3 Key Phases to Unleash the Power of Network Hardening

Document the Existing Network Design and Configuration

To effectively address security vulnerabilities, the first step is gaining a comprehensive understanding of the network’s design and configuration. Unfortunately, many organizations struggle with outdated or incomplete network documentation, which hinders their ability to identify potential risks, like telnet enabled, accurately. Automating the process of network documentation can provide a dynamic view of the network, enabling real-time insights into security and application traffic flows.

By leveraging tools like Dynamic Maps, organizations can automate the documentation process, offering edge-to-cloud visibility, detailed asset reports, and comprehensive network diagrams. Additionally, advanced features such as NetBrain’s A/B path calculator can validate access lists and firewall policies to ensure proper traffic filtering across the network.

Identify and Remediate Security Vulnerabilities

The second phase of network hardening involves identifying and addressing security vulnerabilities. Traditionally, this process relied on manual analysis or custom scripts, both of which had limitations. Manual analysis was time-consuming and prone to errors, while custom scripts lacked portability and were challenging to maintain.

Automation tools such as NetBrain’s NextGen network automation offer a more efficient approach. NetBrain’s NextGen can continuously validate network configurations against a predefined set of “golden rules” encompassing security best practices. These rules can include encryption of device passwords, proper configuration of timeouts, consistent settings for HA pairs, and prevention of insecure protocols. By automating the validation process, organizations can proactively identify and rectify any deviations from the desired security posture.

Safeguard Against Future Vulnerabilities

The final phase of hardening network focuses on establishing robust practices and processes to safeguard against future vulnerabilities. It is imperative to ensure consistent adherence to security policies across all network teams within the organization. By leveraging the golden rules identified in the previous phase, security teams can create no-code automation that serves as comprehensive and actionable guides for future remediation efforts.

This automation encompasses intents, or design guides, that enforce security best practices, providing clear guidelines on configuration and regulation standards (like NIST), access controls, and recommended protocols. Implementation engineers can utilize these runbooks to execute vulnerability assessments whenever network changes or new application installations occur. By automating regular vulnerability assessments, organizations can proactively identify and address any potential security gaps or deviations from the established security standards.

Automation tools like NetBrain’s NextGen event management system play a pivotal role in streamlining the hardening network process. These tools can be configured to automatically trigger vulnerability assessments whenever changes are made to the network. By automating the assessment process, organizations can ensure that any modifications or updates made to the network infrastructure align with the predefined security standards, reducing the risk of introducing vulnerabilities inadvertently.

Network hardening is a crucial and ongoing practice for organizations dedicated to protecting their networks from ever-evolving cyber threats. By diligently following the three essential phases of network hardening—documenting network design, identifying vulnerabilities, and implementing security practices—organizations can significantly enhance the security posture of their networks. Leveraging automation tools such as NetBrain’s NextGen network automation simplifies and accelerates the process, enabling proactive enforcement of security measures and ensuring a resilient network infrastructure.

Embrace the power of network hardening strategies, like automation, to safeguard your network from potential threats and mitigate the risks associated with today’s dynamic threat landscape. For further guidance and expertise on network hardening and how it can effectively strengthen your organization’s cybersecurity initiatives, do not hesitate to reach out to our team of experts. We are committed to helping organizations build robust and secure networks that can withstand the challenges posed by modern cyber threats. Learn more about network hardening and its benefits for your organization’s cybersecurity efforts.