When it comes to cybersecurity, being on the defensive side can be challenging. Attackers only need one chance to enter a network, and it can take down months (or even years) of data and hard work.
But fear not security cynics, now’s not the time to throw in the towel, because there’s a solution that is helping us fight back in this new world of borderless security – it’s called zero trust.
What is Zero Trust?
A leading security vendor describes zero trust as “a security model that enforces stringent access controls and operates on the principle of not trusting anyone by default, including those within the network perimeter.” In contrast to conventional security models that regard users and devices within the network as trustworthy, zero trust mandates rigorous identity verification and ongoing monitoring for all users, devices, and applications attempting to access resources, irrespective of their location.
Why is Zero Trust Important?
Evolving cyber threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated, making zero trust a crucial defense mechanism against advanced persistent threats (APTs), insider threats, and data breaches. The rise of remote work and cloud services has dissolved traditional network perimeters, and zero trust accommodates this by securing access from anywhere. It also helps protect sensitive data through enforcing the principle of least privilege and continuous access controls, aiding in compliance with regulations that require stringent access controls and data protection measures.
Additionally, network segmentation and micro-segmentation within a zero trust framework reduce the attack surface, limiting lateral movement and the potential impact of breaches. Continuous monitoring offers better visibility into user behavior and access patterns, enabling quicker detection of anomalies and threats, while automation within zero trust frameworks allows for rapid incident response, reducing the security teams' workload.
In essence, Zero Trust provides a robust security posture tailored for today's dynamic IT environments, ensuring that trust is not assumed but continuously verified.
The 7 Pillars of Zero Trust Architecture.
If you want to build out your own zero trust architecture for your customers, there’s seven key things you should consider as you plan it out:
1. User
Focus on identity and access management, ensuring only authenticated and authorized users can access resources.
2. Device
Securing and managing devices that access the network is an important second step to secure the endpoints of your network.
3. Network
Emphasize securing network pathways through segmentation, isolation and control.
4. Application
Diving deeper into the core of your network, zero trust security helps ensure applications have appropriate permissions and secure configurations.
5. Data
Focus on securing and managing data, both at rest and in transit.
6. Visibility and Analytics
Once you have hardened the network, provide comprehensive visibility and analytics to detect and respond to threats.
7. Automation and Orchestration
Finally, automating security processes and orchestrating responses to threats can make the remediation processes go much faster.
These components together create the Zero Trust architecture, which constantly verifies and oversees each step of a digital interaction to secure the network.
If you have any questions regarding zero trust, or zero trust edge, reach out to the TD SYNNEX CyberSolv team at CyberSolv@tdsynnex.com.
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