Understanding the Importance of Protecting Your End Points from the Beginning

Protecting your information as it arrives at its destination is just as important as protecting it when it enters your network.

The Importance of Protecting Your End Points

Protecting your information as it arrives at its destination is just as important as protecting it when it enters your network.

Most of us are well aware of how important it is to protect our virtual networks from threats. Virus protection is used to reduce the danger of receiving a virus from something we bring into our system, like a file or a new application. What many don’t realize is that protecting the “endpoints” of the system is just as important. Understanding what endpoints are and the different methods that are being used to protect them can make it easier to secure your network from beginning to end.

End Point Protection

What Is Endpoint Security?

Endpoints are the “final destination” for items that travel on your network. They include desktop computers, laptops, tablets, cell phones, and other mobile devices. Endpoints are not always “mobile.” They are any final point where files, folders programs, etc., eventually end up. This can even include data centers and servers within your network. Before you can fully protect your endpoints, you need to know what they are and how they are compromised. Once you know those things it’s easier to identify potential threats and keep your endpoints secure.

Endpoint Security vs. Anti-Virus Programs

Anti-virus programs tend to protect your network or system as a whole unit while endpoint security enlists separate protocols for various parts of the system, this includes the final destination points. There are several features included in products that provide endpoint security. Encryption for email/disk/endpoints, preventing lost data, application control, user verification, and the detection of endpoints are all features and functions commonly found in endpoint security programs that may not appear in an anti-virus program. By protecting endpoints separately, the endpoint itself takes on the part of the responsibility which is then maximized by the security program.

Businesses vs. Consumer

Endpoint security may be available for both individuals and companies, but there are differences in how this type of security works for different sectors. For example, consumers don’t have access to the same kind of centralized management that large companies do. Instead, applications are set up and relayed to each endpoint through a single alert. With a large company’s system, however, a centralized administration system allows for one sign particular sign-in location. Through a streamlined process, all the endpoints are configured as a whole and notifications are then sent that reach out to each of the endpoints within the system.

The Benefits of Application Control and Encryption

Application control and encryption both act like security blankets that can reduce your risk of data breaches while information is being copied or moved to media devices. When encryption is used it offers protection for USB drives, CDs, and files/folders that are being transferred from one place to another. Application control makes it impossible to downloaded specific applications that have been proven to be harmful to mobile devices or laptops. This eliminates the potential risk of loss due to unauthorized applications being used to connect with various endpoints.

Any device that you use to access information creates an opening for potential threats. With proper endpoint security measures, these openings are effectively barricaded reducing the risk of unsolicited attempts to gain access to your system. This is especially effective for companies that allow individuals to bring their equipment into the workplace. The need for increased endpoint security continues to escalate. Understanding how to protect your endpoints will help you eliminate potential threats and keep every aspect of your system from the beginning to the end as secure as possible.

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