The Benefits of Endpoint Detection & Response

Endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions are some of the most popular offerings in the world of network security. Those with a critical nature will wonder what makes EDR particularly appealing for organizations today versus some other options. After all, with so many products and services available, it can be difficult to not just understand the purpose of each specific tool, but also how they differ. Let’s explore some of the benefits of endpoint detection and response.

What Is Endpoint Detection and Response Security?

Endpoint detection and response security deals specifically with the defense of endpoints. While this should be clear based on the name, this alone doesn’t tell you exactly what is accomplished by EDR. To get a full picture of this, you first need to have an understanding of endpoints and how they fit into the modern enterprise.

Defining an endpoint is pretty straightforward. These are simply the devices connecting to your network, whether they’re smartphones, tablets, Internet of Things sensors, or anything else. There are a couple trends occurring right now that have created an increased need for more endpoints—and thus greater security.

More people working remotely and using their personal devices to connect to enterprise networks is the first trend. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses were moving toward bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies, which create more challenges for protecting networks. IT departments are struggling to secure endpoints when they don’t have control over authorized applications allowed on personal devices. This creates an inherent need for greater threat detection and response at endpoints.

The other factor working to make EDR increasingly essential is that there are more and more devices connecting to networks due to progressive automation. With IoT sensors and devices increasingly becoming a key component to enterprise operations, this also creates more attack vectors for cybercrime. Utilizing EDR to stop attacks is becoming a critical component of overall defense.

What Are the Benefits of Endpoint Detection and Response Security?

Now that you understand the basics of EDR and why it’s important for organizations today, let’s dig a little bit deeper. There are some specific characteristics to endpoint detection and response security that make it an ideal choice for threat remediation. These are some of the benefits of EDR:

• Overarching visibility and logging capabilities – Being able to see what’s happening at network endpoints is a critical part of defending them. EDR security allows organizations to see all endpoint activity, while also recording it for later analysis.
• Optimized Defenses – It’s one thing to set up a system that you think will be effective, and then let it run its course. Continually refining security through newly integrated data, however, can help create far more complete defense mechanisms. Endpoint detection and response security can learn the behaviors of endpoints in order to get a better idea of when things aren’t quite right.
• Respond to threats in real time – Time is of the essence when dealing with a security breach. The longer you let an attack proliferate on your network, the greater chances it has of reaching its target. EDR solutions give security teams the ability to respond to threats in real time, which can limit the damage caused by an attacker.
• You get industry-leading experts – While enterprises can find their own EDR tools, it’s typically best to seek out a EDR service provider. Not only will this give you optimal cloud delivery and cost savings, it also means the provider’s engineers and analysts will be responsible for monitoring and security your network. Having these experts on your team almost makes a service-based EDR solution worth it on its own. Getting as much expertise behind you as possible will increase your chances of stopping threats before they cause serious damage.

As you can see, there are many benefits to endpoint detection and response security. No matter how you choose to adopt and implement EDR solutions, these tools need to at least be considered by every enterprise today in order to prevent data loss.