Difference between Application Security and Network Security

The two important and overlapping areas of cybersecurity are application security and network security which aims at securing data and other systematic structures. Even though both are entities with a strong focus on security they are not the same thing and address different aspects of it. Application security is the procedure of protecting software applications while network security deals with the protection of the network through which these applications can be accessed. Since cybersecurity is growing to be an important line of defense in organizations, it is crucial to distinguish between the two types of security.

What is Application Security?

Application Security, as the name suggests, is a security program that directly deals with applications themselves. Its goal is to identify, rectify, and correct security issues in applications within an organization. It is based on identifying and fixing vulnerabilities that correspond to weaknesses or CWEs. Its testing also reveals weaknesses at the application level that help to prevent attacks.

Advantages of Application Security

• Protection Against Code Vulnerabilities: Application security assists in the process of detecting and probably eradicating some of the risks that include SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and buffer overflow.
• Data Protection: When the application is secured, all the application data that gets processed or stored is shielded from threats and breaches.
• Compliance: Appropriate measures for the application security in the enterprise guarantee adherence to the regulations concerning the data, for example, GDPR and HIPAA.

Disadvantages of Application Security

• Complexity: Application often takes time and effort to secure and especially so with complex and large software systems.
• Maintenance: Constant vigil and upgrade are inevitable in the face of new threats as and when they are discovered and with change of application.
• Performance Impact: Measures like encryption and other access control measures may slow down the application as it introduces certain levels of overhead which affects the performance of the application.

What is Network Security?

Network Security, as name suggests, is a security program that is all about securing assets and scanning traffic at network level. Its goal is to secure access to devices, systems, and services. It also means maintaining solid defense that involves physical and software-based firewalls, Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS), etc. It simply helps to protect workstations from harmful spyware and ensures that shared data is kept secure.

Advantages of Network Security

• Broad Protection: Network security is a complete solution that protects all devices, applications and users connected to the networks and there are no unsecured points of entries.
• Real-Time Threat Detection: A fire wall and intrusion detection systems (IDS) vigilantly scan the network traffic in a real-time basis and therefore alert the defenders before threats manifest themselves.
• Centralized Management: Through the application of network security, security policies used within the networks can be centralize hence reducing complexity of enforcing security policies within the network.

Disadvantages of Network Security

• Complex Infrastructure: The process of network security can be challenging when it comes to its deployment and management and this is especially so when the organization under consideration has large network infrastructures as well as many entry points into its network.
• High Costs: Most of the tools that are necessary for effective network security including firewalls, VPNs, intrusion prevention systems (IPS) might be expensive to acquire and maintain.
• Potential Bottlenecks: It is also important to realize that some measures that provide security such as those that monitor and restrict the flow of traffic on the network can slow down the network.

Difference Between Application Security and Network Security

Conclusion

Application security and network security serve as a base in an organization’s overall security program. Application security can be defined as the security process applied on a single software application in order to safeguard the data processed by the application from threats and risks. Network security, however, protects the structure and the data when in transit within the network and as a result, offers an all-round security solution given the increasing incidence of threats. Both the approaches are best used in combination and while each has different approaches, when combined they give the best defense against cyber criminals.