Managing a firewall is an important function but can sometimes fall to the wayside — that is until a critical patch or upgrade is needed. Then, IT staff must pivot to install patches quickly or risk a data breach. Here are 5 best practices to proactively manage a firewall.
- Take timely and appropriate action. Set up notifications to alert you when patches and upgrades are needed. Carefully review release notes prior to installing a patch or upgrade to ensure you are fixing the problem without creating any new issues.
- Automate configuration back-ups for business continuity. If there are firewall issues, a back-up allows you to restore to previous versions.
- Utilize your next generation firewall features to layer your security, paired with deep SSL inspection to block threats that are encrypted in transmission.
- Leverage monitoring and alerts. Always know what is going on with your network. Understand the health of traffic going through your network. You need to know if you are under an attack and how to respond.
- Confirm that you have a strong support contract in place. Check that your firewalls have valid support and an updated support contract to receive critical security patches and next generation firewall rule definitions.
Looking for assistance with a firewall implementation project as part of your infrastructure modernization or lifecycle management efforts? Or do you need help with a managed firewall stance via managed services? WIN can be your partner. Contact us today to learn more.