Off-the-Shelf Security Solutions for Distributed Computing

by John Viega, Pravir Chandra, and J.T. Bloch

The goal of the accompanying Executive Report is to introduce two technologies for securing your company's networks: firewalls and virtual private networks (VPNs). We aim to help you understand the issues surrounding these technologies well enough to be able to make an accurate determination of what security technologies you should use to protect your networks from attack. Even though you probably have already deployed a firewall on your network, you should make sure you have deployed the right kind of firewall for your business and that you've had your staff configure it properly. Additionally, you should consider VPN technology to improve the security of your network with minimum fuss. The report will introduce you to some key concepts to be aware of when making a purchase decision, and it offers recommendations for technologies that are best suited for your company.