This tutorial marks the beginning of a series of network security and penetration testing articles that I will be posting on this website. The purpose of this article is to describe how to perform a simple NMAP scan of an IP range/subnet on a network. There are hundreds of scan options with NMAP but I […]
What is Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)? Use Cases, How it is Used etc
At its core, Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is a type of Network Access Control Solution that uses policy-based decision making to determine if a device is allowed access to the network and, if allowed, what level of access this device is given. Cisco ISE is a complex and feature packed Security Application that controls […]
What is Cisco Umbrella Security Service? Discussion – Use Cases – Features
In recent years Cisco have been focused on building their cloud and software defined networking portfolio through the acquisition of smaller companies such as Viptela and OpenDNS among others. In this article we will focus on Cisco Umbrella, explain what it is, discuss how it can protect your network etc. A Brief History of Cisco […]
7 Types of Firewalls Technologies (Software/Hardware) Explained
The firewall is the cornerstone of security in computer networks and I.T in general. In this website I have been talking extensively about the Cisco ASA firewall which is a classic example of a hardware network firewall. However, there are some other types of firewalls used in large enterprises, SMB or even home networks. Some […]
10 Best Hardware Firewalls for Home and Small Business Networks
On this website I have written tens of articles about enterprise level firewalls (especially Cisco ASA) but many people are interested to learn about the best hardware firewalls for home or small business networks, so this is what I’ll focus in this article. Firewalls are designed to monitor incoming and outgoing traffic, helping to keep […]
12 Best Open Source Firewalls Comparable to Commercial Solutions
Usually, in the world of network security, when we talk about Firewalls we mean the devices that help protect your computer systems and networks from attacks and provide a “wall” in front of servers and IT resources. The above concept of a “Firewall” refers to the classic network hardware firewall such as the Cisco ASA, […]
Network based Firewall vs Host based Firewall-Discussion and Comparison
A “Firewall” is one of the most popular computer and network security devices that professionals use to protect their enterprise IT assets and networks. Just like a fire-resistant door in buildings which protects rooms from a possible fire and stops the spreading of flames within the building, the security firewall has a similar function to […]
Comparison and Differences Between IPS vs IDS vs Firewall vs WAF
There are so many acronyms in the networking and security field that can drive you crazy. The terms IPS, IDS, WAF etc might be known acronyms in the field of network security but many beginner professionals sometimes have difficulty to understand the concept behind these technologies, how they compare etc. In this article I’ll do […]
What Are the Biggest Cybersecurity Threats in 2021? (And How Can You Deal With Them?)
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) of the FBI has reported that the cost of cybercrimes doubled last year to a whopping $2.7 billion. What’s more? The IC3 reported that most of the complaints included personal data breaches, extortion, non-payment/non-delivery scams, and romance or confidence fraud. What does that mean for your business? With cybersecurity […]
What is a Network Security Key in Home Wireless Networks?
It is fair to say that there are few things more important to your daily security than the security of your Internet connection and hence your privacy and sensitive data. Everyone has heard horror stories of their information being stolen via covert means online, and nobody wants to be subject to the nightmares that can […]
Scanning and Fixing the BlueKeep (CVE-2019-0708) RDP Vulnerability
Whenever Microsoft releases security patches even for unsupported Operating Systems (such as Windows XP, Vista etc) then you must act immediately (as a company or administrator) because it’s always a serious issue. This is what happened in May 14 when Microsoft released security patches for a critical software vulnerability affecting the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). […]
NMAP Commands Cheat Sheet and Tutorial with Examples (Download PDF)
NMAP (Network Mapper) is the de facto open source network scanner used by almost all security professionals to enumerate open ports and find live hosts in a network (and much more really). One of my responsibilities in my job is to perform white hat penetration testing and security assessments in corporate systems to evaluate their […]
Security Hardening Checklist Guide for Cisco Routers/Switches in 10 Steps
Network infrastructure devices (routers, switches, load balancers, firewalls etc) are among the assets of an enterprise that play an important role in security and thus need to be protected and configured accordingly. Many enterprises focus on protecting their data, servers, applications, databases etc but they forget about security of network devices which are sometimes installed […]