is essential to take a layered approach.

Finally, the smartest security teams I’ve ever worked with (and I’m particularly connected with banking) are now, for a while now, being zero trust-minded meaning:

• Verify continuously, do not trust any system blindly.
• Minimum exposure, least privileged access.
• A layered defense, because no single solution is sufficient.

Fortinet Firewall & Endpoint Solutions — PJ Networks

I understand balancing security, usability, and cost is hard. This is why at PJ Networks we recommend Fortinet’s integrated security stack for an all-in-one approach.

Why Fortinet? Because their Security Fabric unifies firewalls, endpoint protection, and threat intelligence into one unified ecosystem. Less complexity leads to more security.

Our Recommended Setup:

• ✔ FortiGate NGFW — Ultimate firewall protection featuring zero-trust.
• ✔ FortiEDR – End point security powered by Artificial Intelligence with proactive response.
• ✔ FortiAnalyzer – Centralized security visibility: logging isn’t worth a damn without it being reviewed.
• ✔ FortiAuthenticator – Multi-factor authentication (MFA) to prevent credential-based attacks.

Network ➝ Endpoint ➝ User — it’s the end-to-end protection, that guarantees you’re blocking the threats at each stage.

Quick Take (If You Are Busy)

• Firewalls condition the net. Endpoint security secures individual devices.
• Not everything can be stopped by firewalls. You can’t rely solely on endpoint security.
• The Imperative of a Layered Security Approach (aka Zero Trust).
• If you manage sensitive data, make sure you invest in a firewall AND endpoint security.

→ PJ Networks provides Fortinet Solutions for both.

Conclusion

I’ve been in security since the early years — when locking down a network meant simply shutting down a few ports and enforcing strong passwords. Those days are gone. Attackers are smarter, threats are more sophisticated, and the cost of failure is greater than ever.

Firewalls alone are inadequate. Stock solution II: Run our endpoint security solution on all devices; it’s not enough. You need both.

Cybersecurity is not about one perfect tool—it is about layers of protection working together. That’s how you maintain the lead over threats.

And honestly? If you’re still discussing whether firewalls or endpoint security alone can secure your business … you’ve already missed the boat.

Let’s fix that.