What is a Managed Firewall & Does Your Business Need One?

Let’s try to understand the basic difference between a managed firewall and a firewall, before getting started.  

You probably know what a firewall does, right? It keeps the bad guys away, from your network or computer system by blocking unauthorized access.  

But, if you look beyond, the firewall can also be used as a monitoring tool!  

You can even get valuable data such as what type of threat is more likely to show up in the near future or what type of people are likely to harm your network.  

Of course, monitoring a network is not a job of a naive employee but requires expertise, time, and resources.  

Here comes, Managed Firewall Service offered by security experts.  

What exactly is Managed Firewall?

It’s a service offered by qualified Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs) to tackle security threats or monitor your business network. Service also includes maintenance, operation, and administration of your firewall infrastructure. 

Firstly, depending on the offering/service agreement, an assessment of security threats or monitoring network traffic is done. After the Managed Security Service Provider team realizes what “normal” traffic appears, other unusual traffic patterns can easily be traced out or taken actions to correct it. 

What else do you get from MSSP?

• Modification of firewall rules 
• Incorporation of in-depth analysis 
• Feedbacks & reports 
• Updates and patching 
• Network monitoring 
• Set-up 

Does your business need Managed Firewall?

To protect sensitive data, Firewalls can be a savior for your network traffic. Besides, they are needed for compliance to mandates such as GDPR, HIPAA and PCI DSS.  

If your organization lacks personnel resources to manage security devices/firewalls to fill up data security gaps or prevent data breaches, you can go for Managed Firewall Service.  

Although you can employ your internal IT personnel to manage firewalls, it is a safe and easier choice to rely on Managed Firewall Service for better results. Let’s not forget, doing so can help you to focus on crucial business objectives. 

If you are thinking of firewalls as plug-and-play devices, you are mistaken.  

Just set it up, install it on the network and the job is done with no human intervention — that’s not how Firewalls work, sorry. 

They demand constant monitoring and a high level of expertise for sure. Setting up a firewall or purchasing is just the first step while a lot needs to be done to attain good Firewall Management. 

But, it’s not always a smooth ride with firewall management as it has issues or complexities. Remember, these issues are not a sign of trouble if they are checked on time by MSSPs.  

Below are some of the most common firewall management failures faced by security analysts. Hope it will be helpful for your business to stay prepared for such situations.  

Several firewalls, many locations

Even a single firewall demands regular monitoring and maintenance that include patch firmware, configuration update or reviewing rule sets. Now, imagine the overload of work due to several firewalls. Thus, in such a case, Managed firewall services can be difficult due to lack of necessary skills, loss of crucial data and security issues being flouted.  

Lack of Auditing

Many organizations often miss this vital step but in fact, analyzing firewall rules should be a priority. You can leverage the Managed Firewall Services to perform daily firewall audits. 

Striking balance between security and user-friendliness

If users’ access needs for certain apps or data is not met or protocols are restrictive, then firewalls might end up as business inhibitors. Besides, giving out access to more than required in order to finish job responsibilities can lead to data exfiltration or security breaches. 

Lack of necessary expertise among IT personnel

IT personnel are often under constant pressure to keep system running for regular operations. Well, just like everyone, they might end up making some mistakes due to risky configurations or carelessness. Whenever an issue shows up, IT employees just go for any rule without much thought to find the root of the problem. At the end of the day, it’s the network that suffers at a heavy price.  

Failure to keep with upcoming threats

Firewall management rules or configurations that worked in the past i.e months or weeks ago, may not work as expected today in tackling cyber threats. As the attack surface of your organization increases and the threat landscape keeps widening, it can become a herculean task to attain better firewall management. Make sure your business is future-ready to tackle threats by availing of Managed Firewall services. 

Non-compliance of the firewall with PCI DSS

Let’s say your organization is seeking assistance from MSSP for Managed Firewall service, but still, MSSP may not comply with PCI DSS. In such a situation, your organization will be listed as noncompliant.  

To be on the safe side, make sure your service provider offering managed firewall services is PCI compliant and give you a current Attestation of Compliance (AOC) as a proof if required. 

Never bypass the firewall security gaps

Our experts on the field noticed that security gaps or firewall misconfigurations cannot be overlooked under any circumstance.  

Do you know that at big retailers or restaurants, data breaches happen due to firewall misconfiguration? Thus, it’s vital for organizations to know their firewalls inside out. As a start, they can manage, maintain or implement devices practically but after one point of time, they need to consult a genuine and experienced service provider for exceptional firewall management.   

It’s a known fact that a third perspective can be helpful to trace out critical issues which might go unnoticed by your internal team. 

SecurityMetrics Pulse SOC/SIEM

With SecurityMetrics Pules SOC/SIEM, your business can gain visibility into hidden areas of the network. Thanks to Pules, you can even take action against threats at business locations or eliminate data breaches much before they show up. 

Pulse Firewall Security

Looking for enhanced security? Then, a closed managed firewall should work for you. You can now get alerts about potential threats identified through Pulse Firewall Security. Meet compliance needs, safeguard organizations’ data, and secure all locations through Pulse Firewall Security.  

Your business can expect the following from Pulse Firewall: 

• Managed security for bigger network 
• Managed firewall service to make sure firewalls are working fine or installed perfectly 
• Best firewall & internal vulnerability scanning technologies 

Over the years, Telco ICT gained a reputation for offering Managed Firewall Services to clients and thus, accelerating their growth. Interested in getting more insights about the Managed Firewall or exploring other security options?  

Here are the ways Managed Firewall Solution offered Telco ICT is helping businesses:

• Gets instant alerts about any changes made 
• Keeps track of any modifications 
• Gain complete insights about the possible cyberattacks or any network security threats 

Also, check the best practices followed by Telco ICT to manage firewalls or contact us and our team will help you out.

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