You probably know Norton for its security software, but Norton Core is a great looking home router which is touted as being “secure.” With the number of connected home devices increasing rapidly and very sensitive data such as live home video feeds there are many potential targets for hacking. That’s why Norton thinks there is a market for a secure router.
The first thing that makes it secure is the ability to self-update its own firmware. Software always needs improvements, and existing libraries do contain vulnerabilities that get fixed over time.
But updating a router firmware is a hassle, a huge number of people simply don’t do it, leaving their devices vulnerable to well-documented attack vectors. Norton Core updates itself to plug as many vulnerabilities as possible. An important rule of computer security is to reduce human intervention for things like updates or backups. Norton Core updates itself, so you don’t have to.
"NORTON CORE UPDATES ITSELF, SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO"
Norton says that its Core router is capable of recognizing known smart home devices such as thermostats and others, which are known for an array of vulnerabilities. It can then “quarantine” them, making a potential breach less likely to cause more damage to the overall network’s security.
Core also scans network packets for known harmful traffic or traffic patterns. It’s not clear how much it can detect this way, but this is a technique that is used in Enterprises as well. It requires a degree of processing power to inspect high-volume data traffic.
Finally, the Norton Core app will make the user more aware of potential security breaches. This is really key because there are often simple actions that people can take to drastically improve their computing security.
Of course, the Norton Core has been designed to be a high-performance router. It comes with a Dual-core 1.7GHz processor and supports WiFi standards up to WiFi-AC and 4×4 MU-MIMO (multi-device connections and data transfers). It is possible to connect USB drives or printers to it, thanks to two USB 3.0 ports. We will have to see if it can accommodate guest networks, VPN, and other desirable features, but the app-based configuration seems much more friendly than the typical web UI.
Filed in . Read more about CES, CES 2017, Cybersecurity, Networking and Routers.