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Data breaches aren’t just headlines—they’re real threats happening inside organizations every day. According to IBM, the global average cost of a breach crossed $4.4 million in 2025. With cloud computing, IoT, remote work, and growing business partnerships, keeping track of who can access what has become harder than ever. The old approach of “secure the perimeter” is no longer effective due to its limitations and vulnerability.
Perimeters are increasingly difficult to define with an increasingly complex hybrid cloud system. Users, apps, and even automated systems often have broad access to sensitive resources. That means if a single subject is compromised, malicious actors can gain access to these critical resources, incurring massive data breaches.
The question lies: how can organizations keep their core data safe when the traditional walls around their networks are disappearing?
Zero Trust Architecture: Why It Matters and How It Works
As Natalia Martin, Director of the NCCoE, explains:
“Implementing a zero trust architecture has become a federal cybersecurity mandate and a business imperative. We are excited to work with industry demonstrating various approaches to implementing a zero trust architecture [NIST SP 800-207] using a diverse mix of vendor products and capabilities, and share how-to guidance and lessons learned from the experience.”
Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) shifts security away from a perimeter-based approach to one that is data-centric. It assumes no user, device, or application is trustworthy by default. Every access request must be authenticated, authorized, and granted only the minimum level of privilege required.
By removing implicit trust, ZTA greatly reduces the risk of compromise. It also assumes that attackers could already be present inside an environment, which is why continuous monitoring, verification, and adaptive enforcement are central to its design. This proactive stance ensures that enterprise assets remain protected while supporting business continuity.
Ultimately, Zero Trust is no longer a theoretical framework or optional best practice —it’s both a regulatory requirement and a practical strategy that organizations must adopt to safeguard critical systems and sensitive data in an increasingly complex threat landscape.
Benefits & Challenges of a Zero Trust Architecture
Adopting Zero Trust Architecture brings several key benefits to enterprises, such as:
- Real-time access control as users are verified by reliable authentication and authorization before each session.
- Increased visibility over resources as organizations can better monitor user behavior patterns and protect data accordingly.
- Simplified security architecture allows enterprises to easily respond to reports on security events.
- Reduced risk of malicious attacks as there is no “trusted” network or location, all connections would be subjected to verification.
While Zero Trust offers clear benefits, adoption can be challenging. Organizations often face hurdles such as immature vendor solutions, legacy technology investments, resource constraints, and concerns around interoperability and user experience.
NextLabs Solution for Zero Trust Architecture
To address ZTA requirements, NextLabs provides a data-centric security software suite which uses Attribute based access control (ABAC) and dynamic authorization to automate access management, prevent wrongful disclosure, secure data access, and protect data.
With an identity-centric approach, NextLabs enforces least privilege access in real time, securing applications, networks, and global data across complex environments. This ensures persistent protection—whether data is at rest, in motion, or in use.
NextLabs’ Zero Trust data-centric security suite consists of:
- CloudAz – a unified policy platform that centralizes administration and utilizes the “never trust, always verify” principle, ensuring data is protected at any access point.
- Data Access Enforcer (DAE) – secures and monitors access to data stored in databases and data lakes, providing strong safeguards against unauthorized use.
- SkyDRM – delivers persistent protection for files and documents, securing data both at rest and in transit.
- Application Enforcer – externalize authorization with ABAC principles, securing applications, enforcing fine-grained controls, and simplifying role management.
Together, these solutions extend Zero Trust principles across the enterprise, enabling stronger security and greater agility. By adopting an “assume breach” mindset, enterprises can prepare for worst-case scenarios, accelerate incident response, and maintain resilience against evolving cyber and business challenges.
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Zero Trust Architecture, combined with data-centric security, provides a structured approach to safeguard critical assets. By continuously verifying access and enforcing least-privilege policies, organizations can minimize the risk of breaches while maintaining operational efficiency and scalability.
To learn more about the principles in practice and how NextLabs solutions help enterprises implement zero trust architecture, download our Whitepaper “NIST 800-207: Zero Trust Architecture”.
