Access is Insecurity

The Problem with Access 

In traditional security models, access equals control. The more privileges an account has, the more damage it can do when compromised. Attackers know this, and they exploit it relentlessly. Ransomware campaigns increasingly target backup systems because they understand that destroying recovery options guarantees a payday. According to ESG research, 96% of ransomware attacks now target backups, and 41% of organizations admit they do not use immutable storage. This is a systemic failure rooted in one principle: access is insecurity. 

Zero Trust and the Evolution to Zero Access 

The Zero Trust Maturity Model emphasizes “never trust, always verify” and least privilege access. While least privilege reduces risk, it doesn’t eliminate it. Suppose an attacker compromises an admin account, even with limited rights. In that case, they can still perform destructive actions on the firmware, operating system, virtualization layer, storage layer, or any other layer on which the data resides, thereby manipulating and destroying data indirectly. That’s why Absolute Immutability introduces a radical extension to this model: Zero Access. 

Zero Access means removing the ability to perform destructive actions entirely, even for the most privileged accounts. No admin, no vendor, no attacker can delete or alter backup data. It’s not enough to claim immutability; it must be enforced at each computing layer and additionally verified as Zero Access through third-party testing and implemented with a secure-by-design architecture. 

Absolute Immutability: The Ultimate Defense 

Absolute Immutability ensures that backup data cannot be changed or deleted under any circumstances. It’s achieved through: 

• S3 Object Storage with Compliance Mode: Native immutability at the protocol level, preventing overrides. 
• Zero Time to Immutability: Data becomes immutable the moment it’s written—no mutable landing zones.
• Target Storage Appliance: Segmentation between backup software and storage, reducing attack surface. 

This approach aligns perfectly with Zero Trust principles by assuming breach and preparing for recovery. When ransomware strikes, immutable backups are your last line of defense—and they must be truly immutable. 

Why Access is Insecurity 

Every permission is a potential exploit. Governance Mode, for example, allows privileged users to override immutability settings—a catastrophic loophole. Object First utilizes the principles of Zero Access to close these gaps by enforcing: 

• No root-level OS access 
• No factory resets without multi-party approval (Eight-Eyes Protocol)
• No ability to disable immutability 

By eliminating destructive capabilities, Zero Access transforms backup storage from a soft target into something that is completely ransomware-proof and virtually unhackable! 

What should you do? 

Organizations must move beyond traditional access controls and embrace Zero Access as a core security principle. Utilizing backup storage that enforces Absolute Immutability (Only Object First does!), and Zero Trust segmentation is the only way to ensure a ransomware-proof architecture. In a world where attackers assume they will always breach your infrastructure (and your backups), your strategy must assume recovery—and that starts with making access irrelevant.