Data centers are the backbone of modern IT infrastructure, housing the physical servers, storage systems, and network devices that power essential applications and services. As such, securing these critical facilities is a top priority for any organization looking to protect their digital assets, maintain compliance, and ensure the availability and reliability of their services. But because data centers can contain thousands of interconnected resources, they can be incredibly difficult to monitor and secure. Thankfully, businesses don’t have to undertake that challenge alone: data center security solutions help organizations achieve these goals by providing a robust, multi-layered defense against both internal vulnerabilities and external threats.
In addition to safeguarding against cyberattacks, data center security solutions also address environmental and operational concerns that can impact the stability and performance of IT infrastructure, such as power surges, fire, and unauthorized physical access.
To achieve this, the best data center security solutions encompass various technologies, including physical and virtual or software-based security measures. This ensures that data centers are protected against anything that could compromise the availability and integrity of the resources stored within them. These technologies may include network firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention systems, access control solutions, data encryption, and advanced threat analytics.
In this article, we’ll explore the top data center security solutions on the market, based on their features, capabilities, and customer feedback. We’ll highlight the key use cases and features of each solution, including physical and network security, access control, compliance, monitoring, and incident response capabilities.
Symantec Data Center Security: Server Advanced (DCS:SA) is a comprehensive server protection solution designed for heterogeneous private and public cloud data centers. The platform offers full application control, enabling microsegmentation, administrator privilege de-escalation, patch mitigation, and protection against zero-day threats.
DCS:SA features out-of-the-box Host IDS and IPS policies for Windows environments, providing monitoring and prevention of suspicious server activity. Additional key features include sandboxing and process access control (PAC) for comprehensive IPS protection, a host firewall for controlling inbound and outbound network traffic, and compensating HIPS controls for policy-based least privilege access control. The platform also offers file and system tamper prevention, application and device control, and visibility into and management of Docker containers. Symantec DCS:SA enables secure migration, operationally cost-efficient migration from end-of-life platforms, and application and instance level security for public and hybrid cloud deployments. It continuously monitors data center infrastructure for cybersecurity and compliance, while offering support for heterogeneous and exotic/EOL operating systems. Finally, with its fully instrumented REST API, the platform can integrate with a customer’s data center toolset for quick deployment of added monitoring and targeted hardening.
Check Point Quantum is a hybrid data center security solution that combines threat prevention and policy management across both data centers and the cloud. Quantum allows for application portability and faster response times at lower costs. The solution uses AI and machine learning to prevent advanced malware, lateral movement, and supply chain attacks.
Check Point Quantum offers automated data center operations, allowing businesses to scale security performance and capacity with API integration. It also provides consolidated security management and compliance for a unified approach to managing data center security. Quantum supports cloud network security and can be extended to public, private, and hybrid-cloud networks. The solution utilizes over 60 threat prevention engines, including CPU-level inspection, threat extraction, malware DNA, next-generation web application firewalls (NG WAF), anti-malware, Kubernetes runtime security, and vulnerability scanning. Check Point Quantum also offers real-time threat intelligence with data from 3 billion websites and files, 150,000 connected networks, and the ability to prevent zero-day attacks. Overall, we recommend Quantum as a comprehensive security solution for their data centers and cloud networks.
Cisco Secure Firewall is a comprehensive series of firewall solutions designed to address the needs of businesses with workers, data, and offices located across various locations. The solutions focus on unifying policies across the environment and prioritizing essential tasks, improving security resilience through threat detection and automation. Cisco’s range of firewall options caters to various business needs, from smaller businesses and branch offices (1000 Series) to service providers and high-performance data centers (9300 Series). Secure Firewall also offers solutions for virtual environments, rugged industrial settings, and cloud-native deployments.
Cisco Secure Firewall offers superior visibility by maintaining control of encrypted traffic and application environments. It utilizes Cisco Talos to enhance threat detection and leverages billions of signals from your infrastructure to improve security resilience. To drive efficiency at scale, Secure Firewall supports advanced clustering, high availability, and multi-instance capabilities. These features bring scalability, reliability, and productivity to teams and hybrid network environments. Cisco Secure Firewall also offers network, microsegmentation, and app security integrations. Overall, Cisco Secure Firewall is a versatile and adaptable solution that caters to an array of businesses. Its focus on unifying policies, enhancing visibility, driving efficiency, and enabling a zero-trust posture makes it a robust option for businesses looking to safeguard their networks and data against modern threats.
Forcepoint NGFW is a versatile security solution that combines fast, flexible networking with industry-leading security to connect and protect people and their data across diverse and evolving enterprise networks. Designed for high availability, scalability, and centralized management, Forcepoint NGFW offers 360° visibility and is suitable for physical, virtual, and cloud systems.
Forcepoint NGFW’s unified software core allows it to manage multiple security roles, such as firewall/VPN, ZTNA Application Connector, IPS, and layer 2 firewall in dynamic business environments. By tailoring access control and deep inspection to each connection, it provides high performance and security. Forcepoint NGFW integrates granular application control, intrusion prevention system defenses, built-in VPN control, and mission-critical application proxies to create an efficient and highly scalable design, coupled with powerful anti-evasion technologies to block advanced attacks. In response to the prevalence of large data breaches, Forcepoint NGFW offers application-layer exfiltration protection. By selectively allowing or blocking network traffic based on endpoint contextual data, it prevents unauthorized programs, web applications, users, and communication channels from exfiltrating sensitive data. Forcepoint’s security engine is also designed to detect exploit vulnerabilities and stop malware. Finally, to ensure comprehensive protection, Forcepoint NGFW offers rapid decryption of encrypted traffic, granular privacy controls, and even limiting access from specific endpoint applications.
Fortinet’s FortiGate is a network security solution that offers scalability and can be utilized across various locations, including remote offices, branches, campuses, data centers, and cloud environments. FortiGate’s unified management and consistent security across complex hybrid environments is made possible by FortiManager. The Fortinet FortiOS operating system provides in-depth visibility and security across a range of form factors.
FortiGate’s next-generation firewalls (NGFW) deliver industry-leading threat protection and decryption at scale, thanks to their custom ASIC architecture. They offer secure networking features such as SD-WAN, switching, wireless, and 5G support. Fortigate converges your security and networking point solutions into a user-friendly, centralized management console powered by FortiOS, helping to simplify IT management tasks. The single operating system provides unified networking and security across all form factors and edges, and its patented ASIC architecture ensures improved performance, increased ROI, and reduced power consumption. Lastly, FortiGuard global threat intelligence delivers automated protection against both known and unknown threats, leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies.
IBM Cloud Secure Virtualization is a solution designed to ensure workload security, simplify regulatory compliance, and guarantee data sovereignty. This is achieved through a variety of features, including data location management, compliance proof, geo-fencing for boundary control, modern data storage support, and data encryption both at rest and in transit.
Two key components of IBM Cloud Secure Virtualization are the powerful HyTrust CloudControl (HTCC) and HyTrust DataControl (HTDC) appliances. These tools provide enterprises with comprehensive infrastructure control, such as forensic analysis, streamlined audit trails, full stack protection, and fine-grained access controls. HyTrust allows for workload and data location policy tagging, as well as two-factor authentication and automatic encryption for enhanced workload and data protection. IBM’s security monitoring and intelligence offers real-time risk analysis by collecting and analyzing logs across various cloud components and services, giving visibility into potential vulnerabilities and attacks. For secure connectivity, IBM Cloud Secure Virtualization employs a FIPS 140-2 validated Virtual Private Network (VPN) that securely connects the enterprise to its trusted public cloud VMs and workloads. It also leverages select Intel Xeon processor-based servers that include support for protected execution, sealed storage, trust attestation, protect launch, encryption, and trusted boot, further enhancing the overall security of the infrastructure.
Juniper offers a comprehensive data center security solution to protect applications, data, and infrastructure. Their security services architecture features sustainable high-performance firewalls in physical, virtual, and containerized forms, all managed through a single platform and policy framework. This makes it easy to automate zero trust principles across various data center environments and leverage the network, cloud platforms, access points, and third-party devices to create a threat-aware network. Combined with ultra-high performance, cryptographic provisioning, and AI-predictive threat prevention, Juniper aims to reduce risk and operational overhead.
Users can automate zero trust security across hybrid environments using Juniper Security Director Cloud’s centralized policy enforcer, ensuring authorized access and micro-segmentation. The solution allows users to create effective security policies that follow applications across different cloud environments without manual reconfiguration. Juniper’s connected security distributed services architecture eliminates single points of failure and enables scalable management of security services as one logical unit, removing limitations associated with chassis size and form factor. Juniper firewalls, available in physical, virtual, and containerized forms, have been proven to be highly effective against threats to data and infrastructure according to multiple independent tests conducted over the past four years. We recommend Juniper’s Zero Trust Data Center as a strong solution for any organization looking to secure their data centers.
Palo Alto Networks provides four data center security solutions: ML-powered Next-Generation Firewalls (NGFW), Panorama firewall management, cloud-delivered security services, and VM-series firewalls. These solutions offer complete visibility into user, device, network, and application activity, enabling businesses to understand risks and make informed decisions.
By implementing granular access control across north-south and east-west traffic, Palo Alto’s NGFWs minimize opportunities for attackers to move inside data centers and across multicloud environments. Their solutions enable businesses to discover threats and malicious activity, block them in real time, and automatically isolate infected hosts to prevent data loss and minimize disruption. With a centralized Panorama firewall management system, Palo Alto Networks simplifies firewall configuration, auditing, and reporting, while providing a single solution for managing multiple firewall forms and cloud-delivered security services. Additionally, their security subscriptions offer best-in-class threat prevention and response, protecting against zero-day exploits, malware, spyware, and other known threats. Finally, Palo Alto Networks’ VM-series virtual firewalls streamline security deployment and scalability through deep integrations with leading virtualization, software-defined networking, container, and public cloud infrastructure providers, making use of automation for increased efficiency and simplification.
The SonicWall Network Security Services Platform (NS_sp_) High-End Firewall series offers advanced threat protection, fast speeds, and budget-friendly pricing for large enterprises, data centers, and service providers. The series is designed for large organizations, including government agencies, and supports flexible deployment options for network edge, data center core, virtualized, or cloud platform. It can also easily adapt to service-level changes.
SonicWall’s advanced threat protection includes Real-Time Deep Memory Inspection (RTDMI) and Reassembly-Free Deep Packet Inspection (RFDPI), which help stop zero-day and unknown malware. The High-End Firewall series also offers a modern approach to multi-tenancy with Multi-Instance, utilizing containerized architecture for multiple independent firewall instances and configurations on the same hardware. Admins can use the Unified Policy feature to combine Layer 3 to Layer 7 access and security rules into a single policy, reducing management overhead and improving the overall security posture. The series provides scalability and availability through multiple configuration options, easy deployment, and redundant power supplies. The solution also offers high port density and multiple 100/40/10 GbE interfaces, allowing for high-speed performance. Finally, SonicWall’s Capture Labs Threat Research team works to gather, analyze, and vet global threat intelligence so that their entire customer base can benefit from actionable threat intelligence.
Trend Micro Deep Security is a hybrid cloud security solution designed to support VMware deployments and provide the performance and flexibility needed for today’s virtualized data centers. Powered by XGen, Deep Security offers a comprehensive set of policy-enforced security controls to shield VMs from network attacks and vulnerabilities, stop malware and ransomware, and detect unauthorized system changes. It also simplifies the transition from on-premises virtualization to the cloud with VMware Cloud for AWS.
Deep Security’s Workload Security feature automates deployment, monitoring, policy creation and updates, and reporting, as well as security information and event management (SIEM) for Splunk, SumoLogic, HP ArcSight, and IBM QRadar. This allows your team to focus on other tasks while maintaining high levels of security. Optimized for the virtualized data center, Workload Security helps DevOps and security teams balance security with minimal impact on performance. Deep Security’s agentless integration with VMware NSX-V and VMware NSX-T enhances security performance and scalability in VMware environments. With guest introspection, network service insertion, and automatic deployment of security, operational efficiency is improved. Event-based automation, policy assignment, and updates reduce staff effort and costs, while centralized visibility eliminates the need for multiple point solutions. Additionally, Deep Security supports a broad range of platforms, including current and legacy operating systems, Linux builds, and Solaris, AIX, and HP-UX.
Everything You Need To Know About Data Center Security Solutions (FAQs)
What Is Data Center Security?
A data center is a physical or virtualized server based on a network of computing and storage resources, in which organizations store their applications and data. It’s usually made up of servers, storage systems, routers, switches, firewalls, and application delivery controllers, which together enable users to access company data and applications and enable organizations to create secure backups of their data.
Data center security is a combination of physical practices and virtual technologies used to protect a data center from anything that could compromise the integrity and availability of the data stored within it. That includes physical attacks, cyberattacks, and even natural disasters such as fire and floods.
What Is Data Center Security Important?
Whether they’re used for storage, backup and recovery, or supporting applications, data centers contain most of an organization’s intellectual property and data assets. This makes them integral to the everyday operations of a business. It also makes them a desirable target for cybercriminals looking for a way to steal your company’s data. So, without comprehensive data center security measures in place, an attacker could compromise your data center, stealing sensitive company or customer information. And unfortunately, they’re very good at doing this. Some of the most common methods of attacks used against data centers include:
- Direct infrastructure attacks, which exploit vulnerabilities in the compute, storage, and network functionality of the data center
- Web and application attacks, that target vulnerabilities such as those outlined in the OWASP Top 10 and the CWE Top 25 Most Dangerous Software Weaknesses
- Credential compromise, which involves an attacker stealing or cracking a user’s login credentials via social engineering or brute force, and using that user’s account to steal data
- Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, which compromise a website’s service availability, resulting in loss of revenue and reputational damage
- DNS attacks, which target DNS infrastructure with threats such as DNS DDoS and cache poisoning
If an attacker successfully carries out one of these attacks, your organization could face major financial, legal, and reputational repercussions. The best way to stop that from happening is to implement robust data center security, to prevent attackers from gaining access in the first place.
Unfortunately, managing and securing access to (and between) the thousands of resources in a data center is an incredibly challenging task when undertaken manually. But thankfully, data center security solutions exist to help you get the job done effectively and efficiently.
What Features Should You Look For In A Data Center Security Solution?
The best data center security solutions offer both physical and virtual security tools and features. Let’s go through some of the physical considerations first because, if your third-party data center security provider only offers virtual/technological protection, you’ll need to implement some of these measures yourself.
Physical Data Center Security
Physical data center security involves any processes and measures that prevent outside interference with your data center—be that at the hands of threat actors on the physical site of your data center, or natural disasters such as fires, floods, and earthquakes.
- Some of the “normal” security measures you might find elsewhere won’t be applicable here. For example, you can’t use water- or foam-based fire extinguishers, because both of these materials conduct electricity, so you should use a clean agent fire suppression system that puts out fires using a non-conductive gas.
- You need to secure all physical access to the data center. Depending on the size of the data center, this could involve using a simple lock, or, in a larger environment employing security guards and installing surveillance cameras. You should also set up physical multi-factor authentication, such as giving users smart cards and/or asking them to enter passcodes to verify their identities before being granted permission to the site.
- Your data center should be in a secure location that isn’t susceptible to natural disasters, has a non-descript outside façade that doesn’t display your company logo, has limited entry points, and has physical barriers to prevent forced entry.
Some data center security providers can help you cover some of these points—particularly when it comes to ensuring secure access to the data center. However, most providers tend to focus of the virtual or software aspect of data center security. Let’s explore that in a little more depth.
Virtual Data Center Security
Lots of data centers today use virtualization technologies to enable remote access to it, and to enable use of the public cloud to structure and manage the data center. While this can make a data center more scalable and flexible, it also makes them more vulnerable to cyberattacks. That’s where virtual data center security comes in.
Because there are so many different threats facing data centers, data center security solutions often tend to focus on preventing a specific type of threat or protecting a certain layer. However, there are a few key virtual features that a strong data center security solution may offer. These include:
- Multi-factor authentication, which requires that users verify their identity in two or more ways before being granted access to data center resources, helping to prevent unauthorized access and account takeover. You may also wish to look for a solution that offers privileged access management, which ensures that users are only granted access to the minimum resources they need to do their job, rather than the whole data center.
- Zero-trust network access (ZTNA), to secure access to the network for remote users, encrypt network traffic, and segment access to corporate data to help prevent the lateral flow of attacks.
- Intrusion prevention systems (IPSs) to patch vulnerabilities in network systems as well as detect and block network-based exploits against vulnerable systems.
- Next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) for monitoring and securing traffic into and out of the data center and between resources within the data center and encrypting sensitive traffic while in transit.
- Security for all the systems that manage the data center building, such as IoT devices. The solution should continuously monitor the network for any new devices, as well as scan devices for vulnerabilities.
- Web application firewalls that inspect all traffic to and from web applications for malicious activity and blocks any threats that it detects.
- Network segmentation to prevent the lateral spread of attacks throughout the data center.
