Data Threats have become smarter than ever, residing within a lot of malicious websites, these websites aim at exposing valuable data assets and leaking them or encrypting them to harm the organization. It is thus very important to identify such website URLs and block them for good.

We also understand that Users spend increasing time on the web, surfing their favourite sites, clicking on email links or utilizing a variety of web-based SaaS applications for both personal and business use. While this could be incredibly useful to drive business productivity, this unfettered web activity exposes organizations to a range of security and business risks, such as propagation of threats, possible data loss and potential lack of compliance.

GajShield Data Security Firewall houses a URL filtering solution that allows an enterprise to control Internet access by permitting and denying access to sites based on their category that a URL belongs to. Traditionally, companies have used URL filtering as a tool to prevent employees from accessing unproductive and insecure sites. With GajShield’s URL filtering, you can enable secure web access and protection from increasingly sophisticated threats, including malware and phishing sites.

Features:

Allow or Block based on Category:

GajShield’s URL Filtering identifies the domain of the website to categorize the URL and take necessary action based on the set of policies.

Custom categorization based on keyword and domain names:

Many times, organizations need a custom filtering option that allows or restricts access to certain websites only based on a specific categorical need. With GajShield, you may now leverage this ability to custom categorization.

Categorizing websites in Real-time:

The URL filtering systems categorize website on a Real-time. In as fast as about hundred milliseconds and the local databases are automatically updated along with the central database.

Supports multiple extensions:

The URL filtering supports various extensions including HTTP and HTTPS protocols, MIME type and other file extension blocking.

Complete Visibility and great security:

GajOS Bulwark maintains a complete log of all URL filtering activities and actions taken along with other user and important information for complete visibility to take necessary actions.

Advantages of URL Filtering:

• Blocks access to a malicious and unsecured website
• Better Overall Security
• Prevents Malware and other virus downloads
• In-depth Visibility and granular blocking of network usage
• Increased Productivity
• Custom filtering
• Better Compliance

URL filtering helps organizations improve productivity by making sure that employee time is not spent in unnecessary activities during office hours. URL filtering allows you to control access to Internet websites by permitting or denying access to specific websites based on information contained in an URL list. These URL filtering can also help by preventing malicious code/spyware, phishing etc. which may be potentially harmful to the organization. It also helps block Peer-to-Peer software’s and Instant messaging which use more resources, wastes time and is also a security threat.

Why is URL Filtering required?

• URL filtering is required to stop the users of an organization from accessing those websites during working hours that:
• Drain their productivity.
• Let’s them view objectionable content from their workplace.
• Are bandwidth-intensive and hence create a strain on resources.
• Increase risk with hosted malware.

How it Works?

URL Filtering is basically done by maintaining a highly categorized database of websites at our GajShield Threat Lab and either allowing access to them or dis-allowing access to the internet users of an organization either at all times or during certain times of a day. The policies of which categories of sites is to be allowed/disallowed to the users of an organization could be set by the Easy policy capabilities of our Firmware Interface GajOS Bulwark.

A website can be categorized in a single category or multiple categories and the blocking can be done appropriately. For example, websites can be allowed to be accessed if they are categorized as Business, Productive, communication etc. but not if they are categorized as sports and gambling etc.

GajShield’s URL filtering solution supports 85+ categories to be able to block millions of websites falling under those categories as per the requirement of enterprises, user and group-based URL filtering to selectively block or give access to certain websites along with download size restriction policies, Time-based access schedule, a mechanism to prevent the download of streaming media, images, popup ads, etc., support to block malware, phishing and pharming URLs, support to block Java Applets, Cookies, Active X, URL exemption/whitelisting, Automatic updates to URL categories and more. All these features effectively help the organization to provide restrictive internet access to its users and thereby curbs illegal use.

GajShield provides URL filtering as a feature which aims at effectively filtering out unwanted websites and URLs to provide data security and a secure and safe internet presence to the enterprises.

Features:

• Automated web categorization engine blocks non-productive websites.
• Millions of sites arranged in 85+ categories
• URL filtering for HTTP & HTTPS Protocols
• Enforcement of Google/Yahoo images strict filtering
• MIME Type and file extension blocking
• User, Group-based URL filtering and Download size restriction policies
• Option to allow/block a user before allowing access to website based on policies and authentication
• Time-based access schedule
• Blocking based on URL, Domain, Category, Keyword & File type
• Prevents downloads of streaming media, images, pop-up ads
• Detection and blocking of http proxies
• Blocks malware, phishing and pharming URLs
• Blocks Java Applets, Cookies and Active X
• Support for regular expression in blocking of HTTP/HTTPS sites
• URL Exempt/White list
• Automatic updates on URL categories