According to the SANS Institute, network security is the process of taking preventative measures to protect the underlying networking infrastructure from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, modification, destruction or improper disclosure. Implementing these measures allows computers, users and programs to perform their permitted critical functions within a secure environment.
How Does Network Security Work?
Network security combines multiple layers of defenses at the edge and in the network. Each network security layer implements policies and controls. Authorized users gain access to network resources, but malicious actors are blocked from carrying out exploits and threats.
Securing a network requires a complex combination of hardware devices, such as routers, firewalls and anti-malware software applications. Government agencies and businesses employ highly skilled information security analysts to implement security plans and constantly monitor the efficacy of these plans.
Security management in any network, whether public or private, is a set of policies and routine procedure implemented by the networking system to shield their network from unauthorized access, denial of computer service, interruption in running, etc is known as Network Security Management.
It also emphasizes on round the clock monitoring of the network to prevent the system from virus attacks, and any misuse or modification in the database.
The best ways to manage security is to use advanced antivirus and anti-malware software and keep updating the system at regular intervals of time.
Need for Network Security
The use of the Internet has been increased drastically, as we are moving even our day to day activities towards complete digitalization. Due to the increase in the use of the Internet, hackers and attackers also become more active and our networking system tends to a higher number of virus attacks.
Basically, the need for network security is to perform two tasks mainly, first is to secure the information from any unauthorized access and the second is to provide the security to the data stored at PC or laptops not only for an individual network but also on the shared or public domain networks.
At broad level, our need for network security is based on the following points:
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To protect the information against any unwanted access.
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To safeguard the data from any inappropriate delay in the route followed to deliver it to the destination at the desired period of time.
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To guard the data from any undesired amendment.
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To prohibit a particular user in the network from sending any mail, message in such a way in which it appears to the receiving party that it has been sent by some third party. (Protection from hiding the identity of the original sender of the resource message).
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To guard our hardware like hard disk, PC’s, laptop from the attack of malware, viruses etc., which can damage our system by corrupting or deleting all the content stored within it.
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To protect our PC’s from the software which if installed can harm our system as hackers do.
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To safeguard our system from Trojan horses, worms etc. which can completely destroy our system.
This Article Was Written & published by Meena R, Senior Manager - IT, at Luminis Consulting Services Pvt. Ltd, India.
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