Back to Insights13 Most Misunderstood Facts About Firewall
Myths Believed about Firewall
What is a Firewall?
A firewall is a network security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on certain pre-determined security rules. Typically, a firewall establishes a barrier between a trusted internal network and an untrusted external network, which is the Internet. Check our latest article “What is a Firewall?” To know more about this…
13 Myths Believed about Firewall
#1 A Firewall affects the system’s performance
It is a common notion to believe that a firewall reduces the speed of the system’s performance. It solely depends on the type of firewall used. Hardware firewalls are physical devices technically between a system and the Internet. Software firewalls exist within the computer and depend on the computer’s resources for power.
An individual or a business entity should decide on which firewall to run based on processing speed. Multiple firewalls functioning in one network might potentially affect the system’s performance speed.
#2 A Firewall is the same as an Anti-virus
This is a wrong assumption. Firewalls and Anti-virus are essentially designed to provide security services at different levels. Firewalls monitor and control the traffic on the network and grant access to connections that are secure and block malicious connections. Anti-virus software programs are required for the detection of malicious files, harmful codes, and applications that might compromise the system.
To achieve up-to-date network security in your system, a firewall, and anti-virus must prevail to offer maximum protection to the system.
#3 When a Firewall is in place, updates aren’t required
This is not true. Firewalls are designed to prevent known threats to your network, especially during installation. Given new threats are surfacing rapidly, firewall updates are mandatory. If a Firewall configuration is not updated at regular intervals then it could lead to network exposure.
#4 A Firewall is all we need
This is a misunderstanding. In reality, a network security policy-based firewall can’t vouch for protection in an integral framework. A firewall only enhances security parameters in a network but still can’t eradicate attacks from intruders. A firewall’s capabilities are limited when it involves external networks. When the firewall installed in your system has a loophole then it would be a piece of cake for the intruders to break through. Therefore, the Firewall isn’t everything and cannot be relied on completely. It is essential to have cyber defenses.
#5 A Firewall is always a hardware
A firewall is not necessarily often hardware. There are firewalls which are hardware, software, and a combination of both. It depends on which type of firewall is being implemented on the network.
#6 A Firewall safeguards you against all possible threats
This isn’t true. A firewall is not designed to prevent all sorts of threats. A firewall active in a system wouldn’t be able to detect a user stealing data or if a user has harmful intentions. A firewall can only fulfill its purpose, not beyond it.
#7 A Firewall protects every Information Exchange
This is a false statement. A firewall does manage the network traffic between the Internet and your system, but it doesn’t include encryption of data.
#8 If a threat is new, a firewall shields you from new threats
A firewall protects your system against only known threats. If a threat is a recent one and your firewall isn’t up-to-date then it could affect your network as it is left defenseless. A firewall cannot fight against every new threat that surfaces. A firewall configuration should be kept on-check.
#9 When Firewall is active, there isn’t a need for an Anti-virus
Anti-virus and firewalls are different from one another. A firewall can’t prevent viruses from entering the network whereas an anti-virus must prevent viruses from entering a system. A firewall follows a set of defined rules that block or permit access to certain information based on the port numbers, source, and destination of the data packets. An anti-virus is mandatory to protect your system from hackers.
#10 A Firewall detects Malware
A software firewall is designed to block potential entry points that could be used by intruders to access your system. However, when a system already has malware installing a firewall as a counter-measure would not eradicate it.
A software firewall wouldn’t detect malware that already exists on your system. A malware hit could make the user run a request that has malicious intentions underlying which the firewall might not detect.
#11 Firewalls are always Host-based Intrusion Prevention Systems (HIPS)
A firewall is designed to bypass network information. With the growing technology, firewalls monitor and detect unauthorized data packets using port numbers, source, and destination. There is a possibility of chaos to prevail as not every alert identified should be an intrusion.
A repetitive action of allowing every alert detected, the user might not be cautious when an actual threat alert surfaces and grants access to the intruder unintentionally.
HIPS are the ancestors of the anti-malware program.
#12 Firewall protection is only for larger firms
A misconception is that firewalls are required only for larger businesses and online payment-oriented companies. But it is recommended to have firewalls configured by every business no matter the size of the business.
Growing cyber threats spreading amongst all industries irrespective of the employee count, firewalls are mandatory to keep their network stable and secure.
#13 Cloud-based businesses do not need a firewall
Another common notion of individuals is to underestimate the necessity of firewalls as their business involves cloud-based computing. The data are stored in the cloud server and they eliminate the need for a firewall in their system. Logically, their data is protected in the cloud server but the system and devices that users access need firewall protection.
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