By the end of 2022, it’s estimated that 90 percent of enterprises will employ edge computing, shifting information processing and content collection closer to the sources and users of that information. Edge computing allows enterprises to process, analyze, filter, and store data close to the source so they can act on the data faster.
But just as chief information officers (CIOs) and chief information security officers (CISOs) are increasingly turning to the edge for enterprise networks, cyberattackers are focusing their attention on accessing the network via edge devices. The reality is that edge computing expands the potential attack surface for any enterprise that utilizes it. And an expanded attack service means that enterprises also have greater exposure to threats such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) campaigns, data theft, and intrusions into the enterprise network.
To better understand the security and service assurance challenges the edge presents, it’s helpful to consider two challenges that must be overcome for successful edge deployments: controlling tool sprawl and achieving multi-cloud visibility.
Challenge 1: Controlling Tool Sprawl
One recent survey of 14,000 infosec professionals found that 66 percent are concerned about their ability to effectively monitor the addition of multiple security technologies in their organizations. That’s not surprising, considering that the average IT and security team now uses between 10 and 30 security monitoring solutions for applications, network infrastructures, and cloud environments.
Meanwhile, almost 30 percent of CIOs say it’s difficult to get an accurate status of network security because networking and security teams maintain separate tools and reports. Indeed, tool spawl creates a number of problems, including the following:
- It multiplies the work required for analyzing and commissioning data
- It creates limitations on the infrastructure to accommodate new solutions
- It introduces potential network conflicts
- It creates collaborative inefficiencies with disparate and often conflicting data from multiple tools
Overcoming tool sprawl ultimately requires changes in thinking and process for both security and networking teams, who need to collaborate in areas such as threat detection and response.
Challenge 2: Achieving Multicloud Visibility
Enterprises also increasingly depend on multi-cloud environments, whereby more than one cloud platform is used to deliver or support one or more enterprise services. Such deployments can include public, private, and hybrid cloud services that are used to maximize availability and reliability for applications. Currently, edge Internet of Things (IoT) is the top use case driving multi-cloud deployments.
It’s not difficult to understand how cobbling together different solutions across different types of clouds creates security and connectivity problems. Edge deployments in particular suffer when enterprise teams attempt to manage apps across different edge sites.
Achieving multi-cloud visibility requires network and security teams to gain visibility across all clouds so they can appropriately detect and respond to security incidents. Doing so requires solutions that go beyond raw data capture and storage to include processing, indexing, and enriching network data.
To learn more about overcoming challenges to edge computing, read the new white paper “A Double-Edged Sword: As Enterprise Networks Increasingly Move to the Edge, CIOs and CISOs Have to Address Security, Customer Experience,” or reach out today to learn more from one of our security experts.