81% of IT leaders think 20/20 visibility improves network security

Infoblox Inc., a provider of foundational networking and security services, announced the findings of a Forrester Consulting study, which discovered that IT leaders worldwide have a universal desire for greater network visibility. The findings highlight a convergence in security and networking, which IT decision makers now see as the missing strategy for improving security response, automating compliance tasks, and better managing processes and outcomes.

Having 20/20 visibility is critical for network security because it allows organizations to discover and understand what data they are protecting and from whom. To realize these benefits, networking and security teams must work together, with network visibility serving as the glue. This integration improves performance and capacity planning, lowers costs, and increases device discovery, all of which benefit both teams.

To further explore, Infoblox commissioned Forrester Consulting to survey the perspectives of 423 global IT leaders at companies in the consumer goods, professional services, retail, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, and chemicals industries. The study found that:

• Security leaders are increasing their investments in network visibility with 97% of respondents already invested in or are planning to invest in new visibility tools/technologies over the next three years; and 61% are eager to invest in network discovery tools. 
• Solutions that improve visibility are in high demand with nearly 80% respondents viewing an integrated solution that benefits both their organizations’ networking and security objectives as appealing, particularly to break down the silos between these organizations, which three out of four surveyed decisionmakers noted was a problem in their company.
• Better visibility elevates security responses and capabilities with 81% of surveyed decisionmakers agreeing that better network visibility would improve their organizations’ security posture and capabilities.

Overall, the survey showed there is significant synergy between visibility and security with 98% of decisionmakers already investing in their security capabilities to support an evolving network architecture. Investing in network discovery (61%) captured the top spot for networking infrastructure as a means of supporting security capabilities.

“We believe these findings underscore that visibility is synonymous with improving efficiency and performance for both networking and security professionals,” said Anthony James, Vice President of Infoblox. “These traditionally separate sectors are converging as businesses build out cloud-first infrastructures to enable hybrid work. Expanding the corporate network increases security risks, which requires both teams to have visibility into network traffic correlated to each connected device and user identity.” 

To accelerate threat hunts, the in-depth study recommended several mitigations, including building zero trust with an identity-centric approach and standardizing on foundational solutions such as the DDI services organizations already use for network connectivity, as well as DNS security. In order to maximize value, all organizations should educate and train their teams on these solutions. Ensuring that teams leverage the unique visibility that DDI metadata provides will also help teams align on goals and minimize damages, particularly from security risks caused by undetected threats.