Episode 99: Access Control Reimagined — Why Identity, Devices, and Zero Trust Must Converge

In this landmark 99th episode of the Cybersecurity Readiness Podcast Series, Dr. Dave Chatterjee is joined by Denny LeCompte—CEO of Portnox (https://www.portnox.com/) and a former SolarWinds executive—to examine one of cybersecurity’s oldest yet most persistently exploited challenges: access control.

Despite decades of investment in passwords, MFA, and perimeter defenses, breaches rooted in access failures continue to dominate headlines. Drawing on firsthand experience—including lessons learned from the SolarWinds Sunburst breach—LeCompte explains why password-centric security models are fundamentally misaligned with human behavior and modern digital environments.

Together, Chatterjee and LeCompte argue for a decisive shift toward passwordless, device-centric, zero-trust access models that assume human fallibility, eliminate implicit trust, and dramatically reduce attack surfaces. Framed through Dr. Chatterjee’s Commitment–Preparedness–Discipline (CPD) lens, the episode reframes access control not as an IT configuration issue, but as a core pillar of cybersecurity governance, business resilience, and competitive survival.

Time Stamps

00:49 — Episode framing and the persistence of access control failures

03:15 — Why passwords remain fundamentally broken

05:54 — Enterprise vs. consumer passwordless realities

09:25 — SolarWinds breach lessons and access control failures

17:52 — Zero trust explained without the buzzwords

23:07 — Device identity, IoT risk, and network visibility

28:02 — Why identity and device controls must converge

35:52 — How leaders should assess access control maturity

42:52 — Designing security for human behavior

43:30 — Closing reflections

To access and download the entire podcast summary with discussion highlights - https://www.dchatte.com/episode-99-access-control-reimagined-why-identity-devices-and-zero-trust-must-converge/

Connect with Host Dr. Dave Chatterjee

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dchatte/

Website: https://dchatte.com/

Books Published

The DeepFake Conspiracy

Cybersecurity Readiness: A Holistic and High-Performance Approach

Articles Published

Ramasastry, C. and Chatterjee, D. (2025). Trusona: Recruiting For The Hacker Mindset, Ivey Publishing, Oct 3, 2025.

Chatterjee, D. and Leslie, A. (2024). “Ignorance is not bliss: A human-centered whole-of-enterprise approach to cybersecurity preparedness,” Business Horizons,