Three challenges in choosing endpoint security solutions

To get an idea of ​​the current landscape, in another report titled Forrester: Mastering the Endpoint (2017), the consultancy highlights that organizations need to monitor an average of 10 different security tools, as well as use around 5 different interfaces to investigate and resolve threats. The study also reveals that some companies investigated in the US, UK, France and Germany submitted sensitive data compromised in 2016.

Faced with this situation, more and more companies consider security as something fundamental to the business and are looking for fast, precise and integrated connected endpoint security solutions.

We show 3 challenges IT professionals face in finding the right tools for endpoint security:

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1- The attack area is expanding due to the increase in new connected devices.

The growing number of new connected devices increases the attack area. According to The Forrester Wave study, nearly half of external breaches suffered by companies target corporate servers. Next as preferential objectives are company devices, with 42%, and those of officials, with 40%.

One of the main challenges that companies present is precisely that of hiring efficient endpoint security solutions that manage to stop attacks generated by malware, exploits and other techniques currently used. One criticism highlighted in the research by leaders interviewed is that endpoint security tools are overly manual and incidents increasingly require time and effort to audit, and many times solutions do not address all affected devices.

2- A highly fragmented market for endpoint security solutions

As the security market for this industry grows, another challenge companies face is the fragmentation of endpoint security solutions.

This comes as a warning, according to the Forrester Wave report, because cybersecurity professionals perceive the tools as a way to overcome security challenges in general and ensure that providers of these solutions act strategically, as a consultancy, assisting and alerting their partners in making decisions related to endpoint security.

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Therefore, as there is a significant increase in the number of malware and other forms of attacks, traditional antiviruses become less and less effective in their job of protecting servers and workers. Some vendors have understood this context and are starting to think about solutions that fill that space, just as traditional antivirus vendors are moving to adapt to that reality and build new tools.

As a result, security professionals are faced with a market with a large number of different approaches to endpoint security.

3- Understand what the main security needs of the endpoint are

If the market has many options and threats multiply every day, what needs to be considered so that companies choose the ideal tool capable of protecting servers and workers?

Unfortunately, the answer is not simple, since there are no solutions that are effectively applied to all companies.

And since the investment in the area must give the expected results, IT professionals must make a fairly rigorous diagnosis of the organization and consider the weak and strong points, as well as the main threats to their business. In summary, you need to understand that digital security solutions will meet your company’s needs without leaving it vulnerable.

To shed light on security professionals in this area, the Forrester report recommends some requirements that tools must cover when the topic is endpoint security.

The first is that an endpoint security suite must be able to create an environment to prevent malware and exploits from running. Beyond this, solutions must also prevent threats by taking action to reduce the attack surface with application control and hardening measures.

Another important aspect is whether the solution can detect malicious activity after execution. This must be taken into consideration, especially when considering that, in the event that hackers undergo prevention checks, endpoint suites that monitor system memory must be able to identify malware and malicious applications before they achieve their objectives.

Finally, after controlling and containing malicious activity and vulnerable sites, the latest endpoint security solutions should be able to enable automated remediation processes and reduce the need for action by network administrators.

For example, key actions include quarantining files or blocking malicious behavior of users and processes. Vulnerability resolution techniques, such as patch configuration, are also part of the capabilities of security solutions.