Across all industries and organizations, information security is a serious concern. From ransomware to phishing and hacking into IoT devices, the landscape of information security risks is constantly evolving. Businesses battle these threats through the use of tools such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and antivirus programs, but it can feel impossible to keep ahead of the ever-changing wave of potential threats. This is why the fragmented approach isn’t sufficient; in order to truly protect against security breaches, every organization should implement an enterprise security architecture.

What Is an Enterprise Security Architecture?

An enterprise security architecture gives an organization the power to organize and then deploy preventive and detective safeguards within their environment.

Think of preventive safeguards as the first line of defense that are designed to prevent a security event or breach from occurring in the first place. Installing antivirus software or using a firewall are excellent examples of preventive safeguards.

Meanwhile, detective safeguards detect when a security event occurs within an environment. An example of a detective safeguard would be an Active Directory log. These safeguards ensure that security events don't go undetected and that the proper action can be taken to mitigate the risk immediately upon discovery.

Establishing Enterprise Security Architecture Zones

The security architecture zone model is a strategy to help an organization organize and categorize the different types of risks it faces. It essentially creates layers of protection based on the types of data being handled, as well as the kinds of potential threats or risks to each category within the security architecture. This enables the organization to protect against threats, detect it when a security event occurs, and immediately contain it.

The Role of a Security Architect

The various organizational security zones function together as a cohesive enterprise security architecture under the direction of the security architect. This role is responsible for directing security technology throughout the organization. This is key because there are often many complex moving parts that must be recognized, monitored, coordinated, and managed.

If all of the security technologies in an organization were players in a basketball game, the security architect would be the coach. While each part may do a great job on its own, they can only be successful if they work together as a team under the guidance of a coach.

One of the responsibilities of a security architect is to make sure that all of the security guidelines, policies, and procedures are properly implemented and maintained throughout the organization. This means that they need to be able to strategize and lead within the information security team, as well as effectively report to and communicate with the overall information technology architecture group.

When all of the players are using the same playbook, they can implement the strategies necessary to run a successful enterprise security architecture. That playbook consists of security architecture policy and standards - something we'll discuss more in our next article.

Security Architecture Policy and Standards >