Network Security
Vulnerability Management
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Endpoint Security
Threat Hunting
Unified Endpoint Management
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Contents:
Knowing the benefits of XDR solutions might make you want to reconsider your cybersecurity strategy. Yes, using an EDR instead of a traditional antivirus is a step up in the battle against advanced threats. But moving further to XDR is like switching from a magnifying glass to glasses. Suddenly, the full picture comes into focus. You get to see more details, more clearly, and also become aware of how they interconnect.
In this article, I’ll explain what an XDR platform is, how it benefits you compared to traditional security solutions, and how you can use it to prevent sophisticated attacks.
Key takeaways
- XDR unifies data across environments for better threat detection.
- AI and automation enhance response capabilities, reduce false positives, and alert fatigue.
- Centralized tools streamline security operations and boost system efficiency.
- Heimdal XDR platform’s modular design cuts cybersecurity costs and complexity.
- Fast incident response minimizes damage and downtime.
What Is Extended Detection and Response (XDR)?
Extended Detection and Response (XDR) is a detection and response security solution that unifies different security tools and data sources into one platform. The difference between EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) and XDR is that the latter gathers and correlates data from different environments – endpoints, emails, servers, cloud, networks – and security layers.
This approach enables comprehensive visibility and proactive defense against complex attacks, including advanced persistent threats, misuse of networks, unauthorized access, insider threats, etc.
XDR is a relatively new approach to the concept of threat detection and response, the term itself dating from 2018.
Automation and integration of various security tools help security teams detect, analyze, and react to threats faster.
By using AI and machine learning algorithms, an XDR solution improves continuously.
Security analysts often see it as the next logical step from Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and Managed Detection and Response (MDR) because it collects and correlates data from different sources.
Key Benefits of Using XDR
Extended Detection and Response solutions do more than protect sensitive data from stealthy attacks. By keeping the existing infrastructure safe, best XDR tools contribute to avoid workflow disruptions.
Because every business has its own unique challenges, the benefits of XDR that you appreciate the most may vary.
Here are some common XDR benefits.
Detects more advanced threats
Cyberattacks can target your website, DNS infrastructure, databases via SQL injection, and exploit URLs for phishing or malicious redirection. That is why a key benefit of an XDR platform is traffic monitoring. Checking the network traffic for anomalies and blocking suspicious connections helps prevent phishing and ransomware attacks.
Unlike old antiviruses, AI-based behavioral analysis helps identify and stop both old and unknown threats.
Protects multiple devices and sources
XDR has a holistic approach, which means it goes beyond data collection from endpoints. It tracks threats across your entire network, your databases and apps that run in cloud, and also your company emails.
XDR platforms focus on the entire attack surface. Implementing XDR means that IT teams can find out in real time if there’s any suspicious activity in any of the company’s environments. This is the first step towards protection and effective incident response.
Reduces alert fatigue
The best XDR solutions can respond automatically to several threats without human intervention. Triaging alerts is repetitive and time consuming. So, being able to choose what types of alerts can be solved automatically and which need human intervention takes part of the pressure off security analysts.
Setting the tool to automatically recognize and respond to false positives helps eliminate alert fatigue. Configure the tool well and your IT team will get the time they need to investigate in depth those alerts that need additional effort and special skills.
Boosts productivity
Because this cybersecurity solution is uniting multiple tools under one dashboard, they are easier to handle. Finding them all in one place can be time-saving for your team, making the whole workflow so much smoother. Unification also means better communication between the tools. By having all security events on the same dashboard, you’ll be able to correlate different alerts – a suspicious connection attempt from a malicious site and a file encryption one – to anticipate a ransomware attack.
Besides, imagine the time a threat hunter saves if he doesn’t have to constantly log back in to several different tools, for safety reasons. Cybersecurity Expert Jacob Hazelbaker explained this concept referring to an EDR platform, but it works the same for an XDR one.
It gets better with time
Using AI technology and machine learning, an XDR platform can continuously learn and accumulate data over time.
In this way, the protection that you will get from your XDR solution will improve as time goes by, remaining efficient against newer threats that lurk on the Internet.
It’s lighter on your systems
Having one unifying dashboard can prove lighter on your systems. Instead of installing and configuring 6 apps for the functionalities you need, you’ll only have to deploy one agent for patch management, DNS security, PAM, NGAV and so on.
Improves visibility
Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, your cybersecurity system, instead of giving you crystal clear visibility over your attack surface, will become sinuous and will repeat itself. This will end by giving you a lot of extra work and making it hard to identify the blind spots.
XDR platforms can overcome this challenge by unifying the data streams from multiple tools and sources. Seeing on the same dashboard the exact endpoint, network, database where security alerts were triggered, at what hour, etc. helps the threat detection team. Security professionals will better understand where the attack originated from, how the infection spread further, etc.
Faster incident recovery
If an incident occurs, you can rely on your XDR solution to isolate and mitigate it as fast as possible.
This way the downtime for your systems is reduced to a minimum as well as the risk of other areas getting compromised too after the initial infection.
Reduces overall costs with cybersecurity
Not only that this security solution is more advanced and saves your employees time, but it will also save you money. Why buy 5 different tools and train the team to learn using each one of them instead of only paying and training once? Heimdal’s XDR platform is unified and modular, which means that you can add or remove tools and functionalities depending on your exact needs.
Thus, you avoid paying for overlapping products in your security stack and reduce costs related to cybersecurity.
How Can Heimdal® Help?
Heimdal’s XDR solution offers a comprehensive, AI-driven, and modular platform that covers threat detection, enhances response capabilities, and ensures compliance. It is now the widest XDR suite on the market, featuring 10 award-winning tools that you can mix and match.
The solution collects data from endpoints, networks, cloud services, and user identities into a single dashboard.
It automates response workflows, enabling fast containment and remediation of threats. Isolating an infected machine on the spot minimizes further damage and downtime.
This XDR platform includes built-in reporting tools that help meet regulatory compliance frameworks such as NIS2, HIPAA, and GDPR.
Watch this video where threat hunter Alex Gurgu explains how the MXDR team uses various functions in the XDR platform to mitigate threats:
- End-to-end consolidated cybersecurity;
- Complete visibility across your entire IT infrastructure;
- Faster and more accurate threat detection and response;
- Efficient one-click automated and assisted actioning
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How does XDR enhance threat detection compared to traditional methods?
Benefit: Improved Threat Detection Accuracy
- Details: XDR correlates data across multiple security layers (endpoints, networks, cloud, and applications), providing a comprehensive view that traditional siloed approaches miss.
- Impact: Increases detection rates and reduces false positives by providing context-aware insights.
In what ways does XDR streamline incident response?
Benefit: Faster and Coordinated Response
- Details: XDR integrates automation and orchestration tools, enabling security teams to respond quickly and consistently to threats across different environments.
- Impact: Reduces mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR), minimizing potential damage.
How does XDR contribute to resource efficiency in security operations?
Enhanced Resource Utilization
- Details: By consolidating multiple security tools into a single platform, XDR reduces the complexity of managing disparate systems and decreases the need for manual intervention.
- Impact: Optimizes the use of security personnel and resources, leading to cost savings and improved operational efficiency.
What role does XDR play in threat hunting and investigation?
Benefit: Advanced Threat Hunting Capabilities
- Details: XDR provides deep visibility and analytics across the entire IT environment, facilitating proactive threat hunting and thorough investigations.
- Impact: Enables security teams to uncover hidden threats and understand attack vectors, improving overall security posture.
Wrapping Up…
Implementing an Extended Detection and Response (XDR) cybersecurity solution takes your cybersecurity strategy one step further. It brings a more proactive approach to threat detection and response.
Monitoring cyber threats is a real challenge these days, so you will need all the help you can get, without spending absurd sums of money or overwhelming your IT team.
XDR can bring multiple advantages; you just have to see what solution is the best fit for you.
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