SSPM vs CASB

Companies have a few different options for improving the security of their cloud environments, and, especially, the SaaS applications running in them. Two of the most important SaaS security solutions to know about are SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) and Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB). Often, these two solutions are deployed as part of a holistic Security Service Edge (SSE) or Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) that offers integrated Internet, cloud, and SaaS security.

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The Growing Need Of Security Solutions for SaaS

Cloud adoption has grown rapidly in recent years with nearly every organization having some data and solutions in the cloud. The cloud service model with the greatest adoption is Software as a Service (SaaS), where cloud providers develop and offer software products to their users.

SaaS adoption accelerated with the shift to remote and hybrid work arrangements as organizations needed the capability to support remote workers with the agility enabled by cloud services. As a result, most companies have sensitive data hosted in a range of SaaS solutions such as productivity suites, web conferencing, cloud storage, collaboration platforms, and other cloud-hosted products. With the growth of the cloud and SaaS applications comes significant cloud security risks. As corporate data is uploaded into approved and unapproved SaaS solutions, security teams need the ability to manage and secure these applications.

What is SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM)?

SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) is a cybersecurity solution tailored to the unique requirements of SaaS applications. SSPM offers configuration management and drift prevention for an organization’s SaaS applications.

SSPM analyzes an organization’s SaaS services and offers detailed security guidance. Some of the functions of SSPM include:

 

  • Misconfiguration detection.
  • Simplified or fully automated remediation
  • Identity and permission management
  • Compliance management

What is a Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)?

Cloud access security brokers (CASB) act as an intermediary between an organization’s cloud environments and the outside world. CASB solutions include both API-based security (installed on the SaaS app itself)  and inline (proxy-based) security, both of which enable an organization to more effectively enforce security policies across its SaaS applications, including enforcing zero trust access control, protecting against potential data exfiltration and preventing threats.

The Difference between SSPM and CASB

SSPM and CASB solutions are both designed to help secure an organization’s SaaS environments. However, these two solutions have purposes and capabilities that differ in several key ways, including:

  • Scope of Protection: CASB solutions tend to focus on user-to-application interactions, including access control, and the exportation of certain types of files and data. . SSPM focuses on the security posture of the SaaS application itself, and its connections to other SaaS apps, shadow SaaS, plugins and APIs.
  • Security Visibility: This difference between CASB and SSPM also applies to the level of security visibility that they provide. CASB offers visibility into user activity in the SaaS app, while SSPM provides granular insights into individual SaaS applications and their security postures.
  • Configuration Management: Security misconfigurations are a common cause of breaches and other incidents in cloud environments. SSPM offers detection and remediation of misconfigurations,, while CASB doesn’t.

Protecting Against Cloud Security Threats

SSPM and CASB are SaaS security solutions that offer two very different sets of capabilities that complement each other. In general, CASB focuses on the interaction between a user and a SaaS application while SSPM enhances the security posture of individual SaaS applications and reduces the risk of SaaS-to-SaaS connections..

SaaS Security with Check Point

As SaaS adoption grows, it poses a more significant threat to corporate cybersecurity. Data entrusted to SaaS solutions may be exposed due to security misconfigurations, poor access control, and other cloud security errors.

The growing SaaS security threat introduces the need for additional tools to secure the cloud.  Check Point Harmony SaaS provides the CASB and SSPM functions that organizations need to protect their SaaS applications against attack. Schedule a demo to get started.

To get the CASB protection you need, explore API-based security from Harmony Email and Collaboration and inline SaaS security, with Harmony SASE.

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Related Topics

What is CASB

SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM)

What is Saas Security 

Cloud Security Posture Management

API Security

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