Although the new era of home working has brought many benefits, the downside is the rise in cyberthreats. In response to a recent Gigamon survey, more than half of respondents believed employee disengagement is the cause of the rise. Vijay Babber, Channel Manager at Gigamon Middle East, explains why a Zero Trust model is important in this era of remote working and how the ecosystem can work together to ensure the model is in place.
The IT threatscape has been completely transformed over the last 12 months. According to Gigamon’s recent survey, 85% of organisations have seen a rise in cyberthreats since the beginning of last year, with issues ranging from phishing attacks to data breaches. The reason? Over half of respondents believe that the new era of home working, resulting in significant employee disengagement, is the cause of such a rise in cybersecurity issues.
Of course, a key aim for organisations is to provide a positive customer experience, so it is essential that businesses acknowledge this increase in security concerns. The ecosystem needs to work together on this, from the vendor to the end-user, and in particular, channel partners should be prepared to support customers with their security challenges, acting as trusted advisors and sympathising with client pain points to offer bespoke services.
CISOs, CIOs and CEOs are all interested in a Zero Trust model, which is a good place to start. But what exactly is Zero Trust and why is it so important in this era of Digital Transformation and remote working?
What is Zero Trust – and why is it important?
It is necessary to understand that Zero Trust is neither a technology nor a set-up, but instead a mindset and an attitude towards security. It is a concept that requires every user, including internal members of an organisation, to be regularly authenticated. A Zero Trust structure refuses to implicitly trust anyone, regardless of their credentials. It has typically been associated with negative connotations, stemming from the idea that ‘no one is trusted’, which can be thought to hamper employee productivity. However, opinions surrounding Zero Trust architecture have started to shift, especially as it allows IT leaders much more control in a time where networks are only getting more dispersed and complex.
From our data, Gigamon discovered that 76% of IT decision-makers believe it is a good decision to engage with Zero Trust architecture in the current environment. The vast majority of those surveyed already had a high-awareness of Zero Trust, while over two-thirds of respondents stated that they have adopted, or are looking to adopt, this approach to security within their organisation. It seems, therefore, that Zero Trust is becoming a sought-after solution to the expanding threatscape and it is even more essential now that home working is set to continue for the foreseeable future.
How to support customers on the Zero Trust journey
Technical knowledge needs to be shared with clients to help them on their Zero Trust journeys, which is where channel partners could help by sharing their knowledge. Vendors can work with their channel partners to make sure they are passing on the information needed to ensure a smooth journey for the end-user. Vendors can collaborate with channel partners to succeed in this challenging landscape:
Communicate: Zero Trust is not a new idea, yet it is one that can often be misunderstood. With proper communication, channel partners can explain the suggested processes, correct company culture and best network visibility tools that all contribute towards creating the perfect Zero Trust environment. Therefore, they start to become trusted advisors and supportive allies for the client fighting rising cyberattacks.
Understand: After a challenging financial year for many companies, customers will not have huge investments to throw around. By getting to grips with consumer pain points, especially budget, channel partners can deliver a better service and tailor their proposals to what is realistic for the organisation by implementing technologies that will optimise their existing investments.
Demonstrate: While security will be a big concern for many companies, it will not be their sole focus. It is important to demonstrate exactly how a Zero Trust mindset may help customers in more ways than one. This architecture can actually assist in increasing productivity within a workforce, with 87% of respondents claiming their workforce had been more productive since adopting a Zero Trust model. Other benefits cited by our survey include being able to cope more effectively in the current climate and becoming more agile.
Cybersecurity worries are plaguing many businesses. While employee engagement weakens and further lockdown restrictions are put in place, this remote and distributed landscape looks set to stay indefinitely. However, embarking on a Zero Trust journey is an effective solution to the expanding threatscape and many more IT leaders are picking up on it. The ecosystem needs to embrace this mindset and channel partners can become the support system for every business looking to invest in cybersecurity.
