Why is a UTM Firewall Beneficial For SMBs? If you are an SMB (Small to Medium-sized Business), when the last time you upgraded your firewall protection? A major risk that threatens all businesses both large and small are digital threats such as malware. Viruses and hackers also pose a threat. Sensitive company, client or staff information can be stolen or encrypted. Additionally a virus wreaking having on the network or phishing emails, can present a successful digital attack. And this can bring your entire business to a standstill.
Businesses choose to partner with a managed IT service provider to assess, optimise and monitor their IT infrastructure. If it’s been a while since you’ve last upgraded your firewall, then here is why you need to upgrade to a UTM firewall.
Perfect for BYOD
BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) has become a common practice for many businesses and allows their employees to use their personal devices such as smartphones, tablets and laptops for work purposes. Although convenient, it can be very difficult to monitor and regulate when using out-dated firewalls.
With a UTM (Unified Threat Management) firewall, you can easily create and set up a secured private connection using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) over a public network. This protects your business’s IP (Internet Protocol) address by replacing it with a temporary one. Your staff can then transmit and share sensitive company data and personal information over the network securely.
Increased security and protection
Of course, the main benefit of upgrading to a UTM firewall is the increased security and protection it offers. Legacy firewalls would typically filter and block forbidden packets by protocol or port. Next-generation firewalls are now able to inspect packets right down to their application layer. This provides an all-in-one security solution rather than requiring multiple security solutions.
Unlike traditional firewalls, UTM firewalls are also designed to prevent digital attacks occurring on the OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) on layers four to seven. This means a business can quickly identify and respond to new digital threats as they arise.
Greater control over the network
The apps and websites employees access each day can be riddled with hidden threats that can go undetected when using legacy firewalls. This would lead many businesses to enforce strict rules such as forbidding employees from visiting particular websites which were deemed as unsafe.
However, UTM firewalls allow businesses to have greater control over their network to regulate which applications can be accessed and which users can request access to. This can be done by creating a list of websites and apps that are deemed unsafe and become blocked when an unauthorised user is trying to gain access.
Instead of blocking an entire website, you can grant access to certain pages on a website that are deemed safe.
In summary
If it’s been a while since you’ve last updated or upgraded your firewall, reach out to us at Intellect IT to find out how your business can benefit from upgrading to a UTM firewall. Browse through our website to learn more information or call us on 1300 799 165 to get started today.
