Firewall Best Practices: Tips for Securing Your Network

In today's digital age, network security is of paramount importance for any organization that relies on the internet to conduct their operations. A single cyber attack can wreak havoc on a company's reputation, finances, and even put their customers' data at risk. And the average time to fix a cybersecurity breach is 279 days.

One of the most important tools in an organization's arsenal for network security is a cloud firewall. A firewall acts as a barrier between the outside world and your network, preventing unauthorized access and stopping potential threats in their tracks. However, simply installing a firewall is not enough. In this article, we will dive into the top firewall best practices, offering tips and insights for businesses of all sizes to safeguard their networks from cyber threats. 

How Can I Prevent Cyber Attacks Using Firewalls?

The firewall is your first line of defense when it comes to protecting the important data and other resources in your networks from attack. By implementing these practices, you can rest assured that your network is secure, and your data is protected.

Strengthen and Configure Firewall Security

To enhance security measures, the initial step for deploying a firewall is to patch and secure the operating system. Afterwards, the firewall must be configured securely in line with the guidelines of the vendor and third-party resources like the Center for Internet Security (CIS). Security administrators must ensure that the firewall is set up accurately to prevent unauthorized access and safeguard against attacks.

Strategize Firewall Deployment

When deploying a firewall, planning is of utmost importance. Admins must contemplate the network interfaces, management access, and the deployment of two or more firewalls in a High Availability (HA) cluster to ensure uninterrupted security if one fails. This includes planning for the location of the firewalls within the network and configuring failover options.

Secure the Firewall

Once deployed, securing the firewall becomes crucial. Admins must deactivate insecure protocols, schedule routine backups of the configuration and database, initiate auditing of system changes, add a stealth rule in the firewall policy to conceal the firewall from network scans, and restrict management access to particular hosts. This helps to prevent attackers from exploiting vulnerabilities and compromising the firewall.

Apply the Principle of Least Privilege

The principle of least privilege states that users should be granted only the minimum access rights necessary to perform their job duties. This helps reduce the risk of accidental or intentional data breaches. The firewall should be configured to allow access only to the minimum set of ports, protocols, and services that are required. 

Restrict Zone Access to Authorized Traffic

Firewalls must be configured to manage access to only approved traffic. Admins can create a firewall policy rule that broadly describes access based on traffic source and destination. This ensures that traffic from unapproved sources is blocked, minimizing the risk of attacks.

Secure User Accounts

Admins must guarantee that user accounts linked with the firewall are secure. This involves renaming or modifying default accounts and passwords, mandating multi-factor authentication (MFA), and utilizing role-based access control (RBAC) for firewall admins. This can limit the risk of unauthorized access to the firewall.

Use Multiple Firewalls

In some cases, it may be necessary to use multiple firewalls to protect your network from both internal and external threats. Multiple firewalls provide an additional layer of protection and can help isolate critical systems. For example, you may use one firewall at the edge of the network and another firewall to protect a critical server. 

Ensure Compliance with Firewall Policy and Standards

Admins should adhere to regulations that require additional security controls to be used with deployed firewalls to ensure that the firewall policy and use comply with standards. For instance, using VPNs to encrypt data in transit, antivirus to prevent known malware, and IDS/IPS to detect any network intrusion attempts. 

Use Centralized Management Tool

Multi-vendor firewalls are quite common in most organizations. To add additional security layers, businesses prefer installing firewalls made by various companies in their systems. To ensure that all of your firewalls are operating properly, manage them centrally in one location. Having a unified view of firewall policies and rules with a multi-vendor firewall management tool enables you to compare and manage firewall rules with ease.

Common Firewall Vulnerabilities and How to Prevent Them

Firewalls are an essential security tool that organizations use to protect their networks from cyber-attacks. However, despite their usefulness, firewalls are not immune to vulnerabilities that can be exploited by cybercriminals. Here are some of the common firewall vulnerabilities and tips on how to prevent them.

Password Vulnerabilities

Firewalls have administrative interfaces that require a username and password to access. Weak passwords are easy to guess or crack, leaving the firewall vulnerable to attack. Use strong passwords that are at least 12 characters long, contain a variety of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols, and steer clear of widely used passwords or easily guessed information like your name or birthdate to prevent this from happening.

Outdated Firmware and Software

Firewalls are powered by firmware and software, and outdated versions of these can have known vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit. Update the software and firmware with the most recent security patches.

Lack of Segmentation

Firewalls are used to segment the network and prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data. However, if the firewall is not properly configured to segment the network, it can leave the network vulnerable to attacks. Proper network segmentation can help prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data.

Unpatched Firewall

Unpatched firewalls are another common vulnerability that can be exploited by cybercriminals to gain unauthorized access to the network. Organizations should regularly update their firewall software with the latest security patches and ensure that their firewalls are configured to automatically download and install updates.

Denial of Service (DoS) Attacks

Denial of Service (DoS) attacks are a common firewall vulnerability that can result in the firewall becoming overwhelmed with traffic and rendering it useless. In order to mitigate DoS attacks, organizations should use firewalls that are capable of detecting and mitigating DoS attacks, such as those that use stateful packet inspection.

Open Ports

Open ports that are not required for business operations can create security holes that attackers can exploit. Close any unused ports and limit access to only the necessary ports.

Poorly Configured VPNs

Virtual private networks (VPNs) can provide secure access to remote networks, but poorly configured VPNs can create vulnerabilities. Ensure that your VPN is correctly configured and updated regularly.

Take Away

Firewalls are an essential part of network security, and it is crucial to use best practices to secure your network. Keep in mind that no security measure is foolproof, and it is important to implement a layered security approach that includes multiple security measures. Regularly review and update your security policies, procedures, and technologies to ensure that you are always protected against the latest security threats.