Endpoint Security

What Is Endpoint Security?

Endpoint Security focuses on protecting an organization’s network against cyberattacks by securing its endpoints—including employees’ connected computers, smartphones, and even smart watches. Endpoint Security protects business systems, intellectual property (IP), customer data and employees’ devices from ransomware, malware, phishing and other cyberthreats.

Because endpoints serve as users’ points of access to an organization’s network, they are also potential entry points for malicious actors. Endpoint Security ensures the network is protected against compromise and data theft—even if an employee’s device is lost or stolen.

Endpoint Security includes cybersecurity solutions such as Endpoint Protection (EPP), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Mobile Threat Defense (MTD), User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA), Identity and Access Management (IAM), Extended Detection and Response (XDR), and Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), as well as antivirus and firewall services.

Benefits of Endpoint Security

Endpoint Security is essential for any business or organization that collects or accesses data—that is, nearly all of them. For most businesses, data is a valuable asset—and potentially their most valuable asset. Vulnerability to cyberattacks poses significant risks in terms of financial loss, reputational harm and regulatory issues. The benefits of an effective Endpoint Security solution include:

Data Protection

Protecting data from cyberthreats—ensuring against data theft or loss from cyberattacks—is the primary purpose of Endpoint Security. As an enterprise grows in size and sophistication, so does its number and diversity of endpoints. And with more organizations taking advantage of the Internet of Things (IoT), WiFi connectivity, remote work and bring-your-own-device (BYOD) capabilities, defending against cyberattacks has become increasingly complicated—and necessary. Endpoint Security keeps users’ devices protected and businesses safe from data loss and theft.

Cost Savings

Although the average cost of recovery from a cyberattack is $4 million, some breaches have cost individual companies tens and even hundreds of millions in damages. Cyberattacks costs can include ransomware payments, expenses related to operational disruption, loss of intellectual property (IP), increased insurance premiums, regulatory fines and lost business—particularly when trust in an organization’s ability to safeguard customer and partner data is compromised. Endpoint Security detects and prevents breaches before they cause damage, saving companies significantly more money than they would spend to recover from a cyberattack.

Time Savings

Securing employee devices from cyberthreats is labor- and time-intensive for an IT department. An Endpoint Security solution streamlines the identification of and response to cyberattacks, freeing up an enterprise’s skilled IT professionals’ time and allowing service providers to focus on core business objectives. Secure endpoints also ensure maximized network and device uptimes for all users.

Regulatory Compliance

Increasingly, governments are legislating the security and privacy of data collected by businesses and organizations. Examples of data privacy laws include the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the European General Data Protection Act (GDPR) and the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS). Violations of security compliance laws such as these can result in steep fines and penalties. Endpoint Security is an integral component of ensuring data protection and privacy to comply with these regulations.

Endpoint Security Features

Endpoint Security should protect all end users’ devices from cyber threats. Any connected device or system that provides access to an enterprise’s network can be a potential point of entry for a cyberattack. An Endpoint Security solution should include:

  • Continuous monitoring, ideally powered by advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) including machine learning, to analyze files and block malware before it executes—whether the endpoint is online or offline
  • Protection against email-based cyberthreats via scanning and quarantining of emails containing potentially dangerous links and attachments
  • Centralized device management with control over which and how devices can access, download and upload data
  • Protection against malicious downloads from the web
  • Anti-exploit protection against zero-day vulnerabilities and memory-based cyberattacks
  • Behavioral monitoring with machine learning capabilities to authenticate authorized users and block bad actors
  • Data loss protection and remediation to prevent unintentional or intentional loss of data in the event of a cyberattack
  • Third-party software integrations to work with an enterprise’s technology stack, including complementary security solutions and tools
  • Dashboards, reports and alerts with prioritized warnings of vulnerabilities
  • Automated incident response including rapid detection, investigation and remediation

How Endpoint Security Works

Endpoint Security involves preparing for, preventing, detecting and responding to cyberattacks occurring at an organization’s network endpoints—typically, users’ devices. An Endpoint Security solution should help to:

  1. Prepare an enterprise for IT outages, ransomware lockouts and business disruptions before they happen

  2. Prevent internal threats and data security risks effectively and efficiently

  3. Detect security breaches and suspicious behavior as fast as possible

  4. Respond quickly via automation to protect the business and mitigate risks

Although the different types of endpoint security tools work in unique ways, they all scan and analyze files for cyberthreats, limiting their ability to execute and infiltrate the network. Typically, endpoint security solutions involve a centralized console managed by system administrators or IT departments and client software installed on users’ devices. This client software authenticates user logins from the devices and blocks the use or execution of unsafe applications or the misuse of company data.

Advanced Endpoint Security solutions are cloud-based or a combination of on-premises and cloud-based (hybrid) and leverage AI and machine learning to proactively monitor for and adapt to each endpoint’s cyberthreats in real time.

Types of Endpoint Security

Endpoint Security encompasses several types of cybersecurity tools, many of which work in tandem to provide enhanced protection.

Endpoint Protection Platform

An Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) is a cybersecurity solution deployed to endpoint devices to detect malicious activity, prevent malware attacks and respond to cyberattacks and alerts.

Endpoint Detection and Response

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is a cybersecurity solution that involves continuous monitoring and gathering of data from endpoints to discover and address cyberthreats in real time. Also known as Endpoint Threat Detection and Response (ETDR), EDR extends an EPP’s threat prevention capabilities by proactively identifying and preventing widespread security incidents.

Extended Detection and Response

Extended Detection and Response (XDR) is a cybersecurity solution that aggregates data from multiple sources, including endpoints. XDR expands on EDR by searching for and addressing cyberthreats across an enterprise’s network, cloud storage and applications as well as its endpoints.

Mobile Threat Defense

Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) solutions go beyond traditional Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solutions by offering a layer of security that detects and responds to cyberattacks at the device (iOS or Android) level. Generally, MTD solutions collect and analyze data to identify suspicious device behavior and then intervene.

User and Entity Behavior Analytics

User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) is an algorithmic approach to network monitoring that focuses on the activities of both human actors and entities such as hosts, software platforms, and endpoints. Through machine learning, UEBA solutions establish a baseline for what constitutes ‘normal’ behavior on a network. They then use this baseline to identify potential threat actors and compromised systems.

Identity and Access Management

Identity and Access Management (IAM) provides organizations with the ability to ensure that the proper entities have access to the right resources at the right time. Modern IAM represents a departure from older authentication and access control methods, which primarily focused on credentials. When paired with UEBA, IAM solutions can consistently and accurately monitor behavior and flag any departures from an established baseline. 

Zero Trust Network Access

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) is a security model that assumes that all users, endpoints, and entities are hostile by default, requiring validation and authentication before gaining access to data.

Unified Endpoint Security

A Unified Endpoint Security (UES) solution protects people, devices, networks and apps by offering cross-platform visibility and cyberthreat identification and remediation with simplified administration. A UES solution may consist of EPP, EDR, IAM, ZTNA, and Managed Detection and Response (MDR).

FAQ

What is meant by Endpoint Security?

Endpoint Security is the practice of protecting an enterprise’s network by securing its endpoints against cyberattacks.

What are the types of Endpoint Security?

Endpoint Security includes cybersecurity solutions such as Endpoint Protection (EPP), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Mobile Threat Defense (MTD), User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA), and Extended Detection and Response (XDR) as well as antivirus and firewall services.

Why is Endpoint Security important?

Endpoint Security is critical to ensure against the theft or loss of enterprise and customer data, avoid costs associated with recovering from a cyberattack, relieve IT departments of the burden of monitoring for and addressing cyberthreats, and comply with government and industry regulations.

What Is the difference between Endpoint Security and Network Security?

Both Endpoint Security and network security are practices for protecting an enterprise’s network from cyber threats. Endpoint Security solutions focus on detecting and addressing cyberattacks at their access points—typically, user devices—and network security is more general, inclusive of endpoints.

What is the difference between Endpoint Security and Antivirus?

Antivirus solutions are typically designed to protect a single endpoint, such as a computer or device, and generally intended for individual consumers. In comparison, Endpoint Security solutions are intended for larger enterprises to secure networks and connected devices.

Cylance for Endpoint Security

Cylance Endpoint Security is a comprehensive Endpoint Security solution that effectively prevents breaches and safeguards against sophisticated threats with advanced Cylance® AI. Our Unified Endpoint Security solution natively integrates with BlackBerry UEM and can also work seamlessly with any UEM solution.
LEARN MORE

Related Resources:

Resource Icon Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Resource Icon Endpoint Security Resource Icon Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP) Resource Icon Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) Resource Icon Extended Detection and Response (XDR) Resource Icon Identity and Access Management (IAM) Resource Icon Managed Detection and Response Resource Icon Managed XDR Resource Icon MITRE ATT&CK Framework Resource Icon Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) Resource Icon User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) Resource Icon Zero Trust Architecture Resource Icon Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Resource Icon Zero Trust Security Resource Icon Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Resource Icon Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)
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