The Evolution of Data Security: Why Zero Trust Is the Future

Over the years, data security has seen multiple transformations, each defined by the evolving threat landscape and advancements in technology. As we move into the seventh generation of data security, the concept of Zero Trust has emerged as the foundation for data access. Unlike previous models that assumed trust within a network, Zero Trust ensures that no one, whether inside or outside, is trusted by default. This is especially relevant in an era where AI and machine learning are reshaping how we use and manage data.

A Brief History of Data Security Generations

1. First Generation: Perimeter Security — The early days of security focused on protecting the network boundary using firewalls and basic access controls. The assumption was that external threats were the main concern.

2. Second Generation: Data-Centric Security — As threats evolved, protecting the data itself became important, leading to encryption and data masking strategies.

3. Third Generation: Identity and Access Management (IAM) — As systems became more complex, access controls focused on who was accessing the data, with multi-factor authentication and role-based access controls being the norm.

4. Fourth Generation: Endpoint and Cloud Security — With the rise of mobile devices and cloud computing, security efforts shifted towards endpoint protection and securing cloud environments.

5. Fifth Generation: Zero Trust Network Access — As insider threats became more sophisticated, organizations adopted Zero Trust, which emphasizes continuous verification and assumes no user or system can be inherently trusted.

6. Sixth Generation: Data Governance — With the introduction of regulatory requirements like PIPEDA, FCA, CCPA, HIPAA, GPDR, CCPA, FCRA, PCI DDS, COPPA, and GLBA, organizations focused on data governance, ensuring compliance and user consent.

Why Zero Trust Data Access & Entitlements Now?

The proliferation of AI/ML models has made Zero Trust more relevant than ever. These models require continuous access to high-quality data to function effectively. However, traditional access controls are slow, manual, and not equipped to handle the scale at which these models operate. The current challenge is not just securing the data but ensuring that the right information is accessible to the right processes in real time.

Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) have a crucial role in enabling secure access to data while preserving privacy.

Accelerating Innovation With PETs

Privacy Enhancing Technologies are critical in the Zero Trust framework. PETs such as homomorphic encryption, differential privacy, and secure multi-party computation enable secure data use without exposing sensitive information. This is vital for organizations that want to leverage AI/ML at scale without compromising privacy or security.

PETs allow for:

1. Risk Mitigation: By embedding privacy directly into the data lifecycle, organizations can reduce risks associated with data sharing and leakage. PETs provide mathematical guarantees that ensure sensitive data is not exposed during processing.

2. Faster, Compliance and Safe Data Access: PETs enable automation of data access, ensuring that AI/ML models can access data in real time without waiting for manual approvals. This is crucial for maintaining the speed and agility required in AI-driven environments.

3. Compliance: With evolving regulations, organizations need to ensure that their data access policies are in line with legal requirements. PETs offer built-in compliance through techniques like differential privacy, making it easier to meet regulatory standards while still accessing valuable data.

A Slight Single Sign On Detour

I had the pleasure of presenting at the Eyes Off Data summit, hosted by the team at Oblivious Devs. First, a huge thanks to them for organizing such an impactful event. The summit was a great platform to dive into some interesting conversations around the mass adoption of Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETS). However, one of the side conversations that stuck with me was about the current challenges preventing the widespread adoption of PETs.

While PETS offer a powerful solution for data privacy, access, and security, I think adoption is limited because the discussion around these technologies remains largely at the implementation level. The focus is often on the mechanics — like differential privacy, homomorphic encryption, and secure multiparty computation.

To reach mass adoption, PETs need to follow the path of “boring tech.” Very similar to the evolution of other boring technologies like single sign-on (SSO).

A Mini SSO History Lesson

Single Sign-On (SSO) has its roots in the early 2000s as organizations needed a way to simplify user authentication across multiple applications. Before SSO, users had to log in separately to each system, leading to password fatigue and security risks due to weak or reused passwords. SSO was developed to solve this issue by allowing users to authenticate once and gain access to multiple services without needing to log in again for each one.

Technically, SSO works by leveraging authentication tokens, which are issued after a user successfully logs in to an identity provider (IdP). The IdP then shares this token with other services or applications (called service providers or relying parties) that trust the IdP. When a user attempts to access another service, the service checks with the IdP to confirm the token, allowing seamless access without the need for additional logins.

SSO typically involves a few key technologies:

1. Authentication Protocols: These are essential for securely transmitting authentication credentials and tokens. The most common protocols include:

• SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language): Widely used in enterprise environments for exchanging authentication and authorization data between IdPs and service providers.

• OAuth: A protocol that allows third-party services to exchange access tokens without revealing user credentials. Often used for delegation, e.g., “Sign in with Google.”

• OpenID Connect (OIDC): An authentication layer built on top of OAuth 2.0, allowing for federated identity.

1. Identity Providers (IdPs): These manage user authentication and issue authentication tokens. Examples include Microsoft Active Directory, Okta, and Google Identity.

2. Token-based Authentication: SSO relies on tokens (like JWTs, OAuth tokens, or SAML assertions) for session management. Tokens store key information about the user, like identity and session details, allowing services to verify a user without requiring repeated logins.

No technologies were invented exclusively for SSO, but protocols like SAML and OAuth were developed to enable secure, scalable SSO solutions across diverse applications and systems.

SSO simplifies user experience, reduces security risks, and makes managing access across multiple services more efficient.

It has since become a standard for identity management in organizations worldwide but is rarely talked about by leading with SAML, OAUTH, OIDC or JWTs. The end goal is clear — security and convenience. The technology itself fades into the background, where it belongs.

Where SSO Went PETs Should Follow

Similarly, for PETs to thrive, we need to shift from a technology-driven narrative to a value-driven conversation. This shift is essential for PETs to evolve from cutting-edge tech to a standard toolset, just like SSO did for identity management.

As data becomes more decentralized and AI/ML use cases proliferate, Zero Trust Data Access (powered by PETs) is not just a security measure — it’s a strategic enabler of the data-driven future.