Recent infections of the Conficker and Virut viruses at two of the small to mid-sized Support Practice Group clients have demonstrated the importance of effective threat prevention policies and the often dire implications of inadequate network protection. While practices such as installing the latest security patches, maintaining an antivirus program with updated definitions, locking down workstation environments, and urging users not to open suspicious email attachments have traditionally proven to be effective threat management strategies, they are not foolproof.
In the event that the standard threat prevention methods fail and the servers on a network become infected with a virus, compromised security, network downtime, and the labor required to eradicate the malware are just some of the potentially massive associated costs. Over the last few months we in the Support Practice Group have found OpenDNS Enterprise to be another very effective weapon against online threats.
OpenDNS is a cloud-based web content filtering service that provides security against phishing, malware, and unsafe or unprofessional browsing practices for a low monthly or yearly fee. In comparison to traditionally protected networks, the Support Practice Group clients equipped with OpenDNS have benefitted from far fewer and far less dangerous malware encounters since adopting the service. The product requires no installation and works by pointing the DNS server on a protected network to the OpenDNS server on the cloud.
When a user attempts to navigate to a potentially harmful website the service redirects him to a URL that can be customized to meet the firm’s individual needs and could include information about the company internet policy or potential threats associated with the target site. Administrators can easily review blocked sites and choose to whitelist or blacklist websites on a case-by-case basis. As an additional measure of protection, the service also prevents malware and viruses living on the protected network from sending sensitive information out to the web or downloading other malicious files.
If you are interested in learning more about OpenDNS Enterprise can find more information here.