Zero Trust Security (ZTS) is a set of preventive technologies developed to defend against advanced threats as work-from-home and remote work become the norm. This approach replaces traditional network perimeter security with authentication and validation of users and devices.
Use continuous verification of access and the principle of least privilege (which limits “blast radius”) should there be any breaches. Also employ monitoring and alerts systems to detect suspicious behavior.
What is Zero Trust Security?
Zero Trust Security eliminates implicit trust by mandating stringent identity authentication and authorization across an entire network, not just at an approved perimeter. This model prevents unwarranted access to critical systems and data by continuously verifying users and devices, restricting lateral movement between applications/services/resources, implementing least privilege policies for least privilege access and minimising attack surfaces.
Zero Trust security requires organizations to monitor how users and devices access their network and use this visibility to authenticate them as necessary. Monitoring for vulnerabilities and patches as well as tracking threats that target multiple devices or operating systems are also part of this approach. Zero Trust can limit how far attackers can progress into an organization by employing microsegmentation.
Zero Trust must incorporate both continuous verification and a defense-in-depth strategy, starting from silicon technology level. HPE’s Edge-to-Cloud Zero Trust architecture Project Aurora employs an automated verification and attestation process which measures everything from silicon up through application layer for potential attacks using advanced malware techniques. This provides continuous protection from advanced attacks.
What are the main principles behind Zero Trust?
Zero Trust requires more than authentication and device access control; to be effective it also requires constant monitoring and validation, which allows security solutions to detect users and devices, understand their context (e.g. changing IP addresses), and make informed policy decisions based on what has been seen.
A granular approach to security helps keep unauthorized users and systems from accessing critical information systems and data even if their network has been compromised, while at the same time making sure access privileges are appropriate for each user and application being used – thus limiting damage if a system breaches occur.
Microsegmentation combined with Zero Trust architecture reduces the spread of breaches and makes lateral movement easier, as well as providing IT teams with a strategic, agile, risk-based approach that provides appropriate security policies for different types of applications used on business networks – this approach we refer to as data first security as it allows teams to apply a data-first security model that offers accurate least privilege access decisions on assets which are constantly shifting due to emerging threats or hybrid work trends.
Continuous monitoring and validation
As more data is stored outside the corporate network and employees work remotely, Zero Trust architecture has become an essential security strategy. But its implementation requires more than simply setting policies; to be truly effective it must constantly monitor and validate users, devices, applications and network connections.
This process begins by collecting and analyzing data across an organization’s IT environment, then normalized and examined for threats or vulnerabilities that might pose threats or vulnerabilities. By employing continuous monitoring techniques, businesses can recognize security incidents immediately when they arise and take the necessary actions to respond swiftly and appropriately.
Zero Trust security requires updating all network devices regularly to address vulnerabilities. In addition, following the principle of least privilege requires all accounts be restricted and reviewed only as necessary for performing business functions – this helps prevent lateral movement if an account becomes compromised, like what happened during 2021 Sunburst attack that utilized overly-permissioned service accounts – and limits “blast radius” should an attacker gain entry.
Least privilege
The principle of least privilege is a cybersecurity best practice that reduces IT permissions to the minimum required to complete tasks, going beyond need-to-know access and covering devices, applications and service accounts. By restricting access, organizations can help minimize damage from data breaches, malware infections or account takeover.
Reducing the attack surface by eliminating unnecessary accounts left behind when employees depart is also key in minimizing its attack surface and mitigating risk; many attacks use orphaned accounts as attack vectors; in addition, decreasing access privileges reduces risk that compromised credentials spread across networks.
Maintaining least privilege access requires constant evaluation of all accounts and permissions, which is often difficult without an Identity Access Management solution such as Tenfold’s Identity Governance Suite. Tenfold helps automate user provisioning, review privileges regularly and limit access rights that accumulate over time – learn how tenfold can assist your organization with Zero Trust!
Device access control
The Zero Trust security model presumes attackers can come from both within and without, therefore no users or devices should automatically trust one another. Instead, its architecture verifies user identity and device security compliance against policy standards to determine policy compliance as well as access restriction in applications and services to minimize employee exposure to sensitive parts of the network.
Zero Trust utilizes micro-segmentation to stop attackers moving laterally across its network, by breaking it up into distinct data-classified segments protected by individual access control policies that apply to users and devices alike. This enables its security platform to verify each connection or access request before authorizing them through.
Implementing a Zero Trust framework can be complex and time consuming, yet many security leaders are making efforts to accelerate its adoption as a result of high-profile breaches. It’s also important to remember that Zero Trust should not replace traditional cybersecurity tools; rather it should complement them by helping reduce complexity and security risks.
Microsegmentation
Zero trust cybersecurity models rely on microsegmentation to secure both on-prem and hybrid cloud environments. By isolating various logical segments – or zones – from one another and using least privilege access privileges, microsegmentation reduces attack surface areas within networks while also helping contain any breaches if they happen.
Security policies can be used to control these logical segments or zones and determine how to connect them. This differs from traditional network segmentation techniques that rely on hardware configurations like firewalls and VLANs to establish secure boundaries between systems.
Microsegmentation is implemented using software, enabling organizations to scale quickly while eliminating the cost associated with traditional network firewalls. This decentralized security management and increased speed, agility and accuracy, reducing human error risk. Furthermore, an agent-based microsegmentation solution offers greater visibility and control by isolating workloads and applications granularly; for example separating development environments from production ones so developers don’t use live data during testing while only authorized users have access to sensitive applications.
Preventing lateral movement
Threat actors frequently use lateral movement to gain entry to networks, systems or applications and access more data – thus leaving breaches undetected until it’s too late, which explains why zero trust policies are becoming so popular.
Zero trust architecture stands in contrast with traditional security approaches that monitor traffic entering and leaving the network (north-south), by continuously verifying resources access in real time (east-west). Furthermore, this structure enforces microsegmentation policies and process-level enforcement so only trusted apps have access to critical IT assets – minimizing blast radius should any breach occur while protecting more data while mitigating impactful results for the organization as a whole.
But implementing a full zero trust strategy is no simple feat, involving an intricate web of principles and controls which necessitate an overhaul of security architecture. Valenzuela advises starting small by selecting one on-ramp to implement first, before gradually rolling it out across other IT environments over time – this approach reduces risks by gradually transitioning the framework instead of trying to tackle everything simultaneously, which could cause growing pains or security gaps.
Multi-factor authentication MFA
MFA adds another level of protection to the Zero Trust model by requiring users to prove their identity through multiple methods, making it harder for cybercriminals to gain entry through phishing attacks or similar means.
MFA technologies may include hardware tokens, smartphones with biometric authentication features (such as facial recognition or fingerprint scans) or SMS-based OTPs. Other factors to consider for MFA may include verifying inherent qualities like appearance or voice as well as using mobile device sensors like GPS, cameras or microphones to check a person’s location.
MFA helps companies prevent lateral movement by verifying that users accessing their networks from known locations and devices. MFA can assess an IP address to confirm it originates from one of the trusted networks rather than any of the hundreds of thousands of malicious sites blocked by Zero Trust network; and can then determine whether that device is located within an appropriate work environment such as an office or home before authorizing access for users.
Implementing Zero Trust Security
Zero Trust takes an unusual approach to network security. It entails adopting an “antitrust, anti-verification” policy in which all devices and users should be considered potentially malicious until proven otherwise.
By doing this, threats that make their way in can be detected and responded to much faster in case a breach does take place. Additionally, detection and response time may also decrease.
What are the benefits of Zero Trust?
Zero trust technology aims to ensure access to networks is only granted via valid devices that are approved. Furthermore, this method provides more granular controls for specific applications, improving security posture and the ability to identify risks in real time.
A scalable, cloud-native architecture eliminates the need to backhaul traffic into a data center or require users to log in before accessing business applications, significantly improving user experience by enabling them to use their preferred device and application without interruption or distraction.
Zero Trust goes beyond improving security to safeguard assets in distributed environments by preventing lateral movement and protecting assets through microsegmentation, continuous monitoring and threat intelligence; also using identity-based device and application recognition techniques.
Zero Trust allows teams to focus more of their energy and time on critical tasks by automating many administrative security processes that would otherwise require manual action, providing faster, safer environments with lower staff costs.
How Does Zero Trust Security Work?
To effectively implement Zero Trust security, it’s crucial to take into account all components and relationships within a network infrastructure as well as workflow planning. A Zero Trust strategy requires continuous monitoring, verification and evaluation of user activity, device activity, network changes and data alterations – which all must occur regularly or risk being lost altogether.
Zero Trust solutions should provide granular contextual policies for verifying access requests based on factors like user identity, device being used and application/data being accessed – helping reduce attack surface area while limiting lateral movement within networks.
As part of your Zero Trust security model selection, it’s crucial that the chosen security model aligns with your organization’s networking requirements. Implementing a solution requiring multiple identity factors for authentication could impose unnecessary burden on end users and deter them from using the system altogether. Instead, opt for microsegmentation solutions which permit only necessary levels of access for users to complete their work successfully.
Key capabilities for implementing Zero Trust
Implementing Zero Trust can be challenging for organizations without sufficient resources to do it correctly, especially without proper guidance and resources. Implementation requires reviewing legacy investments, identifying gaps and prioritizing aspects of your network infrastructure that require attention.
Zero Trust involves the deployment of systems that support its framework. This may include microsegmentation tools, identity-aware proxies and software-defined perimeter systems. When looking for solutions suitable to integrate into your current infrastructure and to scale with your company, finding flexible options that integrate well will be important.
Zero Trust is an effective security model that entails eliminating direct access to networks and resources, implementing least-privileged access controls with fine granularity, and monitoring user traffic and behavior in real time. Zero Trust can address the complex attack surface created by remote work, hybrid computing environments and mobile device usage; by combining Zero Trust with continuous verification and adaptive control mechanisms you can significantly lower breach radius; Identity and Access Threat Prevention can offer this level of visibility with its comprehensive protection across platforms – click here for a whitepaper that explores IATP features benefits, features and risks!
Final Thoughts
Zero trust is an essential security principle and an integral component of secure transformation, but its implementation can be complex and demanding. Achieving it requires taking an interdisciplinary approach to network defense that differs significantly from traditional perimeter security solutions.
First, identify and secure your most prized information and implement adequate protections – such as restricting, monitoring and verifying access to sensitive applications – so as to reduce the possibility of theft and minimize response times if an attacker gains entry to critical assets.
Next, monitor your internal networks to make sure the users and devices you trust are who they claim to be. You can do this through strict authentication and logging, applying least privilege to users so only what data they require can be accessed, and microsegmentation that keeps any breach contained to a small portion of your network – this will reduce damages and costs associated with breaches.