Cybersecurity challenges for legacy systems
According to Gartner research, by 2026, over 50% of organizations investing in Zero Trust solutions will not achieve expected results due to focusing solely on new systems and neglecting legacy infrastructure. Legacy systems, often the backbone of critical business operations, pose a significant risk due to the absence of modern authentication, authorization, and network segmentation mechanisms. Amidst the growing number of cyberattacks and strengthening regulatory requirements like NIS2, protecting these systems becomes a priority.
Zero Trust principles and their application
The Zero Trust model is based on the principle of ‘never trust, always verify.’ This means every user, device, or application attempting to access resources must be verified, regardless of its location (inside or outside the network perimeter). Implementing Zero Trust for legacy systems can be complex, as they were often not designed with such concepts in mind. The core principles of Zero Trust include:
- Explicit verification: Authenticating and authorizing all subjects and devices before granting access.
- Least privilege: Granting access only to the resources necessary for a specific task.
- Network segmentation: Isolating critical systems and data to limit the lateral movement of attackers.
- Continuous monitoring: Constantly analyzing traffic and user behavior to detect anomalies.
Zero Trust implementation strategies: migration vs. adaptation
The choice between fully migrating legacy systems or adapting them to Zero Trust principles depends on several factors, including the system’s age, architecture, replacement cost, and regulatory requirements.
Migration: full replacement or refactoring
Full migration involves replacing a legacy system with a new solution designed with modern security standards and Zero Trust architecture in mind. This approach is often the most effective in the long term but requires significant investment and time. An alternative is refactoring existing systems, allowing for gradual modernization of their components by integrating modern security mechanisms.
| Migration advantages | Migration disadvantages |
|---|---|
| High security level from launch. | High initial costs. |
| Integration with cloud services. | Long implementation period. |
| Reduction of technical debt. | Need for staff retraining. |
Adaptation: layering Zero Trust onto existing systems
Adaptation involves implementing Zero Trust elements around existing legacy systems without fully replacing them. This can include:
- Implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) for accessing legacy applications.
- Using micro-segmentation to isolate components of the legacy system.
- Applying Identity and Access Management (IAM) tools for centralized access control.
- Monitoring network traffic and user behavior using SIEM systems.
| Adaptation advantages | Adaptation disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Lower initial costs. | Does not eliminate all legacy system vulnerabilities. |
| Faster implementation. | Difficulty integrating with some old protocols. |
| Preservation of existing system functionality. | Requires constant monitoring and updates. |
Member company solutions and technologies
Intecracy Group members offer comprehensive solutions for enhancing cybersecurity, particularly for protecting legacy systems. Softline and IQusion specialize in system integration and cybersecurity for the public sector, including information security systems (KSZI). They implement complex information protection systems, enabling the adaptation of legacy systems to modern security requirements through the deployment of necessary controls and protection mechanisms. Notably, Softline has experience with custom development on UnityBase, allowing for gradual modernization of functionality and integration of new security modules.
SL Global Service, as a cloud integrator, focuses on cloud cybersecurity, offering solutions for IAM, SIEM, DLP, and encryption, which are critical components of the Zero Trust model. SL Global Service assists clients with migrating legacy systems to cloud environments, ensuring a secure architecture and managed services with SLAs. This allows organizations to leverage cloud technologies without losing control over security, and adapt existing systems to Zero Trust principles through cloud security gateways and micro-segmentation.
Softline and IQusion also have extensive experience implementing the Megapolis.DocNet platform, developed and supported by InBase, and other products based on the open-source low-code UnityBase platform. This provides the capability to gradually replace or augment legacy system functionality with modern, secure solutions that support Zero Trust principles from the outset of development.
The choice between migrating and adapting legacy systems for Zero Trust implementation is a strategic decision requiring a deep understanding of the system architecture, business processes, and available resources. A comprehensive approach combining elements of both strategies often proves most effective, allowing for risk minimization and a gradual transition to the Zero Trust model without disrupting the organization’s current operations.
