Cisco Cisco Aironet 3600i Access Point Getting Started Guide
At-A-Glance
© 2013 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
— U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Just as businesses in banking and manufacturing, shopping and entertainment
move to pervasive networks, public sector organizations face a challenging new
reality when implementing today’s “boundless” infrastructures: a spiraling threat to
data security. Driving this growing threat are the evolving trends of mobility, cloud
computing, and advanced targeted attacks, which combine to create challenges and
insomnia for IT administrators.
move to pervasive networks, public sector organizations face a challenging new
reality when implementing today’s “boundless” infrastructures: a spiraling threat to
data security. Driving this growing threat are the evolving trends of mobility, cloud
computing, and advanced targeted attacks, which combine to create challenges and
insomnia for IT administrators.
Consider how the notion of “the network” has evolved. No longer a manageable set of
communication pathways that are relatively easy to patrol, networks are now vast and
virtual, integrating widely dispersed resources and users who connect from a wide
array of devices.
communication pathways that are relatively easy to patrol, networks are now vast and
virtual, integrating widely dispersed resources and users who connect from a wide
array of devices.
The same innovations powering the rapid spread of information technology are
presenting new challenges for protecting data. For example, cloud computing
increases flexibility for scaling your infrastructure to meet mission objectives, but
also increases the complexity of protecting sensitive data. Mobile devices increase
convenience but often bypass traditional security measures. The nature of the threat
is also changing, as thieves employ a burgeoning set of sophisticated tools to take
advantage of our growing reliance on networks for critical-data exchange.
presenting new challenges for protecting data. For example, cloud computing
increases flexibility for scaling your infrastructure to meet mission objectives, but
also increases the complexity of protecting sensitive data. Mobile devices increase
convenience but often bypass traditional security measures. The nature of the threat
is also changing, as thieves employ a burgeoning set of sophisticated tools to take
advantage of our growing reliance on networks for critical-data exchange.
For the public sector, the stakes are high. The proliferation of hackers, inevitable
human errors, bring-your-own-device (BYOD) initiatives, and the ever-broadening
need to share information weigh heavily on government and education organizations,
and consume substantial resources. The Pentagon, for example, has proposed to
spend $23 billion on network security initiatives through 2018. This sounds like a large
sum, until you consider the scope and importance of the U.S. government information
resources this investment must protect.
human errors, bring-your-own-device (BYOD) initiatives, and the ever-broadening
need to share information weigh heavily on government and education organizations,
and consume substantial resources. The Pentagon, for example, has proposed to
spend $23 billion on network security initiatives through 2018. This sounds like a large
sum, until you consider the scope and importance of the U.S. government information
resources this investment must protect.
Against this backdrop, yesterday’s prevention strategies are no longer adequate
for stopping advanced, targeted attacks. Today, effective cybersecurity must be
multi-dimensional and tiered, as threats can originate from virtually anywhere, target
numerous levels of an organization, and sometimes persist for months or years
before an information security staff is aware of an attack or breach. Securing public
sector networks requires a holistic approach that incorporates several elements. Best
practices include:
• personnel training and awareness
• threat-centric orientation that extends beyond standard policies based on past events
• pervasive internal monitoring
• sharing of security intelligence within and between organizations
for stopping advanced, targeted attacks. Today, effective cybersecurity must be
multi-dimensional and tiered, as threats can originate from virtually anywhere, target
numerous levels of an organization, and sometimes persist for months or years
before an information security staff is aware of an attack or breach. Securing public
sector networks requires a holistic approach that incorporates several elements. Best
practices include:
• personnel training and awareness
• threat-centric orientation that extends beyond standard policies based on past events
• pervasive internal monitoring
• sharing of security intelligence within and between organizations
Today’s heterogeneous network environments demand flexible, integrated, open
solutions that evolve as quickly as the threats themselves.
solutions that evolve as quickly as the threats themselves.