How SD-WAN Can Help Ease Data Security?

While most IT professionals are familiar with the traditional Wide Area Network (WAN) setup, SD-WAN is a more advanced solution that allows for much more flexibility and security. This article will guide you to learn about SD-WAN and its role in data security.

Application-Based Firewalls

Application-based firewalls are an important part of securing your SD-WAN network. These advanced network security products are virtualized versions of hardware-based firewalls that provide additional network security services such as web content filtering and malware detection. They can be deployed in the cloud or on-premises.

With application-based firewalls, you can segment traffic by application type. The firewall will send some traffic to a DPC and others to the internet. This way, you can send different types of traffic to different servers, reducing the risk of outages. However, by combining application policy with SD-WAN, you’ll use a lower-quality connection, which is not the ideal solution. Another benefit of application-based firewalls in SD-WAN is their ability to control the cost of updating security elements. This is especially helpful when you consider the cost of updating hardware. 

Intrusion Prevention Systems

Intrusion prevention systems can protect data on various networks, including SD-WANs. They are usually configured to filter out suspicious traffic and send alerts to administrators. They can also detect and block malicious activity before it can cause any damage. This helps to keep the network secure and allows other security controls to operate more effectively.

The Meraki MX intrusion detection and prevention solution is designed for SD-WAN environments and uses machine learning (ML) to detect threats. It can be deployed in three clicks and licensing starts at $4,600. However, it is not flexible enough to handle complex environments, and users have complained about deteriorating support in recent years. SD-WAN security is a major concern and incorporating a variety of security controls can reduce risks.

URL Filtering

URL filtering is a powerful tool to protect your business from security threats. It ensures that your employees don’t accidentally stumble across illegal or potentially harmful websites while surfing the internet. URL filtering can also help you limit the amount of malware, viruses, and other threats your business could face. It also helps protect your data from security breaches and leaks.

URL filtering works by blocking malicious websites and phishing sites. It also filters traffic based on its category. Whitelists are used to allow users access to sites that are work-related, such as project management software and workflows. URLs that are not on a safelist are queried from a cloud database.

SD-WAN Solution with Integrated Security

Investing in an SD-WAN solution with integrated security can help organizations reduce the total cost of network ownership and enhance data security. It can help organizations overcome challenges related to insufficient bandwidth, high infrastructure costs, and complex operations and ease the transition from legacy MPLS services. These benefits include lower TCO and a more agile network that can accommodate changes in user demand and network environment.

Businesses must first consider a provider that integrates security capabilities into their network firewalls to implement SD-WAN securely. This way, they can eliminate the need for additional hardware and management. In addition, integrating SD-WAN security into a central management platform can help ease security within a distributed network. While a centralized security strategy is preferable, it does not guarantee a secure network. Therefore, a good security solution should be flexible and tie into multiple vendors.