No doubt about it: Hackers are getting more sophisticated by the minute, and traditional solutions that rely heavily on virus definitions won’t cut it anymore. As polymorphic malware and obfuscation techniques now continuously evolve, so must endpoint protection. Smart organizations must take steps to ensure they understand potential threats and are ready to detect and thwart issues at any moment.
Thus far, we’ve made some strides in one critical area: increasing end-user awareness of cyberattacks. Many organizations have trained workers about spear-phishing and spoofed web pages, for example—but we still have work to do. Now more than ever, companies should work to educate employees about the warning signs of potential attacks. And they should definitely consider implementing any technology features and functions that—when properly applied—help to restrict, reduce and eliminate certain attack vectors.
Eight Steps to Network Security
Here are eight concrete ways you can elevate your organization’s network protection:
1. Scrutinize network traffic. Look for suspicious actions like port scans and sweeps. Have visibility into SSL and risky applications or block them altogether.
2. Make corporate awareness training a priority. Consider hosting monthly security sessions, for example, so users are always in the know about new or changing threats.
3. Think mobile. Hackers get around, so don’t forget to protect mobile and remote devices, even while off-network.
4. Get innovative with prevention. Technologies like IPS, DNS category web filtering, file and content blocking, known bad URL blocking, and sandboxes can keep malware from ever entering your networks.
5. Limit local admin access. Not every user needs admin access to his or her system. When in doubt, implement the principle of least privilege.
6. Restrict lateral movement within the network. Only allow authorized applications to be installed, so malware can’t be easily propagated from machine to machine.
7. Consider next-gen detection and threat intelligence tools. Advanced features like heuristics and sandboxing can reveal possible compromises within the network.
8. Block outbound command and control communications. These generally have no good purpose and can be evidence of an imminent attack.
Despite today’s high-risk cybercrime landscape, any disruption in the attack lifecycle is a positive win—so don’t despair. Keeping attackers at bay requires constant diligence, but with the right technology and techniques, organizations can evolve their cyber-defense strategies and successfully combat increasing global threats.
Bonus: Click here to learn more about how your company can partner with VIPRE and protect your networks.
Guest blog courtesy of VIPRE Security. Read more VIPRE blogs here.
