Secure Access Service Edge

What is SASE ?

Secure access service edge (SASE) is a network architecture with built-in VPN capabilities and SD-WAN capabilities as well as cloud-native security functions such as secure web gateways, security brokers for cloud access, and firewalls. The SASE vendor delivers these functions from the cloud and as a service.

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE).

How It works...

The SASE framework can help organizations simplify their IT infrastructure, advance their threat prevention, better protect their data, implement flexible solutions, easily connect users and devices wherever they are located, and reduce total costs.

Additionally, SASE provides a Zero Trust approach to the cloud, which validates users and devices accessing applications anywhere in the world. No matter whether a user is inside or outside the corporate network, SASE provides complete application session protection.

Advantages of SASE

The SASE platform combines networking and security capabilities into a cloud-native, globally distributed architecture that places an emphasis on identity-based security rather than traffic-flow-based security. SASE consists of a set of technologies that embed security into the global network fabric so it is always available no matter where the user is, where the application or resource is located, or what type of transport technology connects the user and resource. As a result of consolidating all networking and security functions, SASE provides many benefits.

Reduction Of Complexity And Costs

A single software stack replaces the sprawl of appliances and reduces both CAPex and OPex costs.

Through the elimination of backhaul, transport costs, data center aggregation, client-to-cloud delays, and communication network operation are decreased.

SASE reduces private circuit costs and enables cost-effective transport choices by securing DIA.

SASE provides consistent policy enforcement that reduces IT complexity and IT staff burden.

SASE’s SaaS approach supports rapid growth and technology improvements at reduced cost.

Enhances IT Staff Effectiveness

Network and security staff are more effective with centralized, role-based management.

Employees gain complete visibility and control over their responsibilities by using policies

Analyses are customized to staff roles.

All network/security intelligence is propagated automatically to all network components.

SASE delivered over the cloud enables rapid deployment on a global scale.

Least-Privilege Access is applied

SASE uses zero trust principles (ZTNA) that assume a hostile network and ensure authentication of all devices and users, and check locations and policy compliance before allowing a session.

SASE restricts access to any asset or resource based on policy, context and user, device and application identity.

A SASE restricts access to a network based on IP address or location, reducing the possibility of lateral movement in the event of a breach, as well as threats from unmanaged or IoT devices connected to the network.

Secure Remote and Mobile Access

The SASE brings security to the user, rather than backhauling traffic to a policy enforcement point.

The SASE gateway anchors the client to provide optimal user experience.

By securing DIA, SASE reduces latency by securing the most direct access path for users.

By detecting malicious traffic and intervening before it reaches the enterprise, SASE can, for example, reduce the impact of DDoS attacks.

SASE provides a complete security stack across any network.

SASE Major Components...!

Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)

CASBs offer products and services that address security deficits in cloud service usage. Users are increasingly adopting cloud services, and there is an increase in direct cloud-to-cloud access. In addition to providing granular visibility and control over user activities and sensitive data, a CASB assists in concurrent policy management and governance across multiple cloud services.

A CASB delivers 5 critical security capabilities:

Cloud application discovery
Data security
Adaptive access control
Malware detection
User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) which offers policy enforcement based on unusual behavioral patterns of traffic to/from cloud services

Software-defined WAN (SD-WAN)

SD-WAN technology integrates seamlessly into a client-to-cloud architecture to enable optimal performance and intelligent routing.

Key capabilities include:

Secure traffic on-ramp and off-ramp
Multicloud connectivity
Embedded UTM security features
Leveraging internet-based backbones
Traffic routing from anywhere
DIA, direct cloud access, and intelligent traffic steering
Path selection to optimize consistent user experience
Inline encryption
Advanced routing and dynamic path selection
Application-awareness and traffic classification
Globally distributed gateways
Latency optimization
Self-remediating network capabilities

Secure Web Gateway (SWG)

Using an SWG, WFA users and devices are guarded against threats coming from the Internet by preventing them from being infected by unwanted software or malware, as well as enforcing corporate and regulatory policies. An SWG includes:

Key capabilities include:

Enforcement of internet security and compliance policies
Filtering malicious internet traffic with UTM capabilities such as URL Filtering, antivirus, anti-malware, IDS/IPS, zero-day attack prevention, phishing protection and more
Application identification and control capabilities
Data Loss/Leakage Prevention (DLP) capabilities
Remote Browser Isolation (RBI) to scan user sessions for risk, allowing users to safely navigate today’s menacing threat landscape. Risky websites are rendered on remote browsers, while sanitized pages (mostly as image files) are rendered on the user browser. RBI allows anonymous browsing and risk-free open access to internet sites.

Firewalling: NGFW and Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS)

The cloud-based Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW) is an application-aware, scalable service that eliminates the challenges associated with traditional appliance-based solutions, offering a complete set of UTM features. NGFWs offer features such as advanced threat protection, web and network visibility, threat intelligence, and access control that go beyond stateful firewalls. NGFW deployments should include the following requirements at a minimum:

An SWG includes:

User and application access control
Intrusion detection and prevention
Advanced malware detection
Threat and network intelligence
Automation and orchestration

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