Even as digital acceleration continues to transform businesses, the campus remains the heart of the network. Today, the campus network needs to do much more than simply interconnect the buildings located in the same geographical location. It also needs access to the internet, dispersed data centers, and applications deployed in both the data center and multiple clouds. And it needs to interconnect an increasingly hybrid workforce that needs to collaborate from both within and outside the campus local-area network (LAN).
With the proliferation of both end-user and Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices and the growing adoption of work-from anywhere (WFA) strategies, the potential attack surface of today’s campus continues to increase. Traditional security systems that protect a place in the network are no longer adequate. Today’s security must adapt to highly scalable and increasingly hybrid campus environments. And data inspection and policy enforcement must follow users and the applications they are using—whether they are on-premises, connecting from home, or accessing campus resources while traveling. This shift requires greater visibility and contextual awareness wherever the user goes throughout the campus network.