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Types of Network Security

Network Secutiry Objetives
Network Security Types

Network security refers to the strategies, practices, and technologies employed to protect the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of computer networks and data from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, modification, destruction, or improper disclosure. It encompasses a wide range of measures designed to defend against various cyber threats and attacks, ensuring the safe operation of networked systems and data integrity.

Network Secutiry Objetives

It can be grouped into 3 main objectives:

Network Integrity

Ensures that data is accurate and unaltered during transmission and storage. Uses techniques like checksums, hashes, and digital signatures.

Network Confidentiality

Ensures that sensitive information is accessible only to authorized users. Utilizes encryption, access controls, and authentication mechanisms.

Network Availability

Ensures that network services and data are available to users when needed. Implements redundancy, fault tolerance, and robust disaster recovery plans.

Network Security Types

  1. Firewall Security

    • Description: Acts as a barrier between trusted and untrusted networks, controlling incoming and outgoing network traffic.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Hardware firewalls (e.g., Cisco ASA), software firewalls (e.g., Windows Defender Firewall), next-generation firewalls (e.g., Palo Alto Networks NGFW).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Reconfiguration tools, firewall rule analyzers (e.g., SolarWinds Firewall Security Manager).

  2. Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)

    • Description: IDS monitors network traffic for suspicious activity and alerts administrators; IPS monitors and takes action to block threats.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Snort, Suricata, Cisco Firepower, Juniper Networks IDP.
    • Common Tools to Fix: IDS/IPS reconfiguration tools, log analysis tools.

  3. Virtual Private Network (VPN) Security

    • Description: Encrypts data transmitted between remote users and the corporate network, providing secure connections over the internet.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: OpenVPN, Cisco AnyConnect, NordVPN, ExpressVPN.
    • Common Tools to Fix: VPN reconfiguration tools, network monitoring tools.

  4. Access Control

    • Description: Determines who can access the network and what resources they can use.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Network Access Control (NAC) solutions (e.g., Cisco ISE, Aruba ClearPass), Role-Based Access Control (RBAC).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Access control policy management tools, directory service tools (e.g., Active Directory).

  5. Antivirus and Anti-Malware Software

    • Description: Protects network devices from malicious software.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Norton, McAfee, Bitdefender, Kaspersky.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Malware removal tools (e.g., Malwarebytes), system recovery tools.

  6. Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

    • Description: Monitors and protects sensitive data to prevent unauthorized access and leaks.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Symantec DLP, McAfee Total Protection for DLP, Forcepoint DLP.
    • Common Tools to Fix: DLP incident response tools, data recovery tools.

  7. Email Security

    • Description: Protects email communications from threats such as phishing, spam, and malware.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Proofpoint Email Security, Mimecast, Microsoft Defender for Office 365.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Email filtering and remediation tools, anti-phishing tools.

  8. Web Security

    • Description: Protects users and organizations from web-based threats.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Web filters (e.g., Websense, Barracuda), secure web gateways (e.g., Zscaler, Blue Coat).
    • Common Tools to Fix: URL filtering tools, web application firewalls (WAF).

  9. Wireless Security

    • Description: Protects wireless networks from unauthorized access and attacks.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: WPA3 encryption, secure Wi-Fi configurations, wireless intrusion prevention systems (WIPS).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Wi-Fi configuration tools, wireless network monitoring tools.

  10. Endpoint Security

    • Description: Protects individual devices that connect to the network.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Endpoint protection platforms (EPP) (e.g., Symantec Endpoint Protection, CrowdStrike Falcon), mobile device management (MDM) (e.g., AirWatch, MobileIron).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools, device wipe and recovery tools.

  11. Network Segmentation

    • Description: Divides a network into smaller, isolated segments to limit the spread of attacks.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: VLANs, subnets, micro-segmentation tools (e.g., VMware NSX).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Network segmentation analysis tools, configuration management tools.

  12. Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

    • Description: Provides real-time analysis of security alerts generated by network hardware and applications.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Splunk, IBM QRadar, ArcSight, LogRhythm.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Log analysis tools, incident response platforms.

  13. Cloud Security

    • Description: Protects data, applications, and services hosted in the cloud.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Cloud access security brokers (CASB) (e.g., Netskope, Microsoft Cloud App Security), cloud encryption tools.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Cloud security posture management (CSPM) tools, cloud workload protection platforms (CWPP).

  14. Identity and Access Management (IAM)

    • Description: Ensures that only authorized users have access to network resources.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Single sign-on (SSO) solutions (e.g., Okta, Ping Identity), multi-factor authentication (MFA) (e.g., Duo, Google Authenticator).
    • Common Tools to Fix: Identity governance tools, access review and audit tools.

  15. Behavioral Analytics

    • Description: Uses machine learning and AI to monitor user behavior and detect anomalies indicating a security threat.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) (e.g., Exabeam, Securonix), network traffic analysis tools.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Anomaly detection tools, security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) platforms.

  16. Zero Trust Security

    • Description: A security model that requires strict verification of every user and device attempting to access resources.
    • Common Tools to Prevent: Zero trust frameworks (e.g., Google BeyondCorp, Microsoft Zero Trust), identity verification tools.
    • Common Tools to Fix: Policy enforcement tools, continuous verification tools.

This comprehensive list covers the key aspects of network security, including prevention and remediation tools, to help safeguard networks effectively.