The key to modernising IT security

The key to modernising IT security

With an increasing cyberthreat level and continued moves towards hybrid working, organisations face the ever-present challenge of meeting their cybersecurity needs. We hear from Helen Kruger, CEO of Troye, regarding ways to ensure a secure hybrid working environment without slowing business productivity.

Helen Kruger, CEO, Troye

The attack surface is expanding fast as more employees start working from more locations and apps move to the cloud. One of the biggest challenges is that many traditional IT solutions are not capable of protecting against the latest cybersecurity threats.

Businesses need a modern security approach to keep data secure, no matter where people work or what devices they use. They must keep apps and data protected while still fuelling employee productivity.

Many company’s cybersecurity efforts are becoming overly complex and most IT teams are juggling too many security tools to be operationally effective. Inefficient security policies can lead to a poor user experience, the kind that turns routine tasks into tedious, time-consuming processes. More importantly, it’s more than just corporate apps and data that are at risk.

It is time to find a better way to support secure hybrid work, without slowing down productivity.

Enable secure access from anywhere

IT leaders are adopting hybrid work models, this means users are working on networks IT can’t secure, with devices that aren’t managed – a big risk for companies that rely on network-centric solutions like traditional VPN. Insider threats are a major concern, with many having already experienced a ransomware attack or breach.

Businesses can continually monitor each individual session with a modern alternative to VPN. Citrix offers a zero-trust network access (ZTNA) solution that lets IT automatically apply security controls based on user risk scores, locations and device posture.

Citrix DaaS also has built-in policy controls that add an extra layer of security to keep data protected across devices, locations and networks. Employees have seamless access to the resources they need, while you keep threats away from your network.

Secure all applications

There are an average of 40 to 60 apps in use by each department in an organisation. As apps increase, so do the complexities. Each service can have its own authentication method, which not only confuses users but is also difficult for IT to configure.

Furthermore, with 92% of organisations hosting at least some of their IT environment in the cloud, the risk of a breach is high. They need a better way to secure those apps, no matter where they’re hosted or how they’re deployed. Citrix Web App and API Protection enables businesses to do this, easily protecting the entire environment against known and zero-day attacks with application Security- As-a-Service.

Find and stop threats faster

The potential for compromised accounts is everywhere, especially as employees work from more locations and as apps move to the cloud. And considering the high cost of a breach, businesses cannot afford a single overlooked threat. Citrix offers solutions to give IT a complete picture of all network traffic, users, files and endpoints.

Taking inputs from Citrix Secure Private Access and Citrix DaaS, Citrix Analytics for Security lets one identify and automatically respond to suspicious activity. With a personalised risk score assigned to each user based on behaviour, one can stay ahead of both internal and external threats long before they lead to breaches.

Keep compliance in check

Businesses also need to stay ahead of the latest regulations and they need to meet strict industry standards. Citrix solutions use adaptive authentication to determine who gets access to what based on job roles, locations and devices.

For example, one can lock down confidential customer data when a mobile device leaves the job site or one might decide to turn off specific services, such as copying and pasting, based on compliance checks throughout each session.

One could even record the on-screen activity of any user session, over any type of connection, to monitor as needed based on industry requirements. These and other security features from Citrix DaaS and Citrix Secure Private Access make it remarkably easy for companies to meet even the toughest requirements including POPIA and GDPR.

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