Application Whitelisting (AWL) is a digital security technology which only allows trusted files and scripts of a known, good application to run on a system or device. Threat actors rely on phishing emails, zero-day attacks, software or system vulnerabilities, and other attack vectors to surreptitiously download and execute their malicious code, create back doors, spread viruses, worms and ransomware. AWL prevents cyber-attackers from running their malicious code on your system.
How to implement Application Whitelisting:
AWL Technology monitors an operating system in real-time to uniquely identify and screen each file regardless of what software publisher, parent process, or software package it belongs to. This deeper level of cyber-protection, also referred to as entity integrity monitoring is combined with real time whitelist updates, device authentication, PowerShell script use restrictions, and secure RDP monitoring.
Our award-winning Application Whitelisting Software fully integrates advanced application control, endpoint security, ransomware protection, blacklist antivirus, secure RDP, automated driver updates, and security patch management.
Through the use of discrete file screening in addition to application screening, AWL prevents cyber-attackers from hiding or disguising malicious code on a system or device whether it is delivered by email, download or fileless in memory such as with a Zero-Day cyber-attack.
In addition to verifying an application publisher's signed signature and cryptographic hash, whitelisting provides a global whitelist of known, trusted applications and screens for specific file attributes such as file name, file path and file size. Modern whitelisting solutions go further than examining basic file attributes. Advanced AWL security solutions also scan parent and child process attributes to ensure that no malicious processes can execute on a device.
As a multi-layered security approach advanced Application Whitelisting works very well with Application Control solutions, and other types of cybersecurity measures such as Blacklist Antivirus, Zero-Trust Architecture with micro-perimeter protection, EDR / XDR, immutable back-ups, and secure RDP to prevent ransomware attacks.
An automated global white list of trusted applications that each endpoint can check and update in real-time.
Customized applications can be added locally with a simple click to the automated global whitelist.
Good signed applications are added via the publisher’s signature eliminating the need for whitelisting hashes for past and future applications.
A trusted scripts and macros whitelist prevents unauthorized execution via valid scripting apps and programs such as Microsoft Office.
For Multi-Factor Authentication, a device uniqueness algorithm authenticates a user's device rather than a mobile phone number as a second factor.
Secure RDP Whitelist authenticates entering devices to close any security hole preventing ransomware breaches through RDP ports.
The goal of whitelisting is to protect computers and networks from potentially harmful applications by not allowing cyber-criminals to place their own executables on the system or a device. This includes hackers disguising and replacing known good binary executable files with compromised ones to launch a cyber-attack. Application whitelisting also prevents zero-day attacks by not allowing the execution of any non-whitelisted or un-trusted applications, scripts, installers or macros. Having the right application whitelisting tools in place is the key to malware prevention especially when running brand new, unknown or non-trusted applications.
PC Matic Application Whitelisting is one of the most comprehensive and robust as compared to other well-known whitelisting and app control solutions such as Airlock Digital, AppLocker, McAfee Application Control, Digital Guardian, ManageEngine Application Control Plus, PowerBroker, PolicyPak, Defendpoint, Faronics Anti-Executable, Gatekeeper, Centrify, and others.
Application Whitelisting Best Practices provides granular security at the file, script, and process level. In comparison, Application Control identifies or flags entire application packages by focusing on whether a program is known and trusted, as opposed to focusing on each and every file including scripts, macros, processes, and file extensions.
Screening with Application Control does not take place at the granular file and entity level as it does with AWL. So, while Application Control will flag and block "unrecognized software changes", Application Whitelisting will flag and block any file, script, file extension or macro changes.
Application Control can allow files from a trusted application to run. It checks to see if anything has changed since the program was initially installed. While this ensures some level of system security, it does not prevent many sophisticated types of modern malware from penetrating a system.
Modern malware including ransomware is written to avoid application-level screening. Files, scripts, macros, and even security updates can be disguised as belonging to an application package. Malicious code can piggyback on seemingly legitimate software program updates and downloads. A better solution to combat these kinds of modern cyber-threats is Application Whitelisting (AWL) which screens all device and system files even those from trusted applications.
With whitelisting, if any file, script, macro, driver, or security patch update is unknown, modified or not already on the approved whitelist, that file or script is prevented from executing by default. It doesn't matter if the application itself is known and trusted.
This is where Application Whitelisting for cybersecurity effectiveness really shines vs Blacklisting Antivirus, EDR, EPP, or Zero-Trust measures alone. The granularity of file, script and macro inspection as well as default deny differentiates AWL from typical Blacklist Antivirus and App Control making Application Whitelisting superior in providing protection against malware and ransomware attacks.
Application Whitelisting for Server Security comprises the comprehensive IT safeguards and application control tools used to protect data and IT assets on an organization's servers. Unified Network Performance Monitoring provides a unified security view of your IT environment including hybrid and cloud networks to detect threats and performance issues in real time across all your applications.
IT Networks and Servers are the most frequent targets of cyber-criminals looking to exploit vulnerabilities in a system's security to disrupt operations, steal data, or to ransom critical company data. Do not become a victim of a ransomware attack. Harden your network or cloud servers with the best automated application whitelisting tools available in the US.