• DOI:10.1145/253769.253802
• Corpus ID: 15271915

Internet security: firewalls and beyond

@article{Oppliger1997InternetSF,
  title={Internet security: firewalls and beyond},
  author={Rolf Oppliger},
  journal={Commun. ACM},
  year={1997},
  volume={40},
  pages={92-102}
}

• R. Oppliger
• Published 1 May 1997
• Computer Science
• Commun. ACM

The emerging use of the TCP/IP communications protocol suite for internetworking has led to a global system of interconnected hosts and networks that is commonly referred to as the Internet. During the last decade, the Internet has experienced a triumphant advance. Projections based on its current rate of growth suggest there will be over one million computer networks and well over one billion users by the end of the century. Therefore, the Internet is seen as the first incarnation of a national information infrastructure (NII) as promoted by the U.S. government. But the initial, research-oriented Internet and its communications protocol suite were designed for a more benign environment than now exists. It could, perhaps, best be described as a collegial environment, where the users and hosts were mutually trusting and interested in a free and open exchange of information. In this environment, the people on the Internet were the people who actually built the Internet. As time went on, the Internet became more useful and reliable, and these people were joined by others. With fewer goals in common and more people, the Internet steadily twisted away from its original intent. Today, the Internet environment is much less collegial and trustworthy. It contains all the dangerous situations, nasty people, and risks that one can find in society as a whole. In this new environment, the openness of the Internet has turned out to be a douand Bey Internet Security: Firewalls