10.2. What a Firewall Cannot Do
As mentioned in the beginning of this chapter, a firewall often becomes the focal point of network security. This is not necessarily a bad thing as long as this focus is accompanied by a strong network security plan. If the firewall is going to be the only security plan, then the network will be extremely vulnerable to attacks.
To make the best use of a firewall it is important to understand its weaknesses. Firewalls are good at blocking ports and IP blocks, or addresses. They can also be good at detecting and dropping malformed packets.
Firewalls are not good at doing a detailed examination of packets. If the problem is in the packet header, such as a spoofing or a smurf attack, a firewall can be an effective ...
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