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ACE Team

6 Top Firewall Threats and Vulnerabilities


FIREWALL THREATS:


Proactively addressing security by putting in firewalls keeps your company competitive and safe. Firewalls are frequently used as the first line of defense in the protection of network systems from threats. They manage entry points, monitor attempts to gain system access, block unwanted traffic, and keep external threats out of your environment.


You cannot afford to ignore firewall threats and vulnerabilities on these accounts. While your organization may monitor and test on a regular basis, blind spots can still persist. Security flaws can go undetected. The following are examples of avoidable threats to the effectiveness of your firewalls.


Common firewall threats


1 - Password strength


Because of the character requirements for passwords, modern passwords can be difficult to remember. Some employees may use simple passwords or leave the factory settings as a matter of convenience. If this happens within your system, you are more vulnerable to account compromise than you would otherwise be. This is especially important in relation to SQL servers, as a single server outage could jeopardize the functionality of all devices connected to it.


2 - Outdated firewall software


To address newly discovered firewall vulnerabilities, vendors frequently release software and firmware updates. Your team is probably very busy, and it's easy to fall behind on keeping firewalls up to date. Poor patching habits, on the other hand, can expose your organization to unnecessary firewall threats.


3 - Activation of controls


Failure to activate controls is one of the most common firewall issues. Organizations, for example, typically have anti-spoofing tools on managed defense systems, which can keep malware, spam, and other fraudulent traffic off of systems. If your organization fails to activate anti-spoofing controls, an attack may succeed. While it may appear overly simplistic, ensuring that all controls are activated as intended can help you get the most out of your security tools.


4 - Lack of documentation


Maintaining written logs, application documentation, and rule decryptions can assist your company in avoiding security gaps in the event that some of your security personnel unexpectedly resign or is unavailable for an extended period of time. Organizations may be forced to recreate protocols from the ground up as a result of staffing changes, which wastes time. Proper documentation prevents work from being repeated, giving staff more time to focus on higher-level priorities.


5 - Insider threats


While perhaps not the most probable of threats, insiders do pose a threat to your firewalls. Insiders are entrusted with passwords and access to internal systems. A strong network segmentation configuration strategy can help mitigate the threats presented by employees.


6 - Basic inspection protocols


In the case of traditional network firewalls, attackers have discovered a way to spoof the firewalls that check the origin and destination of data packets. As a result, "next-generation" firewalls have been developed, which also test packets using a process known as Layer 7 or deep packet inspection. If your organization has not yet implemented next-generation firewalls, consider doing so as soon as possible.

Conclusion

Although your organization may retain top-tier experts who can pursue in-depth monitoring, rule development, testing, and solutions implementation, your system will never be immune to vulnerabilities. Nonetheless, reducing vulnerabilities can help safeguard your brand and your data.


Want to understand more about Firewall?


Call us at +65 6262 0402 or email us at care@acebizservices.com to get the information details on your needs.


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