Choosing the Best Web Content Filter Appliance

There are many different appliances for filtering web content on the market that promise to “dramatically improve network protection, security and productivity” – making it difficult to know which is the right one for your specific situation.

In most circumstances, the determining factors should be flexibility and ease of use. Flexibility because appliances for filtering web content have to able to block online threats without disrupting other online activities, and ease of use because if a web content filter appliance is too complicated to operate it will fail to provide the optimum protection against malware and ransomware.

Cost is also a Determining Factor

Although the cost of recovering from a malware infection or ransomware attack can be many times the cost of a web content filter appliance, it is understandable that organizations with limited budgets will consider the cost of appliances for filtering web content - not only the capital cost, but the cost of dedicating resources to manage and update the appliance.

For this reason, it is recommended to avoid hardware-based appliances for filtering web content and consider software-based and cloud-based solutions that have no upfront costs and that are updated automatically by the software or cloud service provider. Those which integrate with management tools such as Active Directory can also save a considerable amount of maintenance overhead.

Appliances for Filtering Web Content from SpamTitan

SpamTitan is a leading developer of online security solutions and, since 2009, our appliances for filtering web content have helped organizations in more than 100 countries reduce their exposure to online threats such as malware and ransomware. We offer a choice of three flexible, easy to use and inexpensive WebTitan-branded appliances for filtering web content:

WebTitan Cloud

The first of our two cloud-based appliances for filtering web content is WebTitan Cloud. WebTitan Cloud is compatible with all types of networks and operating systems as it works by redirecting the DNS server´s system settings to WebTitan´s servers. Consequently deployment takes only a few minutes, after which our web content filter appliance is ready to use.

WebTitan Cloud for WiFi

WebTitan Cloud for WiFi is the best web content filter appliance for organizations that have a BYOD policy or who provide a WiFi service open to members of the public. WebTitan Cloud for WiFi can support both single WiFi access points and wireless networks consisting of multiple WiFi hotspots.

All three of our appliances for filtering web content use a three-tier filtering mechanism to maximize flexibility, reduce organizations´ exposure to online threats, increase productivity by blocking access to non-work related websites, and prevent the exposure of inappropriate online material to minors, customers, guests, and other employees. The three-tier filtering mechanism consists of:

• Blacklists and URIBL/SURBL filters to prevent users visiting fake websites known to be used for phishing attacks, websites known to be harboring malware and websites who hide their true identity behind a proxy server or the whois privacy feature.
• Category filters that block access to administrator-selected categories of website. WebTitan sorts tens of millions of web pages into fifty-three categories (abortion, adult entertainment, alternative beliefs, alcohol, etc.) that access to can be blocked with the click of a mouse.
• Keyword filters enable administrators to fine-tune the category filters and block access to web pages containing specific words without blocking an entire category, specific file types most commonly associated with malware downloads, and specific web applications.

In terms of ease of use, blacklists and URIBL/SURBL filters - as well as the antivirus software, malicious URL and phishing protection software - are all updated automatically. Recently published web pages are automatically sorted and placed into the appropriate category, and we also offer the option to create customizable categories in the event that an exceptional exclusion policy is required.

Category filters and keyword filters can be applied by individual user, user group or organization-wide via an easy-to-use, web-based management portal. The portal provides administrators with a real-time view of Internet activity and has a comprehensive reporting suite that administrators can use to review historic Internet activity in order to identify trends and help with the compilation of risk assessments.

Our pricing options are also flexible and easy to understand. Organizations pay for the number of users that will connect to the network according to their preferred deployment option (WebTitan Cloud or WebTitan Cloud for WiFi) and preferred payment cycle (monthly, annually, bi-annually, etc.). There are no upfront costs to pay and licenses can be changed as required.

Try a Web Content Filter Appliance for Free

If you have a complicated decision to make about choosing the best web content filter appliance to reduce your organization´s exposure to online threats, you are invited to take advantage of a free trial of whichever WebTitan web content filter appliance is best for your particular situation. Our free trial offer enables you to test the merits of our appliances for filtering web content in your own environment and find the optimum settings so that, if you choose to continue using our service at the end of the free trial, no further configuration of the appliance will be required.

To find out more about our free trial offer, or to ask any questions about appliances for filtering web content, do not hesitate to get in touch. Our team of Sales Technicians will be happy to explain more about the free trial, answer your questions, and guide you through the registration process to create your free account. Depending on the web content filter appliance that is best for your particular situation, you could reduce your organization´s exposure to online threats, increase productivity and block access to inappropriate online material within fifteen minutes.