| Summary

| This module introduced the needs, trends, and goals of network security. The exponential growth of networking has lead to increased security risks. Many of these risks are due to hacking, as well as improper uses of network resources. Awareness of the various weaknesses and vulnerabilities is critical to the success of modern networks. Security professionals who can deploy secure networks are in high demand.

There are four primary threats to network security:

- Unstructured threats
- Structured threats
- External threats
- Internal threats

In order to defend against attacks, an understanding of the common methods of attack must be established, including reconnaissance, access, and denial of service.

The Security Wheel consists of four steps:

- Secure
- Monitor
- Test
- Improve

The security wheel is a continuous process built around a security policy, which is the most critical part of network security. This policy is the plan for successful network security. As the saying goes, “fail to plan, plan to fail”.

Responses to security issues range from ignoring the problem to excessive spending on security devices and solutions. Neither approach will be successful without a good, sound policy and highly skilled security professionals.