Pomerium

Pomerium is an identity- and context-aware access proxy that sits in front of applications to enforce Zero Trust access. It enables clientless access to internal web apps and services, applying policy to every request rather than relying on network perimeter trust.

Key Features

• Identity-aware access proxy for internal web apps and services
• Per-request authorization with continuous policy enforcement (not just session-based)
• Context-aware policies using signals like identity, time, and device context
• Works across cloud, hybrid, and on-prem environments without re-architecting apps
• Supports multiple identity types, including humans and non-human/service identities
• Audit-focused logging of access decisions to support compliance and investigations

Use Cases

• Replace or reduce reliance on traditional VPN access for internal applications
• Secure legacy apps that lack built-in authentication/authorization
• Enforce consistent, centralized access policy across mixed environments

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires integration with an identity provider and careful policy design to avoid overly-broad access
• Introducing a proxy layer may require planning for routing, certificates, and high availability in production

Pomerium is well-suited for teams that want identity-first, policy-based access controls for internal services. It provides a consistent way to secure applications and improve auditability while avoiding blanket network access typical of VPN-based approaches.