May 6, 2025

Over the last few years, CNAPP (Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform) has captured the attention of security leaders by promising a more unified approach to securing cloud environments. 

The pitch was compelling: consolidate multiple point solutions into a single platform with end-to-end visibility and control over cloud workloads, infrastructure, and identity permissions. 

It’s a simple idea, really: one platform, full coverage. The reality, for many, has been a very different story.

Leaving Potential on the Table

Most organizations that invest in a CNAPP solution only end up using a fraction of its full capabilities. Maybe they start with Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) to get visibility into misconfigurations across their cloud accounts. Perhaps they activate CWPP for container runtime protection. But the other modules (CIEM, DSPM, SCA, IaC scanning, etc.) often go untouched. This under-utilization could be for any number of reasons, including:

• Lack of internal expertise: Some features require security engineering or DevSecOps maturity to implement effectively.
• Poor onboarding: Not all vendors provide clear guidance or phased enablement plans.
• Tool fatigue: Teams already overloaded with alerts do not have the bandwidth to adopt “just one more dashboard.”
• Misalignment with priorities: Leadership signs the contract for CNAPP, but teams on the ground are focused on more immediate concerns.

The result? Shelfware. Features that were paid for, included, and even highlighted in board presentations are now left unused and unintegrated into daily workflows.

The Hidden Cost of Underutilization

When only 20-30% of a CNAPP is being actively used, organizations lose both time and money, not to mention the critical protections that were why you bought into CNAPP initially. Not only are you missing out on the full return on investment, but you may also be leaving your organization vulnerable to expensive risks that CNAPP is designed to mitigate, such as identity risk detection or cloud data protection.

Even worse, leadership might assume the full solution is live and protecting the environment end-to-end, when, in reality, gaps remain.

Make CNAPP Work for You

It’s time to adopt the CNAPP model more strategically. GuidePoint recommends that our clients:

• Prioritize phased enablement: Focus first on the highest-impact areas (like CSPM or runtime protection), then plan for a structured rollout of other features.
• Involve cross-functional stakeholders: CNAPP adoption is not just a security task. It needs buy-in from DevOps, cloud engineering, and compliance teams, too.
• Set realistic KPIs: Do not measure success just by tool deployment. Measure by usage, coverage, and risk reduction over time.

CNAPP platforms can deliver powerful, unified cloud security. But only if you move beyond the license and actually light up what you paid for and take the necessary steps to fully operationalize it. 

How to Tap the Untapped Potential

GuidePoint Security offers a CNAPP Enablement Service to help organizations leverage their CNAPP investments by focusing on how to integrate and optimize an existing CNAPP within your cloud environment.  We help organizations develop a structured, multi-phase approach to enable comprehensive cloud security coverage. This isn’t a cookie-cutter template; it’s a specific, expert-led CNAPP/cloud security strategy, tailored for your business, to ensure that the CNAPP you invested in is not just deployed fully, but integrated and optimized to enhance your cloud security posture.

Learn more about GuidePoint Security’s CNAPP Enablement Service and how it can deliver enhanced visibility, operational efficiency, and risk reduction.