A guide on how to differentiate between MDR services

For any CISO, SOC, IT security admin, and the like, making tough calls can be a daily routine. And it is these calls that make the difference between a well-oiled machine and a rusty one, as there needs to be an almost absurd amount of daily maintenance to keep a company secure all the time.

These jobs require a deep understanding of an organization’s structure, and there are a lot of details that can be missed for sure, as leaving security gaps to be potentially exploited can result in devastating security incidents.

However, with the right security partner, this side can be helped.

The crown jewel of the detection and response solution collection is managed detection and response (MDR), a service that is managed by a security vendor or a security service company, providing top security by combining human expertise and technical know-how at once.

Unlike endpoint detection and response (EDR), MDR is a service provided directly by cybersecurity vendors or security service companies, while the other is strictly a solution (like ESET Inspect), to be handled by an internal security team. While an EDR/XDR user can get a decent understanding of incidents through their solution, that requires qualified personnel, which is handily accounted for with an MDR service.

Helpful tools like the Incident Creator also make the lives of IT admins easier as it provides an easy-to-understand graphical representation of questionable detections, all color-graded according to severity, including quick links to threat records within detection databases like MITRE ATT&CK.

For someone not dealing with detection and response daily, these explanations might not be enticing enough to seek out an MDR service, but by understanding that the security vendor providing said service has an easier job enabling top-grade protection, it all creates a picture of an improved security posture, all confirmed by independent analysts.

But, MDR in itself needs to be configured based on what the company has and needs, and perhaps the sort of security products a business uses are not compatible with the service they seek – and this is where product combos step in to provide everything in one safe package.

If a company is looking for something more than just an MDR service, ESET PROTECT MDR combines a whole slew of solutions and features from ESET PROTECT Elite, ESET MDR, and ESET Premium Support Essential. ESET MDR – the service element – offers comprehensive 24/7/365 protection from elaborate threats, AI-powered automation, and human expertise. Thanks to its unmatched detection and rapid response (20 minutes on average) to security incidents, closing any cybersecurity gap a company might have, it also serves to satisfy various insurance and compliance requirements.

This solution is recommended for small and medium businesses, as it represents a step up in achieving well-rounded security. The idea is that since cybersecurity talent is hard to come by and expensive, ESET PROTECT MDR levels the playing field and upgrades SMB security to the enterprise level through the human expertise of the managing security vendor. Imagine it as having a high-level security team without having to commit to the high-level costs as well.

Additionally, the benefits of ESET PROTECT Elite in the form of multilayered security for advanced threat defense (endpoint/mobile/server/cloud and mail) will cover all high-stakes attack vectors. Plus, ESET Premium Support Essential adds a product support package with fast troubleshooting any hour of the day, with responses tailored to a business’s individual needs, solving critical issues within minutes of notifying ESET HQ.

Is your company so large that it has a global presence? Are you afraid of multinational threats that might try to compromise your foreign offices? Do you want to support your SOC team by extending their reach and power and being more proactive rather than reactive?

If any of these fit you, then you would be safe to assume that ESET PROTECT MDR Ultimate is the best choice for you.  This tier serves as superior protection, with cyber risk management and granular visibility into an organization’s IT environment, delivered as a fully managed service including customized threat hunting and remote digital forensic incident response assistance with access to world-leading ESET threat hunters and intelligence – to stay one step ahead of all emerging threats.

ESET PROTECT MDR Ultimate is more personalized, tailoring the service even more to a particular business’s needs, thanks to a combination of our ESET PROTECT Elite offering with ESET Detection and Response Ultimate (highly individual threat hunting, monitoring, and analysis), plus ESET Premium Support Advanced (with proactive and priority servicing), also including our powerful ESET AI Advisor, delivering additional help in contextualizing detections interactively.

Now, purchasing a product is one thing, but using it to its full potential is another. And that is what differentiates an MDR service from an MDR service bundle as well, since the use cases and provided service have different levels of service included. The same is true for when a company is thinking of purchasing an Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solution or a simple MDR service, as the former requires skilled cybersecurity professionals to handle, while the latter is managed by external experts.

One thing here is constant though – threats will never stop evolving. Any business can be targeted, regardless of its size, and as people move to air their grievances and hate within the cyber world, endpoint security will have to keep improving. All in all, companies will have to consider tightening their security posture to not become collateral damage in the fight between security defenders and the malicious forces of the world of threats.