How proactive cybersecurity reduces risk and strengthens resilience

Cybersecurity threats are continuously evolving, and organizations can no longer rely on traditional, perimeter-focused defenses to stay protected. Attackers are faster, smarter, and often inside a network long before anyone notices. That’s why security teams need to shift from reacting to incidents to preparing for them before they happen.

Proactive cybersecurity is about building resilience, an architecture that can withstand and limit the impact of cyberattacks. By incorporating strategies such as microsegmentation, zero trust design, and automated containment, organizations can reduce risk, protect critical assets, and ensure business continuity in the event of a cyberattack.

The inevitable breach

Rajesh Khazanchi, CEO and cofounder of ColorTokens, argues that many security teams still cling to the old model: “outside is untrusted; inside is trusted.” But he insists this needs to change. As he explains, “Breaches are inevitable … you must assume a breach. Anyone inside the network should be treated as if they were outside the network.” 

That “assume breach” mindset flips the security narrative: instead of focusing solely on prevention, organizations plan for containment and recovery. According to Khazanchi, being breach ready means designing systems and controls that minimize impact, prevent lateral movement, and isolate your critical assets in real time. 

This isn’t just theoretical. Khazanchi says that many organizations don’t yet fully understand how to operationalize breach readiness, and that’s where real risk lies.

Why traditional cybersecurity tools aren’t enough

Endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools like CrowdStrike, Microsoft Defender, or SentinelOne are powerful, but they have limits. According to Khazanchi, “EDR is that commando skill you have; you want to prevent yourself from those bullets, and you’re dodging them. But one bullet can take a life, one bullet.” 

In his analogy, EDR is like a highly trained commando dodging bullets (i.e., attacks). But microsegmentation acts like a “bulletproof jacket and shield,” giving you an extra layer of protection even if an attacker slips through.  He believes microsegmentation coupled with EDR is “the killer combination” for modern defense: “EDR to stop breaches, microsegmentation to contain breaches… we see significant recognition that they need to follow Zero Trust principles.”

The role of microsegmentation in resilience

At the heart of proactive cybersecurity lies microsegmentation, dividing your network into tightly governed zones so that systems can’t freely communicate. Khazanchi highlights several resilience benefits:

• Minimizing blast radius: When segments are tightly controlled, a compromised asset can't freely reach others. 
• Isolating critical systems: You can isolate your “crown jewels”—your most sensitive assets—in real time. 
• Faster recovery: With containment built in, recovery becomes dramatically faster. Khazanchi points to hospitals that simulate breach scenarios, red-team/blue-team, and recover in 40 minutes. 
• Continuous visibility: Microsegmentation supports granular visibility of traffic, which helps detect anomalies and enforce compliance.

Go deeper: Understanding micro-segmentation

From traditional perimeter defense to containment architecture

Khazanchi argues that architectures built around legacy perimeters are no longer adequate: He notes that “Most are designed so that … internally … they have VLAN segmented areas, but not fully segmented environments. They’re more or less flat networks.”  This “flat internal network” model is widespread, but it makes lateral movement easy for attackers. By contrast, containment architecture relies on segmentation controls plus context-aware, Zero Trust policies to reduce risk. 

Microsegmentation, in his view, provides that control plane. When paired with EDR, it gives you both active defense and an isolation strategy. 

Overcoming implementation challenges

Microsegmentation has historically been hard to implement. Traditionally, policy design has been manual, with security teams writing thousands of micro-policies for every workload. As Khazanchi notes, “You’re in a hotel, and each room has a lock you need to program. That can run into thousands of policies.” But innovation has made this much more manageable. ColorTokens claims to deploy full microsegmentation in 30 days for medium environments and 90 days for large ones, thanks to AI that analyzes traffic, learns patterns, and continuously adapts. 

Another major barrier, tool sprawl, is also addressed. Khazanchi explains that “if they already have an EDR technology … they can achieve microsegmentation through those same agents.” 

In other words, you don’t necessarily need to deploy additional agents; you can leverage your existing EDR infrastructure. That reduces complexity and friction.

Bridging the knowledge gap using culture and education

Khazanchi emphasizes that many organizations struggle most with mindset, not just technology. He outlines three core knowledge gaps:

• Trust assumptions: Many still assume internal users/devices are inherently trusted. But “anyone inside the network should be treated as if they were outside.” 
• Limited visibility: Shifting to containment requires a foundational understanding of your environment. You need to know what assets are connected, how, and where.
• Poor isolation strategy: “Let’s say a particular system is compromised. You should understand whether that system is connected to your crown jewels directly or indirectly, and if it is, what are the isolation and containment techniques?” 

To close these gaps, Khazanchi says it’s critical to educate not just teams but also executives and board members. The conversations must move from “if a breach happens” to “how will we respond?”

Read also: How to respond to a data breach

Zero trust and the strategy of containment

Microsegmentation is not a standalone tactic; it is deeply aligned with the zero trust philosophy. For Khazanchi, the core elements of zero trust—least privilege, segmentation, identity controls, and continuous verification—come together via microsegmentation. 

When you apply microsegmentation, you enforce least-privilege and restrict lateral movement. Add context-aware policies, and you continuously verify that communications are legitimate. Combined, they build a containment architecture that defends not just by detecting but by limiting an attacker’s reach.

AI-driven containment

Khazanchi believes that AI will drive the next major shift in proactive cybersecurity. As he warns, “If today you’re facing five MITRE techniques, tomorrow you’ll face thousands. The sheer variety and sophistication that AI-driven attackers can bring will overwhelm traditional detection and response systems.” 

To counter that, he argues you need AI-powered containment systems that:

• Learn and model traffic patterns
• Automatically generate microsegmentation policies
• Continuously adapt rules as the network changes
• Scale across IT, OT, and IoT environments

He also sees growing risk in operational technology (OT): manufacturing, critical infrastructure, aviation, hospitals—all of these are increasingly under threat.  Because OT assets often run on proprietary or legacy systems, they pose unique risks. AI-driven microsegmentation can help isolate and secure these environments before attackers exploit them.

Related: The role of AI in detecting zero-day attacks

Why proactive cybersecurity is now non-negotiable

As Khazanchi states, “Just relying on detection, response, EDR, and firewalls is no longer enough against new generations of attackers.” 

He argues that resilience will soon be a core differentiator for businesses, not just a technical afterthought. In fact, proactive security is becoming a board-level asking point: boards now expect detailed readiness plans, not just reactive responses. 

Moreover, as attackers increasingly leverage AI, the pressure is only going to intensify. According to Khazanchi, the only way forward is proactive, AI-driven containment architecture, built around microsegmentation and Zero Trust.

Moving toward proactive security

Based on Khazanchi’s insights, here’s a practical roadmap for building a proactive cybersecurity posture:

Shift your mindset

• Adopt the “assume breach” philosophy. “Breaches are inevitable … treat internal users/devices as if they were outside.” 
• Educate leadership and the board about what breach readiness really means.

Assess your risk surface

• Map your “crown jewels.”
• Understand current traffic flows, east-west connectivity, and potential blast radii.

Implement microsegmentation

• Use a solution that layers on top of your current EDR tools. 
• Leverage AI to automatically analyze traffic, propose segmentation policies, and adapt over time.

Build containment controls

• Design policies for isolation and quarantine of compromised workloads.
• Enforce least-privilege access and segmentation aligned with Zero Trust principles.

Practice recovery

• Run red-team/blue-team exercises simulating worst-case breach scenarios.
• Set aggressive recovery goals: Khazanchi suggests organizations aim for under one hour to restore key services. 
• Track and refine these drills to improve both speed and confidence.

Monitor and adapt

• Continuously monitor segment communication, policy effectiveness, and anomalous behavior.
• Use AI to adapt policies and respond to changes in network architecture or threat behavior.

Drive culture and governance

• Bridge the knowledge gap by educating teams about containment-first strategies.
• Align your breach readiness strategy with business priorities — e.g., minimizing disruption, protecting critical operations, or preserving trust.

See also: HIPAA Compliant Email: The Definitive Guide (2025 Update)

FAQS

How does proactive cybersecurity improve visibility across a network?

Proactive frameworks, especially Zero Trust, require continuous monitoring of users, devices, and traffic patterns. This results in clearer real-time visibility, helping teams detect unusual access attempts or lateral movement quickly.

What’s the difference between segmentation and microsegmentation?

Segmentation generally divides a network into broad zones, for example, separating guest Wi-Fi from internal systems. Microsegmentation takes this further, isolating specific applications, workloads, or endpoints, dramatically reducing attack pathways.

Are automated tools necessary for proactive cybersecurity?

Automation enhances consistency, reduces human error, and accelerates detection and response. While not mandatory, automation strengthens proactive security by applying segmentation rules, monitoring anomalies, and triggering alerts or containment actions faster than manual processes.