Overcoming Obstacles To Zero Trust Adoption

Uploaded on 2024-07-30 in TECHNOLOGY--Resilience, FREE TO VIEW

In a world where cyberattacks cost the global economy $8 trillion in 2023, the urgency for organisations to adopt Zero Trust has never been greater. While Zero Trust has been a hot topic for over a decade, research reveals a number of obstacles and roadblocks stopping organisations from fully implementing it.

Entrust's 2024 State of Zero Trust & Encryption Study, conducted by the Ponemon Institute, surveyed 4,052 IT and IT security practitioners globally and revealed that while over two-thirds of organisations are implementing Zero Trust, many struggle to overcome barriers to adoption, leaving them vulnerable to devastating breaches.

The Adoption Gap

The intensifying threat landscape is a key driver behind the push for Zero Trust. Costs of cyber breaches are projected to surpass $10.5 trillion by 2025, fuelled by the alarming rise of AI-powered attacks, which saw a 31x increase between 2022 and 2023. Facing this reality, 62% of organisations have begun their Zero Trust journey.

However, despite widespread acceptance of Zero Trust, adoption is lagging in many regions, particularly the West. The study found only 48% of U.S. organisations and 44% of U.K. organisations are implementing Zero Trust, compared to 73% in Japan and 72% in Singapore. This leaves many organisations exposed to escalating threats. So, what's holding organisations back from fully embracing Zero Trust?

Skills Shortage Stifling Progress

The Ponemon study identifies a lack of in-house expertise as the top challenge, cited by 47% of respondents globally and 60% in the U.S. The cybersecurity skills shortage has been a persistent issue for years, with organisations struggling to find and retain the talent needed to manage a robust digital security practice - including Zero Trust. This gap is a major barrier to progress, leaving security teams overwhelmed and under-resourced.

Budget Woes & Leadership Disconnect

Inadequate budget and resources are major roadblocks, with 46% of respondents citing insufficient personnel as a key challenge in implementing Zero Trust. This is despite 60% of organisations reporting senior leadership support for Zero Trust initiatives. The disconnect is further highlighted by the fact that lack of adequate budget was consistently reported as a top obstacle across the U.S., UK, Canada, and Germany. This suggests that while CISOs have buy-in from the top, it hasn't translated financial commitments to drive successful implementations. Without sufficient resources, Zero Trust projects can stall, leaving organisations vulnerable.

Charting A Path

While these barriers present significant challenges, they are not insurmountable. By understanding key obstacles to adoption, organisations can develop targeted strategies to overcome them. Let's explore some practical approaches to bridge the gap between Zero Trust aspirations and successful implementation.
Invest in People

Organisations must prioritise investing in their people. This means allocating resources for hiring talent with Zero Trust expertise, as well as providing comprehensive training and upskilling opportunities for existing staff. By developing a robust internal pipeline, organisations can build the expertise needed to drive successful implementations.

Establish Ownership

Implementing a Zero Trust strategy requires coordinated effort across the entire organisation. Without clear lines of ownership and responsibility, initiatives can lose momentum or create unidentified gaps which put organisations at risk.

To ensure accountability, organisations must establish a dedicated Zero Trust leadership team, with representation from key stakeholders such as IT, security, operations, and business units.

This team should be responsible for defining the Zero Trust vision, setting goals and milestones, and overseeing implementation.

Leverage AI & Automation

By deploying technologies like machine learning, behavioural analytics, and automated response, organisations can enhance the effectiveness of their Zero Trust controls. For example, AI-powered identity verification can help detect and prevent fraudulent access attempts in real-time, while automated policy enforcement can ensure consistent application of Zero Trust principles across the enterprise.

Optimise Vendor Ecosystems

Zero Trust cannot be achieved through a single product or solution. It is a holistic approach that requires diverse technologies and tools. While best-of-breed solutions offer specialised capabilities, they can introduce complexity and integration challenges. To strike a balance, organisations must carefully evaluate vendor ecosystems and seek out solutions that seamlessly integrate with existing infrastructure. This may involve consolidating vendors to reduce management overhead and costs. At the same time, organisations should prioritise vendors that offer comprehensive Zero Trust capabilities, such as secure access, multi-factor authentication, and continuous monitoring.

The Risks Of Inaction

In today’s cyber landscape, risks of inaction are too high to ignore. With hackers, system malfunctions, and unmanaged certificates topping the list of breach concerns for CISOs, delaying Zero Trust adoption could have catastrophic consequences.

Breaking down the barriers to adoption is not just a security imperative – it's a business necessity. By prioritising Zero Trust, investing in people and tools, and committing to continuous improvement, organisations can build the resilience needed to thrive in an era of relentless threats.

Samantha Mabey is Director of Digital Security Solutions at Entrust

Image: Ideogram

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