Question

What is the best way to know that a firewall is functioning as expected?

1) By checking the logs for any unauthorized access attempts
2) By conducting penetration testing
3) By monitoring network traffic for any suspicious activity
4) All of the above

Answer 1

To ensure a firewall is functioning as expected, one should check the logs for unauthorized access attempts, conduct penetration testing, and monitor network traffic for suspicious activity. The correct answer to the question would be 4) All of the above.

Step-by-step explanation:

The best way to know that a firewall is functioning as expected includes a combination of methods:

1. Checking the logs for unauthorized access attempts, which can indicate potential breaches or blocked intrusion attempts.
2. Conducting penetration testing to see if the firewall can withstand an attack from a simulated adversary, which helps in evaluating the effectiveness of the firewall's rules and its ability to protect the network.
3. Monitoring network traffic for any suspicious activity, ensuring that the firewall is successfully filtering traffic based on the applied security policies.

All these practices are essential components of a comprehensive security strategy and contribute to ensuring that the firewall is operating correctly.