Your business needs security from the start — but you also need to focus on the end. Specifically, your business’s endpoints are often the prime target for hackers and other cybercriminals who want access to your business, so you need to focus on making those endpoints secure.
The 2019 Global Endpoint Security Trends Report, published by Absolute, states that 70 percent of data breaches occur at the endpoint, which is the user-facing computer, smartphone or other device that connects to the business network.
Unfortunately, 42 percent of all endpoints are unprotected, and existing protections for the remaining endpoints fail at a rate of two per week.
Suffice it to say that even if you think you are covering your endpoints, you probably aren’t. Here are some tips to help you understand what is going on with your endpoints and some tools to keep you protected.
Sometimes, network security solutions can help you in this endeavor. Some network monitoring tools identify when a new device connects to your network, so you can determine whether the new device is trustworthy or threatening. Indeed, network security tends to integrate well with endpoint protection, so if you don’t have the former, you might consider acquiring it alongside your new endpoint solutions.
Your goal for this step is building knowledge both of what kinds of cyber risks your business is subject to as well as how effective your staff is at identifying and avoiding threats. Even with a comprehensive endpoint protection suite, you might need to organize regular security trainings for your employees, so they don’t disable or ignore your endpoint security and continue to jeopardize your cyber security. The most expensive endpoint security tools will hardly be effective if your staff isn’t knowledgeable about existing threats or skilled at staying safe online.
Identifying Your Endpoints
Your first step in protecting your endpoints should always be identifying them. This is because you likely have more endpoints on your network than you realize. Endpoints aren’t just the desktop computers that stay in your business HQ; endpoints are any user-facing device that connects to your network, which might include employee laptops and tablets, smartphones and even IoT devices like wireless printers, robot vacuums, smart toasters and the like. You and your employees should strive to make a comprehensive list of endpoints on your network, so you better understand what devices you need to protect.Sometimes, network security solutions can help you in this endeavor. Some network monitoring tools identify when a new device connects to your network, so you can determine whether the new device is trustworthy or threatening. Indeed, network security tends to integrate well with endpoint protection, so if you don’t have the former, you might consider acquiring it alongside your new endpoint solutions.
Recognizing Your Risks
Once you know what kinds of endpoints you need to protect, you can start to understand what risks are facing your endpoints — and by extension your business. Typical endpoint threats are familiar to most device users: phishing attacks, corrupt downloads, unpatched vulnerabilities and the like. These types of cyber attacks take advantage of human users’ laziness, gullibility and general flawed nature to infiltrate a device and network. Thus, most endpoint security solutions strive to detect emerging threats and restrict user ability to compromise the system.Your goal for this step is building knowledge both of what kinds of cyber risks your business is subject to as well as how effective your staff is at identifying and avoiding threats. Even with a comprehensive endpoint protection suite, you might need to organize regular security trainings for your employees, so they don’t disable or ignore your endpoint security and continue to jeopardize your cyber security. The most expensive endpoint security tools will hardly be effective if your staff isn’t knowledgeable about existing threats or skilled at staying safe online.
Securing Your Endpoints
For computers and smartphones, the quintessential endpoint security tool is antivirus. Antivirus suites provide comprehensive protection against malware, which makes up the bulk of threats to endpoints. Though modern endpoint security solutions for business often include additional features like app blacklisting, activity monitoring, encryption, etc., antivirus tools remain central to endpoint protection.Thus, it is generally wise to pursue endpoint security from established and trustworthy antivirus providers such as kaspersky antivirus which is a program developed by Kaspersky Lab. It is designed to protect users from malware and is primarily designed for computers running Microsoft Windows and macOS.
For non-computer endpoints, specifically IoT devices, endpoint security is slightly more difficult to swing. Because this tech doesn’t run software in the normal sense, you cannot merely install an endpoint security program to keep your devices safe.
For non-computer endpoints, specifically IoT devices, endpoint security is slightly more difficult to swing. Because this tech doesn’t run software in the normal sense, you cannot merely install an endpoint security program to keep your devices safe.
Instead, you should develop a system to isolate IoT devices from the rest of your network, perhaps by creating an IoT-only network, and you should ensure that the firmware inside your IoT devices receive all published updates in a timely manner.
While other elements of cyber security, like network security tools, are important for keeping your data safe, it’s wise to start by protecting your endpoints.
While other elements of cyber security, like network security tools, are important for keeping your data safe, it’s wise to start by protecting your endpoints.
Endpoint security doesn’t have to be complicated; if you have only a few devices to protect, you can get away with simple solutions. What’s important is instituting an endpoint security strategy that will protect you fully from any and all risks and that can scale with the growth of your business.
For more such contents, please check our security section.
For more such contents, please check our security section.
Ashutosh Jha
Ashutosh Jha is a professional blogger, Blog and IT Consultant. He writes about Blogging, SEO, Making Money, Internet Marketing and Web Design.
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