In the age of an “Internet of Things,” centralized control over a wide variety of devices is creeping down from the clouds and into our everyday lives. Software Defined Networking (SDN) is replacing traditional networks with some of the biggest names in the tech industry. Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, Amazon, and AT&T are utilizing SDN for its advanced flexibility and automated network control. Unfortunately some functions of SDN and the OpenFlow protocol should be raising significant security concerns both for current cloud implementations and proposed ISP to home network presence. The framework the protocol uses to communicate is susceptible to disruption, interception and undetected manipulation. Using a little python ingenuity, the foundation of an SDN can be compromised on the southbound interface where data flows originate and interact with the controller. While SDN offers amazing possibilities in secure networking, there is a dark side as well. This discussion brings to light security issues and advantages that SDN provides, and security imperatives for implementation of SDN within enterprise networks.
Jon and Sarah are both highly technical nerds at their very core. Jon is a Network Security Engineer who focuses on networks and virtualization, and Sarah is a Cisco Instructor who would love nothing more than to explain the finer points of complex networking. Both have well over a decade of experience in commercial and government networks, with numerous pretty certificates on their walls. Together, this unlikely duo has decided to take on the stigma that security folks and network folks don’t play well together.
Jon and Sarah are both highly technical nerds at their very core. Jon is a Network Security Engineer who focuses on networks and virtualization, and Sarah is a Cisco Instructor who would love nothing more than to explain the finer points of complex networking. Both have well over a decade of experience in commercial and government networks, with numerous pretty certificates on their walls. Together, this unlikely duo has decided to take on the stigma that security folks and network folks don’t play well together.