Infrastructure security refers to a set of cybersecurity strategies that prevent unauthorized access to computers, networks, and data. It maintains the integrity and confidentiality of information by blocking access by attackers.
In this article, we will talk about infrastructure and network cybersecurity. And how they have evolved over the years. Let us see:
- What do we mean when we talk about network infrastructure?
- How has security for network infrastructure evolved?
- Which is the principle of operation of a safety net?
- What types of security are found within a security network?
- How are networks composed?
- How do network infrastructure and IT infrastructure differ?
- What are the main challenges surrounding network infrastructure?
- What is the most important thing your company should know about network infrastructure?
1. What do we mean when we talk about network infrastructure?
Your network lies at the heart of your business. But for it to function properly, it needs the right support, in the form of an effective network infrastructure. What exactly is network infrastructure, and how can you make sure you get the most out of it?
As such, it becomes critical for business executives to understand the importance of network infrastructure and be aware of the challenges and opportunities it presents. With this knowledge and the right tools in place, you are taking the first steps to ensure optimal productivity and help your organization maintain peak performance levels.
Network infrastructure refers to all the resources in a network that enable network or internet connectivity, management, business operations, and communication. The network infrastructure comprises hardware and software, systems and devices, and enables computing and communication between users, services, applications, and processes.
Everything involved in the network, from servers to wireless routers, comes together to form the network infrastructure of a system. The network infrastructure enables effective communication and service between users, applications, services, and devices, among others.
2. How has security for network infrastructure evolved?
From traditional data centers, condensed into one room, we have moved to heterogeneous environments with servers and applications. Not to mention devices of all kinds and cloud environments with virtually unlimited reach. In parallel, new development and testing models have led the industry to rethink infrastructure security.
Given this new situation, there comes a basic aspect that plays a fundamental role in effective cybersecurity: visibility. Without an accurate inventory of all assets and services connected to the network, it will not be possible to discover vulnerabilities. Nor will it be possible to identify configuration anomalies or other security problems.
Of course, not all vulnerabilities or security issues remain the same. Thus, for effective risk management, context will be needed. For example, a vulnerability in an e-commerce server will become potentially more critical than the same vulnerability in an internal development network.
It will also require all the necessary scalability, but on demand. Because one of the most appreciated features of the cloud is the ability to add resources and scale availability as demand increases.
2.1 Why is visibility so important in cybersecurity?
One of the simplest truths of cybersecurity lies in the fact that you cannot protect what you cannot see. Some time ago, a local antivirus and a perimeter firewall were enough. Today, however, we are talking about a multitude of solutions: intrusion detection systems (IDS), security events (SIEM), spam filtering applications, and many other necessary elements.
Today, many companies have a greater or lesser set of cybersecurity solutions. In most cases, these represent complex networks of tools that cannot qualify as a strategy in the strict sense of the word but are the result of an accumulation of “patches” over the years.
Today, many companies have a greater or lesser set of cybersecurity solutions. In most cases, they consist of complex networks of tools that cannot be considered a strategy in the strict sense of the word. These come across as the result of an accumulation of “patches” over the years. These models make it possible to address various cybersecurity problems.
Ultimately, all those old infrastructure security products are no longer a solution, because the new environments have become too heterogeneous, and too dispersed. In short, these solutions do not provide sufficient visibility, because they were not designed to do so.
2.2 How was the visibility problem solved?
In response to this problem, the new cybersecurity solutions come designed from the outset to simplify and optimize management, taking advantage of the cloud as an ally. Both for the organization and the security team’s technicians, the benefits become evident.
For technicians, real-time monitoring and cybersecurity, with the ability to easily add or remove components at the click of a button. This allows professionals to focus on risk management and addressing priority security issues, rather than on time-consuming, non-value-adding integration tasks.
Finally, the increasing complexity of network infrastructures and the growing volatility of development environments demand a new approach. Organizations need security platforms that offer complete visibility to simplify the protection of their applications and data regardless of the architecture and infrastructure. The key, without a doubt, is visibility.
3. Which is the principle of operation of a safety net?
At its most basic level, secure networks focus on two basic principles: authentication and authorization. In other words, you must first ensure that all users on your network have permission to be there, and then you must ensure that each user on your network has permission to access the specific data they access.
Infrastructures’ security involves everything from establishing and enforcing enterprise-wide policies and procedures to installing software and hardware that can automatically detect and block network security threats, to hiring network security consultants and staff to assess the level of network protection you need and then implementing the relevant security solutions.
Managed security services (MSS) are part of infrastructure security. Managed security services can help protect today’s increasingly complex hybrid multi-cloud networks. Advanced managed security services even provide around-the-clock monitoring, management, and response to advanced threats, risks, and compliance requirements.
4. What types of security are found within a security network?
Firewall protection. A firewall refers to a software program or hardware device that prevents unauthorized users from accessing your network by preventing suspicious traffic from entering and allowing legitimate traffic to flow. There are various types of firewalls with different levels of security. Ranging from simple packet filtering firewalls to proxy servers and complex firewalls.
Intrusion detection and prevention. Intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDPS) can deploy directly behind a firewall to provide a second layer of defense against dangerous actors. An IDPS sits between the source address and its destination, creating an additional stop for traffic before it can enter a network. The infrastructure security of a network depends to a large extent on these first two points
Virtual private networks (VPN). Software that protects a user’s identity through data encoding and hiding the user’s IP address and location. When someone uses a VPN, they no longer connect directly to the Internet, but to a secure server that then connects to the Internet on their behalf. VPNs become more and more commonly used in enterprises and become more and more necessary for private individuals.
Cloud security. Cloud security protects online resources, such as sensitive data, applications, virtualized IP, and services, from leaks, loss, or theft. Keeping cloud-based systems secure requires strong security policies. As well as superimposing security methods such as Firewall architecture, login controls, virtual private networks (VPNs), and data encoding or hiding.
4.1 When we discuss the security of the cloud, what do we mean?
Cloud security is all the technology, protocols, and best practices that protect cloud computing. The applications run in the cloud and the data are stored in the cloud. Securing cloud services starts with understanding what exactly is being secured, as well as the aspects of the system that need to be managed. It is part of infrastructure security.
To summarize, the development of support against security vulnerabilities is largely in the hands of cloud service providers. Aside from choosing a security-conscious provider, customers should focus primarily on proper service configuration and secure usage habits. In addition, customers should ensure that end-user hardware and networks have enough security.
Data security is one aspect of cloud security that involves the technical end of threat prevention some tools and technologies allow low providers and customers to insert barriers between access and visibility of sensitive data. Within these, encryption is certainly one of the most effective tools available. Encryption encodes the information so that it can only be read by somebody who possesses the encryption key.
5. How are networks composed?
If we talk about infrastructure security it becomes important to know what a network structure is. It may mean different things to different persons. From the perspective of one of the people who designed or implemented a network, it looks like a collection of cables, computers, and components.
From a business point of view, it means the cost must be balanced against the usage information. Finally, from the user’s point of view, it remains a means to an end that only needs to consider when it is not working properly. A physical network structure consists mainly of cables, switches, and workstations. In larger companies, these networks typically are designed by a network architect and implemented by network engineers.
In smaller areas or homes, the physical network rarely becomes complex enough to require an actual design. There are two basic descriptions for a physical network structure: the local area network (LAN) and the wide-area work (WAN). The LAN refers to any self-contained area of a network and the outer area is a WAN.
The business part of a network structure tends to remain fairly simple. The cost of network-specific employees plus the cost of maintenance and access charges compare to the cost of working without the network. As long as the systems generate money for the business, the network continues. If it does not, the network goes down until it does again.
6. How do network infrastructure and IT infrastructure differ?
Network infrastructure and IT infrastructure look similar. However, while they can sometimes refer to the same thing, they also have differences between the two. Often, IT infrastructure refers to the broader and more encompassing term. IT infrastructure (or information technology infrastructure) defines a collection of information technology elements critical to an IT service.
Often, IT infrastructure refers to physical components such as hardware, but may also encompass some network components or software. Network infrastructure can look like a smaller category within the broader IT infrastructure definition. A robust network infrastructure supports the success of a broad IT infrastructure.
An enterprise needs both a robust IT infrastructure and network infrastructure for cohesive solutions and sustained success. A network infrastructure enables connection and communication, each of which is critical to a company’s success. Simply put, without a solid network infrastructure, IT components, including hardware and software, are of little use.
7. What are the main challenges surrounding network infrastructure?
There exist several challenges concerning running a network infrastructure model. For example. There are often multiple subnets and different locations or sites. Without a centralized hub, network visibility, monitoring and management can become nearly impossible.
A large number of companies use network infrastructure solutions to centralize their traffic and to better understand and control the information passing through their networks. In some cases, duplicate data can account for 50 to 66 percent of network traffic. Eliminating duplicate data becomes critical, especially when it comes to the effectiveness of network security solutions.
If security solutions get too much duplicate data, they can slow down and become less effective at detecting threats. Many organizations use different cybersecurity tools and vendors. Many security vendors often charge based on the amount of data they need to process.
As such, sending the right type of data to the right tool represents a critical aspect of infrastructure networks. Sending data from many different sources to the same tool can become inefficient and costly, especially if one tool fits one type of data better and another tool fits another type.
8. What is the most important thing your company should know about network infrastructure?
Maintaining full visibility across your entire network infrastructure plays a key role in both performance monitoring and threat detection. And dealing with network blind spots becomes a major problem for many organizations.
Gaining broad network visibility allows you to uncover those blind spots, so threats from all sources can get identified and remediated more quickly. On Connect Tech, we provide you with the tools and capabilities you need to establish a robust network security infrastructure.
Do you want to know more information about security and network infrastructures? Connect Tech will be happy to help you. Consider calling us at +971 43 316 688 or email us at contact@connectech.dev and we will be happy to assist you.
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