Traditional antivirus will scan files and emails once the threat is already inside your network. It cannot prevent threats from entering the network. A firewall is a preventative measure that secures your network perimeter against viruses, trojans, ransomware and data theft, and prevents these threats from entering your network.
 
Some firewalls are intelligent in such a way that they will create their own blocking rules and scan incoming and outgoing traffic, as well as having the ability for users to add their own allow and deny rules. Most firewalls update directly from the manufacturer’s website so that as soon as a threat is found the device will automatically update to block this. Traditional antivirus usually only does this once a day.
 
Hardware Firewalls

For the sake of simplicity, think of hardware firewalls as specialized network boxes that contain customized hardware and software. When properly configured, hardware firewalls provide a protective barrier that hides an organization’s internal PCs, servers, and other devices connected to your network from the outside world. They can also shield one company department (say, finance) from another (say, human resources).

In many cases, hardware firewalls are great solutions for organizations that want a single security umbrella that protects their PCs, servers and devices from outside threats. For this very reason, most businesses have hardware firewalls in place.

Low-end hardware firewalls, now found in network switches and routers for the home, are very basic and have their limitations. If you take a personal laptop on the road, for instance, your system is no longer protected by the home-based firewall. These firewalls usually don’t provide intelligent scanning of emails and files, they’re not automatically updated by the manufacturer, and are configured by setting up manual rules which can usually only allow or deny content from particular places.
 
There are two types of hardware firewall

1. Dumb firewall – you have to tell them what to block and when, usually known as router
2. Proactive firewall – these are intelligent an automatically block any potential threats  and:
   • Application Control – keeps unproductive, inappropriate, and dangerous applications off-limits.
   • Intrusion Prevention Service (IPS ) delivers in-line protection from malicious exploits, including buffer overflows, SQL injections, and cross-site scripting attacks.
   • Web Blocker – controls access to sites that host objectionable material or pose network security risks.
   • Gateway Antivirus – (GAV ) scans traffic on all major protocols to stop threats.
   • Reputation Enabled Defence – ensures faster, safer web surfing with cloud-based reputation look-up.
   • Data Loss Prevention – (DLP) automatically inspects data in motion for corporate policy violations, and hacker attempts

 
Software Firewalls

Software firewalls are more ideal for individuals that have dial-up or broadband Internet connections. Instead of using a custom piece of hardware, a software firewall installs on an individual’s PC or notebook.

Even if an organization has hardware firewalls in place, it’s wise for individuals to use software firewalls on their own systems. The main reason: software firewalls are especially convenient for mobile workers who need digital security when working outside of the corporate network. That’s because the entire security solution is, in essence, a single application running on one’s computer. Another major benefit, software firewalls are easily upgraded. Users simply download patches, fixes, updates, and enhancements from the firewall provider’s web site, or the provider sends these improvements as automatic updates via the Internet.
 
Managed Firewall

A Managed Firewall takes all of the benefits of an intelligent hardware firewall, and provides a fully-managed and monitored solution at the gateway between your private network and the internet. AionSolution manage every aspect of the installation, equipment, monitoring and maintenance; so you can concentrate on your core business.

AionSolution managed firewalls integrate a powerful combination of dynamic stateful packet firewall, VPN, zero day attack prevention, intrusion prevention, gateway anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, and URL filtering into a single appliance, for comprehensive unified threat management, reducing the time and cost associated with managing multiple-point solutions.
 
To learn more about our IT Support and Managed Firewall Services please call 2636 6177 or reach us here.