Why security belongs in the network

SPONSORED EXPLAINER: Merging security into the network makes enterprise protection more agile

Every attack leaves a trail across the network, from initial reconnaissance to lateral movement and data exfiltration. That makes the network one of an organization’s richest sources of security intelligence. But visibility is only half the story. Because the network connects every user, device, application, and workload, it is also the natural place to verify identity, apply consistent policy, and contain suspicious activity close to its source. The result is faster detection, stronger enforcement, and a smaller blast radius.

So, what does it take to make security an integral part of the network, and where should organizations begin?

What is integrated network security?

Integrated network security takes security functions that traditionally sat outside the network and embeds them directly into the network fabric to simplify and sharpen protection in the enterprise. Routers, switches, and access points become cybersecurity defenders that identify and prevent threats rather than simply routing and filtering traffic.

What challenges does enterprise security face today?

Enterprises face a gap as the network perimeter dissolves. The assets that used to reside inside the headquarters LAN have scattered everywhere, from the cloud through to edge-based equipment and on-premises servers.

Bolting more security tools onto your infrastructure to protect those assets isn't sustainable. License costs increase, tools overlap and sometimes conflict with each other, or they leave non-obvious gaps through which attackers can pass. This fragmented approach to security also involves different teams working at different speeds. Coordination is slow and difficult, hindering the security effort and driving up costs.

Why is integrating security into the network the answer?

Unifying security and networking together offers several benefits:

• Standardization

Building security directly into the network itself lets you encode a standard approach that works everywhere across the organization and covers everything that connects to the network, (so, in other words, everything you use). This means that you can apply the same policy across the entire network, maintaining them without worrying about fragmentation or policy drift.

• Agility

Agility has become even more important in the AI era. Attackers now use this technology to move more quickly and at scale. Being able to implement and change policies centrally that ripple throughout the organization means that you can adapt to this fast-changing security landscape. Operating from a single source of truth also eliminates the need to stitch together insights from multiple sources.

• Simplification

This "implement once run everywhere" capability lets you encode zero-trust principles into the foundation of the system. NIST has a standard for this - SP 800-207 - which promises protection at the asset level rather than the traditional and flawed "one authentication and you're in everywhere" VPN approach.

Zero trust isn't so much an individual product as a complete security discipline, and it's hard to implement piecemeal using different solutions. Instead, putting it at the foundation of the network makes it more immediately and ubiquitously workable. Some zero-trust security measures also belong in the network. One example is micro-segmentation, which closes off parts of the network at a granular level to avoid lateral movement and limit the blast radius from any attack. Network-based security also supports robust security for other complex disciplines such as SASE and SD-WAN.

• Collaborative security

Having a common fabric for networking and security enables network and security teams to work closely together. These teams have traditionally operated at a distance, and the gap between them has been valuable for attackers. The less daylight there is between these two functions, the more likely you are to stop intruders.

How does AI fit into integrated network security?

AI is important in two ways when integrating security into the network. First, AI has also become integrated into the network. Machine learning helps to spot patterns in network activity, using them as the feedstock for AIOps systems that predict problems and maintain network reliability and performance. AI has also proven itself to be a valuable security mechanism. That same pattern recognition and predictive capability enables AI to head off attacks before they become a problem. Using AI to support network and security teams enables them to do more with less by delegating routine work so that they can focus on more sophisticated work.

Attackers are also using AI to augment their assaults on organizations. If you are behind the curve and don't use AI to help defend yourself, then you will find yourself on the back foot when it comes to preventing those attacks.

Where do I begin integrating security into my network?

Savvy partners have developed solutions that bake security directly into network equipment and which support hybrid environments to take security wherever your network goes. That includes built-in security capabilities like device profiling and NAC; centrally managed firewalls; and network-integrated AIOps that provide security teams with real-time information that can bolster security operations.

Start by assessing your organization’s greatest source of risk, whether it’s expanding zero trust, supporting hybrid work, or defending against AI threats. There’s no right single place to begin but here are some options:

Unified SASE provides secure access for users wherever they work, while simplifying both networking and security.

Hybrid mesh firewalls offer consistent policies and enforcement across different network domains such as datacenters and cloud environments.

Universal zero-trust network architectures support every identity, device, and workload.

AIOps use AI to improve visibility, accelerate troubleshooting, and automate operations.

These are different entry points into the same long-term architecture. Any and all of them will advance your journey to integrated native network security. Which you choose depends on the specific challenges of your business.

Sponsored by HPE.