Intrusion prevention tools create blockades against attackers, stopping them before they get into your IT environment. They are a foundational layer of cybersecurity that every organization needs, and are often what spring to mind when people think of cybersecurity.
Intrusion detection tools monitor your assets, network traffic, and other parts of your IT infrastructure to spot abnormal activity and potential threats, allowing security teams to take action as soon as possible.
Why are both prevention and detection equally critical security layers? With the number of data breaches continuing to increase year over year, complete fortification is no longer realistic. Even the best prevention solution can’t stop a careless employee from getting phished. By using both solution types to act as complementary layers, you’ll be able to prevent what you can, and detect the rest.
Benefits of Intrusion Detection and Prevention
Malicious threat actors are relentlessly targeting organizations, attempting to steal or destroy their sensitive data. Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems help businesses avoid the devastating consequences of a breach by helping you:
Safeguard Business-Critical Information
Accelerate Your Threat Response
Prove Your System Is Compliant
Intrusion Prevention and Detection Methods
Taking preventative steps to bolster your security portfolio before an attack will ultimately save an organization time and money. An intrusion prevention system is a set of tools and processes that catch threats before they gain entry, defending your IT infrastructure.
An intrusion detection system is not a single piece of software, but rather a set of technologies or features used to identify malicious activity. Threat detection tools work to monitor your network for malicious activity, alerting your security team the moment a risk is uncovered.
There are many types of tools that assist with intrusion detection, so organizations should assess their needs and evaluate different solutions in order to find what would fit best in their security portfolio. A comprehensive system includes tools that:
Prevent Misconfiguration
The default configuration on many assets often allow access to any and all users—even those originating outside the network. Using tools like policy management software allow you to define security policies and automatically apply it to any system that is misconfigured, closing security holes before anyone can exploit them.
Ensure Compliance
Industry best practices and regulations have security requirements designed to keep attackers at bay. Monitoring for compliance ensures these safeguards are in place.
Provide Visibility
Tools like Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) provide insight into an organization's security through centralizing and normalizing data, alerting security teams with actionable intelligence to manage potential vulnerabilities.
Monitor the Network
Tools like Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) solutions observe network traffic communications, using analytics to discover patterns, monitor for potential threats, and reduce the dwell time of active infections.
Block Malware from Critical Endpoints
While most Windows workstations are protected, attackers can often find a way in directly through the servers that connect to enterprise networks. Tools like endpoint, native antivirus software are needed to detect and quarantine malware.
Intrusion Detection and Prevention from Fortra
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