Symantec Unveils the Future of Endpoint Security

Alleged Adult Website Breach May Affect 412 Million Accounts – FriendFinder Networks Might Have Been Hit Again 

Botnet Army of ‘Up to 100,000’ IoT Devices Disrupted Dyn – Mirai Malware Drove Record-Breaking DDoS Attack 

These are yet but more and more shocking headlines screaming breaches in cybersecurity… in what had been a “annus horribilis“ year for this universe. The pace and sophistication of new threats facing organizations are daunting, to say the least.

Symantec Corp., respected as one of the world’s leading cyber security companies, reported more than 430 million new pieces of malware last year and is bracing for a higher figure this year. Cyber threats can also come in many forms – for instance, in Malaysia, Symantec, recorded a total of 5,069 ransomware attacks in 2015 where cybercriminals ensnared victims and expanded to any network-connected device that can be held hostage.

In cognizance of staying relevant and “ahead of the game”, Symantec recently announced the launch of Symantec Endpoint Protection 14, which they deem as the next evolution in endpoint security, delivered on a single platform. This launch is made possible in part due to Symantec’s acquisition of Blue Coat, Inc, whereby Blue Coat is considered the no.1 global market share leader in web security with a widely recognized portfolio of integrated technologies to deliver cloud generation security.

In turn, the acquisition is made on the heels of Symantec’s completion of its sale of its Veritas business to a group of investors led by The Carlyle Group. Symantec received approximately US$5.3 billion in after-tax cash proceeds. Analysts have projected that Symantec is on track to return more than US$4 billion in capital to its shareholders by the end of March 2017.

Symantec Endpoint Protection 14

Powered by artificial intelligence on the endpoint and in the cloud, Symantec Endpoint Protection 14 is toted to be the industry’s first solution to fuse essential endpoint technologies with advanced machine learning and memory exploit mitigation in a single agent, delivering a multi-layered solution able to stop advanced threats and respond at the endpoint regardless of how the attack is launched.

It delivers powerful protection in a lightweight package, building on industry-leading 99.9 percent efficacy, low false positives and a 70 percent reduced footprint over the previous generation through new advanced cloud lookup capabilities.

By integrating Symantec and Blue Coat’s security telemetry and the resultant combined threat intelligence capabilities, Symantec now protects 175 million consumer and enterprise endpoints, 163 million email users, 80 million web proxy users, and processes nearly eight billion security requests across these products every day.

To defend against advanced threats, Symantec provides customers a single agent and management capabilities that addresses threats in entirely new ways:

• Advanced machine learning powered by Symantec’s Global Intelligence Network.
• Integration with existing infrastructure through published APIs enables seamless management of thousands of endpoints in multiple locations and across diverse operating systems and platforms.
• Access to Symantec’s intelligent threat cloud technology reduces daily definition file updates by 70 percent, significantly reducing bandwidth use across the company network.
• Integration with Symantec Advanced Threat Protection solution to detect and respond to stealthy threats at the endpoint using a single agent.
• Simultaneous protection of customer endpoints and their networks with seamless integration of Symantec Endpoint Protection and Blue Coat Secure Web Gateway.

David Rajoo, Engineering, Director, Symantec Malaysia.

David Rajoo, Systems Engineering, Director, Symantec Malaysia elaborates, “Multi-layered protection, enabled by artificial intelligence, backed by the world’s largest and most powerful threat intelligence force, and powered by the cloud – this is literally the smartest choice in endpoint technologies.”

It lends credence to Rajoo’s statement when Sharon Finney, corporate data security officer at Adventist Health System, says, “As a healthcare institution, we’re dealing with sensitive patient records and strict regulatory standards, so using innovative technology protections is critical to our business. However, as a large institution with tens of thousands of users, we do not take unnecessary risks by immediately deploying every new technology or point product, and count on vendors like Symantec to integrate those innovations with proven products and a solutions approach like they have done with Symantec Endpoint Protection 14.”

According to the 2016 Forrester Wave for Endpoint Security Suites, “Symantec’s deep bench of endpoint security technologies spans a range of prevention, detection, and remediation capabilities. Almost every possible attack surface is covered when buyers utilize the full extent of this portfolio.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]