Firewall Configuration Reviews
Ensure that your firewall is working for you, not against you.What damage can a vulnerable firewall cause?
Your firewall is a vital component of your online presence, responsible for allowing and disallowing access to files integral to your business. It’s the security guard at your door, and you rely on it on a daily basis because you don’t have the time or resources to manually review every single access attempt. This makes it invaluable, but also hugely dangerous.
If your firewall isn’t doing what it should — welcoming trusted users and preventing all others from gaining access — then it’s only making things worse. Blocking legitimate access requests can hugely disrupt your workload. What happens when you’re trying to configure an integration but your firewall keeps shutting it down? Frustration, delay, and lost income.
Then there’s the matter of failing to keep hackers at bay. A firewall that doesn’t keep your system free from outside interference only serves as a smokescreen to obscure the issue, leading you to feel secure enough that you don’t notice your system being accessed. In short, a vulnerable firewall can prove devastating to your system and your entire business.
How we conduct our firewall security reviews
Our process to determine the strength of your firewall starts with an analysis of your intended configuration. How does your network fit together? Where does information need to go? Which services have been approved? Once we have the answers to these questions and know exactly what your firewall needs to do, we can get the firewall test underway.
The next step is to run through every setting, detail, and ruleset. For this, we’ll use our broad technical knowledge and various industry-approved tools, looking at how your firewall handles traffic flow and flagging any mistakes or unexpected actions. If you provided us with a network diagram to begin with, we’ll see how closely your system adheres to that framework.
When this process is finished, we’ll begin preparing our final report. This will encompass a complete list of our findings: we’ll detail all issues detected (writing to suit readers of all knowledge levels), explain their relative severity, and offer guidance on how you can address them. You’ll then have everything you need to work towards a stronger firewall.
What can go wrong with a firewall?
We’ve talked about settings and rulesets, but you might be curious about how exactly a firewall (designed with good intentions, no doubt) can feature major flaws. Here are some of the most common ways in which a firewall can end up causing more problems than it solves:
It can be insufficient to meet demand.
The more traffic goes through your system, the more powerful you need your firewall to be. You may even need multiple firewalls working in combination. If demand isn’t met, access requests of all kinds can end up being automatically rejected or outright ignored. Think of how a denial of service attack works with web hosting: too many tasks can hamper functionality.It can fall behind the update curve.
New exploits are always being uncovered, and it’s particularly important to keep firewalls updated so they can guard against them. If a firewall is left to stagnate, it can quickly become unfit for purpose.It can miss attacks from within.
Most attacks come from outside networks, but not all of them, and a good firewall should guard against threats coming from all angles. If safeguards appear to be functioning as they should despite a serious issue being present, it’ll only delay the process of detecting and resolving it.It can be compromised by addons.
Every time you add a plugin or an integration to a system, it can interfere with connected applications in unexpected ways. Smart configuration should prevent a firewall from being altered in this manner.It can simply be misconfigured.
By far the most common cause of a firewall vulnerability is poor configuration: allowing access that should be denied, denying access that should be allowed, refusing vital updates, etc. We’ll look closely at how your firewall is configured to see how it can be improved.Servers can be extremely complex, and this means that vulnerabilities can appear in many different areas. A server build review gives you the information you need to take action.
Why Edge Cyber Security?
At Edge Cyber Security, we strive to offer top-notch testing and impartial advice at reasonable prices. We do security work because we love it, and we’re constantly investigating new technologies that might help our clients achieve stronger security systems. No matter the projects we’re given, we pursue our tasks with enthusiasm and commitment.
Based in Bristol, we serve the entirety of the UK. If you’re looking for a security partner who’ll treat your business with as much care as you do, choose Edge Cyber Security to provide your cyber security services. You can rely on us.
We Listen
We’ll listen to your ideas, discuss your needs, and advise accordingly. It may sound obvious, but it isn’t always done. We look at it this way: your success is our success.
Support
We’ll provide comprehensive support to help your business find the most appropriate solutions to any identified vulnerabilities. Every tier includes broad recommendations.
Experience
Our security consultants have cultivated their skills across various sectors, and we’ll assign you a penetration tester with the background to understand your business needs..
Flexibility
Rarely does a single package fit all clients, and this couldn't be more true in cyber security. That's why we work with you to develop a bespoke engagement that works for you regardless of the project size.