Confronting Shadow Access Risks: Considerations for Zero Trust and Artificial Intelligence Deployments

Shadow Access, a growing concern within cloud computing and Identity and Access Management (IAM), refers to unintended, unauthorized access to systems and data, often intensified by the complexities of modern technological environments. Organizations from small to large often find out the hard way that their previously secure starting point has silently evolved into an unsecure one, the consequences of which are potentially catastrophic. Adding an additional dimension, the increasing prevalence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) introduces new Shadow Access risks, such as unauthorized access, sensitive data exposure, and governance issues.

Zero Trust, centered on the philosophy of “Never Trust, Always Verify,” is positioned as a countermeasure to Shadow Access, advocating for robust authentication and vigilant access control. However, the practical implementation of Zero Trust faces challenges in cloud-native architectures where Shadow Access is prevalent. 

This publication by the CSA Identity and Access Management Working Group delves into these intersections of Shadow Access, AI, and Zero Trust, and underscores the necessity of adapting traditional Zero Trust IAM approaches to the nuances of AI technology.