Part 1: Introduction to Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

 Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

There is a need to secure most of the applications as attacks happen on a regular basis, and ZTNA is a good solution for this.

A zero-trust network access solution (ZTNA) is a network access management solution that creates logical access boundaries based on user identities and context.

Several named entities have access to the applications via a trust broker, which is hidden from discovery. Brokers check that specified participants' identities, contexts, and policy adherences are appropriate before granting access. They also prevent lateral movement within the network.

Fig 1.1- ZTNA

Thus, assets associated with an application are hidden from public view, reducing the surface area for attack.

If ZTNA is used, a user can only gain access to a specific application or resource after being authenticated to the ZTNA service.

A secure, encrypted tunnel allows the user access to a specific application after the user has been authenticated by the ZTNA. This adds another layer of security protection by shielding applications and services from IP addresses that would otherwise be visible.

Where to use ZTNA ?

Access & Authentication: Based on a user's unique ID, ZTNA provides highly granular access controls. Once authorized, IP-based VPN access allows broad access to all network resources, while ZTNA allows limited, granular access to specific resources and applications.

It can restrict access to resources through location- or device-specific policies, which may be more secure than VPNs that grant employee-owned devices the same administrative privileges as on-premises admins. Access to resources through ZTNA is superior to that through VPNs that grant employee-owned devices the same administrative privileges as on-premises administrators.

Control and visibility across the board: Due to ZTNA's inability to inspect user traffic after authentication, it may become an issue if a malicious user uses their login credentials for nefarious purposes or if a lost or stolen user account is used.

An organization can achieve the security, scalability, and networking capabilities for secure remote access that ZTNA provides, as well as reduce the risk of data loss, malicious action, or compromised user credentials, by integrating ZTNA into a secure access service edge (SASE) solution.