ConXion, a leading Belgian IT solutions provider, is pioneering the implementation of a robust zero-trust model architecture. Recently I attended a talk where they detailed their comprehensive strategy for integrating IT security within business operations. Here’s a closer look at the insights I gathered from the talk.
First up, a bit about the company. ConXion offers a range of IT services, they stand out in the oversaturated Belgian IT landscape. They have partnerships with industry leaders like Microsoft, HP, Cisco, Lenovo, DELL, and many others. Their mission is to embed IT and cybersecurity into the core practices of businesses.
Proactive security
ConXion shared some interesting findings with us. They showed how, on average, it takes roughly an hour and a half for hackers to exploit zero-days. This shows that quick identification and incident response are important to remedy gaps in security. This is the main driving force behind their work, and it’s the reason they got to developing this new zero-trust model in the first place.
As is usually the case, and as follows the recent trend seen across the security industry, ransomware was identified as the major threat. A significant portion of security breaches occur as a result of ransomware and social engineering attacks. This has also lead to a novel industry, ‘Ransomware as a Service’ (RaaS), where malicious actors can hire ransomware brokers to deploy attacks on their behalf.
ConXion’s zero-trust architecture
This new strategy focuses on zero-trust, an approach to cybersecurity that secures an organization by eliminating implicit trust and continuously validating every stage of a digital interaction. It is rooted in the principle of “never trust, always verify”. Zero Trust is designed to protect modern environments and enable digital transformation by using strong authentication methods, leveraging network segmentation, preventing lateral movement, and simplifying granular “least access” policies.
To learn more about zero-trust, check out this video: