Volumes of valuable and sensitive data stored and transmitted over the internet have become susceptible to different attack vectors. Cyberattacks have become more frequent and sophisticated. This is why cybersecurity software is a crucial digital tool for organizations looking to eliminate or minimize computer risks.
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Table of Contents
- What Is Cybersecurity Software?
- Best Cybersecurity Software and Programs
- Types of Cybersecurity Software
- Cybersecurity Software Features
What Is Cybersecurity Software?
Cybersecurity software is any platform or application designed to protect data, devices, and networks from unauthorized access and criminal activity. Tools can differ from product to product, ranging from antivirus software to comprehensive network security software that includes firewall, detection and response, and centralized monitoring and reporting.
Cybersecurity software provides protection by stopping access, addition, or changes in files and programs. It blocks the copying or transmission of unauthorized or unwanted data. Security software also alerts users of vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit to compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.
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Best Cybersecurity Software and Programs
The best cybersecurity software provides protection to data and devices, as well as business operations and reputation. Here is a list of the top cloud security software offering various capabilities, including detection of malware and other types of threats.
Crowdstrike Falcon
Crowdstrike Falcon is a unified protection platform and managed service for enterprise and IT security. It offers endpoint security protection such as antivirus, threat intelligence, device control, next-generation firewall (NGFW), and extended endpoint detection and response.
Crowdstrike Falcon provides actionable insights by discovering and surfacing more data relevant to security. It also has integrations that extend visibility for more effective measurements, parsing, and mapping. Its analytics automatically detects hidden threats, minimizing the need for constant writing, tuning, and maintenance of rules. Users can explore fast-moving threats, speed up investigation, quickly contain suspected hosts, and streamline orchestration with automated workflows.
Pros
- Quick system isolation
- Malware detection
- Flexible and scalable
Cons
- Users wish for more intuitive search tools
- Lacks Active Directory integration
Darktrace
Darktrace is cybersecurity AI software that helps organizations respond against various security attacks like ransomware, email phishing, and threats to cloud environments and critical infrastructure. It uses self-learning AI and autonomous response technology to stop and fight against ransomware. Founding mathematicians from Cambridge developed self-learning AI that learns on the job from real-world data.
Darktrace offers cybersecurity software for the enterprise delivers visibility across cloud, collaboration tools, endpoints, and the corporate network. It spots novel attacks and insider threats, learns and adapts continuously, and correlates insights across the organization with an open and extensible architecture. It also automates threat investigation processes to reduce time to analyze and triage security events.
Pros
- Automated alerts
- Detailed analysis
- Responsive support
Cons
- Steep learning curve
- Occasional false positives
Lacework
Lacework is data-driven cloud security software for DevOps, containers, and cloud environments. It provides data and automation to protect a company’s multicloud environment and helps prioritize risks accurately so users can innovate without security worries. Its patented machine learning and behavioral analytics technology learns what is normal so it can uncover abnormal behavior and true threats.
Lacework Polygraph data platform works in build time and in runtime. It provides infrastructure-as-code security so developers can deliver quickly and securely. Its vulnerability management functionality continuously monitor and gives insights about the greatest risks. Threat detection lets users find malicious behavior during runtime while cloud security posture and compliance helps identify all assets while finding misconfigurations. It is applicable across AWS, GCP, Azure, and Kubernetes.
Pros
- User behavior analytics
- Security audit reports
- Responsive support
Cons
- User access management and permissions need improvements
- Users wish the software covered on-premises assets
SentinelOne
SentinelOne is autonomous endpoint security software that enables enterprises to take action against threats in real time with AI-powered automation. It identifies malicious behavior, blocks attacks, and remediates autonomously using data analytics. Static and behavioral AI at every endpoint facilitates intelligent response against cybersecurity threats and a unified view allows analysts to quickly connect and correlate benign and malicious events.
SentinelOne Singularity platform provides extended detection and response maximizes visibility and protection coverage. It integrates with many other security solutions. The company offers other products that include cloud workload protection, network discovery, and mobile threat defense.
Pros
- Malware detection and isolation
- Lightweight endpoint intelligence
- Responsive support team
Cons
- Users wish for more control on USB devices
- Dashboard needs more intuitive navigation
Malwarebytes
Malwarebytes is anti-malware and antivirus cybersecurity software for homes and businesses. Its business products offer enterprise-grade protection and remediation for businesses of all sizes. It blocks ransomware and protects endpoints, servers, and critical data. The behavioral-based technology in its EDR has built-in ransomware prevention, with 72-hour rollback, and zero day malware detection.
Malwarebytes secures a company’s remote workforce from password theft, spyware, adware, and viruses. It also helps businesses meet compliance mandates with endpoint security that offers prevention, detection, response, and remediation. Personal products are available for different desktop and mobile platforms as well as online privacy.
Pros
- Reliable malware detection
- Real-time status view
- Ease of setup and use
Cons
- Occasional manual malware removal needed
- Pricing per device is at the higher side
Orca Security
Orca Security is cloud infrastructure security software that enables users to detect and prioritize the most important security risk quickly. Its agentless security and compliance platform collects data externally without impact on workload or users. It combines workload-level intelligence with cloud configuration metadata to provide users a visual risk context map of the company’s cloud and discover potential critical attack vectors.
Orca Security reconstructs the workload file system in near real time for security analysis. Compatible with AWS, Azure, and GCP, it replaces multiple tools by combining cloud vulnerability management, workload protection, security posture management, and compliance solutions. The security software uncovers vulnerabilities, malware, misconfigurations, IAM risk, lateral movement risk, and leaked sensitive data.
Pros
- Single sign-on feature
- Alert intelligence and prioritization
- Easy to set up
Cons
- Information can be overwhelming at the start
- Data loss prevention functionality needs improvement
Vectra AI
Vectra AI is a network threat detection and response cybersecurity platform. It provides AI-driven features to improve time to detect a threat and respond. Network detection and response (NDR) software automatically analyzes users, devices, and traffic across the cloud, data center, enterprise network, and IoT devices.
Vectra Cognito platform uses AI to find hidden and unknown attackers in real time and provides AI-assisted threat hunting and response. It automatically sorts and presents relevant information on detections to speed up investigation. Other features are real-time collection, analysis and storage of metadata, logs, and cloud events, and custom tools and workflows with third-party providers.
Pros
- Anomaly detection and isolation
- Intuitive user interface
- Dashboards and insights
Cons
- Takes a long time to set up
- Users wish for more training options
Siemplify
Siemplify is a security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) platform that enables cybersecurity teams to manage company security operations using a single platform. The cloud software provides a workbench that allows security experts to automate processes for the whole security operations lifecycle. It covers playbooks, automation, case creation, investigation, integrated threat intelligence, collaboration, dashboards, reporting, crisis management, and remediation.
Siemplify cybersecurity software has an intuitive playbook designer that allows them to integrate and orchestrate multiple security tools used for malware detection, device protection, and network security, among others. With simple drag and drop, users can automate repetitive tasks so analysts can spend more time for higher value work and cut down response times. Other features include machine learning-based recommendations, advanced analytics, and flexible customizations.
Pros
- Integrates with many tools
- Onboarding, documentation, and training
- Simple setup and configuration
Cons
- Complex migration and synchronization
- Occasional issues after software upgrades
Cynet XDR
Cynet XDR provides autonomous breach protection through combined extended detection and response automation security software with managed detection response services at no extra cost. The software unifies next-gen antivirus tool, endpoint detection and response, network detection rules, user behavior analysis, and automated attack investigation and remediation.
Cynet XDR provides comprehensive coverage across the organization’s environment by natively integrating NGAV and EDR for multilayered protection against malware, ransomware, exploits, and fileless attacks. It also protects against scanning attack, lateral movement, and data exfiltration. It also detects malicious behavior anomalies and provides decoys to lure and detect attackers.
Pros
- System isolation
- Application control
- Responsive support
Cons
- Consumes significant resources like memory
- Users wish for reporting improvements
Blumira
Blumira is a cybersecurity tool that provides detection and response capabilities. Falling under the security information and event management (SIEM) category of security software, it enables users to resolve threats like ransomware attack and data breaches in a cost-effective way. It combines a cloud SIEM, SOAR, and a team of security experts as an alternative of having a dedicated SOC staff.
Blumira prioritizes critical alerts by integrating threat intelligence feeds with proactive threat detection and hunting. It provides a single view of the company data environment, gathers evidence, and provides pre-built workflows to streamline the response processes. Aside from collecting and centralizing security events and detecting threats, it provides customizable automated response, reporting, dashboards, monitoring, deployment, and support services.
Pros
- Security event management
- Advanced analytics
- Easy to set up and use, with a free trial period
Cons
- Older computers can take a performance hit because of the amount of logging
- Users wish for better tools to search raw logs
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Types of Cybersecurity
As more organizations embrace digital transformation and remote work, the types of cybersecurity software available are also evolving.
Critical Infrastructure Security
Cybersecurity software for critical infrastructure aims to protect systems, networks, and digital assets. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has identified several sectors of critical infrastructure, including energy, communication, transportation, financial services, and food supply. Critical infrastructure cybersecurity solutions must be expansive and able to protect against broad cyber threats, as well as random malware that could bring down essential social systems.
Application Security
Security measures applied at the application level can prevent criminals from stealing, hijacking, or corrupting data. Security professionals apply measures during the design and development stage of an application, as well as systems and approaches during its deployment. Cybersecurity software for applications monitors threats and vulnerabilities that may allow unauthorized access or modification.
Network Security
Network security is a subset of cybersecurity focused on protecting an organization’s IT infrastructure from a variety of threats, both online and physical. Cybersecurity software for network security includes solutions that protect the network infrastructure from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, destruction, or improper disclosure. It is software that ensures computers, users, and applications perform their permitted functions within a secure environment.
Cloud Security
Cloud security is a subset of cybersecurity that aims to secure cloud computing systems and keep data private and safe across online infrastructure and applications. Cybersecurity software for cloud security puts measures in place to enable data recovery in case of loss, protect networks against data theft, deter user negligence and errors, and reduce the impact of any data or system compromise.
IoT security
As the number of IoT devices multiplies, the risk of a device getting compromised also increases. Many cybersecurity solutions now include the protection of IoT devices from threats and breaches. The security software identifies and monitors risks, fixes vulnerabilities, and ensures the availability and integrity of devices in factories, roads, cars, and homes.
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Cybersecurity Software Features
Vendors offer cybersecurity products and tools to help organizations stop the next attack and uncover the latest vulnerability. Users should look for these essential features in their cybersecurity software to maintain a safe and secure environment:
- External threat monitoring allows users to monitor threats coming from an external source such as intrusion, phishing, or denial of service. The attack may come through a stolen device, email attachment, unsecured network port, or application vulnerability.
- Risk notifications enable users to investigate and respond to anomalies that may come from outside as well as inside company networks. Cybersecurity software issues alerts to notify IT personnel of any irregular behavior, activity, or event that requires attention.
- Analytics and reporting features screen, filter, and prioritize alerts, so analysts can focus on more urgent and damaging security threats.
- Regulatory compliance tools help an organization to adhere to laws, specifications, and guidelines for federal and state directives, as well as specific industry needs.
- Prevention, detection, and response provides users a comprehensive strategy to block what they can and track, identify, isolate, and remediate what they cannot.
- Continuous monitoring allows users to place and refine security best practices to maintain a consistent and up-to-date environment against new attacks, vulnerabilities, or emerging risks.
