How Zero-Trust Security Models Are Changing the Way We Approach Cyber Defense

Abstract

Cyber threats are becoming more advanced and that is why the traditional perimeter-based security 
models are no longer effective. Zero-Trust Security (ZTS) models highlight a paradigm shift in the 
manner of how organizations should plan their cybersecurity strategies. This study examines the role of 
the ZTS as a way of improving cyber defensive measures against threats and reducing risks. This paper 
aims at discussing the ways in which Zero-Trust models that promote continuous evaluation over blind 
trust are transforming the security paradigm. We use a comparative study of different machine learning 
and AI-based security tools, as based on the existing literature, to point out the effectiveness of Zero
Trust in both internal and external breach prevention. Based on our findings, our results imply that 
although ZTS is a great method of enhancing defense, it can be difficult to implement and scale, 
especially in legacy systems. The results throw additional evidence in the debate regarding the next-gen 
security paradigms positing that companies should consider implementing a combined approach based 
on the Zero-Trust philosophy and a more conventional security defensive strategy. These findings give 
rise to the need to examine more deeply, the ZTS optimization in the environment of complex 
enterprises.