SASE is a go-to option for a network security framework for various reasons. First, it is easy to implement, operate, and deploy in a system to ensure adequate data protection.
People get increasingly conversant with it yearly, and the demand keeps rising. IT organizations enjoy many benefits from deploying the framework in their company as it requires reduced IT maintenance and helps to incorporate more remote work patterns.
Upon its 2019 introduction, SASE brought a whole new level of efficiency, user-friendliness, and security to companies around the globe. And within its few years of being introduced, it has grown to become one of the most popular and reliable security frameworks on the market.
What Is SASE Exactly?
SASE meaning Secure Access Service Edge is a cloud-delivering network security solution that incorporates multiple security components into a single, potent management system. SASE combines WAN services (Software-Defined WAN) with other network security services like Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB), Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), Secure Web Gateways (SWG), Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW), and Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS). Click here to learn more about SASE.
This brilliant combination ensures an effective, secure network across distributed enterprise locations and resources. One of the critical features of the SASE model is the ability to identify devices and users on WAN and grant access to requests based on security protocols regardless of the users’ location.
As technology solutions continue to improve, it impacts productivity in the business world. Also, the professional sector ultimately begins to see the best environment and private and public organizations. Having top-level solutions like SASE is essential to offer strict security to the data and resources of any business.
Unlike years back when information and data were only stored on hard drives, the cloud-based system is now undoubtedly one of the most effective and widely embraced options for IT teams and business owners.
Characteristics of SASE Solutions
- SASE is driven by user and device identity. It offers enterprise-grade authentication for each access request and access based per session.
- SASE is cloud-based. It combines security and networking to deliver efficiency, scalability, ubiquity, velocity, and multitenancy to any user or application from any location.
- SASE is policy driven. It offers distributed and consistent corporate security policy enforcement for each session irrespective of the user location, choice of device, the resource being accessed, or the area.
- SASE offers comprehensive visibility and user-control, risks, and applications. It enables Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM), advanced risk assessments and analytics, utilizing Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. It consistently monitors risks and trust and assesses activities on the network regularly.
Why is SASE Important for Enterprises and Businesses?
In a post-COVID era, businesses must heighten their focus on physical security and cybersecurity. Hence, robust security solutions like SASE must be deployed to provide excellent protection from loss and theft while offering outstanding productivity.
During the heat of the pandemic in 2020, when remote work became the only option to survive, Cointelegraph reported a 75% increase in cybercrime. The figures are too huge for anyone not to take cybersecurity seriously. And using SASE has proven to help companies protect sensitive data. It also helps to secure data flow and prevent it from unauthorized interception during transmission across any location globally.
So, as remote work systems expand, organizations increasingly need to depend on a viable network security solution like SASE. And this is regardless of the company size. However, there are other SASE benefits you need to know about in 2024.
1. Secure Remote Access and Speed
Traditional security frameworks depend mainly on hardware and therefore are inadequate for the remote system since remote work is predicted to be dominated by 70% of the workforce by 2025. However, SASE creates a twist through cloud-dominated architecture to secure access to the network.
How SASE does this; it adopts Zero Trust Network to verify users and their devices irrespective of their locations. Since it removes the condition of inherent trust granted to specific users, all access is consistently verified before being granted.
In addition, SASE offers reliable network speed to resources, making remote work achievable irrespective of location.
2. Little Cost For So Much
Compared to the cost of sustaining traditional security systems, SASE has been able to lower prices significantly while not compromising security. Traditional security frameworks require many tools and applications to maintain viable network security. And each of these tools costs a wholesome of money! It is even worse when you’re operating physical data centers.
SASE integrates all these security services in a single solution, saving costs, resources, and the need for consistent maintenance. This is not even considering that with the traditional model, you’ll need to regularly replace worn-out and outdated hardware. That’s a considerable cost reduction SASE offers!
3. Reduced Security Maintenance and Scalability
Hardware frameworks are often challenging to maintain and scale. They are neither flexible nor agile, leading to significant security challenges for enterprise networks and a higher number of endpoints. The SASE security solution, however, doesn’t require huge maintenance. It is also highly scalability.
Also, since there is no need for physically managing hardware-based tools, that reduces the workload of IT security teams. Hence, your company’s IT personnel can achieve more in other creative areas rather than handling manual features that could be easily automated with SASE.
4. Edge to Edge Security
SASE is developed to create a secure connection with the enterprise WAN in such a way that bolsters efficiency. In addition, the SD-WAN feature in the SASE framework aids improves performance and resilience by leveraging WAN optimizations and an active-active failover.
And as part of complete security architecture, SASE secures all security edges with other security services. These include SWG, IPS, NGFW, and next-generation network architecture. They help to uphold intense security by protecting every access point in a network.
5. Centralized, Dynamic, Role-based Policies Streamline Operations
The endpoint exists in the network perimeter. With SASE, security is dynamically applied based on policies on the connected entity’s function. Central management of security policies makes security and networking more efficient by streamlining them irrespective of location.
