Layered Safety for RADIUS With Cisco

Dream world for the CISO

Organizations have all kinds of assets to guard. And a few assets are simpler to guard than others. Nevertheless, it’s not the straightforward stuff that retains a CISO up at night time. Earlier than we dive into the more difficult examples, let’s think about a situation that enables a CISO to sleep peacefully.

On this situation, when a employee “goes to work” (both within the workplace or remotely), they open their company laptop computer and login to a SaaS utility. This employee varieties the URL into their browser, logs in with their SSO supplier and authenticates utilizing their fingerprint (biometric) on the gadget. Behind the scenes, this consumer is connecting to the applying by means of a Zero Belief Community Entry (ZTNA) answer and authenticating with SAML protocol (or OIDC or OAuth2.0), the fashionable authentication technique for cloud purposes.

This situation is the dream situation (and simpler) to guard:

• Fashionable, cloud utility
• Coverage-driven utility entry
• Phishing-resistant authentication
• Trusted, managed gadget

The truth examine

Nevertheless, the dream situation can be the least more likely to be the reason for a breach. As an alternative, attackers are exploiting legacy know-how or networks the place it’s tough to deploy further safety and implement coverage, like phishing-resisting multi-factor authentication (MFA) or ZTNA. Whereas organizations are on their infrastructure modernization journey, we have to have a practical plan to guard the lengthy tails of legacy belongings which might be nonetheless in place and could also be tough to safe.

What could be finished?

Layered safety with RADIUS

One in all these under-rated, however widespread, authentication protocols is RADIUS (Distant Authentication Dial-In Person Service). RADIUS is a conventional network-based authentication protocol for customers and gadgets that want to connect with the community.

In case your group is able the place routers, switches, wi-fi entry factors and VPNs all use RADIUS, Cisco may help. First, Cisco Identification Companies Engine (ISE) gives a layer of Community Entry Management by providing AAA safety (Authentication, Authorization, and Entry). This safety exists for customers connecting to the community within the workplace and staff connecting to the community by means of the VPN.

The challenges and safety implications round legacy VPN entry are nicely documented, which is why organizations are transferring towards fashionable structure with ZTNA. The issue is that many legacy purposes are usually not suitable with ZTNA and organizations must grasp on to their VPN infrastructure. It’s not a shock that whereas 86% of organizations have began to undertake zero belief, 98% haven’t reached maturity. Basically, they’re caught on this journey.

That’s the place Cisco Safe Entry is available in. Safe Entry has built-in each VPNaaS and ZTNA capabilities. This enables organizations to modernize VPN infrastructure and join utilizing Cisco’s cloud answer, falling again to VPNaaS if ZTNA shouldn’t be doable. In follow, all customers have the identical expertise when connecting to purposes (legacy or fashionable, VPN-required or ZTNA-compatible) and the know-how takes care of the work behind the scenes.

Relating to VPNaaS use instances, organizations with ISE deployment can leverage the distinctive integration between Safe Entry and Cisco ISE to supply an additional layer of safety. Which means that when customers hook up with VPNaaS, they’re protected by ISE’s authentication, posture evaluation, and community segmentation, all by means of a single agent — Safe Consumer.

We begin with VPNaaS and Cisco ISE working collectively and subsequent we add an additional layer of protection with one other type of authentication (that’s the place the “multi” in MFA is available in). Cisco Duo can provide RADIUS assist for legacy VPNs by means of the Duo Authentication proxy by including servers to a company’s atmosphere. However once you use Duo with ISE and VPNaaS, there’s a distinctive API integration that allows RADIUS authentication with out the necessity for the extra server in your atmosphere. And all the top consumer sees is the standard Duo push that they’re used to when accessing cloud purposes.

Now, even when authenticating with RADIUS, customers have a seamless expertise, and organizations have layered safety to shut potential gaps within the assault floor.

Safe organizations with Person Safety Suite

Within the perfect world, a company may shield all its assets utilizing essentially the most superior and fashionable know-how and protocols. Nevertheless, organizations have a variety of belongings that every one want safety, no matter how simple or laborious it’s to guard. When combining the community safety by means of Cisco ISE with Person Safety Suite instruments, Cisco can present the options you want as we speak when you proceed to modernize for the longer term. And permit CISOs to get night time’s relaxation.

To study extra about how Cisco’s Person Safety Suite can shield your workforce, join with an skilled as we speak.

Share: