The importance of EDR in Cybersecurity

EDR: What is it?

EDR stands for ‘Endpoint Detection & Response’ system. It is the term that has come to the
surface of the cybersecurity space in recent years. EDR plays an important role in Endpoint
security. It has evolved from the need for the visibility of the endpoints in an environment. This
element was missing in traditional anti-malware and antivirus solutions. EDR provides the
missing feature of robust threat monitoring, detection & response capability specifically for
endpoint devices within the network perimeter.

The Core capabilities provided by EDR:

 Continuous Monitoring
 Detection mechanism
 Response capability

Importance of EDR in Cybersecurity?

Nowadays, enterprise organizations and businesses adopting digital transformation and online
presence & moving towards cloud computing, offloading their physical infrastructure to cloud-
based platforms, with this transformation towards the cloud, on one hand, there are many
benefits of cloud computing, on other hand, endpoint devices became more vulnerable to
external threats from this transformation.

Moreover, there was an increasing number of attacks observed that involved compromised
endpoint devices since Covid-19. Study shows, that 90% of successful cyberattacks and 70% of
successful data breaches originate at endpoint devices. This happened because more and more
companies adopted the WFH model after the Covid pandemic. WFH model allows employees to
access their networks over the internet from home and remote locations. This change brings in
more challenges for network admins to control devices beyond their premises.

It is another fact that threat actors and cybercriminals are always looking for soft targets. The
endpoint devices, accessing remote networks are the easiest targets for exploitation. Therefore it
is recommended by cybersecurity experts to have a more advanced, intelligent, and effective
Endpoint monitoring, threat detection & response solution, the importance of EDR in cyber
security has been greatly acknowledged.
Modern Day EDR vs EPP
EPP Key features:

Traditional Endpoint protection platforms use a known signature base method to detect and
block incoming malware and viruses. EPP acts as the first line of defense, and the main
component of any Endpoint Protection Platform is given below:

 Antimalware & Antivirus

 Firewalls (Application & Network)
 Data encryption protocols
 Data loss prevention system
 Intrusion prevention system (IPS)

EDR Key Features

EDR plays its role as the second line of defense, as it specializes to detect those attacks that have
managed to pass through the first line of defense i.e. EPP. It is more intelligent with capabilities
to Analyze, Detect & respond.

EDR solutions can be deployed as standalone products or as part of a larger security solution,
such as an intrusion detection and prevention system (IDPs). EDR solutions typically provide a
centralized console that allows security analysts to view and manage alerts, investigate incidents,
and take action to mitigate threats. Below are the key features of EDR that are worth mentioning:

Monitoring & Behavioral Analysis

Every endpoint within the environment of any organization’s perimeter network generates
events, and the EDR manager, in a centralized database, collects these events. The manager
analyzes the collected event logs, filters, enriches & monitors for any suspicious activity,
correlates the events collected, and evaluates for any unusual or abnormal endpoint behavior
using AI & ML algorithms. Based on behavioral analytics, and event chaining helps in
narrowing down threat hunting & remediation.

Alert reporting & tracking

Whenever there is any suspicious activity detected or IOA is verified, EDR generates alerts
accordingly, it has the capability to timely track down the attacker's point of entry, it also
suggests actionable remediation steps that are really helpful in further forensic investigation.

Application & user control

EDR also has the capability of good user & application controls in order to isolate the affected
endpoint from the network, & carrying out necessary mitigation measures while restoring the
device to its clean form.
EDR's interactive dashboards present a clear and understandable presentation and give a holistic
view of the actual situation to the SOC team, which enables them to analyze and take necessary
action to counter the situation in a timely manner.

However, upcoming EDR solutions will be a unified platform with both EPP and EDR
capabilities with better and improved security.

What Should You Look for in an EDR Solution?

One must understand the importance of an EDR solution and its role in achieving maximum
security, we must consider some vital aspects while selecting the optimum EDR solution that is
best suited for enterprise network & provides value in terms of performance and investment.

Endpoint Visibility

Any good EDR solution should have the capability to provide maximum visibility for each
endpoint device within a network. Continuous monitoring & Endpoint visibility is considered the
first step toward early detection of any adversary and malicious attack.

Behavioral Analytics

One of the major factors that distinguish EDR from traditional EPP is its Machine-learning based
ability to analyze unusual & abnormal device behavior and detect Indicators of Attack ( IoA).
The best choice would be a solution that can analyze not only a known threat pattern but can also
identify any unknown malicious activity pattern and take necessary action.

Automated threat Detection & Response

Modern-day EDR solutions have the ability to respond to any adversary, it has AI-based
automation algorithms that provide threat intelligence and forensic tools. These cutting-edge
components work together to act immediately to respond to any attack including advanced
persistent threats (APT) and contain it from any further penetration and damage.

Intelligent Alerting system.

Continuous monitoring of endpoint devices and alerting mechanisms are important. They play
the main role in reporting SOC personnel as soon as it discovers any unusual behavior or
malicious activity. It provides in-depth forensic details about the affected endpoint that would
help security analysts during the alert investigation.
Conclusion
In today's fast-paced world, cyber security has emerged as a global challenge for every business
and industry alike, cybercriminals and threat actors are attacking enterprise networks and
exploiting Endpoint weaknesses to break into the networks. EDR with its continuous monitoring,
intelligent threat detection & automated response capabilities, has a considerable impact on
small and mid-sized organizations. With the protection and security, it offers great help in
reducing the attack surface and safeguarding their networks.