SSL Decryption, AI Training, and Data Privacy: Separating Fact from FUD

[mmohile]

From time to time, posts circulate that raise concerns about SSL/TLS decryption and the handling of logs in cloud-delivered security services. While healthy skepticism is important in cybersecurity, some of these narratives mix valid technical points with misleading claims — creating more fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) than clarity.

Let's break down the key issues and demonstrate how Prisma Access effectively addresses each one.

Why SSL Decryption Matters

Today, more than 90% of internet traffic is encrypted. While encryption is critical for privacy, it also hides threats. To detect and prevent malware, phishing, data exfiltration, and compliance violations, enterprises require visibility into encrypted traffic.

That’s why decryption is a standard function in Secure Service Edge (SSE) platforms like Prisma Access.

• Data Loss Prevention (DLP): Sensitive information cannot be protected if it remains unreadable to security tools.
• Threat Prevention: Inline detection stops zero-day attacks, malware, and phishing before they ever reach endpoints.
• Policy Enforcement: Accurate identification of applications, users, and content ensures security controls are applied correctly.

Without SSL decryption, these protections are severely limited.

Addressing the “Single Point of Failure” Concern

One critique is that decrypting traffic introduces a single point of failure: if decryption keys were compromised, it could expose sensitive data. This is a valid consideration — and one that Prisma Access mitigates with rigorous controls:

• Secure storage: Keys are kept in hardware security modules (HSMs) or secure enclaves.
• Ephemeral keys: Sessions use temporary keys that are rotated frequently.
• Non-exportable keys: Keys are never accessible to customers, admins, or third parties.
• Tenant isolation: Keys are managed per-customer — never shared across tenants.
• Audit controls: Administrative access is tightly monitored and logged.

Logs and AI Training: Setting the Record Straight

Another point of concern is whether customer traffic logs are “repurposed for AI training.” Here’s what Prisma Access does:

• Customer control: Customers decide what data is logged and where it is stored.
• Privacy by design: Logs remain private to the customer and are not shared across tenants.
• ML usage: If logs are leveraged in machine learning, the data is anonymized and aggregated strictly to improve security features (e.g., better threat detection).
• No general AI training: Customer-identifiable data is not used to train public or general-purpose AI models.

Simply put: customer log data is used to protect the customer environment, not to fuel generic AI systems.

Independent Validation and Compliance

Beyond internal policies, external oversight matters. Certifications and compliance frameworks supported by Prisma Access — including SOC 2, GDPR, CCPA, and HIPAA — provide independent assurance that customer data is handled responsibly.

Conclusion

Decrypting SSL traffic and analyzing logs are necessary to deliver modern, cloud-based security. But necessary doesn’t mean careless. With proper safeguards, enterprises gain the protection they need without sacrificing privacy or control.

[wrigsp]

Great post - we have been SSL Decryption"ing" all our Prisma Access internet traffic (except some key exceptions) since inception (5 years+) and never had any issues with Trusted Default CA's on our Panorama managed deployment, however we have had issues with missing Trusted Default CA's for several months now and have been told that they are only added at each major PAN-OS release.

This is problematic as how do we know what is missing? - of course we can manually add these to the non-default but we should have a solid and verified set from PAN-OS as a standard. The browser vendors are keeping topical. We need to keep instep so our users(customers) experiences are not negative and potentially blame the product as the problem - any cert issues are treated as a risk and dealt with the untrust cert.

With Prisma Access being 100% SASE - this is unacceptable that the gateways are not in-sync with the rest of the ecosystem.

Working with TAC and account team we also have not even been able to get a feed of "this is what you are missing - please add these we have verified them etc."

I am aware of a community supported python script but that's not very enterprise and again puts the risk back on us as the customer.

This is probably a wider issue for fellow PA "decrypters" - Any tips would be appreciated.

Best,

Simon.