What is a Next-Generation Firewall?

 

A next-generation firewall   ngfw  is a network security device that offers capabilities beyond traditional stateful firewalls. While traditional firewalls typically provide stateful inspection of inbound and outbound network traffic, next-generation firewalls include additional capabilities such as application detection and control, integrated attack prevention, and crowd-sourced threat intelligence.

 

What is a Next-Generation Firewall?

Traditional firewalls provide stateful inspection of network traffic. It allows or blocks traffic based on status, ports, and protocols, filtering based on rules set by the administrator.

Next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) can do this and much more. In addition to access control, NGFWs can block modern threats such as advanced malware and application layer attacks. As defined by Gartner, a next-generation firewall should include: Standard firewall capabilities such as stateful inspection

Integrated intrusion prevention

Application awareness and control to detect and block risky apps

Sources of threat intelligence

Upgrade paths to include future intelligence feeds

Techniques to address evolving security threats

 

 

The primary role of a firewall is to prevent security breaches and protect your business. However, because prevention measures are never 100% effective, your firewall must also have the advanced capabilities to quickly detect when advanced malware evades your first line of defense. Invest in a firewall with the following features:

 

What should you look for in a next-generation firewall?

 

Prevention that stops attacks before they get in

Best-in-class integrated next-generation IPS to find and stop hidden threats fast

URL filtering to enforce policies on hundreds of millions of URLs

Built-in sandboxing and advanced malware protection Protection that continuously analyzes file behavior to find and eliminate threats fast

A world-class threat intelligence organization that provides your firewall with up-to-date information to stop new threats.