As useful as the Internet is with helping a workforce complete their daily tasks, it is just as capable of having negative effects for your business. There is plenty of content online that has no place in the workplace, including plenty that serves as unwanted distractions. Fortunately, you can prevent your employees from lollygagging on the job with a fairly simple solution: web content filtering.
Web content filtering does exactly what it sounds like, it prevents your employees from accessing areas on the web that you don’t want them to access.
There are a few reasons that this is a useful feature to incorporate. Not only does it help reduce time wasted by procrastinating employees, but it also prevents your employees from visiting websites that present a risk to your business’ network security.
This is a particularly important consideration. Be honest with yourself: how many times have you found yourself clicking seemingly untrustworthy links out of boredom, curiosity, or even a determination to find what you’re looking for? Unfortunately, the Internet is quite unforgiving, and clicking the wrong link is all it would take to bring a storm of issues to your network. A content filter is a solid line of defense against these sites, as it will analyze each site’s content against your predetermined criteria before allowing a user access.
Of course, even though a web content filter is a good start, it is only part of what is necessary to build a comprehensive defense against online threats and vulnerabilities. The other necessary component your business needs to have in place is a reliable firewall. A firewall helps prevent incoming attacks from reaching and taking root in, your network.
In short, a web content filter prevents you (or your users) from visiting websites that have been deemed inappropriate or hazardous for the workplace. The firewall acts as a shield against external threats coming in over the Internet, blocking risk-laden content from entering your systems. In order for your network to be secure, both a web content filter and a firewall have to be in place. A comprehensive security solution like a UTM tool is a perfect way to cover both of these security needs.
Evolve IT can help. We can ensure that your network has the security it will need to keep threats out. These measures will protect your business while allowing your employees to remain focused on the task at hand. Give us a call at (518) 203-2110 to discuss implementing these measures for your business.
