What is Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)?

In this 101, we’re going to cover:

• Endpoint Detection and Response
• What are Endpoint Detection and Response Solutions, and How Do They Work?
• What are the Benefits of EDR?
• How is EDR Different from EPP?
• What to Look for in an EDR Solution
• How is Cybereason EDR Different?

Endpoint Detection and Response

To malicious actors, endpoints are gateways into your organization's networks. As cyber threats continue evolving and leveraging the vulnerabilities in the growing number of endpoints, the solutions to combat them must be advanced. To quickly and accurately identify suspicious endpoint activity, immediately eliminate threats, and minimize their impact, your organization's cybersecurity arsenal must include Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR). 

WHAT ARE ENDPOINT DETECTION AND RESPONSE (EDR) SOLUTIONS, AND HOW DO THEY WORK?

EDR is an array of modern, integrated endpoint security tools that detect, contain, investigate, and eliminate invasive cybersecurity threats high in the cyber kill chain. EDR is an indispensable component of endpoint security and is critical to the overall cybersecurity posture of your organization. It's essential to monitor your organization's endpoints continuously and respond at a moment's notice to suspicious abnormalities.

An EDR platform operates as a proactive cyber investigator and fixer. It constantly audits incidents on endpoints across all operating systems of an organization. The data aggregated from desktops, laptops, servers, mobile devices, IoT implementations, cloud environments, and more provide a nuanced snapshot of the systems. 

The endpoint telemetry and other contextual data from across the organization provide better visibility, greater context, and earlier threat detection capabilities. The platform generates alerts—in context—to aid in uncovering, investigating and remediating questionable events. The right EDR solution can help you understand precisely how a malicious actor compromised an endpoint, and it also reduces the time necessary to identify and remediate threats.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF EDR?

• Enhanced Visibility. Many modern cyber threats can circumvent anti-virus software and other traditional security tools. EDR provides better visibility inside an organization's systems by monitoring all the events on all endpoints. With real-time monitoring capabilities, EDR provides an accurate snapshot of the condition of a system at any moment. 
• Machine Learning, AI and Advanced Analytic Techniques for Better Detection. Having the ability to identify patterns in events and processes immediately is key to mitigating modern cyber threats. EDR uses AI and machine learning to process the data amassed from endpoint events and identify patterns in incidents and processes that could indicate an active threat. Not only does the AI-enabled analysis help detect and contain threats before damage occurs, but it's also critical in highlighting the remediation techniques necessary to prevent future, similar intrusions.
• Improved Efficiency. EDR is a centralized platform that houses the tools necessary for collecting and analyzing data, investigation of endpoint incidents, remediation actions, and more. It also allows for the automation of everyday tasks. That means security teams can respond quickly to threats, increase productivity, and generate better outcomes.

HOW IS EDR DIFFERENT FROM EPP?

• Depth of Threat. One crucial distinction between an EDR solution and an endpoint protection platform (EPP) lies in whether a threat can penetrate the system. EDR detects and mitigates threats that have already entered the system, circumventing any front-line defenses. An EPP is a preventative tool intended to block threats before they have breached a system, similar to how anti-virus software is supposed to block viruses. 
• Defense Approach. EDR employs a proactive method to defense, operating as if there's an active threat in place by actively hunting threats inside of the system. An EPP presents a more passive approach to stopping threats. 
• Scope of Application. An EPP relies on endpoint isolation to mitigate threats and their impact. An EDR solution compiles incident data from multiple endpoints across the entire organization to understand the appropriate remedial actions. 

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN AN EDR SOLUTION

According to the Forrester Wave Endpoint Detection and Response, Q1 2020 Report, the ideal EDR solution should: 

• Provide incident-driven security analytics. Complete an advanced analysis of endpoint incidents to detect threats and determine the root cause of events on a compromised system results in more efficient investigations and fewer false-positive alerts. 
• Supply a remediation plan and the tools to execute it. The EDR solution should allow instant remediation actions, including network containment, the removal of persistence mechanisms, the prevention of file execution, the killing of processes, and the quarantining of the file to counteract and stop threats in their tracks. 
• Enable advanced applications of the MITRE ATT&CK framework. The MITRE ATT&CK framework should be incorporated directly into the product. It's also necessary that the EDR solution can export data collected regarding ATT&CK techniques used to provide a better understanding of the threats faced. 

HOW IS CYBEREASON EDR DIFFERENT?

Several key differentiators set Cybereason EDR apart from other vendors:

• An intuitive UI that allows SOC members of all skill levels to understand the details of an incident quickly
• Automated, proactive threat capabilities to reveal indicators of compromise and behavior
• The analysis of a greater range of data sources than competitors
• Detection of malicious behavior in real-time using real-time correlation of data across all devices 
• A full suite of remedial actions that can be executed at scale using automation or by remotely clicking a button
• Saves time and improves work efficiency by facilitating a direct pivot from investigating a malicious operation to the remediation of affected devices

The value of Cybereason EDR can also be found in the numbers. According to an independent study, organizations have used Cybereason to improve the efficiency in detecting and responding to threats by 93 percent. Organizations have saved $3.6 million from avoiding potential cybersecurity threats.

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