Living with trust issues: the human side of zero trust architecture

When I was a child, adults would make fun of dreamers by saying they lived in the clouds. We also had a TV cartoon show where teddy bears jumped from one cloud to another and lived in a dream world. I don’t know who inspired us more, but here we are today, connected to digital clouds as if they were the oxygen tube without which we cannot breathe. Inspiration is essential for innovation, but I don’t think anyone in the 1980s or 1990s could have predicted that clouds would play an important role in our lives today and the complexities involved in ensuring their safety.

The unfortunate reality is that we have become so deeply dependent on technology that any disruption to it paralyzes our lives. Today, if any of us lose a smartphone or computer, it feels like we have lost a vital organ of our body. Worse, just the thought of the slightest disruption that could disconnect me from the internet or the apps on my smartphone that run in the cloud makes me feel like I can’t breathe.

As we have become more dependent on technology, IT environments have become more complex. This has intensified the threats and can even pose a serious danger. To address these growing security challenges – which required a stronger and more flexible approach – industry experts, security professionals and technology providers came together to develop the Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) framework. This development led to a growing recognition of the importance of prioritizing authentication over trust, making ZTA a cornerstone of modern cybersecurity strategies.

The main idea behind ZTA is ‘never trust, always verify’. This approach is quite different from traditional security models that rely on security tools such as firewalls. Rather than assuming everything within the network is secure, ZTA views every user, device, and application with some suspicion until it can confirm they are legitimate. By continuously monitoring and controlling each access request, ZTA helps reduce the risk of data leaks.

The dangers

Implementing the ZTA framework means that every action the IT and security teams take is filtered through a security first lens. However, the oft-repeated mantra of “never trust, always verify” can impact the psychological well-being of those who implement this mantra.

Imagine having to monitor every network activity for hours, constantly wondering if the information is real and if people’s motives are pure. This suspicious climate not only impacts the work environment, but also spills over into personal interactions, eroding trust with others. As the boundaries between professional and personal lives become blurred, the psychological burden can extend beyond the workplace into personal relationships with partners, family and friends.

The psychological toll

The paradox is that the goal of companies is to grow and sell in international markets, but on the other hand, the ‘never trust, always verify’ mentality creates roadblocks when people become too suspicious. So what is the impact on employees when developing new relationships with business partners or prospects? How does doubt impact building trust in foreign cultures?

When organizations fail to pay attention to the consequences of continued skepticism at work, employees and society face the consequences.

As technology becomes the primary source of life for more and more people, this mentality becomes commonplace in society. In this scenario, the main question is how ‘never trust, always verify’ affects the development of our society. ZTA and other security protocols are essential and must remain; however, we cannot ignore their impact on the mental behavior of people working in this field. In practice, developing solutions to technological threats has dangerous implications for people’s behavior and their mental health.

Can ‘never trust, always verify’ lead to collective paranoid behavior in our society? Who is equipped to answer this question? Who can estimate the consequences for society? Not only have the internet and social networks isolated the younger generations and affected their ability to form personal relationships, but now one of the leading protocol mottos during their work week is ‘never trust’.

Can we fall in love without trust?

Maybe I’m thinking about it too much, but I keep wondering how these contradictions impact our lives. On the one hand, personal relationships are essential to our existence, and we have been learning how to build them since childhood. On the other hand, social networks have isolated teens and young adults, and their current or future employment options in technology include repetitive daily mottos that question users’ trust in human behavior. Are we preparing people for a life of irreconcilable conflict?

The absurdity is that technology has brought us closer together and pushed us further apart. Do we know how to redefine trust and relationships as we enter the AI ​​era?

Liat Portal is a San Francisco-based business development specialist.