About SafeSquid Secure Web Gateway
Background
Right since its very birth, WWW challenged enterprises with productivity losses.
Internet based services for disseminating user generated content like social networks, file sharing, etc. offer new avenues for loss of confidential data and information.
Internet based services for disseminating user generated content like social networks, file sharing, etc. offer new avenues for loss of confidential data and information.
Profitability of targeted advertising incentivizes Social Networking and e-Commerce giants to innovate privacy breaching technologies.
Multitude of web developers, inadvertently adopt free software components that disguise malware, making visitors vulnerable to financial and identity attacks.
Rising popularity of Internet based banking services motivates cyber-criminals to increase Phishing efforts.
SaaS based revenue models of sophisticated Ransomware and Botnet services on the dark-web, demand very basic skillsets to launch lucrative cyber-crime start-ups.
The race to excite users with innovative applications beget the “deliver first and fix later” culture, consistently betrays users to new zero-day vulnerabilities.
Heralding the information age, the WWW is the primary driver of enterprise knowledge quotient, and key to enhancing business efficiency.
WWW evolved quite explosively over the last few decades due to rapid adoption of innovative technologies. General users now enjoy easy to use web-based services, delivered by a very complex inter-connect of diverse technologies. Transparency of these technologies, particularly those implemented on the Layer 7 / HTTP, makes them also very difficult to comprehend for even an average IT technician, much less anticipate the underlying risks. Thus, Internet enablement though necessary, exposes business establishments to substantial risks.
Mitigation
Security solutions for mitigating web-based threats are historically as old as the WWW itself. Effective solutions must deliver real-time threat mitigation and require adequate computing power and interaction with remote security validation services.
Use of End Point Security (EPS) solutions such as anti-malware pre-dates the Internet Age. Evolution of EPS solutions over last couple of decades improved defence against web-based threats.
The host operating system, and the application initiating the web traffic limit the effectiveness of EPS. EPS shares a large slice of the computing power and network bandwidth provisioned for the end-point user’s routine business functions, thus reducing the individual’s efficiency. Difficulty quotient of implementing granular policies to facilitate the business needs of individual users or functional groups, rises exponentially as the number of subject endpoints increases. The latency in effecting the security strategies, prevents timely corrections and validation of the effectiveness.
The host operating system, and the application initiating the web traffic limit the effectiveness of EPS. EPS shares a large slice of the computing power and network bandwidth provisioned for the end-point user’s routine business functions, thus reducing the individual’s efficiency. Difficulty quotient of implementing granular policies to facilitate the business needs of individual users or functional groups, rises exponentially as the number of subject endpoints increases. The latency in effecting the security strategies, prevents timely corrections and validation of the effectiveness.
Perimeter Security solutions like Network Layer Firewalls (NLF) and Proxy Servers, enable mitigation of threats before they impact an endpoint. NLF scrutinizes traffic Layer 3 and 4 traffic, to prevent connection of enterprise cyber-assets and endpoints to or from undesirable external entities. Proxy Servers are Application Layer Firewalls (ALF) that scrutinize Layer 7 traffic and mitigate exploits in the application protocol. An HTTP Proxy server prevents endpoints from establishing a direct network connection with external web services and inspects web-based traffic to eliminate undesirable exchange information.
Legacy strategy of mitigating web-based threats focussed on blocking access to certain websites, generically termed as URL Filtering. Early generations of perimeter solutions could thus deliver both - NLF and ALF requirements.
Evolution of the WWW introduced new capabilities such as user-generated content, multi-media experiences, and seamless inter-connect of Layer 7 services from multiple services. Threat mitigation thus requires real-time Deep Inspection of payload and new dimensions presented by continuously evolving HTTP protocols. Rapid adoption of SSL increases the data volume scrutinized by ALF, manifold. The challenge overwhelms the limited computing power of traditional firewalls both volumetrically and subjectively.
The SafeSquid® approach
Enterprises with high security awareness employ solutions distinctively specialized for NLF and ALF technologies. As both technologies present different challenges, engaging technicians specializing with relevant skill sets ensures optimal use of both.
Traditional ALF solutions seek to re-purpose legacy web caching proxy technologies. Inherent limitations thus not only restrict security capabilities but also impact performance when multiple security options are enabled.
SafeSquid is a HTTP Proxy Server, specifically designed for Application Layer Security. The purpose-oriented architecture promises scalable performance while ensuring comprehensive mitigation of Layer 7 threats.
Pioneering solutions to mitigate web-based threats, yet unaddressed by alternatives, highlights SafeSquid’s evolution since its maiden release in 2004. Collaboration with security specialists, administrators, and vendors world-wide sets the innovation goals.
Mitigation of Key Layer 7 Security Threats
Malware Defense
Stop malware threats at the perimeter, before they reach targeted endpoint.
Disable traction with Ransomware and Botnet command-and-control centers.
Data Leakage Prevention
Prevent undesirable egress of confidential data and sensitive information.
Intelligence to distinguish legitimate traffic from unwarranted activities.
Phishing Prevention
Prevent inadvertent traction with malicious websites.
Sandbox unsanctioned websites to prevent inadvertent user interaction.
Cross-Site Security
Prevent hijacking of authenticated web sessions.
Safeguard cloud-based assets and facilitate safe adoption of cloud technologies.
Curb Cyber-Slacking
Role Based Granular Web Access to curb misuse of privileges.
Regulate use of Internet Applications.
Typical High-Level Solution Architecture
In a typical organization setting, the amalgamation of SafeSquid Application Eco-system constitutes the complete SWG solution.
Solution Highlight
Polymath Profiling Engine
To ensure granular visibility, and precise control over the web traffic, SafeSquid meticulously analyses each web transaction across more than 35 parameters,
Modern Web Application Governance
Sophisticated controls over Web 2.0 apps allow organizations to meticulously regulate how employees may interact with these applications.
User Identity Management
For uniform user management and seamless multi-factor authentication, user profiles can be defined as a combination of device signature, network identifier, and user credentials.
Zero-Day Protection
Cloud-integrated, real-time threat intelligence updates ensures the utmost relevance in security posture.
Multi-layer Malware Scanning
Built-in scanner, and support for simultaneous integration with various ICAP services, ClamAV engine, and external third-party malware detection systems.
Customisable Web Categorisation
Ability to manually classify websites into predefined or custom categories, and integrate any third-party DNSBL service in addition to built-in categorized web categorisation
Multi-modal Deep Content Inspection
Actively prevents the transfer of unsuitable content, and malware in all data exchanged (both textual and visual)
User Privacy Protection
Limit the tracking data received by remote websites as per organizations privacy protection policy.
SSL Certificate Validation
Verifies the legitimacy of the entire SSL certificate chain from remote web servers in real-time.
SSL Inspection
Use your Enterprise Root CA or SafeSquid Self-Signed certificate for in-depth inspection of HTTPS traffic.
Cross-Site Traffic Protection
Advanced algorithms to differentiate between direct user-initiated web navigation and automated background cross-site interactions, and apply policies accordingly.
Advanced Data Leakage Prevention
Regex based keyword detection in uploaded content, alongside configurable upload restrictions to prevent unsanctioned egress of sensitive information.
Comprehensive Reporting Suite
Delivers a range of customizable reporting tools for in-depth analysis, aiding strategic decision-making and operational oversight.
The SafeSquid® Advantage
Enterprise-grade architecture ensures multifaceted safety, granular control, enhanced performance, scalability, simplified management, maximum customization, and compliance with security policies and regulations.
Fully Software-Based Solution
Compatible with standard hardware, manageable by technicians with general Linux skills, without specialized proprietary certifications
Platform-agnostic deployment
Open-architecture software appliance installable on any standard Linux OS, suitable for diverse deployment scenarios
15-minute setup
SafeSquid Appliance Builder (SAB) is a Security-Enhanced Customised Ubuntu Linux ISO hardened and optimized for quick automatic setup
On-The-Wire Security Neural Network
SMP-Aware multithreaded architecture loads security processors, signatures, security heuristics, and policies into the shared memory of network service for optimized resource utilisation.
Diverse Caching Strategies
Intelligently caches DNS resolutions, SSL sessions, and web objects to enhance overall web performance and speed.
Multi-Queue NIC Utilization
Leverages Multi-Queue NIC capabilities for enhanced Receive Side Scaling and Packet Steering efficiency
Internalized DNS Resolution System
Utilizes Root DNS servers and internal network DNS services, offering significantly faster resolution compared to standard ISP-provided DNS
Cluster Ready
Enhance performance and reliability by linking multiple Proxy nodes in a load-balanced or failover cluster.
Trusted Recovery
Proactively resolves potential problems with essential dependency files, ensuring continuous operation.
Integrated Disaster Recovery Mechanism
Automatically recovers configuration settings upon activation of a replacement solution, minimizing manual intervention
Branding-Aligned Blocking Templates
Enables administrators to customize blocking templates to conform to organizational branding and communication styles.
Extensive Customization Option
Utilizes a comprehensive library of customization features to enhance functionality and user experience.
User Interface Personalization
Allows alterations to the dashboard, reporting interfaces, and analytics to suit user preferences and requirements.
Real-Time Streaming to Log Aggregators
Facilitates real-time transport of logs to remote aggregators and analytics facilities such as SIEM, asset and network monitoring systems.