This is an in-depth review of ManageEngine Endpoint Central’s security capabilities. We’ll look at different security modules that Endpoint Central has to offer to effectively manage your endpoints:
Are you an organization that’s trying to:
- Secure your network devices from all external threats like malware and ransomware attacks?
- Trying to ensure end-user productivity and troubleshooting your devices with zero downtime?
- Adapt to remote work by transitioning from a physical office to a Work-From-Home (WFH) set-up?
If yes, then Endpoint Central by ManageEngine is the perfect solution for you. In this tutorial, we’ll take an in-depth look at Endpoint Central’s security features.
Table of Contents:
How Does Endpoint Central Help Your Organization
Here, we will also focus on the following modules in Endpoint Central:
- Vulnerability Management
- Device Control
- Application Control
- Browser Security
- BitLocker Encryption
Any organization’s primary IT goal is to manage and secure its endpoints. Endpoint Central is a unified endpoint management solution that combines management and security without requiring multiple tools. You can manage and secure laptops, desktops, mobile devices, and various point-of-sale devices from a single dashboard.
Unify your workforce across your offices and any remote location around the globe. Endpoint Central helps you perform regular endpoint tasks from deploying operating systems, patches, software to inventory management, reporting, and remotely troubleshooting your end-user issues with a few clicks.
Apart from endpoint management capabilities, Endpoint Central tightly integrates with security features such as vulnerability management, browser security, application & device control, and BitLocker encryption. Endpoint Central supports Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, tvOS, and Chrome OS platforms.
Security Features Of Endpoint Central
Security features of Endpoint Central are bundled in a security add-on that can be enabled for existing users and downloaded for new users along with a free, 30-day trial.
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerability Management is an effective way to gain visibility on, assess, and remediate threats and unknown vulnerabilities from a single console.
With Vulnerability Management, you can:
- Scan endpoints for vulnerabilities, assess their threat level and patch them regularly.
- Resolve security misconfiguration and harden web servers from XSS, clickjacking, and brute-force attacks.
- Identify publicly disclosed and actively exploited vulnerabilities to patch them on higher priority.
- Prevent zero-day vulnerabilities by employing alternate fixes before patches are available.
- Monitor ports in use and processes running in them.
- And much more.
After enabling the security add-on, the vulnerability manager can be accessed from the Threats & Patches module in Endpoint Central.
The dashboard looks like the image below:
With a click of a button, you can address your Zero-day Vulnerabilities and Software Vulnerabilities like High-Risk Software and errors in Web Server configuration.
Device Control
Device Control is crucial when you want to control the connections of external devices like USB drives to an end-user machine. It can be any device that is connected to a laptop or computer.
With Device Control, you can:
- Control, block, and monitor USB and peripheral devices
- Prevent data leak and theft
- Limit data transfer rates
- Set role-based access to files
- Enable file shadowing to protect sensitive data
- Grant temporary access to devices without compromising on security
- And much more
The Device Control dashboard presents a snapshot of computers without policies, blocked devices, allowed devices, and more.
Under the Policies tab, you can set a policy and authorize or restrict a device. You can also tag trusted devices that can be given access or temporary access.
Under Insights, you’ll find info on the computers that you’ve barred or allowed certain devices to connect to, a summary of all devices based on the device type, and device status.
The Reports section can be specifically used for auditing and tracking file transfers and file shadow status.
Application Control
Application Control lets you create lists of approved and denied apps and software that your end-users install. It acts as a filter for applications that are not approved. This way, you can gain complete control over what applications your end users use.
With Application Control, you can:
- Blacklist malicious applications, whitelist trusted applications, and manage grey-listed applications effortlessly.
- Create rule-based application lists, and leverage the flexibility modes to revise and fine-tune your lists.
- Achieve application-specific privileged access with endpoint privilege management.
- Curb cyberattack risks by blocking non-business applications and malicious executables.
Application Control can be accessed under the App Ctrl tab. Upon clicking, it shows you a summary of the most used applications, unregulated computers, grey-listed apps, privileged applications, and more.
Under Application Groups, you can create a list of whitelisted and blacklisted applications.
You’ll be prompted by a list of common apps and asked if you’d like to add any of them to the group. You can also search for an application based on the product name, file hash, folder path, and more. Choose the applications and click Create to finalize the group.
You can deploy an application group to a computer or group of computers in a certain workgroup, domain, or custom group.
Under Reports, you can access pre-defined reports or schedule one.
Browser Security
Browser Security prevents browser-based cyberattacks and security breaches that might endanger your sensitive enterprise data. It lets administrators manage and secure end-user browsers across networks and remote offices.
You can keep tabs on browser usage trends, prohibit suspicious browser extensions and plug-ins, initiate a remote lockdown of user browsers, and ensure your organization complies with the required browser security standards.
With Browser Security, you can:
- Keep track of browsers and their add-ons used in your organization.
- Filter URLs to allow only trusted and authorized websites.
- Manage website-browser compatibility issues by redirecting to destination browsers.
- Ensure compliance with browser security standards like CIS and STIG.
- Enforce security configurations and ensure compliance.
- And much more.
Upon clicking the Browsers tab, the dashboard shows important info like computer health status based on the risk level, non-compliant computers, potentially harmful plug-ins, extensions, and more.
Under the Manage option, you can choose a designated custom group, or group of computers, where you’d like to deploy a policy. You can create a website group containing a list of websites you like to block access to for your end-users.
Under the extension repository, you can add extensions from the desired browser you will like to prevent users from accessing.
Under Policies, you have the option to manage add-ons, restrict downloads, prevent data leaks, customize browsers and routers, and more.
The web filter restricts users from accessing unauthorized websites.
BitLocker Encryption
BitLocker secures your data by encrypting it. With Endpoint Central, you can encrypt your information without having to use a third-party tool.
With BitLocker Encryption, you can:
- Ensure data transfers are only completed on BitLocker-encrypted devices.
- Monitor the encryption status of endpoints from a single console.
- Keep endpoints with or without Trusted Platform Module (TPM) protected.
Upon clicking the BitLocker tab, you’ll be able to access the dashboard that gives you a summary of the encrypted computers, drives, and more.
You can create an Encryption policy from the left panel and configure the encryption settings. Under advanced settings, you can allow users to postpone restart, archive a recovery key, and opt to remove the recovery key automatically.
Under Reports, you can export elaborate BitLocker reports against their encryption status and encryption method.
You can also fetch the recovery key against a particular recovery key identifier.
10 Reasons To Choose Endpoint Central
These are enlisted below:
#1) Endpoint Central’s 360-degree approach towards unified endpoint management provides tight integration between management and security, promising a hassle-free end-user experience without drilling a hole in your pocket.
#2) Endpoint Central enables you to manage and secure any device in your network from one dashboard. You can access it from anywhere at any instant with an easy-to-use UI.
#3) It is compliant with major regulations like the GDPR, PCI DSS, CIS, ISO, VPAT, HIPAA, and RBI.
#4) With over 8,000 pre-defined templates and customizable capabilities for deploying applications, software deployment is easy. The self-service portal allows end-users to choose either to install or uninstall the required applications like an enterprise app store.
#5) Over 50 configurations and 200 scripts across Windows, Mac, and Linux are available to use for efficient device management.
#6) Endpoint Central has over 100 out-of-the-box reports, which provide detailed insights on the actions performed in endpoints. Custom reports can also be generated according to your organization’s specific needs and preferences.
#7) To help the end-user and to resolve help desk tickets, which require technician support, you can use the in-built remote control tool with functions like screen recording, voice and video calls, multi-technician support, and remote file transfer.
#8) Endpoint Central is a 2021 Gartner Peer Insights Customers’ Choice for UEM and as of today, has an overall customer rating of 4.5 out of 5 based on 120 end-user reviews.
#9) It can integrate with six different help desk solutions, Jira, Zendesk, ServiceNow, ServiceDesk Plus, Freshworks, and Spiceworks, through which you can use all your endpoint management features right from your help desk console using single sign-on.
#10) Manage all your endpoints from anywhere with Endpoint Central’s mobile app. Deploy critical patches, obtain complete hardware and software reports, and even take remote control of the endpoints in the network. You can even use Zia, the virtual assistant in Endpoint Central, to carry out your tasks using voice recognition.
Conclusion
Securing your corporate data is key to any business. It becomes more tricky to secure your network when your end-users and their devices are scattered across several remote locations. Endpoint Central ensures the productivity of your end-users without hampering their productivity. At the end of the day, a well-secured workforce is a well-managed workforce.
No matter where you or your end users are working from, Endpoint Central can digitally transform the way you thrive in a hybrid work environment.
Try a free, 30-day trial of Endpoint Central and secure your endpoints the right way!