Zero Trust Remote Access | Secure Hard-to-Secure Environments - xage
Recent Cyberattack Highlights Need for Enhanced OT Security
A recent security breach targeting the water supply system in Oldsmar, Florida, has raised significant concerns within the operational technology (OT) sector, encompassing industries like utilities and oil and gas pipelines. In response to this growing threat, Xage, a cybersecurity startup, has unveiled a new cloud-based Zero Trust remote access solution designed to bolster defenses against such attacks.
Xage's Zero Trust Approach
Duncan Greatwood, CEO of Xage, asserts that the Oldsmar incident could have been prevented had his company’s software been implemented. Many smaller operational facilities, such as the one affected in Oldsmar, often rely on limited IT resources and utilize older, vulnerable remote access technologies.
“Compromising a virtual network computing (VNC) connection presents minimal difficulty, as does exploiting outdated accounts left on jump servers,” Greatwood explained. “Last year, we began developing a Zero Trust remote access solution specifically tailored for these types of customers.”
Controlling Access and Preventing Lateral Movement
This solution centers on granular access control, verifying each user and device before granting permissions based on authenticated identity. It moves away from reliance on easily compromised credentials like device or VPN zone passwords.
Furthermore, the system incorporates a secure traversal tunnel, utilizing a tamper-proof certificate to impede hackers from transitioning between the operational network – be it a utility grid, water supply, or pipeline – and the IT network, where they could potentially disrupt critical operations.
Leveraging Distributed Ledger Technology
Xage integrates a distributed ledger as a fundamental component of its security architecture, safeguarding identity policies, logs, and other vital data across the platform. “Employing a distributed ledger necessitates an attacker compromising a majority of nodes concurrently, a task that is exceedingly challenging, if not impossible,” Greatwood stated.
These ledgers function independently across various locations, organized in a hierarchical structure with a global ledger serving as the ultimate authority for enforcing rules. This ensures consistent rule enforcement even if a local site experiences an outage and subsequently reconnects.
Cloud-Based Solution for Simplified Deployment
An on-premise version of the Zero Trust remote access system was initially released last October. However, recognizing the complexity of configuration and maintenance, Xage has now introduced a cloud-based solution offering streamlined deployment and management via a web browser.
“Our cloud solution simplifies adoption by hosting the management software and core Xage fabric nodes within the Xage cloud, significantly accelerating the time to value for a remote access solution for OT environments,” Greatwood noted.
Addressing Cloud Security Concerns
Acknowledging potential hesitancy among Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) regarding cloud solutions for sensitive environments, Xage offers a Proof of Concept (PoC) in the cloud and provides a tool for seamless transition back to an on-premise deployment if desired. To date, no early adopters have opted for the on-premise fallback, but the option remains available.
Company Background
Founded in 2017, Xage has secured $16 million in funding, as reported by Crunchbase data.
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