Cybersecurity Field Guide #3.5:

How to Effectively Implement and Operationalize SASE

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November 18, 2020

In Optiv’s first SASE Field Guide (#3.0), we provided a high-level explanation for the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) concept and critical considerations. With this SASE Field Guide (#3.5), – the next in the SASE series – we provide detailed guidance about where and how to start your SASE journey.

Click here to view other guides in the series.

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SASE: So Many Parts. Where to Start?

First, to determine if a SASE approach is right for your organization, you must have a full understanding of where organizational assets live and from where users will connect.

If most assets and users reside in a traditional network environment, you may not gain many benefits from SASE.

But, if 50% or more of your accessible assets live in the cloud or many of your users are remote, then a SASE approach should be investigated.

Additionally, if your organization has many branch offices that need connectivity to the HQ, each other, and the Internet, then a SASE approach may be beneficial.

SASE Areas Covered

In the preparation phase, an organization defines the problems they are trying to solve or the benefits they seek to gain by adopting new technology. It’s critical to focus on business, security and technical outcomes in this phase rather than tools or methods. You may be looking for a drill – remember that what you want is a hole.

Define goals
Assess your current environment

SASE will increasingly unite a significant number of networking and security functions into a single cloud-delivered ecosystem. We believe five functions currently represent the core capabilities organizations should evaluate. A thorough understanding of your desired outcomes can help you avoid unwanted gaps or redundancies in security controls as you begin to architect your SASE roadmap.

Map goals to solutions
Evaluate your tech stack
Define requirements

There are many nuances to implementing a SASE solution. Your SASE project team should include stakeholders from the networking, security and cloud teams (if applicable) to ensure a successful deployment.

Assemble a SASE roadmap team
Conduct vendor evaluations and validations

Ensure you anticipate key hurdles related to deployment, configuration, integration, testing, training, documentation etc. Just like other cloud-based services, SASE presents some unique operational challenges. Your business requirements around SASE may continue to evolve – and the SASE landscape will also continue to evolve. Diligently track these changes at regular intervals, and continuously study whether it makes sense to adjust your strategy to improve outcomes.

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