Definition

What is Zero Trust?

A security model built on the principle that no user, device, or network segment should be implicitly trusted — even those already inside a traditional network perimeter. Zero trust enforces continuous verification of identity, device health, and least-privilege access for every request, replacing the outdated "castle and moat" perimeter model. The framework is increasingly mandated by government security standards such as the US Executive Order on Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity.

Related terms

Defense in Depth →

A security strategy that layers multiple independent controls so that the failure of any single control does not result in a complete breach.

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) →

An authentication mechanism that requires users to present two or more independent verification factors before access is granted: something you know (password), something you have (hardware token or authenticator app), or something you are (biometric).

Authentication →

The process of verifying the identity of a user, device, or system before granting access to a resource.

Firewall →

A network security control that monitors and filters traffic between networks based on predefined security rules.

Put this into practice

AI penetration testing for web applications →

See how Penetrify's autonomous AI agents find and validate this class of security issue in your application.