SASE Week 2023 On-Demand! Explore sessions.

  • Security Service Edge Products

    Protect against advanced and cloud-enabled threats and safeguard data across all vectors.

  • Borderless SD-WAN

    Confidently provide secure, high-performance access to every remote user, device, site, and cloud.

The platform of the future is Netskope

Intelligent Security Service Edge (SSE), Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB), Cloud Firewall, Next Generation Secure Web Gateway (SWG), and Private Access for ZTNA built natively into a single solution to help every business on its journey to Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) architecture.

Go to Products Overview
Netskope video
Next Gen SASE Branch is hybrid — connected, secured, and automated

Netskope Next Gen SASE Branch converges Context-Aware SASE Fabric, Zero-Trust Hybrid Security, and SkopeAI-powered Cloud Orchestrator into a unified cloud offering, ushering in a fully modernized branch experience for the borderless enterprise.

Learn about Next Gen SASE Branch
People at the open space office
  • NewEdge

    NewEdge is the world’s largest, highest-performing security private cloud.

  • Cloud Security Platform

    Unrivaled visibility and real-time data and threat protection on the world's largest security private cloud.

  • Technology Partners & Integrations

    Netskope partners with the strongest companies in enterprise technology.

Embrace a Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) architecture

Netskope NewEdge is the world’s largest, highest-performing security private cloud and provides customers with unparalleled service coverage, performance and resilience.

Learn about NewEdge
NewEdge
Your Network of Tomorrow

Plan your path toward a faster, more secure, and more resilient network designed for the applications and users that you support.

Get the white paper
Your Network of Tomorrow
Netskope Cloud Exchange

The Netskope Cloud Exchange (CE) provides customers with powerful integration tools to leverage investments across their security posture.

Learn about Cloud Exchange
Netskope video
Make the move to market-leading cloud security services with minimal latency and high reliability.

Learn about NewEdge
Lighted highway through mountainside switchbacks
Safely enable the use of generative AI applications with application access control, real-time user coaching, and best-in-class data protection.

Learn how we secure generative AI use
Safely Enable ChatGPT and Generative AI
Zero trust solutions for SSE and SASE deployments

Learn about Zero Trust
Boat driving through open sea
Netskope enables a safe, cloud-smart, and fast journey to adopt cloud services, apps, and public cloud infrastructure.

Learn about Industry Solutions
Wind turbines along cliffside
  • Resources

    Learn more about how Netskope can help you secure your journey to the cloud.

  • Blog

    Learn how Netskope enables security and networking transformation through security service edge (SSE).

  • Events & Workshops

    Stay ahead of the latest security trends and connect with your peers.

  • Security Defined

    Everything you need to know in our cybersecurity encyclopedia.

Security Visionaries Podcast

2024 Predictions
Host Emily Wearmouth sits down for a conversation with Sherron Burgess, Senior VP and CISO for BCD Travel, and Shamla Naidoo, Head of Cloud Strategy and Innovation at Netskope, to talk about the hot topics they’re seeing for the year to come.

Play the podcast
2024 Predictions
Latest Blogs

How Netskope can enable the Zero Trust and SASE journey through security service edge (SSE) capabilities.

Read the blog
Sunrise and cloudy sky
SASE Week 2023: Your SASE journey starts now!

Replay sessions from the fourth annual SASE Week.

Explore sessions
SASE Week 2023
What is Security Service Edge?

Explore the security side of SASE, the future of network and protection in the cloud.

Learn about Security Service Edge
Four-way roundabout
  • Our Customers

    Netskope serves more than 2,000 customers worldwide including more than 25 of the Fortune 100

  • Customer Solutions

    We are here for you and with you every step of the way, ensuring your success with Netskope.

  • Netskope Community

    Learn from other network, data, and security professionals.

  • Training and Certification

    Netskope training will help you become a cloud security expert.

We help our customers to be Ready for Anything

See our Customers
Woman smiling with glasses looking out window
Netskope’s talented and experienced Professional Services team provides a prescriptive approach to your successful implementation.

Learn about Professional Services
Netskope Professional Services
The Netskope Community can help you and your team get more value out of products and practices.

Go to the Netskope Community
The Netskope Community
Secure your digital transformation journey and make the most of your cloud, web, and private applications with Netskope training.

Learn about Training and Certifications
Group of young professionals working
  • Company

    We help you stay ahead of cloud, data, and network security challenges.

  • Why Netskope

    Cloud transformation and work from anywhere have changed how security needs to work.

  • Leadership

    Our leadership team is fiercely committed to doing everything it takes to make our customers successful.

  • Partners

    We partner with security leaders to help you secure your journey to the cloud.

Supporting sustainability through data security

Netskope is proud to participate in Vision 2045: an initiative aimed to raise awareness on private industry’s role in sustainability.

Find out more
Supporting Sustainability Through Data Security
Highest in Execution. Furthest in Vision.

Netskope recognized as a Leader in the 2023 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Security Service Edge.

Get the report
Netskope recognized as a Leader in the 2023 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Security Service Edge.
Thinkers, builders, dreamers, innovators. Together, we deliver cutting-edge cloud security solutions to help our customers protect their data and people.

Meet our team
Group of hikers scaling a snowy mountain
Netskope’s partner-centric go-to-market strategy enables our partners to maximize their growth and profitability while transforming enterprise security.

Learn about Netskope Partners
Group of diverse young professionals smiling

Applying a Continuous Adaptive Trust Mindset

Sep 10 2022

The term “zero trust” is the lack of implicit trust. When we started with “zero trust,” we no longer trusted users because they weren’t on our network domain.  As our staff went remote, we had to input stronger authentication to move from zero trust to some level of implicit trust. The problem is that trust is all or nothing.

Today, the complexities are beyond having remote workers. Often we do not own the endpoint device or contract worker. We don’t control the cloud network. We don’t write or penetration test the hundreds of software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications deployed across the different business units. And with this complexity, the old “zero trust/implicit trust” model is too prohibitive for business agility and too permissive in terms of risk.

Trust issues: Going from zero to adaptive 

We need to evolve our thinking around zero trust to a model that’s more adaptive—based on multiple streams of telemetry that are in continuous, real-time flux. This is what we would call continuous adaptive trust. A continuous adaptive trust security architecture gathers telemetry around users, applications, and data from different sources to make adaptive decisions about network risks in real-time. Security becomes more than all or nothing; the architecture can make granular control decisions, not just “allow” or “block.” 

This is best illustrated through an adaptive trust matrix, as pictured in Figure 1 below, where risk is driven by the value of the data being accessed:

Starting with Level 1 Trust,using Social Media as an example, is considered non-sensitive, read-only data, meaning only a low level of trust is needed to allow the transaction. Therefore, the following controls are acceptable:

  • Limited access validation
  • Unmanaged device (Not a device owned and controlled by the company)
  • Unsanctioned application (Not been reviewed and approved by security)

In the second example, the level of controls is higher than in the first. Between Level 1 and Level 5 is a series of trust levels each requiring more strict controls than the prior. You can use this matrix to set real-time rules that control access to information. 

In the beginning, the only choice was to either deny or allow the transaction. Better solutions now provide the ability to not only adapt the trust level but also make smart decisions about what type of access is allowed. 

Continuous user, data, and application risk 

In practice, the ability to deliver adaptive trust relies on a 360-degree view of the risk landscape at all times. We can establish this complex and comprehensive view by continuously monitoring the risk telemetry for users, data, and applications.  (See Figure 2 below)

Users: We can start to look at how much we trust the user because we can see the user’s behavior, their geolocation—where they’re coming from— and how active a target they’ve been in the past. Because of their position, they might be likely to be targeted for attack. C-level executives, like CFOs, are frequent targets to trick employees into phishing schemes that exfiltrate money from the company. 

Data: We also need to look at the data context. What’s the classification of this data—is it sensitive? What’s the source—where did this data come from? What do we know about this data that brings the context into focus? 

Applications: Next, we look at the application level. What’s the financial viability of the application vendor? Is this an established company that resides in an approved country? Has a risk review already been completed? Financial viability, geolocation, and risk review will impact the application’s level of inherent risk. 

The maturity level of the application is another factor. Do we have a sense of how it was developed—a strong software development lifecycle process? How mature are the controls around this application? Are there any known vulnerabilities in the application itself? Compliance is also very important. If the application stores sensitive data, does it have compliance certificates (such as HIPAA, PCI, or GDPR—as applicable)? With regard to regulatory and financial compliance, has the developer had a Service Organization Control assessment done? Location is a related issue, especially when you’re talking about sensitive data or tracking GDPR compliance requirements. 

Then there’s threat intelligence. What do we have from our threat intelligence feeds to understand this application and its inherent risks? For example, the threat intel where SolarWinds software components were compromised would be relevant if this application were on that list.

In addition to the aforementioned three sources, we can look at the device—is it a managed or an unmanaged device? How vulnerable is this device? Has it been patched or do we know this to be a very unstable device because of whatever operating system or software is running? We can also look at targeted threat activities. Are there any active threats that we’ve been targeted with right now over the organization that might relate to this transaction? Because this is all in real-time, a single transaction is being adapted to all of these different inputs. 

Continuous adaptive trust and SASE

With all this relevant information assembled, we’re now looking at risks from all angles and can take smarter actions. And the information we’re using will continuously change over time to better understand the evolving risk landscape in real-time. Who’s doing it? What are they doing? Where are they? When is this occurring? And, how is it occurring? 

This kind of trust is really at the heart of SASE architecture. It connects all those different products from across the infrastructure and draws in the disparate telemetry streams in order to continuously make complex trust decisions. Using disparate security products would not provide the ability to share all the telemetry in real-time to make these risk decisions. This requires a single platform with tightly integrated services that can communicate with each other in real-time to be able to make sound risk assessments and apply the right level of control at any given moment.

This article was originally published by United States Cybersecurity Magazine

author image
James Christiansen
James Christiansen is Netskope’s vice president of cloud security transformation and leader of the Global Chief Strategy Office. He is focused on enhancing Netskope’s global clients understand the challenges and solutions of cloud deployments by helping drive thought leadership in cloud security transformation.

Stay informed!

Subscribe for the latest from the Netskope Blog