Why and how to strengthen endpoint security in the face of modern cyber attacks

The development of digital technologies and the spread of teleworking have changed the face of the company's IT infrastructure and the extent of its private network. While this digital environment improves user productivity and agility, it is clear that the multiplicity of enterprise endpoints and the complexity of infrastructures provide a considerable attack surface for AI-powered cybercriminals.

To deal with this persistent and protean cyberthreat, let's take a look at why and, above all, how to implement an effective endpoint security strategy! 🛡️

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What is endpoint security?

Corporate cybersecurity encompasses a number of building blocks that need to work together to provide optimum protection for information systems and connected users. Endpoint security is part of this protection.

More specifically, it is an IT security policy that consists of

• monitoring
• preventing
• detecting
• and providing targeted responses to cyber attacks aimed at endpoints.

What is an endpoint in IT?

Literally, an IT endpoint is an end point. In other words, an end device connected locally or remotely to the company's IT network and exchanging information with it, such as :

• A server,

• A desktop or laptop computer

• a tablet

• a smartphone

• A network printer,

• A terminal on a production line,

• Connected objects: digital cameras, sensors and all devices forming part of the Internet of Things (IoT), capable of communicating and receiving digital data.

For the sake of completeness, virtual endpoints can be added to these physical endpoints. This is the point from which an API communicates with another system to send and receive data, such as the Microsoft Azure virtual network service endpoint.

What are the challenges of endpoint security?

ℹ️ In its Digital Defence 2024 report, Microsoft states that 78,000 billion security signals are received every day worldwide, particularly from enterprise endpoints. Cybercriminals are deploying and industrialising increasingly sophisticated AI-enabled attacks that target weaknesses in systems, users and organisations, resulting in:

• considerable financial losses
• large-scale breaches of confidential data
• and damage to reputations.

Endpoints are the key components of an information system. They provide the means to access the company's data, files, processes and digital resources, and enable all the players involved to act and interact. But whether physical or virtual, endpoints are also prime entry points for cybercriminals, as they are often the weakest link in the network architecture deployed by the company.

The effectiveness of cyber security strategies can also be undermined by human error. Protecting endpoints against attacks has become increasingly complex as company employees have worked more and more frequently remotely and used more and more digital equipment from a variety of locations.... and via networks that are not necessarily secure.

⚠️ Remote users may not be protected by the security controls of the company's local network, especially whenthey use their unsecured personal equipment for professional purposes (communication, data and file exchange). They then serve as an entry point for cybercriminals on the network.

10 cyber attacks that can be prevented by endpoint security

Users' endpoints store a great deal of sensitive and valuable corporate data, and host the digital services that enable them to carry out their business. The countless cyber attacks against these endpoints pose a serious threat to :

• confidentiality
• the integrity of company data
• and their availability to the various authorised players.

✅ Endpoint security is an essential strategy for securing a company's future. This IT security policy guarantees the integrity of connected equipment by warding off the various cyber-attacks made more effective by generative artificial intelligence and the multiplicity of potential access points, such as :

1. Phishing: this is the most common cyber attack. Using psychological techniques, it manipulates targets into sharing confidential and sensitive information, clicking on malicious links or downloading corrupted documents.

2. Ransomware: a virus or malicious software that blocks the target's access to its IT resources, computer and files until a ransom is paid.

3. Computer system hacking: a cybercriminal intrusion via an endpoint. Various methods are used:

   1. Injection of malware (computer virus, Trojan horse),

   2. exploitation of security flaws in the system or in a virtual endpoint,

   3. misconfiguration or installation of corrupted software,

   4. theft of login details or use of a weak session password.

4. Brute force attack: to find the right password and break into the user's system or accounts in order to steal sensitive data... Generally, the cybercriminal cross-references information collected illicitly from various sources, including social networks, to refine his attacks and reduce the number of attempts.

5. The Advanced Persistent Threat (APT): a targeted, highly sophisticated attack that takes place over a long period.

6. Zero-day or 0-day vulnerability: a new-generation cyber attack based on the discovery and exploitation of unprecedented vulnerabilities in the most widespread systems or software via malicious software.

7. Obsolete versions of systems and software: failure to regularly update digital tools exposes endpoints to critical vulnerabilities and provides an opportunity to exploit uncorrected security flaws.

8. Stealth downloading: automated downloading of malicious software onto a terminal after clicking on a corrupted link or visiting a malicious site.

9. Misuse of APIs (virtual endpoint vulnerability): APIs also present vulnerabilities that can be exploited using various methods to intercept sensitive data in transit: man-in-the-middle (MitM), distributed denial of service (DDoS), injection of malicious code into connected applications, etc.

10. The loss or theft of one of the organisation's terminals, which can cause a data breach and be used to gain access to the corporate network by breaking the locks.

What are the different types of endpoint security?

At this stage of the article, you've got it: implementing an endpoint security strategy guarantees the security of employees' endpoints and preserves the integrity of corporate networks. The response to the multiple attacks that can target endpoints must cover all cyberthreats and integrate these functions:

• Antivirus to protect against known threats,

• Antimalware and antiransomware to detect, analyse, stop and eradicate malware infections,

• Firewalls to regulate network traffic in and out of terminals in real time, according to pre-established security rules. These software and hardware solutions also provide URL filtering to block browsing to malicious sites or sites that do not comply with the company's security policies.

• Detection and neutralisation of malicious bots. This technology, often integrated into firewalls, identifies and blocks abnormal traffic caused by an attack by malicious robots, such as spambots (automatic spam delivery).

• Encryption of terminal storage volumes and removable media to prevent access to company data and applications by malicious third parties.

• Remote Access VPN for establishing secure, encrypted remote connections to the corporate network and resources.

Our advice: As well as deploying these different technologies on the company's network endpoints, effective endpoint security also requires a rigorous security policy.Our advice: as well as deploying these various technologies on the endpoints of the company's network, effective endpoint security must also establish a rigorous password policy with, as acceptable criteria, a minimum level of robustness and complexity, and regular renewal.

This endpoint security strategy also relies on regular system and software updates and patches to avoid security breaches caused by obsolete installations.

☝️ To ensure that the endpoint security strategy is properly understood and that all employees adopt good cybersecurity practices, it is useful to plan training sessions.

Which tools should you choose for enterprise endpoint security?

Endpoint security solutions can be grouped into three main categories.

Endpoint Protection Platform - EPP

This cybersecurity software platform is designed to secure and protect endpoints against cyberthreats. As a first line of defence, it incorporates a number of advanced functions (antivirus, antimalware, firewall, etc.) to prevent threats, detect suspicious activity (behavioural analysis, intrusion detection, etc.) and protect endpoints from malicious attacks.It also offers proactive protection based on databases of known signatures and a heuristic method for analysing and resolving attacks.

Monitoring all enterprise endpoints via a single interface is a highly effective way of managing events and automating responses.

Endpoint Detection and Response - EDR

EDR is an advanced cybersecurity solution designed for endpoint security. Its cutting-edge features continuously monitor endpoint activity, detect and analyse suspicious behaviour, and respond to the most complex cyber threats and attacks (ransomware, APT, etc.).

Using advanced algorithms and AI, it is able to identify attacks, even without matching known signatures, isolate compromised endpoints, block malicious files or processes, and apply patches to resolve vulnerability gaps.

🎯 Thanks to its proactive protection features, EDR neutralises cyber attacks before they compromise the company's network. It contextualises each security alert, making it possible to track the entire attack process on the targeted endpoint and trace its path after the event.

Extended Detection and Response - XDR

XDR is a unified security incident platform that harnesses the power of AI and automation. It is the most comprehensive solution. It integrates detection, investigation and response capabilities across endpoints, identities, email and applications, cloud and hybrid environments, to provide integrated protection against sophisticated attacks.

Based on a holistic and integrated approach, the XDR solution collects and analyses information from the various security layers:

• Uses AI and machine learning to identify anomalies and automate responses to cyber-malware.

• Breaks down traditional security silos to consolidate different security solutions into a single platform.

• Automatically corrects affected resources...

While EDR focuses on endpoint security, the XDR platform covers all potential attack surfaces: endpoints, network, email, cloud, etc. Its solutions are also capable of automating coordinated and simultaneous responses to multiple threat levels.

Endpoint security software vs. antivirus software: same battle?

Yes, antivirus software and endpoint security software have the same objective: to protect endpoints against cyber attacks. However, they do have some differences.

👉 For example, antivirus software has a more limited scope of action and functionality than the EDR platform. This is because the EDR platform inspects all connected devices in real time, whereas the antivirus software runs locally on each terminal, where the user controls its operation.

👉 Another differentiator is that the EDR platform provides a comprehensive suite of AI-driven detection, real-time analysis and automation tools to protect endpoints against cyber threats. Antivirus software, on the other hand, only offers the ability to scan for known malware (viruses, Trojans, malware and ransomware), and stop or quarantine suspicious files from running.

The two solutions can be combined:

• ✅ antivirus software identifying and mitigating the most common cyber malware,
• ✅ and the EDR platform accompanying the implementation of an advanced endpoint security strategy to detect and stop more complex attacks.

Which endpoint security software should I choose?

A number of specialist cybersecurity publishers have developed EDR endpoint security platforms for businesses, but not all of them offer the same features, nor are they aimed at the same business structures. Some endpoint security solutions are quick and easy to deploy, and do not require the intervention of an IT department. However, they are limited in the number of endpoints they can administer and in their ability to respond to sophisticated attacks such as APT or zero-day.

Some versions offer scalable endpoint security EDR platforms and several options for tailoring the solution precisely to the company's cybersecurity needs. These more advanced solutions are designed for SMEs with a dedicated IT team.

Some publishers offer solutions that focus primarily on endpoint security functionalities. It is then necessary to supplement the system with more traditional anti-virus, anti-malware, anti-transomware and Trojan horse protection software.

🔎 Among the various solutions recommended for endpoint security is Bitdefender's GravityZone Small Business Security. The tool offers advanced endpoint protection, specifically designed for small and medium-sized businesses looking for enterprise-grade security at a competitive investment. Thanks to a modular and scalable platform, the software combines cutting-edge prevention, detection and blocking technologies, using machine learning and behavioural analysis to effectively counter threats such as phishing, ransomware and fileless attacks. When a threat is detected, GravityZone reacts immediately by interrupting malicious processes, quarantining infected files and restoring unwanted changes, providing proactive and reactive endpoint protection.

GravityZone by Bitdefender

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Multilayer cybersecurity for SMEs without in-house IT

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🔎 Microsoft Defender for endpoints is also a robust endpoint security solution that protects all attack surfaces, whatever the enterprise. In addition, the Microsoft Defender XDR solution contributes to a zero-trust strategy and architecture that consists of continuously checking each access request, confirming the validity of privileges according to profiles.

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Keep threats off your network with endpoint security

Endpoint security is the most appropriate technological solution for guaranteeing the security and integrity of companies' digital infrastructures. Thanks to a centralised platform offering global visibility over the activity of the organisation's endpoints and advanced functionalities based on the power of intelligence, endpoint security is the most suitable technological solution for guaranteeing the security and integrity of companies' digital infrastructures.endpoint security detects, analyses and provides targeted responses to the latest generation of cyber attacks.

EDR is ideal for protecting your endpoints. It is capable of detecting and analysing attacks that have managed to bypass traditional antivirus-type protection, providing effective responses and correcting the vulnerabilities exploited. EDR provides 360° coverage of the attack surface on enterprise endpoints, and adapts nimbly to pre-existing digital ecosystems.