The Huge Importance Of Endpoint Security

As hybrid working is now the new ‘normal’ way of working for many employees, endpoint security has never been so important. This is the practice of protecting various end-user devices such as laptops, smartphones and tablets from cyberthreats.

With so many employees working remotely or on a hybrid basis, IT teams face a huge challenge in ensuring that security measures are implemented.

The need for greater focus on endpoint security is nicely illustrated by a survey from HP Wolf Security, which found that:

• 76% of office workers surveyed said working from home during the pandemic has blurred the lines between their personal and professional lives.
• 30% admitted to allowing someone besides themselves to use their work laptop, often more than once per day.
• Nearly half of workers now think of their work laptops as personal devices.

Now is the time for organisations to seriously focus on endpoint security. With 94% of all malware attacking organisations via email, even the simplest of daily operations must be included. This is especially important as remote workers no longer have the protection of the corporate firewall. While it may be necessary to allow employees to have remote access to servers, forcing devices that connect to networks to follow security processes can optimise protection from cyberattacks.

Many IT managers express concerns that new employee behaviour – driven by remote and hybrid working – is increasing organisational risk:

• 85% are concerned that employees letting others (children, partners, housemates, etc.) use their work devices has increased their company’s risk of a security breach.
• 88% are concerned that employees downloading software (to do their jobs) which is not approved by IT has increased their company’s risk of a security breach.
• 88% are worried that the risk of a breach has risen because employees are using personal devices for work that were not built with business security in mind.

Implementing Endpoint Security

With a growing number of employee locations and remote devices involved in daily business operations, endpoint security should offer instant protection and the potential to scale up. Cybersecurity threats have grown in number and complexity, creating the need for more sophisticated solutions.

Endpoint security has evolved from traditional antivirus software and now provides comprehensive protection from the growing number of daily cyberthreats. (Forbes reports that 300,000 new pieces of malware are created daily, and some 24,000 malicious mobile apps are blocked daily on the internet.)

Types of Endpoint Security

A myriad of choices is available:

• Internet of Things (IoT) security
• Antivirus solutions
• Endpoint detection and response
• URL filtering
• Application control
• Network access control
• Browser isolation
• Cloud perimeter security
• Endpoint encryption
• Secure email gateways
• Sandboxing (an isolated, secure digital environment in which potential threats can be observed and assessed)

“The mix of solutions should be tailored for your organisation and its operational practices,” says Eric Hughes of EMH Technology. “Endpoint security involves careful communication and possibly employee training alongside the introduction of technological solutions.”

Are your employees continuing to work remotely, either all or some of the time?

Have you noticed an increasing cybersecurity issue within your organisation?

Would you like to optimise the safety of your corporate and customer data?

Talk to the friendly IT experts at EMH technology. We take pride in finding the solution that best fits your business operation, priorities and plans. Even better – we love discussing our ideas without using IT jargon!