Claudia Dunphy | Product Marketing
As organizations modernize their businesses, processes and services with new digital technologies, they are also creating new risks. The rapid advances in technology to support digital transformation require a solid foundation of trust in order to properly secure devices, identities and transactions. Technologies such as the Internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, edge computing, containerization, blockchain, 5G, and quantum computing require a deeper approach to security that goes beyond layered network defenses. And these new technologies must operate in zero trust networks where devices may reside within and outside of an enterprise’s perimeter.
So what do we mean when we use the term “foundation”? It is indeed important to understand this as we discuss digital security. When constructing a new home, as an analogy, the first thing that must be built is the foundation – that massive pile of carefully laid out concrete and pillars upon which the home will stand. If the foundation is correctly built, the home can withstand the test of time. But if there is a compromise when designing the foundation then it always leads to more risk, high costs in maintaining the structure, and keeping things on solid ground becomes a lifelong challenge even if there are minimal negative forces at play.
Building a cybersecurity program that secures your data and protects your digital and physical assets is very much the same. We all start with what looks like decent building blocks, yet often fail to establish a solid foundation. In cybersecurity, the building blocks are keys, passwords, cryptography, security architecture, authentication, and encryption--all stacked up in our digital networks. And yet, these building blocks require a strong foundation, or trust anchor, be put into place to function securely. Without the anchor in place, the structure collapses when attacked, enabling the attacker to steal some of the building blocks (such as your digital keys) and use them to break into other parts of your infrastructure.
Years ago, builders of critical infrastructure in some industries, such as the military and financial services, decided that they needed something to serve as a trust anchor, and that is where hardware security modules (HSMs) really took hold. The market for strong trust anchor foundations that HSMs provided was limited at first, but as the forces of bad actors attacking digital networks has grown in the last decade, the need for HSMs has become more apparent to those responsible for the protection of digital networks and holders of digital assets. In the 2020 Thales Data Threat Report-Global Edition, 47% of organizations are implementing HSMs while an additional 38% reported they plan to implement HSMs within the next 12 months.
Supporting Your Digital Transformation
Thales Luna HSMs establish a strong foundation of digital trust for your organization’s devices, identities and transactions by generating, storing and protecting root keys for PKI, cloud, database encryption, as well as blockchain, DevOps, 5G, IoT and the platforms used to secure them. In addition, Thales Luna HSMs prepare you for the post quantum era with crypto agile solutions, enabling you to quickly react to cryptographic threats by implementing alternative methods of encryption today.
To build a trusted foundation of digital security across your traditional and emerging technologies, read Building the Foundation of Digital Trust Whitepaper.