As organizations seek to modernize their network architectures to take advantage of SaaS and Cloud architectures and a distributed workforce, there is a rapid expansion of the cyber attack surface they face. This is becoming increasingly challenging as organizations grapple with an increasingly complex set of security frameworks to manage the situation.
To overcome these challenges, organizations have implemented specialized tools to optimize IT operations and strengthen cybersecurity. However, using multiple tools often results in data silos 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 analysis
Data is the lifeblood of many modern workplaces, and because of the sheer volumes generated by businesses, unlocking its value can sometimes mean the difference between success and failure. Configurable data platforms enable real-time, actionable insights that enable decision-making across functions, from improving customer experiences to optimizing supply chains.
While these tools significantly benefit business operations, organizations must handle data responsibly to comply with regulations such as GDPR and avoid costly fines, as evidenced by Meta’s €1.2 billion fine. As data creation vector volumes increase, so does the risk of breaches, requiring a comprehensive security strategy that protects data from inception to storage, across public and private networks in both cloud and on-premise environments. By implementing robust governance frameworks and advanced security controls, companies can unleash the potential of their data while mitigating escalating threats.
Eliminating silos 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 management becomes more difficult. This is largely because data must be protected from the moment it is created, through its use, through analytics, through its storage and archiving, to its ultimate destruction.
The rise of hybrid working has significantly expanded the attack surface, with endpoints, cloud-native applications and on-site devices all requiring robust security. Organizations that still rely on siled security tools are in a precarious position, as the gaps in visibility between disparate solutions can hinder the ability to apply effective data management and security policies at the granular level now required.
This lack of unified visibility and control not only hinders the efficiency of attack detection, but also slows incident response times when vulnerabilities arise. This is where implementing solutions in a single-stack networking and security solution provides a streamlined approach. For example, many organizations rely solely on Software Defined Wide Area Networks (SD-WAN). This poses security risks when deployed without a supporting cloud security architecture such as Secure Service Edge (SSE), where both come together under the Secure Access Services Edge (SASE) framework and more specifically SASE with a single vendor can deliver operational gains.
Gartner recognizes this and predicts that by 2027, 65% of SD-WAN deployments will be part of a single vendor SASE offering. This approach is critical because a single-stack SASE solution, backed by Zero Trust Network Access, covers all bases from the endpoint to the cloud, combining the on-site capabilities of SD-WAN with cloud security. This ensures that data is kept securely throughout the entire process. This not only mitigates the security risks associated with hybrid and remote working, but also provides a powerful analytics suite that can combine security insights from the user, application, device and network to help strengthen an organization’s security posture.
The appeal of consolidated IT operations
Consolidating IT operations in this way addresses many modern workflow challenges. First, it simplifies network management using a central, easy-to-manage platform. Second, it allows them to more easily apply policies and configurations across the entire network. Where siled security tools make detecting and responding to attack surfaces more difficult, a single-stack solution effectively streamlines the process, accelerating essential IT security workflows such as incident response.
Beyond the tech stack, consolidating activities within a single framework can be cost-efficient as it reduces the need for multiple unsynchronized tools. Furthermore, this eases the pressure on IT teams, which are increasingly under pressure. By 2024, IBM found that half of organizations experiencing breaches were experiencing severe staffing shortages. Optimizing key processes, such as monitoring and management, through a central dashboard makes everything visible in one place, allowing organizations to effectively manage their resources and respond to incidents more efficiently.
This streamlined approach also extends to practical policy applications. With many companies operating internationally, maintaining operations and supply chains on an international scale has become increasingly difficult without a strong, unified policy management process. A single, streamlined platform makes this easier, simplifying the approach to different compliance standards, preventing financial penalties or loss of reputation.
Visibility is key
Navigating technical changes in today’s digital landscape is challenging, especially with the growing reliance on cloud environments. Organizations must cut through the noise of disparate tools and data sources to effectively manage modern network operations and address operational and security challenges that often exceed internal capabilities.
As the attack surface expands, visibility has become critical to effective network management. Organizations must move from siled security and IT tools to 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 domain. Early adopters of this model can build resilient networks while improving data management and compliance.
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