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Why Identity Is the Foundation of Zero Trust

Zero Trust initiatives fail when they start with network controls instead of identity. Here's why identity has to come first.

TeraIT Security Practice·August 12, 2026·6 min read

Most Zero Trust programs stall because organizations start with network segmentation before establishing a strong identity foundation. Identity is the one control plane that follows users and workloads everywhere - on-premises, cloud, and hybrid. This article walks through why Conditional Access, strong authentication, and identity governance need to be the first investment in any Zero Trust roadmap, and how to sequence the rest of the program around it.