Whitelisting – Is it worth the work?
Recently, Information Week reported application whitelisting as an “extreme” method for preventing malware. Is it extreme? It very well could be. Application whitelisting goes against the very core of traditional security programs.
Instead of using a blacklist, which allows unknown files to execute until they prove to be malicious, a whitelist will block all unknown programs from executing until they prove to be safe. This is where the “extreme” term, may be valid as extremely secure.
Extreme Protection for Extreme Cyber Threats
While using a whitelist security solution, all unknown programs are blocked from running. In order for the program to run, it must first be tested and categorized as either safe or malicious. This responsibility may fall on an IT department or if you’re lucky — the security program will take care of it.
Regardless, it could be a major responsibility for either party if the whitelist is not already developed, and blocks several programs because they haven’t been proven safe yet. These two factors determine the complexity of implementing such a security program. With the cost of ransomware attacks rising, the additional work to protect endpoints and networks may be worth it.
Fortunately, there are computer security software products that have been using the whitelist approach for years. Therefore, their whitelist is far more mature than others who are just now jumping on the whitelist bandwagon. If users choose a security software program with a robust, global whitelist, the workload will be decreases significantly.
If users choose a security program that conducts all of the malware testing themselves, instead of leaving a burden on a company’s IT department, the workload drops even more!
PC Matic has been working on application whitelisting for well over a decade, and conducts its own malware research. IT administrators and MSPs simply install PC Matic, and have complete control over the whitelist from a single dashboard.
Most importantly, PC Matic’s whitelisting solutions prevent malware and ransomware attacks. If a program is not on the whitelist, it can not execute. This keeps devices, endpoints and servers safe. Learn more about comprehensive Network Security, robust Server Security and Endpoint Security solutions.
The Unknowns of Security Software
Does the work it takes to progress from an ineffective security program to one that uses a whitelist approach outweigh the benefits? No. Not even close. Choose a program that has been using a whitelist approach for years, and will be responsible for the whitelisting and program testing. PC Matic’s AWL solution will leave you with no more of a workload than your current security solution, but with far better protection.
Visit PCmatic.com for more business cybersecurity software information. For business IT departments that need a full EPP security suite, PC Matic offers a complete endpoint protection suite. Learn more at Best Endpoint Protection for Business.
