Understanding Challenges in Access Control Systems
Credit to Author: Atin Chhabra| Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2019 16:34:32 +0000
Access Control is the phenomenon introduced in several industries to ensure selective access to data and areas. The primary focus is on information security and restricted physical access. The process involves two processes – authorisation and authentication. The first step is authentication which is used to verify that the person is the same who he or she claims to be. The next layer of protection and validation is authorisation. It means that the person who is looking for access shall be granted access or not. Moreover, there can be different levels of access that can be set in the system. It can range from – view only access, limited or selective access or power to make amends, transfer data or make transactions.
An automated building having advanced building management control system can be used to control any theft. Breaching the data will mean a faulty access system in the plant. Such systems make the data prone to public accessible systems making the essential elements prone to unwanted data retrieval centres. When the system is connected through internet, hacks and breach becomes possible from any corner of the world. Therefore, it has become an essential asset for plants having network connectivity.
However, there are some challenging while shifting from a traditional security system to a modern day system.
Key Challenges:
- Deciding the appropriate Control Model: Based on the type and model under which data is processed in the plant, it is essential to decide the right access control system. Based on the complexity of the company’s structure, one can allow role-based control. The more advanced one can go about installing the high-security attribute-based access control. This can include access based on the system being used, how secure the connection is, geolocation and time of activity on the data.
- Access Control Policies shall be Adaptive: An advanced system will mean that the data remains secure, i.e. the access policies can be changed dynamically. The rules of access control shall be changed based on the risk factors involved. To imply this, it is crucial to deploy security analytics layers using AI and machine learning. The patterns mapped through machine learning technology can be helped to map real-time threats and modify the controls accordingly.
- Policies shall be Persistent: Continuous efforts make things work, and the same implies for the security networks as well. The consistent application of this technology will ensure foolproof security and data sharing measures.
The market is heating up and demands real-time analytics, and strategy to beat the rising competition in every sphere. In such a scenario, when information becomes vulnerable, it becomes easy for the competitors to surpass the level of personalisation of any service. Therefore, secure access control system grants security to valuable data and data centres. The compact design of the core components, (i.e. policy enforcement, endpoint agent and enforcement point) of this technology will help enterprises to scale up their security standards, and leverage safeguarded data.
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