What is Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)?

With today’s IT environments distributed across on-premises and cloud environments, it’s likely that the traditional, point-solution endpoint only approach has become infeasible.

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is a SOC tool that provides 24/7 remote endpoint protection and real-time threat response regardless of where users or data reside. Initially coined by Anton Chuvakin of Gartner, EDR has been defined as a solution that, “records and stores endpoint-system-level behaviors, uses various data analytics techniques to detect suspicious system behavior, provides contextual information, blocks malicious activity, and provides remediation suggestions to restore affected systems.”

When an endpoint is compromised, the cyber threat is investigated and isolated on your behalf by a team of cybersecurity experts to prevent cybercriminals from spreading laterally through to other endpoints.

How Does Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) Work?

With more workplaces relying on mobile devices and cloud platforms, it can be difficult to detect malicious activity at the source with many signals coming in from various locations.

With EDR solutions, organizations can protect themselves from malicious threat actors and eliminate blind spots by detecting and containing threats such as:

• Commodity malware
• Ransomware
• Zero-day attacks
• Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)
• Suspicious activity
• Abnormal behavior
• Fileless attacks
• Lateral movement

What is the Difference Between Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and Endpoint Protection (EPP)?

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP) are significantly different. While both involve analyzing endpoint activity and endpoint data, the main difference between the two is how extended their security operations and response tools are.

EPP covers traditional anti-malware scanning, such as next-generation antivirus (NGAV) products. However, EPPs have limited response capability. Moreover, the increasing use of fileless and unknown cyberattacks has also shifted focus from threat prevention to threat detection and response so organizations can protect themselves effectively. Ultimately, this drove native endpoint vendors to expand their portfolios with a new tool that was later coined “Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)”.

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is capable of detecting and investigating complex cybersecurity incidents and has the ability to remediate endpoints to a pre-infection state. Endpoint agents deliver threat signals, contextual telemetry and cyber defense capabilities, including next-generation antivirus and proactive threat hunting. They provide cybersecurity analysts that take action to contain, investigate, and remediate cyber threats.

Endpoint Detection and Response is equipped to do more than simply monitor endpoints and notify you of present cyber threats. Endpoint Detection and Response is connected to an extended and automated endpoint protection platform (MDR with XDR) with advanced endpoint threat detection and response. These platforms are able to ingest multiple endpoints at once and reduce the number of false positives. Technology aside, Endpoint Detection and Response also comes with a team of Security Operations Center (SOC) Cyber Analysts and Elite Threat Hunters who isolate compromised endpoints on your behalf.

Why Should You Invest in an Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) Tool?

Organizations are challenged to defend against cyber threats from hacktivists, financially motivated hackers, ransomware gangs, and state sponsored groups are actively looking to break into your networks and abuse them in whatever way they see fit.

In fact, threat actor groups are getting bolder with dropping ransomware to extort your organization, harvesting your data to sell it on the Dark Web, and using your organization's privileged access to target your clients.

The best way to prevent the cybercriminals from disrupting your business operations is by leveraging an Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tool because it’s capable of detecting and investigating advanced threats, and remediating hosts/endpoints back to a pre-infection state. They can help prevent data breaches by providing real-time visibility into what's happening on your network so that gaps, vulnerabilities, and attacks are detected before they have time to affect business operations positively or negatively for long periods of time. Additionally, endpoint security solutions enable Managed Detection and Response (MDR) providers to manage your endpoints at scale and detect threats in real time, allowing them to respond before the threat becomes an incident.

In essence, Endpoint Detection and Response is a SOC tool that works to detect, contain, and eliminate a cyber threat and ultimately reduce your cyber risk.

Six Reasons EDR is Important

1. EDR can help prevent data breaches: Endpoint Detection and Response can help prevent data breaches by identifying and responding to potential threats before they have a chance to become business disrupting events. EDR tools are designed to monitor network activity and identify suspicious behavior that may indicate an attempted breach. If a breach is detected, the EDR tool can take action to contain the threat and prevent it from spreading.
2. EDR can help Improve incident response times: EDR systems are designed to automatically collect data about potential cybersecurity incidents, which can then be used by your cybersecurity team to quickly assess the situation and determine the best course of action. This automated data collection can help to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes to respond to incidents.
3. EDR can help reduce false positives: False positives are a major problem for security teams, as they waste time and resources investigating alerts that turn out to be nothing, causing significant alert fatigue. Endpoint Detection and Response can help reduce false positives by providing more context about potential incidents, which can help your teams quickly determine whether an alert is legitimate or not, saving time and resources in the long run.
4. EDR can help improve detection rates: Since EDR tools are designed to continuously monitor network activity and look for signs of malicious activity, your team can detect threats that might otherwise go unnoticed. Additionally, EDR tools typically generate far fewer false positives than traditional security solutions, which helps to further improve threat detection rates.
5. EDR can help simplify compliance: Organizations must comply with a variety of regulations, such as HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR. Endpoint detection and response can help simplify compliance by providing visibility into all endpoint activity, allowing organizations to quickly identify any potential compliance issues and remediate them. Additionally, many EDR solutions offer built-in compliance reporting that can make it even easier for organizations to meet their obligations.
6. EDR can improve your overall security posture: Endpoint Detection and Response provides a number of benefits that can improve your organization's overall security posture. By preventing data breaches, improving incident response times, reducing false positives, and improving detection rates, EDR can help organizations keep their data safe and secure while simplifying compliance at the same time.

How Do New Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) Capabilities Improve Threat Intelligence?

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions should have the ability to integrate with curated threat intelligence in order to provide faster detection of malicious activities and tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) identified as malicious. It should also provide contextualized information that includes any indicators of compromise (IOCs) and the associated adversary that has been known to leverage them.

What Should You Look for in an Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) Solution?

When considering an Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) technology solution, look for a provider that provides complete endpoint response and remediation and helps your team:

• Prevent infected endpoints from spreading to other machines
• Detect and isolate ransomware, data exfiltration and hands-on keyboard attackers through 24/7 threat detection, containment, and response capabilities
• Quarantine malicious files and terminating processes once suspicious activity has been validated
• Stop and remove service and registry keys
• Perform system reboots

What are the Benefits of eSentire’s Endpoint Detection and Response Technology?

Endpoint Detection and Response capabilities is only one component of MDR for Endpoint. While it thrives in detection across exploitation, installation and internal observation stages, it is blind to other areas. On its own, EDR can only provide a very narrow view of a network.

MDR for Endpoint provides complete endpoint response and remediation including:

• Preventing infected endpoints from spreading to other machines
• Isolating ransomware attacks, data exfiltration and hands-on keyboard attackers
• Quarantining malicious files and terminating processes
• stopping/removing service and registry keys
• System reboots

With full visibility coverage and automated detection capabilities, MDR for Endpoint provides an optimized state of endpoint defense by:

• Eliminating your physical and virtual endpoint blind spots
• Reducing cyberattacker dwell time
• Mitigating potential disruption of your business operations
• Minimizing incident recovery timeframe

eSentire MDR for Endpoint Hunts and Isolates Endpoint Threats Fast Before They Spread

Modern endpoint technology can easily overwhelm your organization’s IT resources due to its complex capabilities and false positives that require manual review. This resulted in the emergence of managed service offerings to alleviate resource limitations and operational inefficiencies.

At eSentire, we go beyond just notifying you of cyber threats present in your environment. Our MDR for Endpoint solution provides your team with full endpoint security and extended detection by:

Preventing Predictable Known Cyberattacks

By using predictive threat modeling, we automatically identify and block known, new, and fileless cyberattacks.

Detecting New and Elusive Cyberattacks

Our integrated machine learning and advanced analytics will identify cyber threats built to bypass your preventative defenses.

Responding to and Remediating Cyber Threats

Our 24/7 Elite Threat Hunters take action on your behalf in the event a threat bypasses your controls. They contain and remediate compromised endpoints preventing disruption to your business.

Hardening Against Future Cyberattacks

We support the incident response lifecycle by determining root causes and eradicating threat actor presence. Your endpoints become resilient to new and repeat attacks.

Are you ready to see EDR in action? To learn more about eSentire MDR for Endpoint and how we can help you hunt and isolate endpoint threats before they spread, contact a cybersecurity specialist today.