This article was originally published on Forbes.com. Read part one of the series here. 

In part one of this two-part series, I talked about the similarities between protecting high-value assets in public spaces in the real world and in the enterprise. This includes the need to understand the value of the assets, how to reduce available pathways to the assets to minimize the potential attack surface and use security controls on the access points.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

The best security professionals are those that can think like a hacker. Their perspective on defense is based on a fundamental understanding of how to scour a system for weaknesses that can be easily exploited. Are there obscure entry points that aren’t secured? All it takes is one overlooked device with default passwords connected to the outside world and attackers are in, despite all the resources dedicated to protecting the main entry.

In my role, I spend a lot of time looking at and thinking about technology trends, with a sharp focus on how security is reaching limits and breaking. This is what drives me as we build products to address market requirements. The whole reason Illumio exists is because I saw that firewalls are reaching limits and needed to be rethought in the age of the cloud. 

As is tradition this time of year, I took some time to think about what has changed in 2017 and what that means for the year ahead. Some of the predictions are grounded in the reality of what's transpired and what we have learned, while others are more speculative and educated guesses based on the data we have.

Introducing a blog series by Illumio CTO, PJ Kirner, that will cover key concepts to help you think about data center and cloud security in a new way, and realign your approach with evolving requirements across application environments. Read the first post of this series, "Why We Need a Data Center and Cloud Security Revolution."

I can’t imagine getting to work without a GPS. Yes, I pretty much drive the same route every day and could probably do it blindfolded, but the GPS helps me get there the fastest by recommending the right route because it has up-to-date real-time data about traffic and can guide me around accidents and traffic jams. It knows both ends of my route, where I’m coming from and where I’m headed to and, mixing in historical data, it can predict the best time for me to leave and always be on time. 

Introducing a blog series by Illumio CTO, PJ Kirner, that will cover key concepts to help you think about data center and cloud security in a new way, and realign your approach with evolving requirements across application environments.

Revolutions happen for good reason. They’re the result of a divergence of expectations and reality causing pent-up frustration that pushes the need for change. Old ways no longer align with new requirements and pressure reaches a boiling point where there is no other option but to make that change. 

Evolutions in applications, the data center, and cloud have pushed security to the limits, where old ways like choke points and network based approaches no longer align with new requirements of application teams. These teams have gotten used to new models of resource utilization and application delivery — and there's no turning back. It’s time for a revolution in security.