What Is End Point Security And How Does It Work?

Cybersecurity can sometimes feel like an endless game of trying to keep people out, especially when technology (and now especially AI) is progressing more quickly than we could ever have imagined.

But while businesses might spend millions protecting their networks, cloud infrastructure and data, there’s another obvious place attackers can target (in case we didn’t already have enough to worry about. That is, the devices employees are actually using.

From a company laptop and smartphone to a server or connected IoT device, every device connected to a business network can potentially become a way in. And endpoint security is designed to stop that from happening.

What Is Endpoint Security?

Endpoint security refers to the technologies and processes that are used to protect devices connected to a network from cyber threats. An endpoint could be pretty much anything that connects to a business’s systems. That is, laptops, desktop computers, smartphones, tablets, servers and increasingly connected devices can all fall into this category.

Endpoint security is especially important because if an attacker manages to compromise one device, they may be able to use it as a stepping stone towards other systems, accounts or sensitive information. And these days, with remote and hybrid working, businesses no longer have the luxury of knowing that all their devices are sitting safely behind the same office firewall.

How Does Endpoint Security Work?

Endpoint security normally combines several different layers of protection rather than relying on one piece of software. In the simplest way, security tools can scan devices for malware and other known threats. They can also control which applications are allowed to run, identify suspicious files and make sure devices are following an organisation’s security policies.

But modern endpoint security goes a little bit beyond simply looking for viruses. Many systems monitor activity on a device to identify behaviour that looks unusual. For instance, if an employee’s laptop suddenly starts accessing large amounts of sensitive data or running processes it normally wouldn’t, that could trigger an alert.

This is particularly useful because attackers don’t always use malware that security software already knows about. Sometimes, it’s the behaviour surrounding an attack that gives it away, and if you can catch that, you’ll be a whole lot better off.

If a threat is detected, security teams can investigate what happened and take action. And depending on the system, this could mean blocking a process, removing malicious software or isolating the device from the wider network.

Is Endpoint Security the Same As Antivirus?

Endpoint security and antivirus software aren’t necessarily the same thing. Antivirus iis one component of endpoint security, but the latter covers a much broader range of protections. Modern endpoint security can include antivirus and anti-malware tools, firewalls, encryption, application controls, patch management and Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR).

EDR is particularly important because it’s designed to continuously monitor endpoint activity and help security teams detect, investigate and respond to potential attacks. So, rather than simply asking whether a particular file is malicious, endpoint security can look at the bigger picture which is, what’s actually happening on this device, and does it look normal?

Why Is Endpoint Security Important for Cybersecurity?

The number of devices businesses need to protect isn’t exactly getting smaller; in many ways, it’s getting larger and more difficult to manage. Employees work from laptops at home, access company systems from smartphones and use cloud services from networks that businesses don’t directly control. Meanwhile, organisations are connecting more devices and systems than ever before.

As a result, that creates a much larger attack surface. Thus, endpoint security isn’t just about preventing someone from downloading a dodgy file; it’s about making sure that the devices businesses depend on every day don’t become an easy route into something much bigger.