All employers expect that networking professionals are well-versed not only with networking technologies, but also with technologies to defend it in right way. There cannot be two thoughts about that!
In the modern context, if you are a network engineer, then your job is to keep network security at an optimum level by configuring and deploying right security tools to ensure that your company's IT systems are actively monitored, regularly assessed, and aggressively defended.
Since the ability to defend your networks is so paramount with respect to Information Security, I have decided to write this post for you about network security.
This post is concerned with--How do you go about Network Security?
What is Network Security?
The simples way of looking at network security is something like this.
Network security is any activity designed to protect the usability and integrity of your network and data.
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It includes both hardware and software technologies
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It targets a variety of threats
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It stops them from entering or spreading on your network
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Effective network security manages access to the network
The following definition gives us a better picture of Network Security:
"Network security is the process of taking physical and software preventative measures to protect the underlying networking infrastructure from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, modification, destruction, or improper disclosure, thereby creating a secure platform for computers, users, and programs to perform their permitted critical functions within a secure environment."
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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.
Every organization that wants to deliver the services that customers and employees demand must protect its network. Network security also helps you protect proprietary information from attack. Ultimately it protects your reputation.
There are three key phases of implementing network security in general and these phases should be the underlying framework for your strategy. Practically, Network security consists of:
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Protection: You should configure your systems and networks as correctly as possible
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Detection: You must be able to identify when the configuration has changed or when some network traffic indicates a problem
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Reaction: After identifying problems quickly, you must respond to them and return to a safe state as rapidly as possible
Network Security, in short, is a defense in depth strategy. If there's one common theme among security experts, it's that relying on one single line of defense is dangerous, because any single defensive tool can be defeated by a determined adversary.
REMEMBER:
Your network isn't a line or a point: it's a territory, and even if an attacker has invaded part of it, you still have the resources to regroup and expel them, if you've organized your defense properly.
How can you implement Network Security?
To implement this kind of defense in depth, you will want to roll out a variety of specialized techniques and technologies. Here they are:
FirewallsFirewalls put up a barrier between your trusted internal network and untrusted outside networks, such as the Internet. They use a set of defined rules to allow or block traffic. A firewall can be hardware, software, or both. Cisco offers unified threat management (UTM) devices and threat-focused next-generation firewalls.
Email securityEmail gateways are the number one threat vector for a security breach. Attackers use personal information and social engineering tactics to build sophisticated phishing campaigns to deceive recipients and send them to sites serving up malware. An email security application blocks incoming attacks and controls outbound messages to prevent the loss of sensitive data.
Anti-virus and anti-malware software"Malware," short for "malicious software," includes viruses, worms, Trojans, ransomware, and spyware. Sometimes malware will infect a network but lie dormant for days or even weeks. The best antimalware programs not only scan for malware upon entry, but also continuously track files afterward to find anomalies, remove malware, and fix damage.
Network segmentationSoftware-defined segmentation puts network traffic into different classifications and makes enforcing security policies easier. Ideally, the classifications are based on endpoint identity, not mere IP addresses. You can assign access rights based on role, location, and more so that the right level of access is given to the right people and suspicious devices are contained and remediated.
Access controlNot every user should have access to your network. To keep out potential attackers, you need to recognize each user and each device. Then you can enforce your security policies. You can block noncompliant endpoint devices or give them only limited access. This process is network access control (NAC).
Application securityAny software you use to run your business needs to be protected, whether your IT staff builds it or whether you buy it. Unfortunately, any application may contain holes, or vulnerabilities, that attackers can use to infiltrate your network. Application security encompasses the hardware, software, and processes you use to close those holes.
Behavioral analyticsTo detect abnormal network behavior, you must know what normal behavior looks like. Behavioral analytics tools automatically discern activities that deviate from the norm. Your security team can then better identify indicators of compromise that pose a potential problem and quickly remediate threats.
Data loss preventionOrganizations must make sure that their staff does not send sensitive information outside the network. Data loss prevention, or DLP, technologies can stop people from uploading, forwarding, or even printing critical information in an unsafe manner.
Intrusion prevention systemsAn intrusion prevention system (IPS) scans network traffic to actively block attacks. Cisco Next-Generation IPS (NGIPS) appliances do this by correlating huge amounts of global threat intelligence to not only block malicious activity but also track the progression of suspect files and malware across the network to prevent the spread of outbreaks and reinfection.
Mobile device securityCybercriminals are increasingly targeting mobile devices and apps. Within the next 3 years, 90 percent of IT organizations may support corporate applications on personal mobile devices. Of course, you need to control which devices can access your network. You will also need to configure their connections to keep network traffic private.
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)SIEM products pull together the information that your security staff needs to identify and respond to threats. These products come in various forms, including physical and virtual appliances and server software.
VPNA virtual private network encrypts the connection from an endpoint to a network, often over the Internet. Typically, a remote-access VPN uses IPsec or Secure Sockets Layer to authenticate the communication between device and network.
Web securityA web security solution will control your staff’s web use, block web-based threats, and deny access to malicious websites. It will protect your web gateway on site or in the cloud. "Web security" also refers to the steps you take to protect your own website.
Wireless securityWireless networks are not as secure as wired ones. Without stringent security measures, installing a wireless LAN can be like putting Ethernet ports everywhere, including the parking lot. To prevent an exploit from taking hold, you need products specifically designed to protect a wireless network.
What skills 
do you need for Network Security?
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To administer, troubleshoot and manage hardware, software, or services for single, multi and mixed-user environments.
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To evaluate problems and monitor networks to make sure it is available to the users; identify the customer needs and use this information to interpret, design and assess the network requirements.
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To plan, implement and coordinate network security measures, install security software and monitor networks for security breaches.
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To manage personnel conducts and protects data in relation to safeguarding the information.
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To perform vulnerability analysis and penetration testing...
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To monitor and defend networks by creating basic security procedures and policies.
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To configure & manage the NextGen Firewall effectively.
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There are many layers to consider when addressing network security across an organization. Attacks can happen at any layer in the network security layers model, so your network security hardware, software and policies must be designed to address each area.
Never to forget that the people and processes are as important as are network security technologies. Don't believe technologies are enough by themselves. You have to manage and handle the people aspect thoroughly and attentively. You also have to design right kind of controls, and security processes too, along with implementing the best practices.
Guys, what do you think about post about how you may go about implementing Network Security with a clear sight of vision?
Please let me know your thoughts, views and opinions in the comments section below.
This Article Was Written & published by Meena R, Senior Manager - IT, at Luminis Consulting Services Pvt. Ltd, India.
Over the past 16 years, Meena has built a following of IT professionals, particularly in Cybersecurity, Cisco Technologies, and Networking...
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