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Best Network Segmentation Security Practices

By October 23, 2020No Comments6 min read
Network Segmentation Security Practices

The data breach has become a risk due to internet connectivity. One of the most effective cybersecurity mechanism is network segmentation. This technique will help you in protecting important parts of your network. If your network gets hacked, then this technique will help you in limiting the damage. In this article, we are going to talk about network segmentation.

Definition of Network Segmentation:

Network segmentation will help you in dividing your network into simple parts. You can create these sections by using barriers between different systems. This will ensure that two different sections can’t interact with each other.

Your network subnet will act like a different system. They will have unique security controls and access. If one of your segments is breached, then you can stop the follow of the network in that segment. This will ensure that attackers can’t access other network segments. Most network engineers are using it for filtering the flow of data.

Why you should segment your network?

It is easy to manage standard networks. However, these networks are not secure. Firewalls can help you in monitoring all the traffic in your network. The main aim of these firewalls is to stop a security breach. However, if a hacker is already in your network, then firewalls can’t stop them. They can access your critical systems and databases without any restrictions.

Network segmentation will help you in removing this critical flaw. It will help you in decreasing the congestion in your network. Every subnet will be accessed by a few hosts only. Also, it will help you in following the strict compliance requirements. It will help you in splitting your network into different zones. Different network zones can have different security policies.

Benefits of Network segmentation:

  1. Better Data Protection

You can protect your data by controlling the flow of data traffic. Network segmentation will build a thick wall around your network data. It will ensure that a limited number of sections can access your data. If you have fewer segments, then it means that you need to worry about fewer access points. Thus, hackers can’t steal anything from your network. You can reduce the risk of data theft and loss by limiting access and using better security protocols.

  1. Threat Containment

If hackers have access to one of your subnet, then they can’t use it for accessing other subnets. This will ensure that your other network subnets are safe. Attackers will try to break into other network segments also. However, the admin will get enough time to protect other network segments. After the attack, admins can work on fixing the breached section of your network.

  1. Limited Control

Network segmentation will also protect your network from insider attacks. It will ensure that your users can only access some part of your network. This is also known as the least access privilege policy. You can use this for ensuring that only some people can access the important segments. This will limit the access point that attackers can exploit.

This policy is very important for your company as most attacks occur due to users. Attackers can target your users by sending malicious emails. Your network users might download malware in their system. This can affect your entire network.

Thus, you should also segment your network into different parts. This will help you in keeping the intruders away from your network.

  1. Better Threat Detection and Monitoring

Network segmentation will help you in increasing checkpoints in your network. This will simplify the network monitoring process. More checkpoints will ensure that you can easily spot malicious behavior. Network monitoring can help you in identifying the scope and root of the problem.

You can monitor internet connections and log events for patterns. If you think that something malicious is happening in your network, then you can work on stopping the attack. This will help you in creating a proactive approach that will help your admin in protecting important network segments.

  1. Better response rate

If you have divided your network into smaller subnets, then your network admin can quickly respond to attacks. In case of an attack, it is easy to check the segment which is affected. This will help your admin in troubleshooting.

Network segmentation will help you in improving user experience. You can protect your user’s subnet from attacks. This will ensure that they won’t face any issues.

  1. Damage Control

If you want to minimize the damage caused by an attack, then network segmentation is your best bet. It will ensure that the breach is contained in one subnet only. The rest of your network will remain safe. Your network admin can work on recovering your subnets.

This will also protect your network from network errors also. The network errors will always stay contained in a single segment. This will ensure that it can’t affect other network segments. Your network admin can easily control and fix these errors.

  1. Protect endpoint devices

Network segmentation will help you in separating the endpoint devices from network segments. These devices are mostly unprotected. Thus, attackers will mostly attack these devices first. Network segmentation will help you in protecting your IoT devices.

However, these devices are mostly the starting point of an attack. Network segmentation will help you in isolating these unsecured devices.

Conclusion

These are the most important benefits of network segmentation. Many companies think that network segmentation is outdated. However, it will help you in controlling your traffic. It is one of the best methods to stop critical security breaches. You can consider network segmentation as the best practice model. However, it is still not a requirement for every company. Many companies are trying to protect themselves from attackers. Thus, network segmentation is a very important security measure. If you are operating in a regulated industry, then this is very important for you. It can help you in following the tough security regulations. Experienced MSPs like Bleuwire can help you in implementing network segmentation. They will also help you in protecting your entire network from attackers. If you need more tips regarding network security, then you can contact Bleuwire.

Contact us today to learn about Bleuwire™  services and solutions in how we can help your business.