Intrusion Prevention System

Network firewalls and the Intrusion prevention systems are the integral part of the network security. Intrusion prevention system is a network security device that detects the security vulnerability, malicious activities and security holes in the computer network and it reacts to block those activities.  Most of the computer systems and networks use the firewall to block and monitor the unwanted traffic.
 

IPS provides the extra security to the network by protecting it from the viruses and hackers. IPS can make the access control decision based on the application content rather than the IP address or the port number as in the firewall. 

When an attack is detected on the network IPS stops the malicious packets and it allows the rest of the traffic to pass. IPS is designed to operate invisibly on the network.  IPS sits inline with the traffic flow system and it detects and blocks the attacks.

Types of the IPS

There are following four types of the intrusion prevention system.
Network Based IPS:  It is usually a hardware device that sits in the network.
Content Based IPS:  It inspects the content of the network packets to detect and prevent the known network attacks.
Rate Based IPS:  It is primarily used for preventing the denial of service and distributed denial of service attacks.
Host Based IPS:  These are the software based applications that are used to detect the unwanted entry in the network after decryption has occurred.

IPS Products

Following are some of the best IPS products.

• Cisco IPS 4270 Appliance by Cisco Systems.
• DefensePro 3020 by Radware.
• FortiGate-1000A by Fortinet.
• IDP 1100 by Juniper Networks.
• APS (Active Protection System) by CounterSnipe Technologies LLC.

IPS is the more provides more security and are more powerful than the firewall solutions.  It not only detects but also protects the network.
Features         
The key features of the IPS include the following.

• IPS provides the easy to use and in-line protection against the known security threats.
• IPS provides the protection and performance against the viruses, web worms, Trojan horses, DDos attacks and the hackers.
• It provides the protection to your confidential data.
• IPS can handle encrypted and unencrypted traffic.
• IPS can serve at the host level to prevent the malicious activities.
• IPS provides security connectivity between the branch offices.
• IPS provides the efficient inspection, powerful protection and the easy of network management.