ThreatLocker
In 2021, the perimeter as we know it has disappeared. We witnessed the acceleration of this process in 2020 as the shift to remote work exploded.
The disappearance of the traditional perimeter
The traditional perimeter operated within a "trusted zone" which relied on firewalls, web filtering, and network filtering for protection. With devices frequently roaming in and out of the corporate network and connecting to remote environments, businesses must develop a flexible security plan to protect increasingly mobile users.
The weaponization of legitimate software
When an application runs on the endpoint, it has access to all data and information the user can access. Regardless of whether a user is a local administrator or not, applications are given too much privilege.
We have observed a significant increase in the weaponization of legitimate software used in cyber attacks.
With the increased risk of exposure at the endpoint, organizations must prioritize better security and control at the endpoint.
Organizations commonly adopt basic tools like antivirus and EDR to detect malicious activity. The problem is, threat detection can't distinguish between Dropbox and a piece of malware disguising itself as genuine software. In fact, by the time an attack is discovered, it's usually too late, as the damage has already occured and data has been compromised.
Relying on threat detection to protect against malicious software is like adding multiple smoke alarms and saying we don't need to worry about fire.
Approach security with a zero-trust default-deny mindset
Change the paradigm from trying to block threats with detection to denying all software that isn't explicitly trusted. There are several benefits to this approach, including mitigation of risks associated with unknown or zero-day malware. Organizations that adopt a default-deny approach don't need to rely on known patterns and definitions, therefore removing the risk of false-negatives.
Limit what applications can do
All applications have potential vulnerabilities. Between 2020 and 2021, we observed the exploitation of several widely used applications.
To protect against exploits, organizations should control what applications can run and limit what applications can do once they're running. ThreatLocker gives you the ability to Ringfence™ applications, creating policies around their behavior.
By adding controlled firewall-like boundaries, you effectively stop your applications from interacting with other applications, network resources, registry keys, files, and more. This approach ensures your software cannot step out of its lane and steal your data through malicious behavior.
RingfencingTM your applications significantly mitigates exploits by placing restrictions around how applications can interact with the least privileged at both the user and application level
Limit administrator permissions
While malware doesn't require administrative privileges to swallow your data, encrypt your files, and spread across your network, limiting administrative permissions should play a key role in your cybersecurity risk mitigation plan.
Adopt a Zero Trust Approach
The way in which users operate in the complex IT world today is paving the way for zero-trust. When trust is given, granular policy controls should be enforced. To learn more about how ThreatLocker helps organizations achieve Zero Trust, visit www.threatlocker.com