Does your anti-virus solution protect you (like you think it does)?
The core anti-virus products that have been around for years remain the first line of defence for endpoints – your PCs, laptops and mobile devices. But this is no longer sufficient for modern environments which are faced with the following – very dangerous – challenges:
- Sophisticated, multi-stage attacks: advanced cyberattacks that unfold in several planned steps (like reconnaissance, initial entry, hiding, escalating access, stealing data, or spreading further), designed to evade detection by blending in with normal activity.
- Credential abuse: Attackers use stolen, guessed, or misused usernames/passwords (often from data breaches or weak passwords) to log in legitimately as real users, bypassing security checks that rely on malware detection.
- Phishing via productivity apps: Cybercriminals send fake emails, links, or attachments through tools like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace to trick users into giving away credentials, downloading malware, or granting app permissions that allow access to company data.
- Post-breach lateral movement: After gaining a foothold on one device or account (the initial breach), attackers quietly move sideways across the network to other computers, servers, or accounts—using stolen credentials or legitimate tools—to reach more valuable targets or spread ransomware.
These threats often slip past strong perimeter defenses (like firewalls) and basic preventive antivirus because they rely on human error, legitimate access, or subtle internal activity rather than obvious malware.
However, with Bitdefender’s advanced modules, we can tackle these issues effectively:
Advanced Threat Security (ATS)
- Why it’s an important add-on: It’s like upgrading from a basic door lock to a high-tech smart lock with AI motion sensors and a quarantine chamber — it catches sneaky, custom-made intruders (zero-days, fileless attacks, advanced exploits) that fool standard checks.
- Enhances core endpoint protection against advanced and targeted threats.
- Uses tunable machine learning, HyperDetect (risk scoring for suspicious files/processes), Sandbox Analyzer (cloud-based detonation of unknown files), fileless attack prevention, and advanced anti-exploit.
- Blocks sophisticated malware, zero-days, ransomware variants, exploits, and fileless/obfuscated threats before execution.
- Operates on-device with behavioural monitoring and pre-execution analysis.
- Reduces false positives while increasing detection of evasive attacks.
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
- Why it’s an important add-on: It’s like installing security cameras and an alarm system inside the building — even if the guard misses someone slipping in, it records the break-in, traces their moves, and advises you on what you need to do to ensure your system to prevent further attack.
- Provides post-prevention visibility, detection, and response on endpoints.
- Continuously monitors endpoint activities: processes, files, registry, network connections, and behaviours.
- Detects advanced attacks, ransomware, lateral movement, and persistence techniques missed by prevention.
- Enables investigation with timelines, forensics, threat hunting, automated correlation, and one-click remediation (isolate, kill processes, quarantine, rollback).
- Focuses on endpoints for detailed incident response and root-cause analysis.
Managed Detection and Response (MDR)
- Why it’s an important add-on: It’s like hiring a professional 24/7 security team to watch the cameras and respond instantly — your in-house staff doesn’t have to stay up all night monitoring alerts or chasing false alarms; experts handle investigation and response around the clock.
- What you get: In a critical event the MDR SOC* would a) act immediately if they’ve been granted permission and/or b) contact us for actions taken/needed + put the customer on a 72 close watch.
- 24/7 outsourced monitoring and expert response using GravityZone data (often including EDR/XDR sensors).
- Bitdefender SOC analysts monitor alerts, investigate incidents, perform threat hunting, and execute response actions.
- Includes incident triage, remediation guidance (or direct action), reporting, and optional breach warranty.
- Reduces burden on internal teams by providing managed expertise for detection/response.
- Covers endpoints and extends with XDR sensors in higher tiers (e.g., MXDR).
*Security Operations Centre
Extended Detection and Response (XDR) — OVERVIEW
- Why it’s an important add-on: If you have MDR + XDR, the team gets more tools to act right away: e.g., disable a stolen keycard (suspend account), delete a poisoned email before anyone opens it, block suspicious network traffic, or shut down a risky cloud access point — actions they couldn’t do (or couldn’t do as effectively/fast) with just endpoint-focused MDR.
- Correlates data across multiple sensors/sources for broader, automated threat detection/response.
- Builds unified incidents with human-readable summaries, attack timelines, and recommended actions.
- Extends beyond endpoints to network, identity, productivity apps, cloud, etc.
- Enables faster detection (e.g., stop attacks 50% quicker) and reduced effort via automation.
XDR Identity (Identity Sensor / ITDR capabilities)
- Why it’s an important add-on: like having vigilant guards at every employee entrance checking IDs, watching for fake badges, unusual access times, or tailgating — it stops attackers who steal or abuse legitimate credentials to sneak around without triggering endpoint alarms.
- Monitors identity infrastructure (Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID/Azure AD, Intune) for threats.
- Detects compromised accounts, brute-force attacks, suspicious logins, privilege escalations, anomalous access, and identity-based attacks (e.g., Kerberos abuse).
- Correlates identity events with endpoint/network data for full attack visibility.
- Enables response actions like suspending accounts or blocking access.
- Focuses on protecting credentials and access control.
XDR Productivity (Productivity Applications Sensor)
- Why it’s an important add-on: It’s like screening all incoming mail, packages, and office memos for hidden threats — it catches phishing scams, malicious links/attachments, or unsafe sharing in tools like Microsoft 365
- Monitors cloud productivity/SaaS apps (primarily Microsoft 365/Office 365, Google Workspace; some others).
- Detects phishing, malicious attachments/links, brute-force on accounts, anomalous behaviors, unauthorized sharing, and email-based threats.
- Correlates with endpoint/identity data to trace attacks originating from email/collaboration tools.
- Supports response like deleting malicious emails or revoking access.
- Protects against threats in daily work tools (email, docs, calendars).