Zscaler’s Drew Schnabel: Rapid Threat Response, Zero Trust Key to Protecting Gov’t Data

Drew Schnabel, vice president of federal at Zscaler, said that agencies should prioritize cyber threat detection and zero-trust architecture deployment as organizations continue to implement telework operations.

He wrote in an opinion piece for FedTech Magazine published Wednesday that digital transformation across agency systems entails the capacity to detect threats in near-real time and execute response within an hour.

According to Schnabel, a strong cybersecurity posture and continuous, rapid cybersecurity response are “prerequisites to creating a safe environment where sensitive government data is protected."

A zero-trust environment based on cloud infrastructure also requires strong identity and access management elements beyond those offered by virtual private networks, he added.

“Federal civilian agencies and the [Department of Defense] should prioritize a zero-trust environment for digital transformation,” said Schnabel. “Employees need a secure connection to any application, regardless of where that application lives, from any device, from any location.”