A firewall is a fundamental component of any organization’s network and cybersecurity strategy. But purchasing and initially configuring a firewall is not enough: without continuous monitoring, maintenance, and expertise, a firewall can quickly become outdated and create a false sense of security. A “managed firewall” service, provided by specialized MSSPs, offers the solution.
What is a managed firewall?
A managed firewall service means that an external specialist (MSSP) takes over the full management of your firewall: from installation and configuration to monitoring, patching, incident and change management, reporting, and backups.
Practically, this means your firewall is watched 24/7, threats are detected and blocked, configurations remain up-to-date, and your organization is relieved of the burden of maintaining network infrastructure.
Why choose a managed firewall?
Some of the main advantages:
- Continuously updated protection: Cyberthreats are evolving constantly. A firewall that was secure yesterday may already be vulnerable today. Regular firmware updates, patching and policy-tuning keep protections current.
- Expert management and oversight: Network and security infrastructure expertise is scarce and expensive. An MSSP brings certified specialists who manage the firewall on a daily basis, so you don’t need to invest in costly security profiles internally.
- Less burden on internal IT team: Internal IT can focus on strategic tasks instead of ad-hoc maintenance and infrastructure upkeep.
- Better visibility and compliance: Monitoring, logging, reporting and audits help make your network environment transparent — and simplify compliance with regulations.
- Scalability and predictability: Whether you are a small company or operate internationally: managed firewall enables scalable management and more predictable costs.
What to watch out for when outsourcing: pitfalls and how to avoid them
Outsourcing brings many benefits — but also points of attention:
- Dependency on external party: By outsourcing operational management and insight into your network, you hand over potentially critical information. That’s why it is essential to formalize agreements carefully.
- Loss of control or transparency: Without clear reporting and dashboards, you might not see what’s happening under the hood. Choose a managed service that provides transparent, customer-oriented dashboards and regular reports.
- Risk of outdated configuration or poor tuning: If firewall rules are not reviewed and adjusted periodically, security gaps may open. That’s why the service should include configuration optimization and periodic security reviews — not just patching.
- Costs may escalate if scope onduidelijk is: A managed firewall is an investment; zonder duidelijke SLA of scope kan het duur worden — bij veel wijzigingen of intensief onderhoud. Vraag om transparantie in wat inbegrepen is.
What agreements and aspects to define when outsourcing
If you decide to outsource the management of your firewall, you should explicitly agree on the following in the contract or SLA:
- Scope of services: What is included in 24/7 monitoring, patching, incident handling, configuration changes, reporting, backups, hardware and software inventory?
- Availability and response times: When and how quickly does the provider respond to incidents or critical alerts? Is support 24×7 available? What are typical response times?
- Reporting and transparency: You want visibility into what happens, e.g. through a real-time dashboard, regular security and usage reports, configuration history, logging.
- Configuration management and change management: Who decides on changes, how are changes approved and documented, how are backups managed? Regular maintenance and reviews of configurations matter.
- Compliance and security audits: Especially if you operate in regulated sectors or want to ensure future compliance — have the provider perform periodic security assessments.
- Cost structure: Monthly fee, what’s included, what’s extra (changes, upgrades, out-of-scope work), how to avoid surprises. Ensure predictability.
How to keep costs under control
A managed firewall is an investment, but you can keep costs manageable by:
- Agreeing a clear scope: limit services to what is necessary; extras such as many changes or custom work can be priced separately.
- Periodic evaluation: regularly review whether rules and configurations still fit your organization, avoid unnecessary complexity and overhead.
- Use standard firewall technology and standard processes: choose proven solutions and avoid exotic, bespoke configurations unless strictly needed.
- Bundle with other managed services: combining firewall, networking, VPN and WAN services under one provider may yield economies of scale.
- Ensuring transparency and predictability: arrangement with SLA, response, reporting, licensing and maintenance help avoid surprises.
Conclusion
A managed firewall service is for many organizations a sensible, often even essential, choice. Security, continuity and compliance require continuous attention, something many internal IT teams cannot maintain. By outsourcing the firewall management to a specialized service provider, you benefit from expertise, 24/7 monitoring, maintenance, patching and management, while you focus on the core of your organisation.
At the same time, it is important to establish clear agreements about scope, reporting, costs and change-management. Only then do you gain the maximum benefit of managed firewall and avoid introducing new risks by outsourcing.
