Have you heard of the Zero Trust Security Model but not sure what it is? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. In this post, we’ll explain what Zero Trust is and how it can help your organization make security a top priority. Stay tuned for more information on this important security trend!
Briefly Explain the Zero Trust Security Model
The zero trust security model refers to a network security method that assumes that internal or external users are untrusted until proven otherwise. It is a collaborative approach to identity and access management (IAM) that treats all user devices as untrusted.
Then, this model contrasts with the traditional model in which organizations assume that users are inherently trustworthy. With zero trust, organizations must control access to all resources, devices, and data. This model is also known as the “defense in depth” approach.
Zero Trust Security Model Benefits
Following are the benefits of the zero trust security model:
- It eliminates the need for passwords and other credentials when accessing applications, networks, systems, or data.
- Next, it doesn’t rely on passwords or other credentials. Because it assumes that all users are untrusted until they’ve been authenticated according to a policy that’s custom-made for each user role.
- Zero-trust access control facilitates multi-factor authentication (MFA) to ensure that users are who they claim to be. This mechanism helps mitigate the risk of credential theft attacks and insider threats.
- Further, it enables dynamic access by eliminating the need for pre-approved network access at any time. In this way, it can allow cloud applications to function seamlessly even when a change happens in an organizational structure.
- It helps organizations maintain compliance with business rules and regulations. Such as PCI DSS and GDPR. This is by enabling them to identify users and apps to apply security policies such as encryption, patching, and MFA. All are based on each user’s role or application use case.
- Then, it enables organizations to detect threats quickly by getting a real-time view of traffic flowing in and out of their networks. This is possible because of micro-segmentation. This allows administrators to deploy granular security controls at every layer of the network stack based on user identity or application use case.
Zero Trust Security Model – Important Concepts
The following are important concepts related to the zero trust security model:
- Zero trust architecture. The zero trust architecture is similar to defense in-depth architecture. This is where multiple layers of security controls protect critical business assets from cyber-attacks and data breaches. How? By minimizing exposure from insider threats and unauthorized users.
- Zero trust access control. This enables administrators to define access control policies. Then, enforce them on users and applications based on their identity and location/network.
- Zero trust network. This is a network design where all traffic is isolated from one organizational unit to another. This is so that critical business assets are protected from risks such as insider threats and unauthorized users.
- Zero trust gateway (ZTG). This is a security device that provides a centralized point of access for user-generated traffic. It is designed to screen all traffic before it enters the local network.
Last Words
As you can see, it is important to understand the zero trust model. This is because it lacks the traditional assumption that users are inherently trustworthy. Instead, it assumes that users are untrusted until proven otherwise. Also, it enables organizations to secure their business assets.