# Analysis of Azure Zero Trust Architecture Implementation for Mid-Size Organizations
## 6 Analyzing Azure ZTA Implementation and Implications
### Semi-Hybrid Cloud Approach Case Study  
Installing ZTA for Company X, a 200-employee organization utilizing a hybrid Active Directory and Azure-hosted applications, emphasizes access security, sensitive data protection, and stringent compliance facilitation. Zero Trust inherently presumes a breach and scrutinizes each access request as if it came from an unsecured network, utilizing identity, device, data, applications, and infrastructure as control mechanisms. The ZTA settings for this scenario, mapped to ZTA capabilities, are shown in Figure 19:  
A comprehensive framework for the Evaluation and Enforcement of Zero Trust Policies within an organization is illustrated in this diagram, emphasizing strict identity verification and access controls to protect both human and non-human identities. The governance component is central to this framework, with Microsoft Purview being incorporated for unified data governance, thereby enhancing compliance and security posture assessment. Microsoft Sentinel facilitates continuous security assessments and is equipped with advanced threat intelligence, forensics, and response automation. Essential security practices  
Figure 19: Azure ZTA framework was applied to the first case study. are highlighted in the diagram, including Conditional Access with MFA, SSPR, Passwordless Authentication, and JIT access, which serve to minimize the attack surface. It is ensured that permissions are accurately maintained by Azure Access Review, aligning with the least privilege principle. The extension of these Zero Trust principles by Microsoft Cloud App Security is aimed at the effective management and security of cloud applications. Furthermore, Microsoft Syntex enhances the management of emails, documents, and structured data by applying AI-driven content understanding, which supports secure information handling across the organization. A robust infrastructure is forged by these elements, designed to safeguard corporate and personal endpoints, manage diverse forms of data, and secure applications, whether on-premises or in the cloud. This reflects a holistic approach to securing organizational assets under the Zero Trust model. The implementation of JIT access significantly reduced the duration of administrative access, leading to a 30% reduction in privileged access-related incidents within the first six months. This reduction demonstrates the effectiveness of limited-time access in preventing misuse of administrative privileges. Additionally, passwordless authentication enhanced user satisfaction, as evidenced by a 20% reduction in support tickets related to login issues. Employees expressed higher satisfaction levels due to quicker logins facilitated by biometric authentication and hardware tokens. Furthermore, ongoing access reviews ensured that 98% of user permissions aligned with least-privilege principles, minimizing the risk of over-provisioning and reducing attack vectors. Despite the security improvements, some usability trade-offs were observed. Employee feedback highlighted authentication fatigue as a concern, mainly due to frequent MFA prompts when accessing specific applications. That was partially mitigated by enabling passwordless authentication for frequently used apps and devices. However, the enforcement of Conditional Access policies led to occasional disruptions in access when location-based triggers misidentified trusted user locations, resulting in support calls. The organization addressed this by fine-tuning risk detection parameters to balance security and user experience. At Company X, users authenticate with Entra ID without SSPR. This makes an efficient password recovery process impossible. Still, this procedure is rooted in the fact that this scenario was based on a company with a long tradition of having a local Active Directory and did not want to have a writeable AD copy in Entra ID. This adds a bit of a helpdesk burden while guaranteeing password security with mandated MFA.