The Shadow IT Problem No One Talks About

Uploaded on 2025-03-10 in FREE TO VIEW, BUSINESS-Services-IT & Telecoms

Everyone worries about shadow IT-employees downloading apps you don’t know about, using their personal devices for work, and sending business-critical information over WhatsApp. These seemingly unimportant services are out of sight, but that doesn’t mean they’re out of mind.

But while you may have already considered - and planned for - the security headaches arising from those scenarios, there’s another, harder-to-spot danger lurking in the shadows.

This hidden hazard? Network complexity. When networks become tangled, knotty new shadow IT problems can become tied up with them – things like unseen vulnerabilities, misconfigured tools, and security gaps no one is monitoring.

When IT teams lack full visibility and control over their network infrastructure, it’s only a matter of time before an attacker slips through the cracks. Just as an unauthorised app can compromise an employee’s phone, a tangled, multilayered network leaves gaps wide open for a bad actor to exploit.

Shadow IT vs. Shadow Complexity

So, we know that shadow IT refers to unapproved apps and services operating outside official oversight. Shadow complexity, therefore, can be thought of as the challenge that arises from the accumulation of layer upon layer of infrastructure, misconfigured security tools, redundant policies, and compliance gaps that exist beyond clear visibility.

As security stacks grow, they become harder to manage. This is where the problem compounds: IT and security teams may believe they have full control, but they can’t see the blind spots that have developed along the way. In other words, they no longer know what they don’t know.

With so many different policies, tools, and configurations at play, vulnerabilities remain hidden. These gaps can persist for months - or even years - before being detected, leaving the door open for breaches.

Redundant & Conflicting Security Policies

Many large organisations rely on multiple security and monitoring tools, whether that’s firewalls, endpoint security, SIEM, RMM tools, and much more. This isn’t an issue in and of itself, of course. But issues do arrive when overlapping rules across different platforms create inconsistencies. Some areas may be overly strict, while others are left exposed. Who has visibility over all of these rules?

Take the example of the legacy system that should have been decommissioned but remains connected due to dependency fears. IT teams worry that removing old servers or applications could disrupt business functions, so they remain operational, often without proper security updates. The thinking goes something like: there’s no danger here, it’s an old system, a back-up. But this lack of oversight can quickly morph into a significant security risk.

In March 2020, data from UK train commuters using free Wi-Fi at Network Rail-managed stations was exposed due to a misconfiguration in AWS cloud storage. The database was found online, without a password. The Wi-Fi provider assumed the storage was restricted to internal access only, not realising that this personal information was accessible to all. They later claimed the database was simply a backup. This case illustrates both how simple misconfigurations can lead to major security lapses, and also the importance of securing all files, data, and devices–whether they’re currently in use or not.

Compliance Gaps From Poor Visibility

Many businesses operate under multiple compliance frameworks, like GDPR, ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials, NIS2, and more. And with every passing year, a new cybersecurity or data protection framework seems to be announced. Complexity in your systems makes it difficult to track what’s actually compliant.

Consider a company using multiple cloud environments, each with its own security controls and compliance standards. Without a unified approach, security teams may not realise they’re out of compliance until an audit flags critical issues. Worse still, these compliance gaps may leave the organisation exposed to regulatory fines or reputational damage.

Why Your Security Approach May Fail Against Shadow Complexity

Security tools don’t work well in silos.

Layering multiple security tools and frameworks on top of each other may seem like a solid strategy, but without centralised, well-organised visibility that operates at speed and scale, complexity creates gaps.

Manual processes simply can’t keep up. IT teams are already overwhelmed by alerts, policies, and ever-changing attack vectors. Small misconfigurations go unnoticed, and cybercriminals actively look for these unmonitored systems and vulnerabilities.

Additionally, ransomware groups frequently move laterally through unpatched or poorly secured systems, leveraging these blind spots. The complexity of modern IT environments provides a perfect playground for these attacks, allowing cybercriminals to exploit security weaknesses before they are even discovered.

How to Bring Shadow Complexity Into The Light

Prioritise Visibility: If you can’t see your hybrid infrastructure, attack surfaces, compliance posture, or pending patches, how can you assess risk? Without a consolidated monitoring system, your security infrastructure might resemble a flatpack from the world’s most famous Nordic furniture store without instructions or the right fixings. You simply have no idea how it all fits together.

Implementing a single-pane-of-glass security platform that consolidates asset management, compliance tracking, and monitoring is crucial.

Automate Where Possible: Once you have clear visibility (and have finally broken ground on assembling that flatpack bed), automation can help maintain security rule updates and ensure policies remain consistent across cloud and on-prem environments.

Automated patch management and compliance reporting can remove human error from security operations, ensuring that risks are identified and remediated before they escalate.

Simplify Your Security Stack: Identify and eliminate security tools that are no longer serving their purpose. An overcomplicated setup burdens teams, drains budgets, and increases security gaps. Reducing unnecessary moving parts means fewer vulnerabilities to track and verify.

And finally, conducting regular audits of security policies and tools ensures that your security stack remains effective, rather than becoming a tangled mess that creates more risks than it mitigates.

Complexity itself is a security threat and needs to be treated as one. Businesses are so quick to invest heavily in firewalls, threat intelligence, and compliance programs, yet often overlook the hidden risk created by their own infrastructure.

A tangled, overly complex security architecture does nothing but create vulnerabilities. Without a proactive approach to simplifying and securing networks, organisations leave themselves exposed to breaches, compliance failures, and operational inefficiencies.

Just as shadow IT needs to be managed, shadow complexity must be brought into the light. Because what you can’t see can still hurt you.

David Brown is SVP International Business, at FireMon

Image: SergeyNivens

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