If our friends Security and Networking were on Facebook, they would probably both list their relationship status as “It’s Complicated.” Sometimes everything’s great, but now and then things can get a little weird, unclear, or uncomfortable.
At many organizations, there has traditionally been a barrier between the security and networking teams. Each team has its own objectives — and at times, those objectives can be at cross-purposes. Enforcing security affects the networking team’s ability to do its job and serve user demands. At the same time, the needs and expectations of networking also have a direct impact on the security team. This friction can cause networking and security to butt heads. This conflict can cost companies real money and put digital transformation projects at risk.
Over the last year, that friction has generated some extra heat. With networking teams scrambling to support remote workforces during the COVID-19 pandemic, security teams were tasked with the dual responsibilities of helping enable business continuity while also protecting their organizations from opportunistic attacks. This heightened state of tension in the networking/security relationship isn’t going away.
Different teams with different needs
The networking team has traditionally been tasked with providing the connectivity so end users can access the resources they need. To keep users happy and business productive, the network has to be reliably available and fast.
At the same time, the security team needs to