Endpoint security, or endpoint protection, is the cybersecurity approach to defending endpoints — such as desktops, laptops, and mobile devices — from malicious activity.
An endpoint protection platform (EPP) is a solution used to detect and prevent security threats like file-based malware attacks among other malicious activities. It also provides investigation and remediation capabilities needed to respond to dynamic security incidents and alerts.
The terms endpoint protection, endpoint protection platforms, and endpoint security are all used interchangeably to describe the centrally managed security solutions that organizations leverage to protect endpoints like servers, workstations, mobile devices, and workloads from cybersecurity threats. Endpoint protection solutions work by examining files, processes, and system activity for suspicious or malicious indicators.
Endpoint protection solutions offer a centralized management console from which administrators can connect to their enterprise network to monitor, protect, investigate, and respond to incidents. This is accomplished by leveraging either an on-premises, cloud, or hybrid approach.
The “traditional” or “legacy” approach is often used to describe an on-premises security posture that is reliant on a locally hosted data center from which security is delivered. The data center acts as the hub for the management console to reach out to the endpoints through an agent to provide security. The hub and spoke model can create security silos since administrators can typically only manage endpoints within their perimeter.
With the pandemic-driven remote work shift, many organizations have pivoted to laptops and bring your own device (BYOD) instead of desktop devices. Along with the globalization of workforces, this highlights the limitations of the on-premises approach. Some endpoint protection solution vendors have recently shifted to a “hybrid” approach, taking a legacy architecture design and retrofitting it for the cloud to gain some cloud capabilities.
The third approach is a “cloud-native” solution built in and for the cloud. Administrators can remotely monitor and manage endpoints through a centralized management console that lives in the cloud and connects to devices remotely through an agent on the endpoint. The agent can work with the management console or independently to provide security for the endpoint should it not have internet connectivity. These solutions leverage cloud controls and policies to maximize security performance beyond the traditional perimeter, removing silos and expanding administrator reach.
Traditionally, organizations used an endpoint security solution that operated via an on-premise hub-and-spoke approach, at the center of which was the datacenter. Endpoints were protected via agents managed from the central console. This created security silos because endpoints outside the network perimeter were not manageable.
This model is no longer effective, as trends such as the sudden rise of work-from-home and the globalization of workforces has driven many enterprises to seek more effective solutions. Some have retrofitted their legacy solutions to create a hybrid approach, while others have sought cloud-native solutions.
Cloud-native endpoint security tools are controlled through a central console in the cloud and connect to devices through agents placed on the endpoints themselves. These agents can work independently when the endpoint device is offline. Cloud controls and policies maximize security performance, expand administrative reach, and eradicate security silos.
To achieve both security and simplicity, endpoint protection must include six key elements and be delivered through a cloud-native architecture.
We offer these objectives when you choose us for an endpoint protection platform
Click here to Contact us for Free Quote.
