Desktop firewalls: An essential secure measure in the remote worker environment

Enormous and fundamental changes to the way we do business have had a profound impact on the security measures companies now need to consider when protecting their networks from viruses and hackers.

One of the most significant business changes is the need today to allow third parties - customers, partners and suppliers for example - to access the corporate network; security used to be about keeping the bad guys out.

In the Internet age it is as much about enabling the good guys to get in.

"Employees accessing the network from home, a hotel or an airport lounge, or contractors and business partners using a RAS connection have become integral to business life in the new economy," says Jako Voges, marketing manager for Symantec Middle East and Africa.

Many of today's mobile and remote workers prefer the speed and ready access of broadband or DSL, whose always-on connections are vulnerable to Trojan infections and other hacking tactics and devices.

The potential cost of a security breach should not be underestimated. In addition to direct costs resulting from damaged or stolen data, removing a virus from a network, and reduced productivity caused by downtime, businesses can incur indirect costs by losing market share, missing opportunities, damage to corporate image or brand, and even taking a hit on the stock market.

However, Voges says security technology has already begun to address these new threats. In addition to anti-virus software, technology such as virtual private networks (VPNs) have secured the link between the remote users and the corporate network.

"While security technology is available for remote and mobile users, maintaining and managing it to ensure latest virus definitions, for example, is a constant challenge for companies unless their security policies are water-tight," says Voges. "Once a hacker or virus writer overcomes the security on a remote user's laptop, access to a VPN and to the company's network is under threat."

Securing each element of a network that allows remote access has been a continuing challenge but with the development of desktop firewalls, Internet security technology has taken a great step towards providing comprehensive protection.

Desktop firewall solutions, such as the recently released Symantec Desktop Firewall, protects remote users by monitoring all inbound and outbound data from remote computers. Such solutions better enable secure access to the network, especially via inherently insecure broadband connections. Combined with existing security technologies for mobile and remote computers, from anti-virus programs to virtual private networks, desktop firewalls provide comprehensive security for mobile and remote computing.

The more effective desktop firewalls provide added benefits, including:

. They are customisable. While all desktop firewalls are automatically equipped to prevent Internet access to the remote device from any unrecognised user, the sophisticated desktop firewalls allow for necessary adjustments. The rules by which it blocks or allows use are changeable to address any unanticipated vulnerabilities to hacking and to ensure that authorised users can gain remote access. (This last detail is especially important for allowing IT working at the home network to fix routine problems on a mobile device via remote access.)

. They are easy to administer. The desktop firewall is only as good as it is easy to integrate with the rest of a security system, to maintain, and to customise.

. They provide comprehensive protection for the device. Whether ensuring that inbound data is safe to use on the computer or that outbound data is authorised and safe, a desktop firewall guards against unauthorised access and use.

Voges says the market opportunity for desktop firewalls is significant. "Any company which has mobile and remote employees, or allows contractors and business partners to access their network through RAS or VPN technology are primary targets," he says. "In addition, small and medium businesses that rely highly on remote communications would also find this product vital to their operations because those kinds of organisations usually don't have the skills or resources to deal with security issues."