IP whitelisting, also known as allowlisting, is a security measure that allows only trusted IP addresses to access a network or system while blocking all others. It involves creating a list of approved IP addresses and assigning them to a user or group of users as a unique identifier, and permitting the IP address on the target server only. IP whitelisting is a valuable security practice for organizations to control and restrict access to their networks, systems, and services. It helps protect against unauthorized access and enhances security.
IP whitelisting works by allowing only specific IP addresses to access a network, as defined by the network administrator. The network appliance or software server gets a list of applications and destinations that a user requires to access, which is compiled by the network administrators. The whitelisted IP addresses are then added to the list, and the changes are saved and applied.
While IP whitelisting can be a great security feature, it isn’t always practical for larger organizations. Whitelisting when you have a lot of users is very time-consuming and often ends up being a never-ending task to manually maintain. Additionally, IP whitelisting is limited by the types of IP addresses an authorized user might have. An internet-capable device will have one of two different kinds of IP addresses: static or dynamic. Static IP addresses are fixed and do not change, while dynamic IP addresses are assigned by the internet service provider and can change frequently.
Overall, IP whitelisting is a cybersecurity technique that gives IT administrators control over who can access business systems and resources. It is a valuable security practice for organizations to control and restrict access to their networks, systems, and services. However, it may not be practical for larger organizations and is limited by the types of IP addresses an authorized user might have.
