2020 gave many organizations the opportunity to assess how flexible and resilient their critical infrastructure was during a time of rapid changes to their normal business operations. While Software as a Service (SaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) industries have both grown tremendously in the past few years, according to IDC sales of cloud IT infrastructure products increased over 34% in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
While many organizations had initially met cloud adoption with hesitation in the past, they are now realizing that it is no longer sufficient to simply maintain legacy on-premises tools, particularly for IT management. Now more than ever, corporate cyber security depends on the need for increased flexibility and resiliency of their organizational infrastructure.
Here are 5 ways cloud-based IT management solutions can improve the operational cybersecurity whether it’s business as usual or during a time of crisis.
Asset Visibility No Matter the Location
A sudden change, such as shifting in-house staff to remote positions, can represent a huge security challenge that organizations need to address. Many events may require moving employees onto new uncompromised systems that may not be a part of their general daily use. It’s important to continuously verify that these assets are being properly maintained.
Having visibility into these new endpoints may be challenging depending on how they connect to the corporate network. Without proper visibility, security and IT operations are limited in knowing how secure these devices may be. Even worse, if these devices aren’t patch managed, employee machines may be low hanging fruit for attackers.
Cloud-native patching solutions make it easy for users to maintain full endpoint visibility no matter where a device is located and ensure that critical security updates are getting deployed. Taking a SaaS-based approach to endpoint management can help organizations streamline the process of managing and securing devices while also reducing operational costs.
Ability to Easily Scale with Organization
Unlike on-premises solutions, which require dedicated servers and ongoing maintenance, cloud-native services require no additional hardware or software to maintain. SaaS solutions are always up-to-date and enable faster rollout of new features and functionality.
Those that continue to use on-premises tools are burdened with not just the additional hardware, software, and maintenance costs, but the overhead and staff resources needed to ensure operational stability. By adopting cloud-native solutions, organizations can ensure that their regular operations run as smoothly as possible no matter what challenges they may face in staffing, resource availability, or shifting business operations.
Secured Cloud Services
As the transition to cloud continues to gain steam, the conversation around effective and efficient methods for patching in the cloud has become more prevalent. Some may hold the misconception that cloud infrastructure provides a halo of security around all hosted services and applications, but in reality, cloud providers such as AWS actually share the responsibility with their end users. AWS is designed to be as secure as possible, but the security of virtual machines and applications running on AWS remain the responsibility of individual companies [For example, Automox recently received SOC 2 Type 2 certification of our platform which affirms our commitment to keep customer data secure.]
Most organizations require vendors to meet or exceed industry-accepted baselines defined by regulatory requirements or organizational policy. For example, SOC 2 Type 2 certification is the generally accepted baseline for third party vendors that provide SaaS services, and it’s a key requirement for some organizations that are considering a shift of their patching and endpoint hardening strategies to the cloud. SOC 2 Type 2 is a benchmark achievement for cloud service providers that establishes credibility for their cybersecurity hygiene, ability to safeguard sensitive data, and capability to ensure data privacy.
Cross-Platform Endpoint Management
Cross-platform endpoint management is integral for an effective and efficient vulnerability patching and endpoint hardening strategy. In times past, most devices were on-premises and they all ran on the same operating system. But these days, organizations often have a vast network of endpoints that run on different platforms. Relying on more traditional (or archaic) endpoint management solutions can create unnecessary complexity and slow down IT operations.
Cloud-based solutions offer a modern approach to endpoint management by streamlining the process of deploying security updates across vast networks of different endpoints and operating systems. Having a strong patching strategy is critical to maintaining good cyber hygiene. And with cloud-based IT management solutions that patch multiple OSs from a single view, organizations can speed up their time-to-patch and keep their corporate infrastructures more secure.
Automated Policy Management for Faster Remediation
Cloud-native automation is the modern solution for cloud-native networks. Policy automation software based in the cloud can be easily deployed to new devices as they are added, regardless of the device’s location which allows for rapid scaling. On-premise solutions lack the ability to scale without thoughtful consideration and additional investment in requirements.
Cloud-native systems streamline vulnerability remediation by automatically patching endpoints on a regular schedule and keeping reports on patch status by device. As long as it’s connected to the internet, it can be patched. The result is a future-scaled patching automation system that requires minimal maintenance from busy IT teams.
About Automox Automated Patch Management
Facing growing threats and a rapidly expanding attack surface, understaffed and alert-fatigued organizations need more efficient ways to eliminate their exposure to vulnerabilities. Automox is a modern cyber hygiene platform that closes the aperture of attack by more than 80% with just half the effort of traditional solutions.
Cloud-native and globally available, Automox enforces OS & third-party patch management, security configurations, and custom scripting across Windows, macOS, and Linux from a single intuitive console. IT and SecOps can quickly gain control and share visibility of on-prem, remote and virtual endpoints without the need to deploy costly infrastructure.
Experience modern, cloud-native patch management today with a 15-day free trial of Automox and start recapturing more than half the time you're currently spending on managing your attack surface. Automox dramatically reduces corporate risk while raising operational efficiency to deliver best-in-class security outcomes, faster and with fewer resources.
