Server Security and Shielding Technologies
In the world of security, we really are getting to the point where patch management really just isn't enough. The concept of "server shielding" is new, so many people are suspect. But as an in-line device between the server and its network connection, a server shield can prevent system exploit without needing to change the codebase on the machine (like patching does).
My buddy Greg Ness over at BlueLane posted a pretty interesting breakdown of the state of server security and how the threat of polymorphism in attacks is driving the need for a change in how we deal with threats. Not the least of which, the speed in which we need to implement compensating technologies increases.
The conclusion to Greg's article says...
...Critical enterprise servers are more vulnerable than ever, facing exponential increases in attacks at a time when traditional perimeter security appliances have failed to address their unique availability, accuracy and coverage requirements. The result: operational costs for effective server security are skyrocketing as increasingly profit-minded hackers continue to innovate. Large enterprises with deep IT pockets have insulated themselves from the short term risks by throwing resources and alarms at the problem while more frugal organizations are accepting longer server vulnerability windows.That status quo simply cannot continue. IT needs specialized server security appliances that co-exist with their other layers of protection. Blocking and tackling of suspicious traffic when it comes to servers is not acceptable. The limited protocol fluency offered by older security appliances is a (no pun intended) token effort. It’s time for the emergence of server vulnerability shields that offer high availability and accuracy and low latency.
Even though he's trying to sell you a product that does just that, his arguments make sense from a macroeconomic standpoint. We as systems administrators need to start looking beyond simple patch management.
Read the whole article at:
http://alwayson.goingon.com/permalink/post/14840
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