How Did We Go From SD-WAN to SASE to SSE?

A decade ago, enterprise branch offices had a primary connection (usually MPLS) to the data center and other internal sites. Some large or high-value locations utilized multiple connections or backup links during outages. Then Viptela introduced the software-defined wan or SD-WAN. One of the benefits of SD-WAN was that it enabled the use of active paths across multiple disparate types of transport. Whereas hardware-based networks are slower and harder to connect to additional remote locations. It accomplished this by creating an overlay network on top…

Solve Your Remote Workforce Needs in a Snap with ADEM

Secure access service edge (SASE), a category defined by Gartner in 2019, represents the blueprint of the networking and security architecture of the future.  The SASE model consolidates many networking and security functions traditionally delivered in siloed point solutions–into a single, integrated cloud service. Many vendors have slapped the term SASE onto their current offerings without truly providing the upside of a SASE platform. IT leaders also have to take into consideration that deploying an infrastructure with SASE principles will not, on its own, ensure…

How a Leading Healthcare Provider prioritizes User Experience in their SASE Approach

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) represents the network and security architecture blueprint of the future, consolidating many networking and security point solutions into a single, integrated cloud service.  The ability to monitor end user experience across a SASE architecture is critical. Here’s one company’s story of how they used digital experience monitoring to gain visibility across their SASE architecture.  Leading Provider of Healthcare Coverage for 80+ Years Leading the way in supporting patient-focused care, this health insurance provider delivers coverage to more than 700,000 customers….

Zero Trust: An Overnight Sensation Decades Later

Introduction Years after the term was coined by Stephen Paul Marsh in 1994 and popularized by John Kindervag more than a decade ago, Zero Trust has become the “new” security solution that addresses the confluence of today’s three critical factors and the emergence of what amounts to a cyber-war on businesses and governments. Zero Trust switches the focus from outward-facing defense of a network perimeter to prevention of unauthorized exfiltration of data and other exploits. This short work looks at why it has become virtually…

Zero Trust: The Critical Essence – An Introduction

On January 12, 2010 Google wrote a blog revealing to the world that it had been breached by attackers sponsored by a nation state.  The attack is now known as ‘Operation Aurora’.[i] Subsequent investigations showed that many other enterprises and government organizations had also been breached by the same attackers.  Among other things, these hackers were targeting source code repositories via software configuration management systems.  Any entity that had already breached perimeter network security and had created a presence on an internal system could reach…