How Cisco Secure Endpoint (AMP) Can Stop Advanced Cybersecurity Threats in their Tracks

2019 has been another bumper year for data breaches.

Household names like Capital One (106 million users), Evite (10 million users), Toyota (3.1 million users) and many more have fallen victim to an increasingly prevalent wave of cyberattacks aimed at reaping financial gain from data exposed by vulnerable endpoint devices like mobile phones and laptops — the true gateways to modern corporate networks.

If Global Financial companies like Capital One, with their virtually bottomless budgets, can't effectively prepare for and defend against such attacks, what chance do ordinary operations with limited resources have?

The answer might surprise you.

Don't wait for the next threat to find you

Before we dive into one of WWT's recommended solutions to shield valuable data from contemporary cybersecurity threats — Cisco Secure Endpoint (formerly Cisco Advanced Malware Protection (AMP) for Endpoints) — let's review some history.

For years, organizations have reactively purchased point products to solve solitary security problems rather than making decisions in light of their entire security ecosystem. As such, they may have not considered a more comprehensive solution.

Many in the industry still follow this process, driven in part by sexy startups churning out new security solutions at what feels like a quarterly basis.

While innovation is needed in this industry, knee-jerk buying decisions are not. Organizations need to make sure they understand the downstream impact purchases can have on their budget. Historically, such budget hits have been felt through escalating licensing costs, a confusing array of support contracts across multiple OEMs and a lack of integration between siloed toolsets.

With new attack variations cropping up every year, organizations can no longer rely on antiquated antivirus mechanisms designed to secure the perimeter against known threats.

Shouldn't your business's approach to endpoint protection strive for the same agility displayed by attackers who continually adapt their malware to evade the detection of traditional antivirus prevention tools?

What you need is an integrated solution that rises above the limitations of niche security tools. You need a next-gen security platform that provides detailed visibility, full-featured response capabilities and protection from malware — all at a cost-effective price that satisfies the demands of both technical and business leaders.

Cisco Secure Endpoint

When we talk about endpoint security, we're talking about a security solution that integrates prevention (EPP), detection and response (EDR) capabilities into a single package that leverages the power of global threat intelligence and cloud-based analytics.

Based on the expertise of our Security Practice, WWT recommends checking out Cisco Secure Endpoint for your next-gen endpoint solution. Cisco Secure Endpoint runs a lightweight agent that works on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and IOS devices. It can use the public cloud or be deployed as a private cloud.

At a glance, Cisco Secure Endpoint offers:

• Continuous monitoring and analysis that makes detection more efficient and effective.
• Advanced analytics automated to assess behaviors and identify patterns over time.
• Investigation capabilities that hunt for threats based on actual events, which help your security team clarify the scope of an attack.
• Simple containment enabled by the ability to target specific root causes.
• Actionable, contextual dashboard reports based on advanced analytics and telemetry data, overlaid with useful contextual data.

Cisco Secure Endpoint continuously monitors and analyzes all file and process activity within your network to find and automatically eliminate the riskiest 1 percent of threats that other security solutions miss. Cisco Secure Endpoint won't lose sight of where files go or what they do. If a file that scanned clean on initial inspection ever becomes a problem, Cisco Secure Endpoint is there at the first sign of malicious behavior with a full activity history to catch, contain and remediate the threat.

All of these features combine into a powerful next-gen endpoint security tool that enables companies to better protect themselves from modern cybersecurity threats.

Simplify the complexity of security with an EA

To get the full value from Cisco Secure Endpoint and reduce the complexity of traditional licensing structures that can negatively impact bottom lines as licenses are added over time, we also recommend exploring Cisco Enterprise Agreements (EA).

Cisco EAs work well for organizations who need financial predictability, want a less complicated IT environment, or who plan to significantly invest in technology growth initiatives.

Cisco's EA offering is unlike other Enterprise License Agreements (ELAs) in the market. With their distinctive partnership approach, Cisco has simplified how licenses are tracked for compliance. Moreover, Cisco's "True Forward" reconciliation feature rewards companies for growth by adjusting contracts going forward instead of charging fees and penalties for a prior year's increase in usage. This approach enables companies to activate licenses faster and deploy what's needed, when it's needed.

An EA from Cisco:

• Simplifies and centralizes licensing management with a cross-portfolio (i.e., networking, data center, collaboration, security), co-terminated agreement that offers global coverage.
• Scales to meet shifting business needs with licenses through an organic growth allowance and reconciling process.
• Has no retroactive overage fees with their unique True Forward license reconciliation feature.
• Controls costs by providing investment protection for existing licenses and services, as well as budget predictability for growth.
• Provides a single workspace to see all the software subscriptions procured, deployed and due for renewal.
• Saves time through co-termination of software subscriptions.
• Includes 24/7 Cisco TAC phone support, one-hour response time, knowledge base access, and software update/upgrades.

Through all of the features above, Cisco EAs can help you reduce the complexity of licensing and let you be more flexible in driving business value and enablement. Not having to worry about licensing will let you focus on solving business challenges and delivering outcomes for your customers.

Protect your business

WWT can help you determine if Cisco Secure Endpoint paired with a Cisco EA are right for your business. Our Security Team is here to help with any questions — just reach out via our Contact Us for or leave a message in the comments below.

For more on endpoint security, we recommend booking WWT's Endpoint Security Workshop, where we'll facilitate a guided discussion to help you identify the endpoint solutions that align with your business objectives, technical requirements and cultural fit.

For more information on how to optimize the security tools you already have, book our Security Tools Rationalization Workshop. We'll help you re-evaluated those tools against industry standards to ensure your financial investments produce the right outcomes: pervasive, real-time visibility, improved operational efficiency and a mature cybersecurity program.