Most organizations acknowledge the security deficiency of the traditional business VPN. They provide access to entire local area networks (LANs) or groups of applications, can’t independently verify user identity, are publicly accessible, and they don’t inspect user traffic after a user connects. In short, VPNs are a security nightmare.
Zero trust network access (ZTNA) technologies wake up network security professionals from their VPN-induced bad dreams. ZTNA solutions embody the principles of zero trust, and enable users to securely access the data, applications, assets, and services that your hybrid workforce needs.
Despite having the word “network” in their name, ZTNA solutions are less about network-level access and are all about restricting user access to only the specific resources they need to do their job. This “just-in-time-and-just-enough” approach gives users access to specific applications, data, assets, and services based on their identity and presumed “need to know.”
Still, many organizations, even after they deploy ZTNA technologies, will continue to use VPNs.
Like anyone trying to keep a New Year’s resolution knows, old habits die hard. For network security professionals, the VPN is certainly a hard habit to break. And when it comes to implementation, many organizations are finding that ZTNA projects expand past the jurisdictions of the network and security teams to impact both the human resources and legal departments as well.
The common hurdles ZTNA projects encounter include:
ZTNA is a completely different approach than VPN when it comes to securely enabling today’s hybrid workforces to access the apps and data they need to do their jobs. In some cases, network and security teams throw in the towel and opt to either continue using their VPNs or deploy their ZTNA products providing users with full, network-based access effectively eliminating any benefits ZTNA offers. How can organizations effectively move past these hurdles and take advantage of all ZTNA has to offer?
In the same way that you will achieve that New Year’s resolution that may have sounded better over cocktails, start with focused goals for your ZTNA deployment. Rather than trying to boil the ocean when implementing ZTNA principles and technologies across your entire infrastructure, it is wise to start off focused on specific initiatives. Some examples may include:
Focused and measured ZTNA rollouts make managing unforeseen challenges more manageable. Focused rollouts help you discover the processes as well as identify organizational roadblocks and ways to overcome them.
When exploring ZTNA tools, you should consider not only the standalone capabilities offered but how the solution fits into and supports a broader SASE and zero trust platform. Our ZTNA capabilities, offered through Prisma Access, provide a scalable, resilient solution that supports your remote access needs in the short term while paving the way to a comprehensive SASE transformation. If you are ready to increase your network security at a data, application, asset, and service level, find out how the ZTNA features in Prisma Access can help.
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