Federal agencies are working towards their goals for a more robust cybersecurity stance by embracing Zero Trust Architecture. When combined with software-defined infrastructure, including software-defined data centers, federal agencies are well on their way to achieving their goals. 

As agencies embrace software, they are able to perform advanced and sophisticated operations very easily. The as-a-Service revolution has enabled federal agencies to keep pace with the fast pace of modernization and the need to scale at speed during the switch to remote work at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. And the advent and incorporation of software defined solutions networking and infrastructure as code has furthered this behind the scenes revolution in the federal government. 

But leveraging software-defined capabilities is also allowing agencies to create an inherently more secure environment; one that is more resilient and robust in the face of relentless cyberattacks. Software defined networking, for example, is enabling agencies to move from macro-segmentation to micro-segmentation. In making this change, agencies are able to control access at a granular level and authorize users as they move between network segments, upholding one of the central pillars of a Zero Trust approach to cybersecurity.

As agencies look to counter ever-more sophisticated and frequent cyber attacks, adopting a Zero Trust posture is essential. While agencies – nor any organization – can ever prevent 100 percent of all attacks, this ability to limit access to the network through micro-segmentation and a consistent trust-but-verify process that form the basis of a Zero Trust architecture are today’s best practices. 

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