What is Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)?

Enterprises today are grappling with a growing range of security threats, from safeguarding remote workforces to protecting cloud infrastructures. The traditional perimeter-based security model is no longer functional. Once a hacker gains access, it is relatively easy for them to exploit internal network weaknesses. According to IBM’s 2023 X-Force Threat Intelligence Index, attacks leveraging stolen or compromised credentials increased year over year by 71%. Besides this, 32% of cyber incidents today involve data theft and leakage, confirming that attackers are moving from encryption for ransom to exfiltration and selling. These breaches generally begin inside an account or from unauthorized access through trusted devices.

Zero Trust Network Access acts as the solution in this tide of increasing security concerns. It examines every user and device no matter which part of the network they log into, helping decrease an organization’s risk from insider threats and unauthorized access to sensitive data. In this article, we will discuss the basic concepts of ZTNA, how it works, why businesses should adopt the technology, and how this tech stacks up against traditional VPNs. We will also provide practical zero-trust network access examples of use cases and steps to implement ZTNA within your organization.

What is Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)?

Zero Trust Network Access is a cybersecurity approach where no user or device, by default, is trusted, whether the user or device is inside or outside the network. As opposed to traditional security models, which assume users within the network perimeter are trustworthy, ZTNA verifies a user’s or device’s identity and access rights with each connection and repeatedly afterward before granting permission to access resources. Thus, only authenticated and authorized users can access certain resources.

Did you know that 68% of IT decision-makers believe that secure cloud transformation is impossible with legacy network security infrastructures? This statistic indicates a strong preference for ZTNA over traditional firewalls and VPNs for remote access. It also underlines the fact that the adoption of ZTNA as a security strategy has become a need for businesses to deal effectively with modern cybersecurity challenges and support digital transformation efforts.

Need for Zero Trust Network Access

With the proliferation of cloud solutions and remote workforces, traditional security models have fallen short in catering to modern challenges. In this section, we will outline the main reasons why zero-trust network access is a core requisite for enterprises today.

1. Securing Remote Workforces: While remote work is here to stay in the current business landscape, it also presents considerable security risks. In a survey conducted by Gartner last year, 45% of all organizations experienced third-party-related business disruptions because of a cybersecurity breach. ZTNA helps mitigate such risks through tight access controls for remote workers, ensuring that only properly authenticated and verified users can access sensitive company resources.
2. Security of Cloud Environments: As businesses move critical data to the cloud, the protection of these environments has become critical. Traditional perimeter-based security controls cannot efficiently secure multi-cloud environments. In contrast, zero-trust network access solutions provide consistent protection during the identity authentication of users and devices trying to access cloud resources across all cloud platforms.
3. Insider Threats: Insider threats, whether accidental or deliberate, remain one of the major concerns for any given business. Micro-segmentation and principles of least privilege in ZTNA’s approach ensure that internal employees also access data only to the extent required by their specific jobs, thereby further reducing the possibility of breaches.
4. Management of Third-Party Access: Most organizations use third-party vendors, contractors, and partners, where access to data is actually increased. ZTNA works to minimize these risks because of its strict access controls for third-party users. Each request will get authenticated and narrowed down to the specific resources required, therefore reducing the attack surface.
5. Ensuring Compliance and Regulatory Requirements: Industry regulations, including GDPR and HIPAA, even mandate severe controls over data access. ZTNA offers organizations an opportunity to meet such specifications through granular logs of access, real-time monitoring of sessions, and strong mechanisms for identity verification.

ZTNA vs VPN: What’s the Difference?

Before diving deep into the technical aspects of ZTNA, let’s compare and contrast the conceptual differences with traditional VPN solutions. VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) are a necessity for remote work security solutions, but there are certain inherent vulnerabilities in them that must not be ignored. This is because VPNs work on the principle of giving a user complete access over the network once authenticated, thus opening up doors for unauthorized lateral movement in case of account or device compromise. In contrast, ZTNA grants access to resources based on user identity and roles, hence at minimal risks.

Let’s look at the key differences between the two:

So, what have we learned after analyzing the table? In ZTNA, access is highly granular, and only authenticated users have access to a particular resource. This reduces lateral movement inside the network. VPNs give full access to users once they are authenticated, which makes it easy for attackers to spread within the network once access is gained. Furthermore, ZTNA can better scale to cloud environments since it allows for dynamic changes in user locations and devices.

Another key difference between ZTNA and VPN is delivered through monitoring. Zero trust network access solutions include continuous monitoring and verification of user access, providing much better insight into who is accessing what resources in real time. Usually, VPNs allow only limited real-time monitoring, which leaves vast gaps for attackers to take advantage of. By understanding these differences businesses can make a decision to go with either of these solutions as per their security needs.

Types of Zero Trust Network Access Solutions

Zero trust network access solutions have various types that are suitable for different security needs. Be it for an organization that prefers a cloud-native approach or wants to integrate ZTNA into the infrastructure on-premise, there is a ZTNA solution for every organizational need. Below are key types of ZTNA solutions.

1. Agent-Based ZTNA: Agent-based ZTNA solutions require software installation on the user’s device. Agents check the identity of users and then enforce the security policies that are required for access. This approach of ZTNA provides full visibility into what users do and allows for stronger access controls, hence offering effective endpoint protection against the most sensitive resources. It is particularly well-suited for organizations with strict device management policies.
2. Agentless ZTNA: Agentless ZTNA solutions grant network access without needing to install any software agents on the devices. This is quite efficient for any organization that intends to give safe access to third-party vendors without installing agents on each unmanaged device. It works well with web applications and SaaS platforms, hence suitable in an environment that values ease of access with no compromise on security.
3. Cloud-Native ZTNA: Cloud-native ZTNA solutions are suitable for organizations that operate across multiple cloud environments. It also provides seamless security across all platforms, maintaining the same access policies while users access public, private, or hybrid clouds. This is why they are best suited for businesses undergoing digital transformation with distributed cloud infrastructure.
4. Hybrid ZTNA: Hybrid ZTNA combines cloud-based and on-premise components. Several organizations operating in a mix of legacy and modern cloud platforms use hybrid ZTNA to ensure their security across both environments. This allows flexibility in managing traditional data centers and cloud applications while assuring security policy adaptability for various needs of complex IT infrastructures.

How Does Zero Trust Network Access Work?

Zero trust network access does more than just the validation of identities. Zero trust network access architecture consists of different sets of processes working cohesively in order to secure access to resources dynamically.

From users’ continuous authentication down to micro-segmentation, ZTNA ensures that access is allowed on a need basis and every request gets validated. So, now let’s proceed with how ZTNA works: 

1. User Authentication: Authentication of the user is the first and foremost step in zero trust network access. In most cases, ZTNA first verifies a user’s identity using multi-factor authentication. This method makes sure that when one accesses their credentials, an additional layer of verification must be granted to have the resources.
2. Device Verification: ZTNA authenticates not just users but devices as well. It ensures that only those devices that are approved and secure will be provided access to sensitive company data. If you have a device that does not meet the security standards, then such a device will be denied access.
3. Least-Privilege Access Principle: ZTNA bases its theory on the concept of least-privilege access. Users can simply access those resources which are required for their role. This minimizes the probability of sensitive information being accessed unauthorized even in the event of compromising a user’s credentials.
4. Micro-segmentation: ZTNA divides the network into micro-segments, each with its own set of access controls. This makes it very difficult for cybercriminals to laterally move around the network, even if they do manage to gain access to some part of it.
5. Continuous Monitoring: With continuous monitoring of user activities and a comprehensive view of network access, ZTNA automatically revokes access or triggers alerts to ensure that threats are neutralized long before they can cause harm if it detect any unusual behavior.

Implementing  Zero Trust Network Access: Step-by-Step Guide

Implementing zero trust network access (ZTNA) requires careful planning and alignment with an organization’s security strategy. A well-executed ZTNA deployment can address critical security vulnerabilities while offering a scalable solution for future needs. This guide will walk you through the essential steps for the successful implementation of zero-trust network access architecture.

1. User, Device, and Digital Asset Identification: Implementation of ZTNA starts with the development of an inventory of all users, devices, and digital assets requiring network access. An inventory catalog helps to identify what exactly needs protection and determines the definition of access controls. Create an inventory of employees, contractors, and third-party vendors with access to your network. Note their jobs, levels of access, and information required. Further, do the same for each device, either company-owned or personal, via BYOD policies,  and assess the security posture of the devices so that proper permission access is granted in a segmented manner.
2. Zero Trust Policies: Defining zero trust policies comes next after creating a proper inventory. These are the foundations of your ZTNA framework that will decide methods of authenticating users and devices to grant or deny access. Develop explicit rules regarding how network traffic and various forms of access requests are handled. Clearly articulate what good behavior in your network looks like so that all access can be compared to those standards. Setting out these policies ensures that they align with core security principles prior to actually designing your zero-trust architecture.
3. Design your architecture for Zero Trust: Once the policies are defined, the actual architecture that enforces your zero trust strategy can be designed. This architecture will form the backbone for setting your network’s security posture. Key to this design is micro-segmentation, the idea of your network being broken up into a series of smaller, independent segments with their security controls in place. By closing off each segment from its neighbors, you minimize the amount of lateral movement an attacker could accomplish upon breaching a network and hence contain the threat within a particular area of the network.
4. Implementing Zero Trust Network Access: This is the next phase after successful architecture design in which one implements ZTNA across a network by authenticating every access request based on criteria that include device security, user location, and resources being accessed. Incorporate authentication protocols such as MFA and context-aware access controls that allow, in real-time, the permissions level to be changed based on the situation. This means at any given time, verified and authorized users are the ones gaining access to valuable resources.
5. Continuous Monitoring and Changes: Implementation of ZTNA isn’t something that is done once and forgotten. It requires continuous monitoring, or the network will not stay secure. Periodically assess user activity and device behavior for any anomalies that might indicate a threat. Leverage analytics tools to gain insight into network traffic and user behavior to inform and facilitate an optimized ZTNA strategy. Regular reviews and updates of your zero trust policies are part of active lifecycle management that keeps them sharp in view of emerging threats and risks.

Benefits of Implementing Zero Trust Network Access

Besides improving the security posture of an organization, zero-trust network access solutions offer a variety of benefits, including operational efficiency, cost savings, compliance, and more. The following are five key benefits that businesses can achieve by adopting ZTNA:

1. All-round better security: ZTNA provides continuous verification of users and devices to ensure that only authorized users are granted access to resources. This involves the elimination of inherently trusted network location-based access, reducing unauthorized access.
2. Scalability: Zero trust network access architecture makes scaling security for large distributed workforces easier on multiple cloud environments. As your organization grows, scale without hassle and expand ZTNA to secure both new users and devices. Due to these capabilities, ZTNA is an ideal choice for small businesses and large enterprises alike.
3. Improved User Experience: ZTNA enables a much better user experience with easier, more standard, secure access enabled by technologies such as Single sign-on (SSO) and multi-factor authentication (MFA). Employees can have seamless and secure access to the resources they need to do their jobs, which in turn makes them more productive.
4. Lower Operational Costs: ZTNA does not require the expensive hardware along with the maintenance that most systems require for their security. The software-based model minimizes the operational overhead, becoming an economically efficient alternative for businesses to manage the security infrastructure.
5. Regulatory Compliance: ZTNA supports an organization’s regulatory requirements since it is embedded with detailed access controls and activity logging. Continuous user verification and real-time monitoring support the compliance requirements of industry standards such as GDPR and HIPAA, making audits well-managed.

Challenges and Considerations for Adopting ZTNA

ZTNA brings in some significant benefits but also has its share of challenges that an organization needs to go through for complete implementation, ranging from compatibility with legacy systems to various other expenses involved in deploying new security tools. So, let’s look at 5 common challenges businesses must consider before adopting zero-trust network access solutions:

1. Dis-integration of complex information with legacy systems: Integrating ZTNA may not be seamless for organizations that have to deal with legacy systems. Most of these legacy systems will not offer the flexibility required for dynamic access control and, therefore, cannot implement full ZTNA without upgrading or customizing existing infrastructure. A hybrid approach may thus be necessary in the short term.
2. High Initial Costs: Although ZTNA reduces the total costs in the long run, its implementation is very expensive in the short term. Organizations are required to invest in new technologies, training, and integration of ZTNA with their existing systems. However, the upfront cost may be justified by the reduced risk from breaches and compliance violations.
3. User experience concerns: One downside of ZTNA is that continuous verification impacts the workflow of the organization if it is not implemented properly. Solutions must always strike a balance between security and users. Adaptive multi-factor authentication allows for smooth workflows while securing the user’s end.
4. Vendor Lock-In: Some ZTNA solutions may restrict your flexibility by gluing you to their proprietary ecosystem, making a change in providers or integrating with other tools an intricate procedure. Each company should make sure to focus on interoperable ZTNA solutions and avoid those that provide nothing more than proprietary lock-in.
5. Ongoing Management and Monitoring: ZTNA requires continuous monitoring and regular updates to keep it updated with the latest security standards. Automation reduces the management burden but does not eliminate the need for business resources to oversee the system and update policies as threats evolve.

Best Practices for Deploying Zero Trust Network Access

When deploying zero trust network access (ZTNA), following best practices is essential to maximize security and efficiency. Successful implementation requires more than just the basics—it involves advanced strategies to ensure continuous protection and adaptability. By adopting these practices, organizations can enhance their network defenses, limit potential threats, and ensure secure access for users across all environments.

1. Context-Aware Access Controls: Context-aware access controls dynamically change user permissions based on current user location, time of access, or device health. An example would be if a user is accessing resources in a new geographic location, this can be immediately flagged for additional authentication steps. Context-based security ensures access decisions are categorically set according to various risk factors without burdening users with over-security measures.
2. Behavioral Analytics for Anomaly Detection: Acquire insight from behavioral analytics to establish a baseline of normal user behavior and network activity. ZTNA can integrate with machine learning algorithms, which analyze abnormal traffic that stands in contrast with typical patterns. For instance, a user accessing sensitive data outside of working hours or on devices they do not usually use. The security team can then flag these anomalies to identify and quickly respond to insider threats or compromised accounts.
3. Just-in-Time (JIT) Access: Use JIT access controls to give users access to resources only when needed and for a limited timeframe. Once the task is completed, access is automatically revoked. This reduces the window of opportunity for cyber attackers and ensures users aren’t left with persistent access to sensitive resources.
4. Discovery of Shadow IT and Integration: Shadow IT is generally defined as applications and devices being utilized within the enterprise without the knowledge of the IT department. Zero trust network access solutions can identify these and integrate unauthorized applications into the security framework, ensuring that even resources considered shadow IT are taken into account for access control and risk assessment policies.
5. Data in Motion and at Rest Encryption: While ZTNA secures access to resources, another best practice involves implementing end-to-end encryption for all data in transit or at rest. This means that even in the event of interception or unauthorized access, the information cannot be used. Secure communications among devices, users, and applications, which further reduce the possibility of a data breach.
6. Integration with Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR): Integrate ZTNA with Endpoint Detection and Response systems to enhance endpoint security. EDR solutions such as SentinelOne’s SIngularity™ platform continuously monitor endpoint activities to detect and respond to threats in real time. This, along with access control by ZTNA, ensures that even in the case of an endpoint compromise, malware spread, or data exfiltration is contained and mitigated as soon as possible.
7. Continuous Device Posture Assessment: Conduct real-time device posture assessments, which check devices against organizational security policy before granting access. Checks can include, but are not limited to, proper patching, antivirus protection, and encryption. Devices that fall short of the minimum security standards can be flagged for remediation, ensuring that only secure devices can connect to the network.
8. Automation of Least Privilege Access: Automate least-privilege access policies through the use of a Role-based access control (RBAC) and attribute-based access control (ABAC) framework. These automatically assign permissions by dynamically shifting user roles based on their role, department, or project requirements—in other words, enforcing role changes over time. Automated approaches guarantee that no account with over-permitted privileges will be left unmanaged.

ZTNA Use Cases

ZTNA is applied comprehensively to enhance security. This concept is well-applicable in different scenarios. Below are six practical use cases that clearly show how organizations can make use of ZTNA in protecting their networks and data.

1. Security of Workforce Working from Homes: ZTNA is an ideal choice for organizations to maintain the security of a remote workforce, in which access to resources can be provided only to the ones required by the employee. With increasing remote work, zero-trust network access architecture can ensure that offsite workers securely gain access to critical company data without creating exposure of their entire network to threats.
2. Secure Applications in the Cloud: ZTNA works perfectly with cloud environments and will be one of the best solutions for companies using SaaS platforms or cloud-based services. ZTNA ensures that users can only gain access to specific cloud applications, reducing the chance of data exposure. It also provides seamless security across public, private, and hybrid cloud infrastructures.
3. Third-Party Vendor Access: Many businesses involve third-party vendors, contractors, and business partners who apply different services. ZTNA makes sure that external users have strict access to basic principles by only giving access to resources without the exposure of sensitive data. It limits third-party access to minimize potential attack vectors introduced through external entities.
4. Complying with the Regulatory Standards: ZTNA helps an organization maintain regulatory compliances such as GDPR, HIPAA, and PCI DSS through tight access control and comprehensive audit trails, minimizing the risk of fines for non-compliance and audit processes. Real-time monitoring ensures that any deviations from compliance standards are promptly addressed.
5. Critical Infrastructure Protection: ZTNA can also be utilized in the protection of OT systems within organizations dealing in critical infrastructures, such as utilities or manufacturing plants. This ensures that only authorized people access sensitive systems, reducing the possibility of sabotage or cyberattacks. By isolating critical systems, ZTNA further protects against external and internal threats.
6. Insider Threats Mitigation: With ZTNA, micro-segmentation and least-privilege access controls limit what insiders can access, reducing both types of insider threats—malicious and accidental. ZTNA detects and mitigates suspicious behavior through continuous verification of user activity. This helps to prevent data leaks by enforcing strict access policies based on real-time behavior analysis.

How can SentinelOne help?

SentinelOne Singularity™ Identity provides proactive, intelligent, and real-time defenses for your identity infrastructure attack surfaces. It reduces identity risks across the enterprise; you can detect and respond to in-progress attacks, and deceive in-network adversaries with holistic solutions for Active Directory and Entra ID. Misdirect adversaries and overly curious insiders are actively present in your network with high-interaction decoys, then maximize the resulting telemetry for further investigation and attacker intelligence.

Secure your assets with AI-powered EPP, EDR, and XDR across the cloud with SentinelOne. Centralize data and turn it into actionable insights using Singularity™ Data Lake. Purple AI is the world’s most advanced AI security analyst that can help you implement Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA). You can accelerate SecOps with it and see it in action. For complete enterprise-wide integrated security, use Singularity™ Platform.

You can also use other SentinelOne products to enhance your ZTNA practices. To learn how book a free live demo.

Conclusion

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) is swiftly becoming the standard for modern network security. By continuously verifying user identities and applying least-privilege access principles, ZTNA minimizes the risk of breaches, insider threats, and unauthorized access. For businesses looking to secure their cloud, remote workforces, and third-party relationships, ZTNA provides a comprehensive solution that adapts to today’s dynamic environments.

As such, with the shift to ZTNA, the need to balance scalability with security becomes a priority. This is where the compatibility of SentinelOne’s Singularity™ AI-powered platform comes into play, which ensures sandboxing, continuous protection with automated threat responses, and handles integrations without any complications. In the end, the decision is yours to make, so consider this guide as a first step to build a better security posture for your organization. For more information on how SentinelOne can help with zero-trust principles within your organization, contact us now!

FAQs

1. What is Zero Trust access in network security?

Zero Trust in network security is a security model wherein no user or device, whether inside or outside of the network, is trusted by default. For any access request, rigorous identification and authentication should be provided and users shall get only the minimum access they need to accomplish their role. This limits or reduces the attack surface with insider threats and unauthorized sensitive data disclosure.

2. How do I set up zero trust network access?

Some of the key steps to establishing zero trust network access include measuring your current network and identifying where ZTNA can help enhance security. As a next step, implement MFA and micro-segmentation to divide the network into smaller, secure segments. Finally, continuous network activity monitoring should be in sync with updates in the access policies according to emergent threats.

3. What are the zero trust network access pillars?

The main pillars of zero trust network access are continuous identity verification, least privilege access, micro-segmentation, and real-time monitoring. All these approaches are put together to ensure that only authorized users can access resources, thereby preventing any kind of breach and reducing the damage a compromised account could carry out.

4. How does ZTNA differ from a traditional VPN?

With ZTNA, each user needs to be granted least-privilege access and is under constant verification, while in traditional VPNs, users have full network access once authenticated. ZTNA works in a way that access is granted only to certain resources based on the user’s role, which diminishes the capabilities for lateral movement across the network and better secure cloud environments and workforces operating remotely.

5. What are the main advantages of using Zero Trust Network Access?

Key benefits of ZTNA adoption include enforced security through constant verification, higher scalability in cloud environments, reduced attack surface via the implementation of least privilege access, and improved user experience through seamless access controls. ZTNA helps an organization meet regulatory requirements because of its robust access control and activity monitoring feature.