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What is SecureNet?
Pathway SecureNet is a new service designed to provide a higher level of Internet security for Pathway business Broadband clients.
Based on sophisticated security appliances and software, SecureNet delivers dramatically improved, real-time network protection. It is available completely free of charge to all Pathway business Internet clients.
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Frequently Asked Questions |
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SecureNet is the name for the collective Security Services which are embedded in Pathway's Corporate Broadband DSL, ISDN, Colocation, T-1 and Fibre based Internet Access. The service is called SecureNet because, in addition to being highly reliable, it includes several features which are of great importance and benefit to clients.
Pathway is the only ISP anywhere in the world, to provide a full range of security features, which protect your network, at all times, from viruses, worms, spam, spyware, malicious code and intrusion attempts.
SecureNet is the culmination of all the innovative and vital Internet security enhancements introduced by Pathway during the last five years, into one integrated package:
No other ISP anywhere provides this level of security for the price you pay. |
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| Why is SecureNet so essential for network security? |
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Viruses, worms and Trojans are becoming "smarter". They can penetrate your network not only through POP/SMTP based email but also via web mail, file downloads and FTP. Your system can also be infected simply by clicking on a link at an innocent-looking web site. This can pose a serious threat to your company, if you use the Internet to conduct business.
Intrusion attempts and network attacks have also become exceedingly common. The average loss caused to companies by denial of service attacks in 2004 was estimated at $96,892. Unfortunately, most companies do not have large in-house security departments which can detect and prevent these attacks.
SecureNet protects your network from such malicious code and detects and prevents intrusion attempts and network attacks in real time even before they can occur - with no effort required from you and with no impact on the speed or efficiency of your Internet connection. |
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SecureNet delivers complete, real-time network protection to the edge of your network - i.e. right to your doorstep. Pathway uses an array of sophisticated security appliances and software, based on unique, revolutionary technology to detect and eliminate viruses, worms and other network threats without reducing network performance.
Qualified Network Security Engineers at Pathway's Network Operations Centers, examine traffic patterns, study alarms and isolate intrusion attempts generated by these traffic monitors. Along with automatic email virus filtering, spam control and network monitoring, SecureNet provides unparalleled security and reliability to your connection, 24 hours a day.
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| What is spyware and how does it affect me? |
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Spyware are programs which can enter your network to secretly gather information about your company or users. The software can capture things like usernames and passwords, keystrokes, screenshots and other sensitive data and relay the collected information to someone outside your network, without your ever knowing that this was happening.
Spyware can also be used to steal proprietary or sensitive data and can cause significant financial losses. SecureNet detects and removes spyware before it can enter your network from the Internet. |
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| What is Intrusion Detection and Prevention? |
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An Intrusion Detection System (IDS) inspects network traffic and identifies suspicious patterns that may indicate some form of malicious activity, such as an attacker trying to steal or compromise sensitive information. Using a large database of known attack signatures, the IDS rapidly identifies and neutralizes potential threats. It also notifies Pathway's Network Security Engineers when such events occur.
In order to be of use, an IDS must be monitored by full-time security staff, who must have the expertise to identify false alarms and deal with complex problems. For most organizations, this is simply too costly and impractical. Pathway SecureNet takes the next step - not only by relieving you of the need to deal with these issues but also by providing an Intrusion Prevention System (IPS). Unlike an IDS that passively monitors your network, our IPS identifies and responds actively to a threat before it can commence or affect you. |
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| What problems and threats does SecureNet protect us from? |
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SecureNet monitors all traffic using the HTTP (web), IMAP, SMTP, POP and FTP. It also prevents downloading of malicious Active X controls and scripts. This should be sufficient for most clients. We do NOT monitor peer-to-peer traffic (such as from sites such as Kazaa) or instant messaging services.
SecureNet monitors all inbound Internet traffic i.e. traffic destined TO you for:
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malicious code in HTTP (web), IMAP, SMTP, POP and FTP traffic |
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intrusion attempts and attacks |
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SecureNet monitors all outbound Internet traffic i.e. traffic FROM you for:
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malicious code in HTTP (web), IMAP, SMTP, POP and FTP traffic |
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However, outbound traffic (originating from our clients to others outside Pathway's perimeter) is currently NOT scanned for attacks and intrusion attempts. We acknowledge that distributed attacks can be carried out by external hackers using attack tools which can be secretly installed on a number of innocent clients' systems. In order to prevent our clients' systems from falling victims to such activities, our outbound intrusion prevention feature will be enabled in the near future, after further testing and with advance notice to all concerned.
Currently, if you are using your own email server, it is possible that your inbound and outbound email is not being scanned for viruses, since it bypasses our mail virus scanners. Now, with SecureNet, ALL your inbound AND outbound email, up to 4.0 MB in size, will be scanned for viruses, even if you use your own mail servers. Note that email files exceeding 4.0 MB are NOT scanned.
If a virus is found in an email addressed to, or originating from you, the message will be forwarded to the recipient, with the following Alert Message attached to it:
File Attachment Removed. The file "File Name" has been removed because of a virus. It was infected with the "Virus Name" virus. Please contact the sender. |
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| What happens when SecureNet detects a virus, worm or spyware at a web site? |
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If you attempt to access a web site which is infected with, or may send you a virus, worm, spyware or other malicious code, SecureNet blocks the web page and/or the file download. You may then see the following message:
If you find a site or download blocked, we recommend that you advise the web site owner of this and make arrangements to obtain the information from an alternative location.
INBOUND AND OUTBOUND EMAIL VIRUS MESSAGES
All inbound and outbound email from your OWN mail servers up to 4.0 MB in size are scanned for viruses. If a virus is found in any email, the following message will be attached to the email message:
File Attachment Removed. The file "FILE NAME" has been removed because of a virus. It was infected with the "VIRUS NAME" virus. Please contact the sender.
FTP VIRUS ERROR MESSAGE
All inbound and outbound FTP transfers up to 4.0 MB in size are scanned for viruses. The following message will be displayed if a file to be transferred is found to contain a virus:
Transfer failed. The file "FILE NAME" is infected with the virus "VIRUS NAME". |
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| How is SecureNet different from installing anti-virus software on servers or personal firewalls on individual workstations? |
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Protecting against most network attacks requires the deepest level of traffic analysis. Conventional firewalls and host-based antivirus solutions are not capable of performing such tasks without congesting your network and slowing down business processes. They also require exorbitant IT resources to manage.
To obtain the same level of protection using individual software would also require you to acquire, install and maintain separate software for spam, viruses, intrusion detection and spyware on servers or on each desktop. SecureNet inspects all traffic incoming into your network with absolutely no affect on your network performance and works transparently, in the background. |
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| Will SecureNet affect the speed of my Internet connection or our office applications? |
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SecureNet should have no effect on your office applications. SecureNet uses new generation technology sitting on high capacity devices and performing at multi-gigabit throughput rates. This gives SecureNet the ability to detect and stop malicious threats without degrading your Internet speed or internal network performance. |
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| Will I be protected from new threats? |
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Yes. SecureNet identifies the signatures of over 1300 known network attacks. In addition, SecureNet constantly updates its signature database, providing you a real-time protection from new types of attacks.
However, you should know that no system is 100% foolproof. SecureNet cannot, for example, protect you against employee sabotage or if someone uploads a virus, worm or spyware from inside your network.
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| Will SecureNet provide 100% protection at all times? |
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No system anywhere can provide 100% protection - specially from willful acts of internal sabotage. SecureNet, however, provides the most thorough inspection and filtering of Internet traffic that enters your network through your Pathway ADSL router and firewall.
Please be aware, that we do not scan traffic behind that point. It is not uncommon for viruses, worms or Trojans to sneak into your network from portable devices such as laptops and PDAs or removable media such as CDs, floppy disks and flash memory disks used to transfer files to your office desktops or servers.
To protect your network from these risks, we recommend that you NEVER attach any portable device to your network, unless it has been thoroughly tested and found to be free from malicious code. For your information, several network security companies offer free antivirus software. Pathway will be soon offering desktop antivirus software as part of its Business Broadband package for this reason.
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To download product information about SecureNet in pdf format, click here. |
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Pathway SecureNet
Pathway SecureNet
