<img src="https://ws.zoominfo.com/pixel/6169bf9791429100154fc0a2" width="1" height="1" style="display: none;">

Curious about how StrongDM works? 🤔 Learn more here!

Search
Close icon
Search bar icon

DevOps and DevSecOps: Understanding the Difference

StrongDM Team
Written by
Dynamic Access Management platform
Fazila Malik
Reviewed by
Product Marketing Manager
Last updated on: June 28, 2023

Love ❤️ DevSecOps?
Get tips, guides, tutorials, & more in your inbox.

In today's fast-paced business world, technology and software development have become crucial for organizations to stay ahead of the competition. With increasing demand for faster and more efficient delivery of software and applications, the need for adopting DevOps and DevSecOps has become more important than ever before. While both approaches focus on delivering high-quality software, there are significant differences between the two that organizations need to understand to make informed decisions. In this article, we will explore the evolution of DevOps, the emergence of DevSecOps, key principles of both approaches, and the similarities and differences between them.

The Evolution of DevOps

DevOps is a software development approach that is characterized by collaboration, communication, automation, and monitoring across the entire software development process. It is a combination of software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) that aims to break down silos between teams to ensure faster and more efficient delivery of software. The origins of DevOps can be traced back to the Agile software development movement in the early 2000s.

The Origins of DevOps

Before the Agile software development movement, software development was a slow and rigid process that often resulted in software that was delivered late, over budget, and with poor quality. As a result, there was a need for a more flexible and collaborative approach to software development. The Agile software development movement introduced the concept of cross-functional teams, continuous delivery, and continuous integration. It was during this time that DevOps started to emerge as a response to the challenges faced by Agile teams in integrating development and operations.

As Agile teams began to embrace DevOps, they started to see significant improvements in the speed and quality of their software delivery. By breaking down the barriers between development and operations, DevOps teams were able to work more collaboratively and efficiently, resulting in faster and more reliable software releases. This led to a growing interest in DevOps, as more and more organizations began to recognize the benefits of the approach.

The Growth and Adoption of DevOps

Over the years, DevOps has grown in popularity and adoption, with more and more organizations recognizing the benefits of using the approach. One of the key reasons for the growth of DevOps is the increasing demand for faster software delivery. In today's fast-paced business environment, organizations need to be able to deliver software quickly in order to stay competitive. DevOps provides a framework for achieving this by enabling teams to work more collaboratively and efficiently.

Another factor that has contributed to the growth of DevOps is the increasing complexity of software systems. As software systems have become more complex, it has become more challenging to manage them effectively. DevOps provides a way to manage this complexity by breaking down silos between teams and enabling them to work together more effectively.

Today, DevOps is considered the standard approach for delivering high-quality software and applications in a timely manner. Many organizations have adopted DevOps and are reaping the benefits of faster delivery, improved collaboration and communication, and higher quality software. As the demand for faster and more reliable software delivery continues to grow, it is likely that DevOps will continue to evolve and become even more widely adopted.

The Emergence of DevSecOps

While DevOps has made significant contributions to the software development process, it has, unfortunately, left security behind. This means that while software is being developed and delivered faster, it is also becoming more vulnerable to security threats. This is where DevSecOps comes in.

DevSecOps is a relatively new concept that aims to bridge the gap between development, operations, and security teams. Its goal is to integrate security practices into every aspect of the software development process, from design through to deployment. By doing so, it ensures that software is secure and free from vulnerabilities.

The Need for Security in DevOps

Cybersecurity has become a primary concern for organizations around the world. As software continues to evolve, so do security threats. Organizations must ensure that their software is secure and free from vulnerabilities. This is where DevSecOps comes in – it ensures that security is integrated into every aspect of the software development process, from design through to deployment.

One of the main reasons why security has been left behind in the DevOps process is that it is often seen as an afterthought. Development teams are focused on delivering software quickly, while operations teams are focused on ensuring that the software runs smoothly. Security, unfortunately, is often not given the attention it deserves. This is where DevSecOps comes in – it ensures that security is not an afterthought but is baked into the software from the start.

The Integration of Security Practices

DevSecOps is an extension of DevOps that integrates security practices into the entire software development process. It encourages collaboration between development, operations, and security teams, ensuring that security is not an afterthought but is instead a shared responsibility across the development and operations teams.

One of the key principles of DevSecOps is automation. By automating security processes, organizations can ensure that security is integrated into every aspect of the software development process. This includes automated security testing, vulnerability scanning, and code analysis.

Another important aspect of DevSecOps is the use of security tools and technologies. These tools can help organizations identify vulnerabilities and potential security threats early in the development process, allowing them to be addressed before the software is deployed.

Ultimately, the goal of DevSecOps is to create a culture of security within organizations. By integrating security practices into the software development process, organizations can ensure that security is not an afterthought but is instead a shared responsibility across the development and operations teams.

Key Principles of DevOps

DevOps is a software development methodology that emphasizes collaboration, communication, and automation to deliver high-quality software quickly and reliably. It is a cultural shift that brings together development and operations teams to work together throughout the entire software development lifecycle. DevOps is based on several key principles, including:

Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery

Continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) are two critical principles of DevOps. CI/CD is a process that involves integrating code changes into a shared repository frequently, which is then automatically tested and built. The aim is to ensure that software is always in a releasable state, so that it can be deployed to production quickly and with confidence.

CI/CD helps to reduce the time it takes to deploy software and ensures that software is always functional and free from defects. It also helps to improve collaboration between development and operations teams, as everyone is working towards a common goal of delivering high-quality software quickly.

Collaboration and Communication

Collaboration and communication are also critical principles of DevOps. By breaking down silos between teams and encouraging open collaboration and communication, DevOps ensures that everyone is on the same page and can work together to deliver high-quality software.

Collaboration and communication help to improve the overall quality of software by ensuring that all stakeholders are involved in the development process. This includes developers, operations teams, business analysts, and end-users. By involving all stakeholders, DevOps ensures that software meets the needs of all parties involved.

Automation and Monitoring

Automation and monitoring are key principles of DevOps that aim to reduce human error, ensure reliability, and increase efficiency. By automating repetitive tasks and monitoring the software regularly, DevOps ensures that software is always functional and free from defects.

Automation helps to reduce the time it takes to deploy software and ensures that software is always built and tested consistently. It also helps to reduce the risk of human error, as automated tasks are less prone to mistakes than manual tasks.

Monitoring helps to ensure that software is always functional and free from defects. It involves regularly checking the software for issues and addressing them as soon as they are discovered. This helps to ensure that software is always reliable and meets the needs of end-users.

In conclusion, DevOps is a software development methodology that emphasizes collaboration, communication, and automation to deliver high-quality software quickly and reliably. Its key principles include continuous integration and continuous delivery, collaboration and communication, and automation and monitoring. By following these principles, DevOps teams can deliver high-quality software that meets the needs of all stakeholders.

Key Principles of DevSecOps

DevSecOps is a methodology that seeks to integrate security practices into the software development process. It is based on three key principles:

Security as a Shared Responsibility

One of the main principles of DevSecOps is that security is a shared responsibility. In the traditional model of software development, security was the responsibility of the security team. However, this approach has proven to be ineffective in today's fast-paced development environment. The security team cannot be responsible for securing the entire software development process. Instead, all members of the development and operations teams must have a shared responsibility for security.

By involving everyone in the security process, organizations can create a culture of security that permeates the entire software development process. Developers can learn about security best practices, and security professionals can gain a better understanding of the software development process. This shared responsibility ensures that security is not an afterthought but an integral part of the software development process.

Shifting Security Left

DevSecOps aims to shift security left in the SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle). Traditionally, security was only addressed in the later stages of the software development process, such as testing and deployment. However, this approach is flawed because it can lead to security vulnerabilities being discovered late in the process, when they are more difficult and expensive to fix.

By integrating security practices into the design and development stages of the software development process, organizations can identify and address security vulnerabilities early, before they become bigger problems. This approach ensures that security is built into the software from the beginning, rather than being added as an afterthought.

Shifting security left also means that developers are responsible for ensuring that the software they write is secure. This approach encourages developers to think about security from the beginning and to write code that is secure by design.

Continuous Security Monitoring and Automation

Continuous security monitoring and automation are critical for ensuring that software is secure. By continuously monitoring the software for security threats and vulnerabilities and automating the response to those threats, organizations can ensure that software is always secure and free from vulnerabilities.

Continuous security monitoring involves monitoring the software for security threats and vulnerabilities in real-time. This approach allows organizations to detect and respond to security threats quickly, before they can cause any damage.

Automation is also an important aspect of DevSecOps. By automating security processes, organizations can ensure that security is always a part of the software development process. Automation can also help organizations to respond quickly to security threats and vulnerabilities.

Overall, DevSecOps is a methodology that seeks to integrate security practices into the software development process. By following the key principles of DevSecOps, organizations can create software that is secure, reliable, and free from vulnerabilities.

Comparing DevOps and DevSecOps

Similarities Between DevOps and DevSecOps

DevOps and DevSecOps share many similarities. Both approaches focus on collaboration, communication, and automation. Both aim to ensure faster and more efficient delivery of software and applications. And both aim to improve the quality of software by integrating feedback loops throughout the development process.

Differences Between DevOps and DevSecOps

The main difference between DevOps and DevSecOps is that DevSecOps integrates security into every stage of the software development process. DevOps, on the other hand, focuses mainly on collaboration, communication, automation, and monitoring. DevSecOps also emphasizes the need for a shared responsibility for security, whereas DevOps does not address security as comprehensively.

Conclusion

Both DevOps and DevSecOps are critical for delivering high-quality software and applications in today's fast-paced business world. While there are similarities between the two approaches, there are also significant differences that organizations need to be aware of. By understanding the key principles of both approaches, organizations can make informed decisions about which approach is best for them and ensure that their software is delivered in a timely and secure manner.


About the Author

, Dynamic Access Management platform, StrongDM puts people first by giving technical staff a direct route to the critical infrastructure they need to be their most productive.

More Glossary Terms

A
Access Control Lists (ACL)

Access control lists (ACL) control or restrict the flow of traffic through a digital environment. ACL rules grant or deny access in two general...

Active Directory (AD)

Active Directory (AD) is the proprietary directory service for Windows domain networks. It consists of a database and numerous services that connect users...

Active Directory (AD) Bridging

What is Active Directory (AD) Bridging? Active Directory Bridging is a technology in the field of networking that aims to enhance the communication...

Active Directory (AD) Security

Active Directory (AD) is a critical component for Windows based networks. It is a centralized authentication and authorization service that helps...

Active Directory Authentication

Active Directory (AD) is Microsoft’s proprietary directory service for Windows domain networks. Active Directory authentication is AD’s system for...

Advanced Threat Protection

Advanced threat protection is a type of cybersecurity dedicated to preventing pre-planned cyberattacks, such as malware or phishing. ATP combines cloud,...

Agentless Monitoring

Agentless monitoring is a form of IT monitoring that does not require the installation of a software agent. Agentless monitoring protocols or APIs collect...

Anomaly Detection

What Is Anomaly Detection? Anomaly detection is the process of analyzing company data to find data points that don’t align with a company's standard data...

Application Gateway

What is an Application Gateway (App Gateway)?An application gateway is a security measure that protects web applications. They replace traditional web...

Attack Surface

Your organization's attack surface is a collection of all the external points where someone could infiltrate your corporate network. Think of your attack...

Attack Surface Management vs. Vulnerability Management

As more and more data and critical systems go online, the risks associated with cyber threats magnify. One of the most important aspects of cybersecurity...

Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC)

A runtime decision-making strategy for what features and/or data a user can access based on policies and user attributes.

Audit Log

An audit log is a document that records what is happening within an IT system.

Authentication (Authn)

Authentication is the process of verifying a user or device before allowing access to a system or resources.

Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

An authentication bypass vulnerability is a weak point in the user authentication process. A cybercriminal exploiting such a weakness circumvents...

Authentication vs. Authorization: What's the Difference?

When it comes to protecting sensitive data and ensuring systems security, two key concepts come into play - authentication and authorization. Although...

AWS CloudTrail vs. AWS CloudWatch: What's the Difference?

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has emerged as one of the leading providers of cloud computing services, providing a wide range of management tools for...

AWS IAM User vs. IAM Role

The difference between an IAM role and a user is that a role can be temporarily or permanently applied to a user to give the user bulk permissions for a...

AWS NoSQL Databases: How to Choose the Best Option

Understanding NoSQL Databases Before we take a closer look at the various NoSQL databases provided by AWS, let's first understand what NoSQL databases...

B
Bastion Host

A bastion host is a server used to manage access to an internal or private network from an external network - sometimes called a jump box or jump server.

Behavior-Based Access Control (BBAC)

Behavior-Based Access Control (BBAC) is a security model that grants or denies access to resources based on the observed behavior of users or entities. It...

Brute Force Attack

A brute force attack is a cyber attack where a hacker guesses information, such as usernames and passwords, to access a private system. The hacker uses...

C
CASB

Software or hardware that is either hosted in the cloud or on-premises. It adds a layer of security between users and cloud service providers and often...

CI/CD Pipeline

CI/CD (continuous integration/continuous deployment) is a collection of practices for engineering, testing, and delivering software. A CI/CD pipeline is...

Cloud Application Security

What is Cloud Application Security? Cloud application security is a crucial aspect of modern business operations, especially as more organizations turn...

Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM)

Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM, pronounced “kim”) is a category of specialized software-as-a-service solutions that automate the...

Cloud Workload Security

What is Cloud Workload Security?Cloud workload security is the practice of securing applications and their composite workloads running in the cloud....

Comparing IOA and IOC: What's the Difference?

Input/Output (IO) is a fundamental aspect of modern computing systems. In order to effectively send and receive data between a computer and its...

Comparing Kubernetes and Mesos: Which One Is Right for You?

Container orchestration platforms are becoming increasingly popular with developers and businesses alike. They provide a way to manage and automate the...

Comparing MDR and MSSPs: What's the Difference?

In today's ever-evolving threat landscape, businesses must remain vigilant in defending their networks against potential attacks. As a result, Managed...

Comparing SDN and NFV: What's the Difference?

Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) are two terms that frequently come up in discussions of modern networking....

Comparing SDN and SD-WAN: What's the Difference?

In the ever-changing technology landscape, software-defined networking (SDN) and software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) are two buzzwords that have...

Comparing SIEM and Log Management: What's the Difference?

Businesses operate in a data-driven world, handling data for different purposes. As more data is generated, companies seek ways to organize and manage...

Comparing SRE and DevOps: What Are the Differences?

In the realm of software development, there are two popular approaches to managing complex systems: Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) and DevOps. While...

Comparing XDR, SIEM, and SOAR: What's the Difference?

As we continue to combat the increase in cybersecurity threats, it’s essential that businesses have a comprehensive plan in place to protect their assets....

Continuous Adaptive Risk and Trust Assessment (CARTA)

Continuous Adaptive Risk and Trust Assessment (CARTA) is an IT security framework that goes beyond traditional role-based access control (RBAC). By adding...

Credential Stuffing

Credential stuffing is a type of cyber attack that occurs when a person or bot steals account credentials, such as usernames and passwords, and tries to...

Credential Stuffing vs. Password Spraying: What's the Difference?

Online security risks are a constantly evolving concern. As we increasingly rely on digital platforms for everything from communication to banking and...

Cyber Insurance

Cyber insurance, also called cybersecurity insurance or cyber liability insurance, is an insurance policy that covers the losses a business might suffer...

D
Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is a series of tools and practices that help companies recognize and prevent data exposure by controlling the flow of...

Data Observability

Data observability is the ability to understand, diagnose, and manage data health across multiple IT tools throughout the data lifecycle. A data...

Data Security Posture Management (DSPM)

Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) refers to the proactive and continuous assessment, monitoring, and enhancement of an organization's data security...

Defense-in-depth

What is Defense-in-depth?Defense-in-depth began as a military term for a layered approach to protection. The NSA has taken that military strategy and...

Deprovisioning

Deprovisioning removes the access rights and deletes the accounts associated with a user on a network. When an organization offboards an individual, it’s...

DevOps and DevSecOps: Understanding the Difference

In today's fast-paced business world, technology and software development have become crucial for organizations to stay ahead of the competition. With...

Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR)

Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR) is a cybersecurity practice for identifying, investigating, and remediating cyberattacks. Computer security...

Directory Services

What Are Directory Services? A directory service is a database containing information about users, devices, and resources. This information, such as...

Dynamic Access Control (DAC)

What is Dynamic Access Control (DAC)? Dynamic Access Control (DAC) is a Windows Server feature that debuted in Windows Server 2012. It leverages...

E
EDR vs MDR vs XDR: What's the Difference?

In today's world, cyber threats are becoming more sophisticated, and even the most robust security measures cannot guarantee total protection. As a...

Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM)

What is Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM)? Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM) is a critical process that ensures that users and applications have...

Enterprise Kubernetes

An enterprise Kubernetes (K8s) platform packages Kubernetes—an open source container orchestrator—into a simple-to-use product for companies. Container...

Enterprise Password Management

What is Enterprise Password Management? Enterprise Password Management is a system or software designed to securely store, manage, and control access to...

Ephemeral Environment

An ephemeral environment is a short-lived clone of the UAT (user acceptance testing) or production environment. Software teams create ephemeral...

F
Federated Identity Management vs. Single Sign-On: What's the Difference?

Single sign-on (SSO) and federated identity management (FIM) are two popular methods of identity management that are commonly used to simplify...

FIDO2

FIDO2 is the newest set of specifications from the FIDO Alliance. It enables the use of common devices to authenticate to online services on both mobile...

H
HIPAA

Compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) means adhering to the rules and regulations that impact what, how, and...

HITRUST

HITRUST is a non-profit company that delivers data protection standards and certification programs to help organizations safeguard sensitive information,...

Honeypot

A honeypot is a phony digital asset designed to look like a poorly-guarded, valuable asset. The goal is to trick cyber attackers into targeting the...

I
Identity and Access Management (IAM)

Identity and access management (IAM or IdAM) is a framework containing the tools and policies a company uses to verify a user’s identity, authorize...

Identity as a Service (IDaaS)

Identity as a Service (IDaaS) is an identity and access management (IAM) solution delivered in a cloud-based service that is hosted by a trusted third...

Identity Governance and Administration (IGA)

Identity governance and administration (IGA), also called identity security, is a set of policies that allow firms to mitigate cyber risk and comply with...

Identity Lifecycle Management

What is Identity Lifecycle Management?Identity lifecycle management is the process of managing user identities and access privileges for all members of an...

Identity Security

Identity security refers to the tools and processes intended to secure identities within an organization. Based upon the Zero Trust model, identity...

Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR)

What is Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR)? Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) refers to a range of tools and processes designed to...

IGA vs. IAM: Understanding the Difference

While there's an overlap between IGA and IAM, key differences distinguish the two. IAM focuses on authenticating and authorizing user access, primarily...

Indicator of Attack (IOA) Security

An indicator of attack (IOA) is digital or physical evidence of a cyberattacker’s intent to attack. IOA detection focuses specifically on an adversary’s...

Insider Threat

An insider threat is a threat to an organization that occurs when a person with authorized access—such as an employee, contractor, or business...

ISO 27001 Compliance

ISO/IEC 27001, or ISO 27001, is the international standard that defines best practices for implementing and managing information security controls within...

ISO 27002

ISO 27002, or ISO/IEC 27002:2022, provides guidance on the selection, implementation, and management of security controls based on an organization's...

ISO 27003

ISO 27003, also called ISO/IEC 27003:2017, provides guidance for implementing an ISMS based on ISO 27001.

J
Just-in-Time (JIT) Access

Just-in-time (JIT) access is a feature of privileged access management (PAM) solutions to grant users access to accounts and resources for a limited time...

K
Kerberoasting

Kerberoasting is a post-compromise attack technique for cracking passwords associated with service accounts in Microsoft Active Directory. The attacker...

Kubernetes Governance

Kubernetes governance refers to the policies and procedures for managing Kubernetes in an organization. Governance applies to technical units (such as...

L
Lateral Movement

Lateral movement is when an attacker gains initial access to one part of a network and then attempts to move deeper into the rest of the network —...

Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)

Lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) is an open-standard and vendor-agnostic application protocol for both verifying users' identities and giving...

Log Analysis

Log analysis is the practice of examining event logs in order to investigate bugs, security risks, or other issues. Analyzing automatically generated log...

Log Management

Log data—from system, application, and security log files, for example—help IT staff identify technical issues, troubleshoot, improve performance, and...

M
Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attack

A man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack is a cyber attack in which a threat actor puts themselves in the middle of two parties, typically a user and an...

Microsegmentation

Microsegmentation is a network security practice that creates secure zones within data center environments by segmenting application workloads into...

Monitoring

Monitoring is the collection and analysis of data pulled from IT systems. DevOps monitoring uses dashboards— often developed by your internal team—to...

N
Network Segmentation

Network segmentation (also known as network partitioning or network isolation) is the practice of dividing a computer network into multiple subnetworks in...

NIST

NIST compliance broadly means adhering to the NIST security standards and best practices set forth by the government agency for the protection of data...

O
Observability

Observability is defined as a measure of how well the internal states of a system can be inferred from knowledge of its external outputs.

Open Authorization (OAuth)

OAuth (OAuth 2.0 since 2013) is an authentication standard that allows a resource owner logged-in to one system to delegate limited access to protected...

OpenID Connect (OIDC)

OpenID Connect (OIDC) is an authentication layer built on top of the OAuth 2.0 authorization framework. OIDC allows third-party applications to obtain...

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) Explained

The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) is a non-profit consortium that develops and promotes open standards for...

P
Pass-the-Hash (PtH) Attack

What is Pass-the-Hash (PtH) Attack? Pass-the-hash (PtH) attacks are a type of network attack that involves stealing hashed credentials from one computer...

Password Rotation

What is Password Rotation? Password rotation is a security practice that involves changing passwords regularly to prevent unauthorized access to personal...

Password Vaulting

What is Password Vaulting? Password vaulting is a technique used to store passwords in a central location and protect them with encryption. The primary...

Passwordless Authentication

Passwordless authentication is a verification method in which a user gains access to a network, application, or other system without a knowledge-based...

PCI Compliance

PCI compliance—or payment card industry compliance—is the process businesses follow to meet the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

Policy Decision Point (PDP) Explained

A Policy Decision Point (PDP) is a component in a system that makes decisions based on policies that have been defined within that system. It is a crucial...

Policy-Based Access Control (PBAC)

Policy-Based Access Control (PBAC) is another access management strategy that focuses on authorization. Whereas RBAC restricts user access based on static...

Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP)

‍In network security, least privilege is the practice of restricting account creation and permission levels to only the resources a user requires to...

Privileged Access Management

Privileged access management (PAM) encompasses the policies, strategies, and technologies used to control, monitor, and secure elevated access to critical...

Privileged Access Management as a Service (PAMaaS)

Cloud privileged access management is cloud-based PAM consumed as a service, or PAMaaS. Companies can replace their on-premises PAM technology with a...

Privileged Account

A privileged account is a user account with greater privileges than those of ordinary user accounts. Privileged accounts may access important data or...

Privileged Session Management

What is Privileged Session Management? Privileged session management (PSM) is an IT security process that monitors and records the sessions of privileged...

Public vs. Private Clouds: What's the Difference?

Cloud computing has revolutionized the way businesses and organizations operate, allowing them to store, access, and manage data and applications in...

R
Red Team vs. Blue Team

“Red team vs. blue team” is a cybersecurity drill during which one group, dubbed the “red team,” simulates the activities of cyberattackers. A separate...

Relationship-Based Access Control (ReBAC) Explained

ReBAC is a model that extends the traditional Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) and Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC) models by considering the...

Remote Access Security

What is Remote Access Security? Remote access is the ability to access resources, data, and applications on a network from a location other than the...

Remote Code Execution (RCE)

Remote code execution (RCE) is a cyberattack in which an attacker remotely executes commands to place malicious code on a computing device. Input or...

Reverse Proxy and Load Balancer: Understanding the Difference

With the increase in online traffic and the need for secure and fast network connections, reverse proxies and load balancers have become integral...

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Security

What is Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Security? Robotic process automation (RPA) is software that mimics human actions to automate digital tasks....

Role-based access control (RBAC)

Role-based access control (RBAC) is a security approach that authorizes and restricts system access to users based on their role(s) within an organization.

S
SAML

SAML is a popular online security protocol that verifies a user’s identity and privileges. It enables single sign-on (SSO), allowing users to access...

SAML vs. SSO

SAML enables SSO by defining how organizations can offer both authentication and authorization services as part of their infrastructure access strategy....

SD-WAN vs. MPLS: What's the Difference?

Many businesses have traditionally relied on Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks to connect their remote sites and branch offices. However,...

Secrets Management

Secrets management is a cybersecurity best practice for securing digital authentication credentials. It relies on various tools and methods to store,...

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)

Secure Access Service Edge (more commonly known by the SASE acronym) is a cloud architecture model that combines network and security-as-a-service...

Security Incident Response Policy (SIRP)

A Security Incident Response Policy (SIRP) establishes that your organization has the necessary controls to detect security vulnerabilities and incidents,...

Security Operations (SecOps)

Security Operations (SecOps) is a methodology that fuses IT operations and information security. Its goal is to reduce security risks and vulnerabilities...

Separation of Duties (SoD)

Separation of duties (SoD) is the division of tasks among organization members to prevent abuse, fraud, or security breaches. SoD encompasses a set of...

Shadow IT

What is Shadow IT? Shadow IT is software or hardware in use in an organization without the knowledge of the IT department. Business units or individuals...

Single-Factor Authentication (SFA)

Single-factor authentication (SFA) or one-factor authentication involves matching one credential to gain access to a system (i.e., a username and a...

SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture) vs. Microservices

When it comes to modern software development, two terms that are often used interchangeably are Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Microservices....

SOC 2

SOC 2 stands for “Systems and Organizations Controls 2” and is sometimes referred to as SOC II. It is a framework designed to help software vendors and...

Software-Defined Network (SDN)

With a software-defined network, networking devices directly connect to applications through application programming interfaces (APIs), making SDN...

SOX Compliance

SOX compliance is an annual obligation derived from the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) that requires publicly traded companies doing business in the U.S. to...

Spear Phishing and Phishing: Understanding the Difference

In today's digital age, many individuals and organizations rely on technology for communication, transactions, and data storage. However, with this...

Spoofing vs Phishing: What's the Difference?

In today's digital age, there are many cybercrimes that individuals and organizations need to be aware of. Two of the most common cybercrimes are spoofing...

SQL vs. NoSQL Databases: Which One to Choose?

Understanding SQL and NoSQL Databases When it comes to managing data, there are two main types of databases: SQL and NoSQL. While both types of databases...

T
Technical Debt

Technical debt is any software code which achieves a short-term goal at the cost of some future drawback. It commonly takes the form of code that...

Telemetry

Derived from the Greek roots tele ("remote") and metron ("measure”), telemetry is the process by which data is gathered from across disparate systems to...

Threat Actor

What Is a Threat Actor? A threat actor is any individual or group that has the intent and capability to exploit vulnerabilities in computer systems,...

Threat Hunting

Threat hunting is the cyber defense practice of proactively searching for threats within a network. Threat hunters look for threats that may have evaded...

Threat Intelligence

The ultimate findings from cyberthreat analyses are referred to as threat intelligence. Producing threat intelligence involves a cycle of collecting data...

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds a second layer of protection to your access points. Instead of just one authentication factor, 2FA requires two...

U
Understanding the Difference Between CRUD and REST

In the world of web development, CRUD and REST are two terms that are frequently used, but often misunderstood. While both are important and have their...

V
Vulnerability Management

Vulnerability management (VM) is the proactive, cyclical practice of identifying and fixing security gaps. It typically leverages scanning software to...

Vulnerability Management Lifecycle

What is a Vulnerability Management Lifecycle? The vulnerability management lifecycle involves continuous monitoring and assessment of systems, regular...

W
WebAuthn

WebAuthn is the API standard that allows servers, applications, websites, and other systems to manage and verify registered users with passwordless...

What Is a Policy Administration Point (PAP)?

A Policy Administration Point (PAP) is a crucial component in access control systems, responsible for defining and managing policies that regulate user...

What Is a Policy Enforcement Point (PEP)?

A Policy Enforcement Point (PEP) is a component in a security framework that enforces access control policies. It regulates and monitors access to...

What Is a Policy Engine?

A policy engine is a software component that allows an organization to manage, enforce, and audit rules across their system. It is designed to provide a...

What Is a Policy Information Point (PIP)?

A Policy Enforcement Point (PEP) is a component in a security framework that enforces access control policies. It regulates and monitors access to...

What is Access Discovery?

Access Discovery is the process of identifying and verifying available pathways to digital resources or information within a system or network. It...

What Is Active Directory (AD) Bridging?

Active Directory (AD) bridging lets users log into non-Windows systems with their Microsoft Active Directory account credentials. This extends AD benefits...

What Is an Open Policy Agent (OPA)?

Open Policy Agent (OPA) is an open-source, general-purpose policy engine that enables policy-as-code across diverse software stacks. It provides a unified...

What Is Continuous Authorization?

Continuous Authorization is a security concept ensuring ongoing validation of users' access rights within a system. Employing real-time session monitoring...

What is Continuous Monitoring?

What is Continuous Monitoring? Continuous monitoring is a systematic and ongoing process that uses automated tools and technologies to monitor the...

What is Customer Identity Access Management (CIAM)?

Customer Identity Access Management (CIAM) is a specialized branch of identity and access management designed to facilitate secure and seamless customer...

What is Cyber Threat Hunting?

Threat hunting is the cyber defense practice of proactively searching for threats within a network. Threat hunters look for threats that may have evaded...

What Is Disaster Recovery Policy (DRP)?

Disaster Recovery Policy is a strategic framework outlining procedures and resources to swiftly restore essential business functions after a disruptive...

What Is eXtensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML)?

eXtensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML) is a standard for specifying and exchanging access control policies in computer systems. It provides a...

What Is Fine-Grain Access Controls?

Fine-grain access controls are a type of access control that enables granular access to systems, applications, and data. Access is based on specific...

What Is Group-Based Access Control (GBAC)?

Group-Based Access Control (GBAC) is a security model that regulates access to resources by assigning permissions based on user group membership. It...

What Is Identity Fabric?

Identity Fabric refers to an integrated set of identity and access management services that provide seamless and secure user access across a diverse range...

What Is NoSQL Injection? Examples, Prevention, and More

What is NoSQL Injection? NoSQL Injection is a type of injection attack that exploits vulnerabilities in NoSQL databases by injecting malicious code into...

What Is Policy-as-Code? Tools, Examples, Implementation

Policy-as-Code refers to the practice of managing and implementing policy decisions through code, making them enforceable and verifiable within IT...

What Is Privileged Identity Management (PIM)?

Privileged identity management is the process companies use to manage which privileged users—including human users and machine users—have access to which...

What is Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)?

What is Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)? Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) is a proprietary protocol developed by Microsoft that allows users to remotely...

What Is Segregation of Duties (SoD)?

Segregation of Duties (SoD) is a risk management principle that ensures critical tasks are divided among different individuals to prevent conflicts of...

What is Vendor Privileged Access Management (VPAM)?

Vendor Privileged Access Management (VPAM) is a cybersecurity strategy that focuses on controlling and securing third-party access to an organization's...

What Is Zero Trust Data Protection?

Zero Trust Data Protection is a security framework that assumes no inherent trust, requiring verification from anyone trying to access data, regardless of...

Z
Zero Trust

Zero Trust is a modern security model founded on the design principle “Never trust, always verify.” It requires all devices and users, regardless of...

Zero Trust vs. the Principle of Least Privilege: What's the Differences?

As cyber attacks become more advanced and frequent, organizations are realizing the importance of enhancing their cybersecurity strategies. Two approaches...

Zombie Accounts

Zombie accounts: forgotten accounts that open the door to bad actors looking to insert malware, steal data, and damage your internal systems.

StrongDM People-first Infrastructure Access Wizard

See StrongDM in Action