What is a Managed Firewall?

The technology industry is constantly evolving, and as a result, new potential security risks are constantly cropping up for businesses of all sizes. That's why it's important for your organisation to have multiple layers of security protecting your data, and firewall solutions act as one of these vital layers.

Not only does a firewall monitor and control data as and when it passes between your computer, your server, and the internet but it makes sure to reduce any cyber threats too, thus increasing your confidence in your network security.

A firewall solution can also reduce the likelihood of hackers, viruses, and malware penetrating your network as well as block particular downloads, or implement certain permissions if, for example, an administrator needs to grant a user access to specific files. Most commonly a firewall will determine trusted and untrusted networks, plus it will work with predetermined security rules.

However if your firewall isn't managed correctly, issues can arise, leading to security risks and a lack of control over your network security. The good news is that managed firewall services can help you deal with this.

What is a managed firewall?

Implementing a managed firewall with a company like iomart means you gain reliable and secure network access and you'll be able to customise that access depending on the user. For example, you could limit all employees with the exception of your digital marketing team from accessing Twitter or Facebook. You can implement these access controls on an individual or group basis, all whilst keeping your sensitive data as safe as possible day-to-day. Some businesses find it useful to have multiple firewalls for different levels of security, for example a university has different layers of access for different people-for example, students versus staff-to ensure managed security for sensitive data.

A managed firewall service ensures you have network security, all whilst providing the ultimate internet access to your users within your own network, or their own if working remotely.

What are the benefits of a managed firewall?

There are a lot of benefits to employing a firewall for your business. For example, at iomart we would also manage the administration of monitoring and maintenance of your firewall infrastructure-including automatic software updates.

Without any knowledge of threat detection and intelligence, it's unlikely that you'll understand the scale of an attack on your business. To have optimum cyber security measures in place, you need to identify the weaknesses and alter your infrastructure accordingly. With a managed firewall you'll receive regular reports - often weekly or monthly, which provide details of any threat intelligence, along with what action should be taken against them to ensure network connectivity continues day-to-day and there's no unauthorised access.

Along with 24/7 support from our team, you are also able to have proactive security alerts set up.

More generally, using a managed firewall service will lead to reduced costs for your business as you aren't required to purchase or maintain any of the infrastructure. However, you'll still get all the benefits of robust firewall technology, along with IT experts managing and maintaining your systems. All of this leads to you having an effective firewall which is the best way to protect your network against cyber threats and attacks.

Do you need a managed firewall for your business?

Every business who has internet access must have firewall protection in place. However if you don't have the resources to manage your own firewall and other security devices-a managed firewall service can close those gaps for you to better protect you from any data breaches or security threats.

Having a managed firewall service allows you as a business to focus on your core objectives whilst having the peace of mind that experts are constantly monitoring and maintaining your network. It's not a simple task to manage your firewall, so having the expertise of a third party provider like iomart, is an ideal solution for many businesses as it is not just 'set-it-up and forget-about-it' software.

If you're interested in our managed firewall services, get in touch with us today to get started.

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