Cybersecurity Questions Medium
A firewall is a network security device that acts as a barrier between an internal network and external networks, such as the internet. It monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules.
Firewalls protect against cyber attacks by implementing various security measures. Firstly, they examine all incoming and outgoing traffic, analyzing the data packets to determine if they meet the defined security criteria. This process helps to filter out potentially malicious or unauthorized traffic.
Firewalls also use access control lists (ACLs) to enforce security policies. These ACLs define which types of traffic are allowed or denied based on factors such as IP addresses, ports, protocols, or specific keywords. By blocking unauthorized access attempts, firewalls prevent cyber attackers from gaining entry into a network.
Furthermore, firewalls can detect and block known malicious IP addresses, domains, or signatures through the use of threat intelligence databases. This helps to prevent cyber attacks by blocking connections to known malicious sources.
Firewalls also provide network address translation (NAT) capabilities, which hide internal IP addresses from external networks. This adds an extra layer of protection by making it more difficult for attackers to identify and target specific devices within the network.
In summary, firewalls protect against cyber attacks by monitoring and controlling network traffic, filtering out potentially malicious or unauthorized traffic, enforcing security policies, blocking connections to known malicious sources, and providing network address translation to hide internal IP addresses.