What is the primary purpose of implementing firewalls in a network?

The primary purpose of implementing firewalls in a network is to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network. Firewalls act as a security barrier between an internal network and external sources, monitoring and controlling incoming and outgoing traffic based on predetermined security rules. This helps maintain the integrity of the network by blocking unauthorized users and potentially malicious traffic from accessing sensitive information or resources.

While bandwidth management, data encryption, and enhancing network speed are important aspects of network management, they do not define the core function of a firewall. Bandwidth management focuses on optimizing the network’s data capacity, encryption deals with securing data during transmission, and increasing network speed pertains to performance enhancements. In contrast, the firewall's main duty is to enforce security policies to safeguard the network against unauthorized intrusions and attacks, highlighting its critical role in overall network security.