We have been perfecting information security safeguards for fifty years, yet organizations are more at risk than ever. Why? Because the definition of the “network” has fundamentally shifted. We’ve replaced the “everything inside the firewall” network model with an amorphous patchwork of public, private and carrier clouds.
Furthermore, endpoints now include smartphones, tablets and devices like cars, thermostats and even industrial equipment: Devices which now connect from anywhere in the world, mostly outside your firewall.
Traditional network security focused on hardening the edges of the network. Safeguards like firewalls and access solutions at the outer edge and anti-virus and anti-malware at the inner edge — the endpoint.
But what does “edge” even mean in a network comprised of multiple data centers, dozens of public and private clouds, three or four carrier networks and endpoints that include smartphones and tablets?
The cloud is now the center of your network. It is the last stop for traffic entering and the first stop for traffic leaving your organization. The cloud is where you need to implement the security that protects your valuable information and compute infrastructure.
In short, the cloud is your new edge.