Back when I started my career in IT, there was no Internet as we know it today. All we really had was peer-to-peer networking for simple file sharing, or on-premises as we would call it today. PC’s ran text-based MS DOS as the operating system with no mice or user-friendly graphical interfaces, and browsing was what you did when you went to the shops!

The operating system, like it still is today, was a means to boot a PC and enable an end user to use it, and interact with it, which basically meant enabling you to run your applications. Albeit you would have to run applications manually, and from the command line.

Todays End User Experience

Fast forward into today’s world of Windows and Linux operating systems, and as you will already know, the end user experience, a key requirement to any system today, is very much a different proposition. The operating system is now an advanced graphical-based user experience driven by not only a keyboard and mouse, but also touchscreen technology and even AI.

With these significant advancements, the operating system still serves the same purpose as it has always done. To boot your device (I use the word ‘device’ as we now live in a world that is not just PC-based anymore – even cars and home appliances have to boot these days!) and to provide an environment from where you can launch your applications. Although there are far more things an operating system can do should you need them. The question being do you actually need or use them all if everything is running in a browser?

The evolution of online delivery

What I have described so far is still a very static model of devices running operating systems and applications locally on the device. But that model has rapidly evolved and changed with the advent of the internet age and the connected world in which we live today. Applications are now typically cloud-based, delivered as software-as-a-service (SaaS) over the internet or hosted centrally in on-premises datacentres. Even the desktop itself can now be consumed from the cloud as desktop-as-a-service (DaaS) continues to grow exponentially.

However, there is one thing in common that all these cloud services rely on in order to run on your device. The browser. Early browsers, like the devices they ran on, where pretty much static in what they provided which was predominantly nothing more than being an application that gave the end user the ability to view static pages of text (graphics-based browsers came later) held centrally on servers (web servers) hosted by various organisations. Or the internet as it is more commonly known as! Browsers were simply a viewing application. Content was static mainly due to very slow connection speeds and dial-up modem technology of the time. But that has all changed now, and even consumers at home enjoy the luxury of multi-gigabit connection speeds capable of streaming video at 4k resolutions for example. Online content today provides a much more immersive and interactive user experience. But the browser still remains as the mechanism that provides the end user a window into this online world and as a result has also evolved to enable it to deliver this feature rich experience.

All you need is a browser

This means that end users are increasingly reliant on their web browser as their primary means of access, whether that be for personal use or to access corporate applications and data. In some cases, the browser is really the only application an end user actually requires on their local device as all the apps and data they need can be accessed online. In order to facilitate this way of working the browser has more or less become the de facto standard operating system and the actual device operating system, although still required to boot the device etc., has become even more irrelevant. You still have to manage it though.

This is further amplified when the requirements that vendors list for running their apps and services relate to what features and performance the browser can deliver rather than the underlying operating system.

Another key advantage is the way in which developers can now create OS-agnostic applications designed to deliver cross-platform accessibility so that it doesn’t matter what OS is running on the device as the app runs in the browser and uses a common language understood by all browsers such as web assembly (WASM) for example. This also provides the end user with a greater choice of what device they use. They could use a traditional PC, Apple Mac, smartphone, and even cars and fridges have browsers these days! Think of it as you would with virtualisation solutions where operating systems and applications are abstracted away from the underlying hardware enabling them to run on any device.

So, I think we are all agreed that the browser, which ever one you choose to use, just like you choose from Windows, macOS, or Linux, is the new operating system for accessing apps and data online. But wait, there is a problem. If I refer you back to the sub-heading of this blog, we don’t treat the browser like it were an operating system even though it is being used as one. Given that the browser is now the end users door to the application and data universe, you absolutely need to secure it, lock it down, and manage it just like you would for the device operating system. Just remember, if end users can walk out through that metaphorical door, what is stopping a bad actor walking in?

We need a way of managing and securing browsers.

So, there are a couple of trains of thought on how to secure and manage the browser. First is via the policy mechanism of the operating system that your device runs. Or maybe some form of MDM solution. While these work, they are very much binary in their approach. By that I mean you either lock something or you don’t. Not very dynamic given the whole idea behind this way of working is to provide a dynamic platform. It is also very much one way traffic. By that I mean policies are pushed to end users without an actual understanding of what they are accessing or need to access from the browser. Basically, what I’m saying is there is no form of monitoring to understand end user behaviour and provide the ability to adapt on-demand. Policies, and typically the same policies, are imposed on all users regardless.

Are bespoke secure browsers the answer?

The second approach is to use a bespoke secure browser solution. This will certainly tick the security box but there are other issues to consider here. You now have yet another browser to manage and one that your end users won’t be familiar with (remember you need to deliver the optimal end user experience) as it is not one of the “standard” browsers that people use every day such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, or Opera for example. Does this secure browser have all the capabilities required? Then there is support. A vast majority of the cloud service providers will list the supported browsers, just as they would for supported device operating systems. Is this new browser on the supported list? In my experience they typically are not, and you likely will be asked by the service provider to try one of the listed supported browsers to see if any support issues go away.

What we need is a browser agnostic solution that proactively manages and monitors the browser. Thankfully there is now an answer to solving these challenges.

Let me introduce you to Acium and secure browser-based computing (SBBC).

Firstly, Acium is not yet another browser. That would just defeat the whole purpose of what I’ve just discussed. Acium delivers a centralised, unified browser management platform. But, what does that mean exactly?

Acium provides you with a single pane of glass view into everything browser related. This means that it monitors end users in real-time building a picture of web traffic and what applications and sites are being accessed. In turn this means you can now configure what they can access and more importantly what they shouldn’t be accessing.

Armed with a complete picture of browsing activity within your organisation, you can now add an advanced management layer. Management is the key word here as Acium is managing, via the Acium Console, whatever browser or browsers are being used. Remember, Acium is not a browser! So now you can add that level of control by creating profiles based on users, groups, or devices that defines what a user can access, from where, and from what device.

All of this equates to an advanced security model and posture by tracking, in real-time, any threats that are directed towards the browser. The same as you would do for the operating system, but now specifically tuned for browsers.

There is one other key point around the Acium solution which, although I’ve saved until last is, from an end users perspective, a core advantage and benefit. And that is the end user experience. In this age of DEX or Digital Experience Management, ensuring a seamless user experience when it comes to how an end user interacts with technology is paramount. Acium supports the browsers that you know and love, so there is no change in the way an end user interacts with that browser. They would use it in exactly the same way as they always have done. But what they will get is all the added security enhancements keeping them safe and secure when accessing applications and data.

In this blog I’ve introduced you to the Acium solution and how it delivers a centralised platform for managing and securing the browser, however, this is just the beginning. Over the coming weeks I’m going to take you through some of the features and benefits of Acium.