What is cybersecurity mesh architecture (CSMA)?
Cybersecurity mesh architecture (CSMA) is a set of organizing principles used to create an effective security framework. Using a CSMA approach means designing a security architecture that is composable and scalable with easily extensible interfaces, a common data schema and well-defined interfaces and APIs for interoperability.
A well-designed CSMA allows various security controls and solutions to work together more effectively. In turn, this allows security organizations to be better handle threat intelligence, incident response, security asset management, and other core functions of modern cybersecurity.
8 core capabilities of a well-designed CSMA
To understand how a cybersecurity mesh architecture incorporates its eight core capabilities, it’s essential to see it as a comprehensive approach that enhances an organization’s cybersecurity posture through a distributed and interconnected framework. This approach allows for a more agile, flexible, and scalable security infrastructure, which is crucial in the face of evolving cyber threats. Let’s delve into each of the core capabilities and see how they apply:
Detection
CSMA must incorporate detection capabilities through a distributed sensor network and set of intelligent detection mechanisms that are networked and share information to create a holistic view of ongoing attacks.
The detection mesh web spans various components and layers of an organization’s IT environment, including endpoints and devices, APIs, infrastructure (cloud, on-prem, hybrid), applications and SaaS, networks, data flows and storage, and authentication and authorization systems. This broad coverage ensures early detection of threats by collecting all data that can be combined to accurately identify indications of compromise (IoC) or determine when an attack is underway.
Collecting data continuously from multiple sources leads to a richer matrix of information and quicker, more accurate threat identification. Modern detection systems include algorithms and artificial intelligence to identify and categorize attacks based on shared patterns and other historical evidence.
Intelligence
To be effective, a CSMA must gather, analyze, and prioritize threats using risk-based policies. This is accomplished by integrating data from the mesh of detection systems along with structured data from threat intelligence feeds.
Behavioral and contextual data for transactions and requests also inform CSMA intelligence. Intelligence data is then analyzed against historical patterns and information from structured data sources such as MITRE ATT&CK, CVD/NVD, from unstructured data (such as vendor advisories), and log files.
By combining information about the latest attack signatures, vulnerabilities, and in-the-wild behaviors with the identification of anomalous behaviors, a CSMA can integrate intelligence. This provides security teams with both a comprehensive view of threats and a strong prioritization of the gravest risks for rapid mitigation.
Prevention
A CMSA proactively blocks attacks through a variety of controls and system design principles.
Leveraging advanced machine learning for anomaly detection and employing Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) for dynamic, secure cloud access, CSMA ensures robust encryption standards for data at rest and in transit. Network segmentation and micro-segmentation, paired with continuous authentication and strict authorization, can restrict lateral movement.
These components, alongside continuous compliance monitoring and risk management tools, orchestrate a multi-layered defense strategy that preempts cyber threats by dynamically adapting to the evolving security landscape and ensuring continuous protection against potential vulnerabilities and unauthorized access attempts.
Response
Optimizing security response for speed, coverage, and efficacy within a CSMA necessitates tightly integrating all components used to manage the process. Detection and intelligence elements must be integrated with communications, intelligence functions, and communication functions into a centralized dashboard and querying format for responses to be well organized and thorough.
CSMA does not displace security information and event management (SIEM) systems or security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR). Instead, it complements and integrates these solutions within its broader framework to enhance an organization’s overall security posture and improve overall response efficacy and visibility by creating a single mesh of all security-relevant systems.
Unified management
As noted in the above actions, CSMA weaves together all the existing sub-systems to form a unified plane for management and data exchange. This enables the construction and constant updating of an integrated set of dashboards, alerting systems, and reporting systems.
While unified, the management plane should allow stakeholders to view what they need for their jobs but also to view information from other roles as needed to troubleshoot, collaborate, and break down security silos.
Process measurement and instrumentation
A CSMA must also be able to measure and visualize security processes.
Process measurements can be constructed around known metrics (time-to-remediate, etc) or alternative metrics focused on process (adherence to security playbooks, time-spent out of compliance, time-to-triage). Measurement and monitoring should be continuous and automated, not dependent on manual processes, and not recorded in manual formats (spreadsheets, etc.).
Process monitoring of the CSMA should both aggregate existing inputs (such as SIEM activity, ticket flows) and analyze unstructured data (Slack messages and email) to create a cohesive picture of how well a CSMA is performing and what the difference is between expected security process and actual security process flows.
System integration
The architect of a CSMA should design interfaces and APIs to enable flexible integration of tools, controls, and data flows within the CSMA. The specifics of the integration are not pre-defined; rather, the organization should build an integration method that is consistent with their competencies and maintainable. The integration architecture should be designed to handle scale and change, because a CSMA must be designed for the long haul.
Scalability and extensibility
A CSMA should be designed to allow for greater and greater scale over time.
The number of security tools and controls continues to grow each year. The number of technology modalities and types of endpoints requiring protection also increase continuously. The technology estate and attack surface of the average enterprise of today is significantly more complex than it was even five years ago.
By designing for scale from the beginning, a CISO can future-proof their CSMA and reduce the need for disruptive major refactoring. Closely related to system integration, a CSMA should be easily extensible and modular. CISOs should be able to quickly extend CSMA coverage to new security tools and controls or to systems of record and analysis that require access to CSAM activities and data — including compliance, audit, finance, and regulatory needs.
Timeless design principles make CSMAs better
The eight core capabilities of a CSMA are interrelated and work together to create a robust, agile, and comprehensive cybersecurity environment. By focusing on these capabilities when building out a CSMA, organizations can construct a mesh that not only addresses current security challenges but is also prepared to adapt to future threats and technological advancements.