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Latest news on firewalls (network firewalls, hardware firewalls and software firewalls), covering next-generation firewalls (NGFW), web application firewalls (WAF), Fortinet FortiGate, Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS, Cisco ASA, Check Point, SonicWall, WatchGuard, firewall vulnerabilities, zero-days, patches, VPN gateways, packet filtering, deep packet inspection, intrusion prevention, iptables and denial of service attacks.

A firewall is a security system that monitors and controls network traffic using rules, usually between a trusted network and an untrusted one such as the internet. Hardware appliances protect company networks, software firewalls run on computers and servers, and cloud firewalls guard virtual networks. Next-generation firewalls add application awareness, intrusion prevention and VPN features. Web application firewalls filter web traffic to defend sites from attacks.

Firewalls and VPN gateways sit at the network edge, so attackers target them. In September 2025 the US cyber agency CISA issued an emergency directive covering two Cisco ASA and Firepower zero-day flaws. In October 2026 the FBI and Secret Service warned that the FortiBleed campaign, aimed at FortiGate firewalls and SSL VPN gateways, was still active, while Fortinet said it involved reused credentials rather than a new vulnerability.

Administrators write rules that allow or block traffic by address, port and protocol, then review logs and patch regularly. Open source options include iptables, pfSense and OPNsense, while ModSecurity is a long-running open source web application firewall engine. Many firms now buy firewalls as cloud subscriptions and use automation to manage policy changes, which can be error-prone by hand.

Network engineers, security teams and managed service providers rely on firewalls every day. Critics say a perimeter firewall can give a false sense of security once attackers hold stolen credentials or traffic is encrypted, and many organisations are moving towards zero trust models. Supporters reply that firewalls remain a basic, well-understood control that blocks a great deal of unwanted traffic.

Early firewalls were packet filters that judged each packet on its own. Check Point filed a stateful inspection patent application in December 1993 and released FireWall-1 in 1994, tracking whole connections rather than single packets. Palo Alto Networks, launched in 2007, is widely credited with the first next-generation firewall, and ModSecurity, an open source web application firewall, had its first release in November 2002.

Perimeter flaws can be urgent. Our NewsNow firewalls feed gathers the latest headlines on firewalls, next-generation firewalls, web application firewalls, Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, Cisco ASA, VPN flaws and patches from reliable sources worldwide, so you have a comprehensive, up-to-date view.