As organizations drive to modernize their network architectures to gain benefits from SaaS and Cloud architectures and a distributed workforce, there is a rapid expansion in the cyberattack surface that they face. This poses a growing challenge as organizations grapple with an increasingly complex set of security frameworks to manage the situation.
To address these challenges, organizations have adopted specialized tools to optimize IT operations and bolster cybersecurity. However, the use of multiple tools often results in data siloes and gaps between systems, undermining data management policies and reducing the overall efficiency of IT operations and security efforts.
Director of Products and Operations at Global Cloud Exchange (GCX).
The value of data analytics
Data is the lifeblood of many modern workplaces, and with vast volumes generated by businesses, unlocking its value can sometimes be the difference between success and failure. Configurable data platforms enable real-time, actionable insights that empower decision-making across functions, from enhancing customer experiences to optimizing supply chains.
However, while these tools significantly benefit operations, organizations must handle data responsibly to comply with regulations like GDPR and avoid costly penalties, illustrated by the likes of Meta's €1.2bn fine. As data creation vector volumes grow, so does the risk of breaches, requiring a comprehensive security strategy that protects data from inception to storage, across public and private networks on both cloud and on-premises environments. By implementing robust governance frameworks and advanced security controls, businesses can harness their data’s potential while mitigating escalating threats.
Eliminating siloes with a single-stack
Protecting data is a top priority for all organizations. However, as cloud computing environments and evolving tech stacks become more complex, data governance becomes trickier. This is largely because the data needs to be protected from the time it is created, through its use via analytics, its storage and archiving, until its eventual destruction.
The rise of hybrid working has significantly expanded the attack surface, with endpoints, cloud-native applications and on-site devices all requiring robust safeguards. Organizations that still rely on siloed security tools are in a precarious position, as the visibility gaps between disparate solutions can hinder the ability to apply effective data governance and security policies at the granular level now required.
This lack of unified visibility and control not only hampers the efficiency of attack detection but also slows incident response times when vulnerabilities emerge. This is where deploying solutions in a single stack network and security solution provides a streamlined approach. Many organizations, for example, rely solely on Software Defined Wide Area Networks (SD-WAN). This produces security risks when deployed without a supporting cloud security architecture, like Secure Service Edge (SSE), bringing both together under the Secure Access Services Edge (SASE) framework and more specifically a single vendor SASE can deliver operational gains.
Recognizing this, Gartner predicts that by 2027, 65% of SD-WAN deployments will be part of a single-vendor SASE offering. This approach is key because a single-stack SASE solution, underpinned in Zero Trust Network Access covers all the bases, from the endpoint to the cloud, combining SD-WAN’s on-site capabilities with cloud security. This ensures data is kept safe throughout its entire journey. Not only does this mitigate the security risks that arise with hybrid and remote work, but it also delivers a strong package of analytics that can combine security insights from the user, the application, the device and the network to help reinforce an organization's security posture.
The appeal of consolidated IT operations
Consolidating IT operations in this way addresses many modern workflow challenges. Firstly, it simplifies network management using a central, easy-to-manage platform. Secondly, it allows them to apply policies and configurations network-wide more easily. Where siloed security tools make attack surface detection and response more difficult, a single-stack solution effectively streamlines the process, speeding up vital IT security workflows like incident response.
Beyond the tech stack, consolidating operations within a single framework can be cost-efficient, as it reduces the need for multiple unsynchronized tools. Additionally, this alleviates the pressure on IT teams, which are increasingly under strain. In 2024, IBM found that half of the organizations that experienced breaches faced severe staffing shortages. Optimizing key processes, such as monitoring and management, through a central dashboard, makes everything visible in one place, helping organizations effectively manage their resources and respond to incidents more efficiently.
This streamlined approach also extends to practical policy applications. With many enterprises that operate internationally, maintaining business operations and supply chains on an international scale has become increasingly difficult without a strong, uniform policy management procedure. A single streamlined platform makes this easier and in doing so, simplifies the addressing of different compliance standards, helping prevent financial penalties or a loss in reputation.
Visibility is key
Navigating technical change in today’s digital landscape is challenging, particularly with the growing reliance on cloud environments. Organizations must cut through the noise of disparate tools and data sources to manage modern network operations effectively, addressing operational and security challenges that often exceed in-house capabilities.
As the attack surface expands, visibility has become crucial for effective network management. Organisations need to move beyond siloed security and IT tools towards a unified, single-stack networking approach. Consolidating visibility within a SASE framework built on Zero Trust principles not only strengthens security but also optimizes the broader IT estate, and early adopters of this model can build resilient networks while enhancing data governance and compliance.
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