Page 8 - CARAHSOFT, September/October 2021

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The Ongoing Quest for Cybersecurity
Modernizing
security for a
mobile workforce
Agencies need to redirect their security efforts to keep pace with the changes and movements of the workforce
Brian Robison
Vice President, Solutions Strategy, and Chief Evangelist, BlackBerry Inc.
authentication and all kinds of certificates, but those are simple pass/fail security checks. Once users are allowed to cross
the security barrier, they often have wide- ranging access to government resources. This means adversaries and malicious (or careless) insiders passing the security checks receive free rein as well.
Government needs to move to a continuous authentication model, which leads to better security and a better
user experience. It involves seamlessly authenticating users every step of the way — when they touch the keyboard or scroll through an app on a screen. That activity, down to the microscopic vibrations in
a person’s fingertip, can be sensed and understood so that IT administrators
can answer the question: Is this really the authenticated user, or is it somebody else?
Furthermore, data and even apps are
no longer sitting inside castle-and-moat technology where agencies can control access through specific gates, such as VPNs. Today, data and apps could be anywhere,
so agencies need to be able to secure their communications as well. For example, BlackBerry invented a technology that provides an additional layer of security for communications whether they are traveling over a hotel network, a coffee shop’s Wi-Fi or a cell signal.
Finally, data should be encrypted when it is in motion and at rest. It should only be decrypted when an authorized user needs to see and interact with it. It’s essential
to continually ask: Does this person have permission and authorization to access
THE TREND TOWARD REMOTE WORK accelerated during the pandemic, as did cybersecurity challenges. Many employees used their personal devices from home, which meant an influx of unknown machines flowing through VPNs and
into government networks. In addition, some employees might have skipped normal security precautions in an effort to complete their work under chaotic and new conditions.
BlackBerry was a pioneer of remote
work in the late 1990s. From the beginning, BlackBerry recognized securing access
to data and communications was key for protecting the work being done. Agencies can apply these same principles by directing their security efforts to three areas: people, data and apps.
The move to continuous authentication
Securing data and apps begins with positively identifying the user. In government, agencies have used multifactor
Shutterstock/FCW Staff