While I realize I’m dating myself, I remember when the first virus protection was released back in 1987. The name of the product (which is still used today) is McAfee (started by John McAfee). Soon after that, a man by the name of Peter Norton came on the scene with his virus protection named Norton AntiVirus, Norton. I’m sorry for a boring history lesson, but the point is that virus and malware has been around for over 3 decades. Since then, times have changed and the hackers/bad guys have become more intelligent, but their incentives for penetrating businesses and gaining new victims have grown significantly with the introduction of cyber currency, such as Bitcoin.
In 2020, businesses throughout the world(who were victims of a cyberattack) paid out nearly $350 million worth of cryptocurrency, which was a 311% increase compared with the previous year. The average payment from a ransomware attack in 2020 was $312,493! Ransomware has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry and there are highly organized groups of criminals that will never stop.
So the question is… what can you do about ensuring that you and your organization are protected to fend off these relentless cyberattacks? Are you still running virus and malware protection that has been using the same technologies from 30 years ago? The good news is that the “good guys” have been stepping up their advanced technologies and developing solutions utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) to better protect businesses.
Endpoint detection and response (EDR), also referred to as endpoint threat detection and response (ETDR), is the newest technology that monitors systems and is able to detect a cyber threat. When deployed on a server, computer or laptop, it will watch a user’s activities and learn how the person functions. What is their work schedule? What applications do they use? What websites do they go to? From there, it builds a profile. While a traditional virus or malware protection suite utilizes previously known patterns to detect bad items, and EDR has the ability to not only detect when something does not seem right, but it can actually respond to the identified threat immediately! EDR solutions have been saving businesses from countless attacks and insurance companies, in many cases, are requiring an EDR solution to be put in place for reduced premiums or even coverage.
To discuss EDR solutions and see how they can better protect your organization, please reach out to Frank at [email protected] or (847) 894-6304. Together we are in this ongoing battle in keeping businesses safe!