Why Firewalls and Antivirus Alone Aren’t Always Enough
March 15th, 2022 by admin
Antivirus and firewalls are still the foundational backbone of any security program. While these traditional solutions can’t stop every attack, they still play a critical role in defending against multi-step attacks. A big reason for this is that threats never expire – every piece of malware ever created is still circulating somewhere; either online or offline. Signature-based antivirus solutions are still effective at preventing most known threats from infecting your systems no matter which vector it arrives by: email, website or thumb drive. And firewalls are effective at defending both within and at the perimeter of your network. But, in general, these traditional solutions are predominantly reactive in nature; their effectiveness is primarily dependent upon whether the vendor has already seen the threat in the past. This makes these tools limited in their ability to catch a growing number of dangerous threats like business email compromises, zero-day attacks, fileless malware and stolen devices.
Cybersecurity is a continual game of cat-and-mouse. One where attackers with increasingly sophisticated tools and techniques work around the clock to discover new ways to evade and deceive existing security measures. They’re experts at creating new attack methods and vectors, making them unique enough to avoid detection. The sheer speed, volume and sophistication of today’s newest attacks enable some to go undetected for hours, days and even months.
This means that no organization can afford to be dependent solely on traditional solutions, which are becoming decreasingly effective against new, advanced attacks. Comprehensive security requires an adaptive protection process integrating predictive, preventive, detective, and response capabilities.
Next-generation, behavior-based security, like enhanced Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to analyze the behavior of running files and actively looks for anomalies missed by malware signatures. It also uses automation to proactively block, contain and roll back threats. Enhanced EDR doesn’t wait to engage and defend until after attacks launch, malware installs, or infected systems send out communications needed to execute a bigger attack. Its adaptive, built-in technology is designed to proactively (and more effectively) address the ever-growing number of unknown cyber threats that target your network endpoints.
As we regularly mention, there is no single, silver bullet that provides ultimate protection against ransomware and other zero-day attacks. While our enhanced EDR solution replaces traditional antivirus, it’s not a replacement for all defensive security solutions, like firewalls. Effective cybersecurity requires multiple layers of protection that change to keep pace with new threats. And enhanced EDR is a powerful next-generation adaptive technology for endpoints that reduces attack detection, response and investigation time and, in turn, reduces the risk of a successful attack.
The endpoint devices connected to your network – your laptops, desktops, and servers – are a favorite target of cyber-attackers. The compromise of endpoints, through sophisticated methods like highly-targeted email phishing and zero-day attacks, and fileless malware, enable hackers to create a foothold to exploit your entire network. If you are only using traditional security solutions, like firewalls and antivirus, your endpoints have become the most vulnerable part of your organization’s network. This makes having enhanced EDR security more important than ever. With the added capabilities of EDR’s enhanced, rapid threat detection and automated responses you’ll be better prepared to secure your entire IT infrastructure.
To learn more about adding a managed EDR technology solution to your current cyber defenses, contact our security team.
Posted in: Cyber Security