Simplifying security, improving efficiencies and minimising costs

System security is a constantly evolving science, as threats are always adapting and finding new ways to attack corporate networks. Security is no longer simply a 'nice to have', it is a necessity.

But the changing nature of the threat means the security landscape has become increasingly complex, and many businesses have been unable to take a holistic approach; simply plugging holes when they appear and not giving a thought to the complexity of the solution they have built.

Security solutions have become scattered across networks in a complex environment that is difficult, not to mention expensive to manage. “The amount of security risk that organisations are exposed to on a daily basis has increased to such a level that a traditional single point product is not enough. The complexities of multiple applications and protocols have highlighted the need to be able to do more with security solutions, and the development of polymorphic viruses means that complexity is once more increased, as threats can now adapt and impact applications differently,” says Tinus van Rensburg, Systems Engineer at Fortinet, a multi-threat security system vendor.

However, due to historical implementations of security products, there is now a need for companies to manage multiple solutions and reports. The lack of cohesion of these systems also means they are vulnerable to attacks, as they are not end-to-end or all encompassing, exposing the corporate network and increasing the risk of compromise.

“One approach proven to successfully reduce complexity is to consolidate disparate security solutions into a comprehensive solution that incorporates threat protection with management and analysis tools enhancing the efficacy of the solution and reducing risk,” says Amy Thomas, Fortinet Product Manager at Zycko, an official distributor of Fortinet solutions. “This type of single system will also significantly reduce maintenance costs and simplify the licensing process.”

The first step when simplifying and consolidating security and security management is not to make tradeoffs on the level of security itself. By examining the need for consolidation and a streamlined process to manage security, the solutions will not be compromised but management will be made far simpler. Total cost of ownership (TCO) and a cost analysis need to be conducted to enable the business to understand what vital security needs the business has. The preferred solution will be a consolidated, end-to-end system with frequently updated definitions, that is always on and always protecting the business and the corporate network from critical security threats.

“Whether the business adopts a single management console or a console that can manage multiple solutions from multiple vendors, there is definitely a need to be able to centrally control their security systems,” adds Van Rensburg. “From a licensing, control and management perspective, a centralised system will simplify processes, making changes easier to understand, enabling user identification to run smoother and allowing user access control to be more effective.”

Not only does this streamline processes, it also makes management easier, for example when an employee resigns and access needs to be removed, this can be done from a central point instead of having to remove the information situated at multiple points that reside within the security architecture. It also provides the ability to manage disparate branches of a company from one central point.

“One feature companies should demand from a security system is the ability to address Layer 7,” says Thomas. “Businesses need to be able to manage security right down to the granular application level, controlling what access specific applications have as well as access that all users have to different applications. It simply is not enough anymore to manage ports; companies need to be able to control applications too,” she adds.

Not only does centralising and consolidating security reduce complexity, it can also increase ROI on security systems, as licensing can be simplified.

Instead of the need to continuously keep track of individual user licences and multipoint licences, a central, end-to-end system will lower the complexity of this task.

Ultimately, what businesses need to be looking at is a security system that will provide multiple functions in a consolidated security platform, which is scalable and can expand to accommodate growing or changing business requirements.