Cybersecurity: Infrastructure to Web Applications

Cybersecurity Tools to Protect Your Network. 

Cybersecurity breaches can be devastating. Not only are they becoming increasingly prevalent, they are also becoming more destructive. In December 2014 Target experienced a huge cyberattack. Hackers stole data from up to 40 million credit and debit cards from shoppers that visited the store during the holiday season. The repercussions were huge as Target’s profits fell significantly.  Cybersecurity breaches have also occurred on the Federal Government level with the OMB breach.  These are just some of many examples of cyberattacks that have occurred across the United States.

In the 2015 US State of Cybercrime Security Survey 79% of respondents said they detected a security incident in the past 12 months. That is a pretty alarming statistic, and doesn’t even include the amount of security breaches that go undetected. A proactive and comprehensive cybersecurity platform is crucial for any business owner, small or large. Without an up-to-date cyber security strategy, your business is left completely vulnerable to all types of cyber-attacks including unauthorized logins, malicious software, trojans, worms, viruses and other threats.

What cybersecurity solutions present you with the best overall strategy to protect your business data? Every business operates in a different way and have customized applications that fit their unique business models. Here is a short list of cyber security technologies available on the market that can fit into just about any business strategy. These technologies cover Layer 1 (Physical IT Infrastructure) to Layer 7 (Web-hosted Applications) security.

Network Integrity Systems (NIS) is a leader in developing network security solutions for the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies. The VANGUARD and INTERCEPTOR systems enables fiber optic network infrastructure protection. It does this by monitoring the physical IT infrastructure (fiber cables) and detects/reports any unauthorized tampering.

Cisco Advanced Firewall provides advanced threat protection before, during, and after attacks. This system uses URL filtering, Advanced Malware Protection, Next-Generation Intrusion Prevention System, and Application Visibility and Control to ensure that your network is effectively protected.

CyberSecure IPS is an infrastructure monitoring application designed to detect, protect, and secure commercial and government network critical infrastructures. It provides network managers with the ability to monitor and protect the physical security of their network infrastructures. CyberSecure works in conjunction with NIS INTERCEPTOR and VANGUARD.

Barracuda offers a number of security solutions for a wide range of threat vectors including e-mails, websites, web applications, mobile devices, and network performance. For example, Barracuda Web Security Gateway enforces policies and regulates web activity, ensuring user safety. Barracuda Essentials for Office 365 provides critical multi-layer security, archiving, and backup for Office 365. Barracuda also offers full comprehensive security solutions for web-based VoIP phone systems and other business applications.

Cyber criminals can and will strike any size business in any industry. Even though the majority of the attacks reported happen to government agencies and enterprise businesses, the trend of cyberattacks on small and medium sized businesses continue to rise. New techniques like Ransomware encrypt critical business data and render it useless, unless the business pays a certain amount to the cybercriminal to decrypt the data. The technologies mentioned above will help businesses who have concerns over their security to become more protected. For small and medium sized businesses with limited IT resources, it is imperative to partner with a reputable IT services provider who have the expertise with the latest security tools and strategies. Having a “Band-Aid” approach to your IT environment is no longer an option for businesses in today’s reality.