Firewall

What really is a firewall and what is it designed to do?

A firewall lies in between your local computer/ computer network and the internet and acts as a gatekeeper. More specifically, it is the part of a computer system or network that enforces security policies to block unauthorized access to your network from outside, while allowing internal communication.

Where do you find it?...

Is it is a software installed in your system?..

Is it a software on your server or is it an equipment on your network?...

The answer is yes to all the three questions.

In today's world, a firewall has evolved to be multi-tier threat detection and prevention collection of policies.There are different types of firewalls available, some of there are included in your internet, some are included in your PC’s firewall, and some may even be included in your server’s firewall.

Now you must be thinking whether a firewall is the only thing you need to to protect the systems from theft, spyware, and hacking?

No. But it is an essential part of the protocol and the first-degree defense against an attack.

The following facts will amplify that point:

• A typical unprotected PC will come under attack less than 30  minutes of being connected to the internet, according to the Internet Storm Center.
• In 2015, about 169,068,506 cyber breaches occurred according to the Identity Theft Resource Center.

Now you can see why your defensive strategy should include a multi-tier approach. In addition to the firewall, you need to include an anti-virus and anti-malware software. Not all firewalls are same.Make sure you opt the best firewall integrated with more features like intrusion prevention, gateway antivirus,spam blocker and web blocker.

Some other reasons to use firewalls:

• They can provide internet usage reports to see where your traffic is coming and going from, as well as what your users are doing.
• They can prevent specific traffic, and restricts certain website visits.
• They can help remote users connect to the network securely.

Implementing a multi-tier firewall has many positive effects on a computer network.Apart from giving protection against theft and breaches, systems will run more efficiently, user productivity will improve and internet bandwidth won’t be consumed by inappropriate use or traffic caused by spyware.

The Firewall from WatchGuard is considered to be the best in class when it comes to protection of the network.