Should You Consolidate Security to Protect Your Hybrid Workforce?

In today's fast-changing world of hybrid networks and workforces, companies are at a pivotal moment for their security strategies. Everyone is exploring some form of cybersecurity transformation as legacy models show their age in the face of new threats and modern operations.

With hybrid users accessing critical corporate data in various places—public clouds, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications, on-premises data centers, and more—it’s time to question the security status quo.

The defense-in-depth strategy has long been touted as a best practice. But at this crossroads, should companies continue mixing what they deem as “best-of-breed” point products from various vendors? Or is platformization—consolidating security technologies through a single vendor—the safest choice?

If you’re reevaluating your security approach and considering a modern security strategy that safeguards operations and enhances efficiency and the user experience, then you’re in good company. Many organizations today rely on a patchwork of different vendors, and it’s becoming increasingly more difficult. They deal with complex setups that often result in trade-offs between security, performance, and user experience.

If your vendor contracts are coming up to date, this is the time to explore if the single-vendor platform approach is right for you. To help, we’ve put together this blog to introduce the topic.

Single-vendor vs. multi-vendor security

Choosing a single-vendor approach to security offers several advantages, particularly in the context of zero-trust network access (ZTNA). It provides:

• A single solution to manage that addresses the entire attack surface.
• Ensures more consistent policy application.
• Surfaces an end-to-end view and understanding of network activities.

In contrast, if you have multi-vendor security, you can have similar but siloed results. The fragmentation of solutions offers incomplete insights when you zoom out to visualize and act on your entire environment. Security teams are then tasked to stitch together information into actionable insights.

The good news is that more vendors are coming to market with a platformization approach. Gartner Analyst and VP Neil MacDonald cited a growing interest in what they call “cybersecurity mesh.” MacDonald said that 75% of security buyers are pursuing vendor consolidation, up from just 29% in 2020. However, in a talk directed toward vendors, he cautioned that the focus should be making products work better together rather than throwing capabilities together.

If vendors heed his warning, security teams will have their pick of powerful single-vendor security platforms that will eliminate either-or scenarios of security or usability. The good news is that industry leaders are already consolidating to enable businesses to transform and better align security outcomes to business needs. Three examples from our vendor partners include Prisma SASE from Palo Alto Networks, Check Point Quantum, and Zscaler’s Zero Trust Exchange. Both focus on protecting work anywhere users are, no matter how they connect, and anywhere that data is stored. Additionally, as vendors gravitate towards a platform approach, using a zero trust architecture is common. For those either required by regulations to adopt zero trust or simply interested in its many benefits, platformization offers an easier transition.

Turn your security into a business enabler.

In this time of transformation, security professionals have an opportunity to reframe protection as a business enabler. Rather than the traditional “roadblock,” security is the key to business growth and agility.

Technological advancements finally provide us with the opportunity to use security as not only a tool to keep operations on the right path but also to positively contribute to the bottom line.

With a platform approach, this looks like:

• Using automation to complete low-level, repetitive tasks, freeing analysts to do higher-level strategic work.
• Providing end-to-end visibility and insights across network traffic with automated remediation steps for faster incident response.

With the right infrastructure and technology, security can help businesses become more agile, respond swiftly to changing environments, and align with their broader business objectives. For more information, visit our partner pages.