Our Favorite Zero Trust Stories from September 2023

We’re back with our latest Zero Trust news roundup!

This past month, we saw the Zero Trust conversation continue with an emphasis on generative artificial intelligence (AI). More specifically, industry leaders and reporters weighed in on the Zero Trust challenges (and benefits!) that AI technologies pose for today's security leaders.

Here are a few of the stories and perspectives that stood out to us most.  

5 ways CISOs can prepare for generative AI’s security challenges and opportunities (VentureBeat, Louis Columbus)

VentureBeat writer Louis Columbus dives deep into the world of generative AI and the cybersecurity risks and challenges it poses in his latest article.  

Specifically looking at how cybersecurity leaders, like CISOs, can enable their organizations to build greater cyber resilience against evolving AI-based threats, he explores where Zero Trust, microsegmentation, and “always on” visibility play crucial roles.  

“A zero-trust approach to every interaction with AI tools, apps and platforms and the endpoints they rely on is a must-have in any CISO’s playbook,” Columbus writes. “Continuous monitoring and dynamic access controls must be in place to provide the granular visibility needed to enforce least privilege access and always-on verification of users, devices and the data they’re using, both at rest and in transit.”

Zero Trust and AI: Better Together (Cloud Security Alliance, Chris Hogan)

This quick read by Chris Hogan, Vice President, Enterprise Security Architecture and Innovation, MasterCard, explores why the "nexus of Zero Trust and AI is expected to provide new opportunities for security maturity in the imminent future.”

Hogan explains that “while the hype around the potential of AI continues to captivate attention, it's vital to recognize that Zero Trust's significance endures. And now, with the advent of AI-driven advancements, the path forward offers some intriguing prospects for new synergies between these two realms.”

He shares a few examples of how AI technologies can enable greater cyber maturity and expounds on where AI-enabled tools can help organizations who’ve fallen behind in their Zero Trust journeys (due to a lack of resourcing or proper technology) make up for lost time.  

“The start of many Zero Trust journeys may have been constrained by the limitations of available technologies in the past. However, the stage has dramatically shifted with the sudden proliferation of AI, unveiling a host of capabilities far exceeding expectations,” Hogan writes.

Get even more insights from Illumio’s co-founder and advisor, PJ Kirner, on how AI can accelerate Zero Trust technologies.

Searching For Cybersecurity’s Silver Bullet: The Rise Of Zero Trust (Forbes, Danny Lopez)

Chock full of data and relevant industry insights, this article argues that “there is currently no silver bullet that can deliver the all-around, agile and intelligent protection that organizations need to address every eventuality [in cyber].” Though if any solution or framework comes close, it’s Zero Trust.  

With a clear depiction of the current threat landscape, Lopez explains that “for many organizations, the zero-trust model has become a compelling strategy for addressing the constantly changing security landscape.”

He explores the ethos of Zero Trust and pinpoints several technologies (multi-factor authentication (MFA), network access control (NAC), microsegmentation, etc.) required of organizations looking to make Zero Trust plans a reality.  

Lopez concludes with this: In the absence of a silver bullet approach to cybersecurity, “the zero-trust model, with its foundation of stringent verification and layered defenses, offers a robust framework around which to work in the modern digital economy.”

See why 60 percent of enterprises working toward Zero Trust architecture will use more than one deployment form of microsegmentation by 2026!

5 areas where zero trust can’t protect your organization (CSO, Maria Korolov)

This article highlights a few areas where Zero Trust could fall short if controls, architecture, or culture aren’t configured or accounted for properly. But it also serves as an important reminder that Zero Trust is a process. Additionally, it’s not just about the Zero Trust technologies organizations deploy. Zero Trust is a philosophy — it requires cultural changes to translate to business resilience as well.  

Korolov writes, “There are process changes that have to happen when companies implement zero trust technologies. Instead, too often, it’s just taken for granted that people will fix processes.”

Accounting for both the technical and cultural elements of Zero Trust will help organizations drive Zero Trust success, overcome blind spots, and see greater ROI on their investments.

Check out these 5 Tips for Getting the Best ROI From Your Cybersecurity Investments.

That’s all for this month. We’ll be back with more Zero Trust stories soon!