Arguably, telecom is the most vulnerable sector to data security threats. Every second, telecom companies process and transmit large amounts of data through their networks. Such companies already employ several resources for data security purposes. However, centralized cybersecurity is always valuable when such a diverse network of dynamic data needs to be monitored and safeguarded from external malicious entities. One of the more assured centralized solutions for this purpose is known as SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Network).
In simple terms, an SD-WAN involves a virtual Wide Area Network that enables your business to connect any type or combination of transport services, such as LTE, broadband, or others, to link network users to its applications. An SD-WAN network is used to centrally direct and regulates traffic across a Wide Area Network (WAN) to connected SaaS and IaaS services. Crucially, an SD-WAN network has several properties and capabilities that can be used for data security. Thus, telecom operators can leverage SD-WAN to protect their vast and diverse networks from security threats.
However, what are the benefits of using SD-WAN to protect the vast data networks of telecom companies? Read on to find out:
Encryption of data and threat isolation
Telecom companies, like organizations in any other sector, become more and more vulnerable to cyber-threats on a daily basis as hackers and cybercriminals constantly create newer threats relentlessly. One of the reasons for such attacks is the gaps found in their IT infrastructure. One of the few ways to sidestep this problem is through encryption. Encryption involves the distortion of data so that external entities cannot understand or decode it. An example of encrypted data is WhatsApp messages between two people or people within a group (WhatsApp messages are encrypted to protect user information). Similarly, SD-WAN also provides network encryption for safeguarding the data of telecom companies.
Apart from distorting data in undecipherable code, SD-WAN also enables the network engineers in a telecom company to detect and isolate networks hit by security breaches and segment data flow towards other, unaffected areas of the network. Therefore, even in case a cyber-attack hits, the SD-WAN network helps to keep telecom operations running, a requirement that is absolutely necessary for this sector.
In this way, encryption and isolation enable an SD-WAN infrastructure to maintain the perpetually-running status of telecom networks securely.
Centralization and scalability of data security
Centralization is key when it comes to data security. That is exactly what SD-WAN infrastructure brings to the telecom sector. The centralized aspect of SD-WAN networks enables you to monitor and set security regulations for your entire network. Such regulations can be enforced centrally by a dedicated cybersecurity team and maintained for a long-term basis too. Does centralized cybersecurity in an SD-WAN network optimize data security in any other way? For starters, it enables users to detect and block malicious elements and traffic in a network. While this happens, the rest of the telecom network data —
calls, messages, internet usage of users, and other information — serenely travels across it. This isolation of data security threats makes malicious entity detection and prevention in a telecom network an easy task for the cybersecurity teams of telecom companies. After all, malicious activity and elements do not even come into contact with the important telecom network data.
In this way, just like you saw at the end of the encryption point, this feature also allows telecom operators to run smoothly and be monitored efficiently while telecom network availability and customer service are running smoothly.
Reduction in complexity and costs
Many people may associate SD-WAN with highly complex and expensive infrastructure. However, such notions are highly incorrect. In fact, the act of replacing high-cost, low-bandwidth WANs with software-driven, low-expense, high-bandwidth broadband connections to keep online operations going improves the cost-efficiency of businesses. With SD-WAN, organizations can use site-to-site VPNs to connect data centres, cloud systems, and telecom branch networks to streamline data flow securely and with minimal overhead costs. The use of SD-WAN systems is a far cry away from isolated security and network practices, which are needlessly complex and expensive.
Speaking of complexity, SD-WAN also reduces that aspect of telecom business operations. Networking and security carried out over an SD-WAN network allow businesses to not only improve their visibility through a single-interface management system but also eliminate unnecessary complexities in daily telecom operations. This single point of transparent information transmission enables faster communication with telecom customers and, by extension, the ability to troubleshoot problems with ease.
In short, SD-WAN is the ultimate solution for the improvement of data transmission and, thereby, the overall performance of telecom networks in addition to lowering costs and complexities. However, most importantly, an SD-WAN arrangement acts as a highly useful data security option for telecom operators.
