Zero Trust Data Security Model
Cyber professionals are now switching to a Zero Trust security model where we see a massive shift within federal agencies (Bidens Executive Order), international organizations, and large enterprises. These entities are correcting their stance and adapting a Zero Trust architecture, and adjusting to Zero Trust incentives within their complex infrastructures to increase their security posture and secure critical and sensitive data, systems, or services they might contain.
Zero Trust, a term thrown a lot in cybersecurity forums, defines the evolving and dynamic set of cybersecurity incentives intended to prioritize security for identity, users, assets, entities, access, and resources. This is accomplished with trust principles designed to creatively plan security models for all types of infrastructures. One way of anticipating a new security zero trust model is with the understanding of the Zero Trust tagline “Never trust, always verify”. Applying such an approach to your central infrastructure’s entire concept and framework ensures that all connections, traffic, or access are always categorized as untrustworthy unless adequately verified.
To achieve a fundamental base of a Zero Trust concept architecture, organizations are required to:
– Authenticate everyone, everything with access to the core network.
– Eliminate Trust, verify each access account and its permissions continuously./b>
– Enforce privileged access on a need-to-know basis./b>
– Enable monitoring, gain visibility into users and their sessions./b>
Implementing Zero Trust is not something you can buy off the shelf, but rather it is a complete shift of action and perspective on network security. It is essential to understand your network and know how your users behave, as this will provide an accurate understanding of securing and applying appropriate security strategies. The shift starts with users and their identities. This new parameter is the front line of defense, applying the Zero Trust concept: user authentication, authorized access, remote connections, geographic verification, etc. Identity in Zero Trust asks for new security measures to make a practical defensive stand against the threat landscape.
To secure identity within the Zero Trust model, it must contain a privileged access management solution within your aerosol. Privileged Access Management creates a key point for a Zero Trust strategy as it allows for controlled and managed access to critical entities or information. To enforce privileged access, additional modules such as secure remote access, user session monitoring, and credential management increase the impact on security and bolster the Zero Trust framework. Additionally, technologies and modules such as optical character recognition, Just-in-time, efficiency analysis, graphical session recording, AI threat prevention, biometric analysis, and 4-eye authentication are essential tools to help preserve the security backbone, establishing a profound and comprehensive Zero Trust security model.
As we see the merging parameter of Zero Trust, identity, we must consider other ‘pillars’ that form a Zero Trust model. These pillars depict a gradient implementation of Zero Trust and the necessities required to reach an optimal Zero Trust security model.
Pillars of Zero Trust
– Identity
– Device
– Network/Environment
– Application Workload
– Data
Each pillar requires optimal zero-trust implementation, including automated processes, automated systems, integration across all pillars, and dynamic enforcement of policies. Moreover, each pillar needs to be compatible and interoperable with each other. To reach the most optimal Zero Trust Model, each pillar would need to contain a high level of detail, protection, and adoption within the infrastructure.
Essentially, we see that traditional forms of protecting data are outdated and require a new comprehensive and dynamic approach. Moreover, the Zero Trust model comprises many tools that can provide the right solutions to specific problems. As security extends to user identity and user action, which broadens the threat landscape, a Zero Trust model is becoming an essential strategy within all enterprises.
Author: Damian Borkowski– Technical Marketing Specialist
