Cloud antivirus – how essential is it for your business?
03 Aug, 2021 5 min read
Cloud-based solutions are the holy grail for modern-day business. The convenience of being able to access enterprise data and tools any time, any place, and from any device has been a key ingredient for business success - particularly if you’re in the middle of a global pandemic.
But, there are plenty of unspoken risks that come with the use of an always-connected workforce. Putting your data on the cloud and having it accessible over multiple devices greatly increases your business’s vulnerability to threats.
‘So, what’s the solution?’, I hear you say. Well, installing traditional antivirus software on every device might be your first thought, but let’s face it, they are resource intensive, and they can put a damper on battery life and data storage needs.
That’s why many companies, especially smaller businesses with limited resources, are turning to endpoint protection using a cloud-based antivirus.
But, there are plenty of unspoken risks that come with the use of an always-connected workforce. Putting your data on the cloud and having it accessible over multiple devices greatly increases your business’s vulnerability to threats.
‘So, what’s the solution?’, I hear you say. Well, installing traditional antivirus software on every device might be your first thought, but let’s face it, they are resource intensive, and they can put a damper on battery life and data storage needs.
That’s why many companies, especially smaller businesses with limited resources, are turning to endpoint protection using a cloud-based antivirus.
Covering the basics for the most vulnerable: Small & Medium Businesses (SMB)
While some have decided that antivirus software is ineffective for not being able to detect all threats before they can do damage (here are 3 reasons why anti-virus isn't enough), there is no denying that threats continue to increase. As enterprise networks are now reaching into individual homes, businesses are taking another hard look at any type of protection, even non-perfect antivirus solutions.
A quick look at the latest news headlines shows that the threats companies are facing tend to be either hacking attacks or data leaks. That’s true. But hacking and data loss are often a result of a virus or malware that has found a security loophole. This makes preventive measures more important than ever - particularly for the most vulnerable: small businesses that lack resources and internal expertise!
Without at least an effective cloud-based antivirus solution, businesses are at risk of being the victim of a malware attack that, for example, spams valuable contacts with harmful or corrupted data, or even having their website shut down! The scary part is, in our whitepaper on the security risks that SMEs face, we discovered a 2019 SMB Cyberthreat Study which surveyed over 500 senior decision-makers at small businesses. The survey findings showed that 66% of small business owners believe they will not fall victim to a cyberattack. This is concerning because these SMEs are highly likely to be operating without meaningful security solutions. It’s not only concerning for the owners’ livelihoods and the businesses' growth potential but also for the economies in which they operate. To learn more about the impacts of cyberattacks faced by small businesses, you can find out more on our cybersecurity for the small business whitepaper.
A quick look at the latest news headlines shows that the threats companies are facing tend to be either hacking attacks or data leaks. That’s true. But hacking and data loss are often a result of a virus or malware that has found a security loophole. This makes preventive measures more important than ever - particularly for the most vulnerable: small businesses that lack resources and internal expertise!
Without at least an effective cloud-based antivirus solution, businesses are at risk of being the victim of a malware attack that, for example, spams valuable contacts with harmful or corrupted data, or even having their website shut down! The scary part is, in our whitepaper on the security risks that SMEs face, we discovered a 2019 SMB Cyberthreat Study which surveyed over 500 senior decision-makers at small businesses. The survey findings showed that 66% of small business owners believe they will not fall victim to a cyberattack. This is concerning because these SMEs are highly likely to be operating without meaningful security solutions. It’s not only concerning for the owners’ livelihoods and the businesses' growth potential but also for the economies in which they operate. To learn more about the impacts of cyberattacks faced by small businesses, you can find out more on our cybersecurity for the small business whitepaper.
What can a cloud-based antivirus do for you?
With the Internet of Things (IoT) continuing to skyrocket, cloud usage has grown significantly. According to Gartner, it’s expected by 2024, that more than 45% of IT spending on system infrastructure, infrastructure software, application software and business process outsourcing will shift from traditional solutions to the cloud.
Since businesses are now embracing the idea of storing important and critical data in the cloud and saving money from doing so, the next big trend is offloading processes to the cloud. That’s the whole premise of a cloud-based antivirus.
With a cloud-based antivirus solution, you don’t need to rely on periodically checking every business workstation to ensure everything is entirely safe. The next generation of endpoint security lies in leveraging machines with dedicated hardware to perform and manage the results of these online scans in the cloud.
By using automated online antivirus scanning, the traditional virus and malware definition updates could become virtually extinct. Not only do cloud-based antivirus solutions remove the process of locally scanning for threats, but they also omit the need for constant updating since virus definitions are continually updated in the cloud. That means better security, better performance, and virtually zero downtime in productivity. To learn about the differences between the two cybersecurity threats, you can find out more in our antivirus and anti-malware article.
The bottom line is, viruses and other malicious software are a problem that will not go away. No matter what security solutions are out there, this issue will continue to plague businesses as long as the reliance on the web continues to grow - of course, there’s no turning back on the web now. That’s why security innovations in the cloud are so critical.
By using automated online antivirus scanning, the traditional virus and malware definition updates could become virtually extinct. Not only do cloud-based antivirus solutions remove the process of locally scanning for threats, but they also omit the need for constant updating since virus definitions are continually updated in the cloud. That means better security, better performance, and virtually zero downtime in productivity. To learn about the differences between the two cybersecurity threats, you can find out more in our antivirus and anti-malware article.
The bottom line is, viruses and other malicious software are a problem that will not go away. No matter what security solutions are out there, this issue will continue to plague businesses as long as the reliance on the web continues to grow - of course, there’s no turning back on the web now. That’s why security innovations in the cloud are so critical.
So, while the traditional protection that you usually get with free antivirus software might be losing relevance, make no mistake – cloud-based antivirus and anti-malware software do play a part. That’s why it’s recommended that small businesses should adopt these newer and better iterations of antivirus software to ensure you are fully protected.
What a cloud-based antivirus can’t do. There’s a better way - CatchPulse
Our endpoint protection platform, CatchPulse Pro (enterprise version) is upping the ante on traditional antivirus solutions as it protects your endpoints with a combination of intuitive application control, an AI-powered offline scanner, and a cloud-based antivirus. For the last 19 years, it’s kept all of our customers out of the news headlines!
With CatchPulse Pro, you can manage your security operations on-premise or online via a centralised dashboard that can be accessed anytime and anywhere. This dashboard gives access to security policies, audit logs, user and role settings, allow and deny-lists and your software and file inventory.
We know not every endpoint needs the same level of security so with this dashboard you can configure how you want CatchPulse Pro to run. For instance, you can create a policy as a default for your entire organization, create a tighter one for R&D or finance, and set a flexible one for your marketing team.
In short, you can be assured you have the right combination of threat detection, control and insight. Visit CatchPulse Pro page to learn more and get started with a free 60-day trial to protect your small businesses from cyberattacks and data breaches.