Did you know that:
- Phishing attacks increased by 1265 percent last year.
- Moreover, the annual global cost of cybercrime is expected to cross 23 trillion by 2027.
The global threat landscape continues to evolve, with new and sophisticated cyber threats emerging every year. As a result, security teams must stay ahead by understanding and adopting next-generation security technologies.
Tools such as NGAV (Next-Gen Antivirus), EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response), and XDR (Extended Detection and Response) play a crucial role in modern defense strategies.
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Each brings distinct capabilities to strengthen endpoint protection, improve visibility, and enable faster threat response. However, choosing the right solution depends on your organization’s security needs and operational maturity.
Let’s compare NGAV, EDR, and XDR in detail.
EDR, NGAV, and XDR: Explained With Key Features
Before comparing NGAV, EDR, and XDR, let’s get a better understanding of their functioning and capabilities.
NGAV
NGAV (Next-Generation Antivirus) is an advanced version of the traditional antivirus software. It implements technologies, like Artificial Intelligence, behavioral analysis, Machine Learning, and exploit mitigation, to shield against malicious attacks. Unlike traditional antivirus tools that offer signature-based protection against known threats, NGAV can prevent attacks from unknown threat actors.
Being cloud-based, NGAV is easy to deploy across endpoints and reduces IT costs compared to on-premise tools. However, it serves as the first line of defense; if a threat slips through, tools like EDR are needed for detection and response.
Let’s check out the key features and benefits of NGAV.
Threat Intelligence – NGAV offers threat intelligence capabilities. Data from multiple external sources is collected so that the tool is aware of all threats. The threats are classified by severity and relevance to facilitate real-time prevention.
AI/ML-Based Prevention – NGAV offers signature-less prevention, unlike conventional antivirus solutions. It uses AI and ML-based algorithms to detect and prevent malware. Consequently, NGAV reduces the hassles of regular signature updates.
Behavioral Analysis – NGAV tools continuously monitor endpoints and applications to analyze their patterns. If it detects any anomaly, malware is identified and prevented in real-time.
Fileless Malware Prevention – Fileless malware can operate in an endpoint’s memory and can go undetected by traditional antivirus software. As NGAV offers proactive protection, it helps prevent fileless malware from entering the system.
EDR
When compared to NGAV, which offers malware prevention, EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) tools are capable of detecting and mitigating threats after they have infiltrated endpoints. EDR tools reduced IT efforts by automating endpoint monitoring and response to endpoint security incidents.
It provides a comprehensive view of all endpoints within the organization. In addition to malware prevention (as in the case of NGAV), EDR tools also offer threat hunting and root cause analysis. There are both on-premise and managed EDR solutions available for businesses to choose from.
Here are the key features offered by EDR.
24/7 Monitoring – EDR tools constantly monitor all endpoint activities, like user access and registry changes, for any suspicious behavior. It helps your security team to identify and respond to security threats in real-time.
Automated Responses – EDR tools use AI and ML-based algorithms to automate the responses to identified threats. It not only streamlines responses but also gives your security more time to investigate threats.
Threat Hunting – EDR tools enable security teams to facilitate threat hunting. It collects and correlates telemetry data from the endpoints around the clock to help them analyze the possibility of future threats.
Forensic Analysis – Once an incident has occurred, organizations need accurate and relevant data for a deep investigation. EDR helps security professionals identify the affected touchpoints, the level of penetration, and the timelines. It also helps with audit and compliance in the future.
Stay ahead of cyber threats with our Managed Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) service.
XDR
XDR (Extended Detection and Response) is the most comprehensive security solution among the three. Unlike NGAV and EDR, XDR is not limited to only endpoints. It offers advanced detection and response capabilities across cloud workloads, network, and applications. With XDR, the security team gains a comprehensive view of the entire security posture, encompassing not just endpoints.
XDR tools use AI, ML, and contextual analysis to prioritize threats and identify their origin. The data from all the sources is correlated to help the security team make data-driven decisions. XDR offers security across multiple levels, even when the threat has penetrated beyond the endpoint.
Let’s look at some noteworthy features of XDR.
Advanced Analytics – XDR tools use AI and ML engines to analyze and respond to threats. It helps SOC differentiate real threats from fake ones. Moreover, in the case of simultaneous incidents, XDR tools can prioritize threats.
Complete Visibility – XDR platforms give 360-degree visibility across all touchpoints, including cloud, email systems, and endpoints. Most solutions provide a unified dashboard for the security teams to get consolidated information in one place.
Full Stack Solution – XDR eliminates the hassles of integrating stand-alone tools by providing detection and response features across all domains.
EDR vs. NGAV vs. XDR: In-Depth Comparison
| Parameters | NGAV | EDR | XDR |
| Primary Function | Malware protection | Endpoint monitoring, threat detection, and response | Detection and response across all IT elements |
| Coverage | Endpoints | Endpoints | Endpoints, cloud workloads, applications, emails, and network |
| Limitations | No threat detection | No contextual analysis | Highly complex to manage |
| In-house IT Requirements | Minimal, as it is a cloud-based solution | Moderate; required for forensic analysis | High; need an expert SOC team |
| Deployment | Easy | More complex than NGAV | Challenging |
| Threat Detection | No | Yes | Yes |
| Automated Responses | No | Yes | Yes |
| Scalability | High, as it is cloud-based | Moderate, if you don’t opt for managed EDR services | High; can be scaled across the network |
| Capital expenses | Low | Higher than NGAV | Highest |
Here is an in-depth comparison of the three technologies to help you choose the best one for your business.
Reach
The reach of both EDR and NGAV tools is limited to endpoints, such as laptops and PCs. On the other hand, the XDR platform’s capabilities extend to all levels in the IT infrastructure, from networks and endpoints to cloud workloads. Hence, organizations that have adopted a multi-cloud environment and want protection against multi-vector attacks usually deploy XDR.
Level of Protection
NGAV offers signature-less threat prevention for fileless malware, phishing, and ransomware. It uses AI-based algorithms to prevent attacks on the endpoint level.
However, EDR goes one step further to provide threat detection and remediation for endpoints. It also monitors endpoints 24/7 to identify anomalies.
XDR, on the other hand, offers detection and response to threats across all sources, such as network and cloud, through contextual analysis.
Data Collection
NGAV collects only a limited amount of data from endpoints to ensure prevention. In contrast, EDR collects telemetry data from endpoints for forensic analysis and registry modifications. Compared to NGAV and EDR, XDR tools collect data more comprehensively from all sources in the security posture. This data is used in event correlation and post-investigation.
Deployment
When it comes to deployment, NGAV tools are the most convenient, requiring minimal configuration. On the other hand, EDR requires more IT efforts to set up policies and monitoring. XDR is the most complex to deploy among them, as it involves more integrations with different security tools to cover different environments and data sources.
Cost
As NGAV solutions offer only threat prevention, they are the most cost-effective option among all available solutions for small businesses. EDR is more expensive than NGAV as it offers not only prevention but also threat detection and automated responses.
However, in the case of XDR, businesses need to make significant investments as it covers a broader spectrum encompassing all elements in the IT infrastructure. However, when it comes to ROI, you must analyze the business requirements to check which option is more cost-efficient.
Which One to Choose For Your Security Stack?
The decision to choose among NGAV, EDR, and XDR depends on your security requirements and budget constraints. You can choose –
NGAV if: you are a small business that is looking to replace the traditional antivirus solution in your premises with a more advanced solution. All you need is protection from malware.
EDR if: You are a small or medium-sized business that wants enhanced visibility for endpoints against advanced threats. Moreover, if you want to reduce in-house IT hassles of endpoint security by automating responses, EDR is the best solution.
XDR if: You are a large organization that works in a multi-cloud environment. Consequently, you need complete threat protection, assured compliance, and cross-platform data correlation.
Final Words
NGAV, EDR, and XDR are not isolated technologies. They can be used in parallel to achieve a robust security posture for the organization. However, deploying these technologies on premises can lead to additional costs and integration challenges.
If you want to minimize the hassles of on-premise deployment and reduce capital expenses, you can outsource data security responsibilities to a managed security service provider (MSSP). Ace Cloud Hosting offers managed security services on a pay-as-you-go basis.
Have questions about these technologies? Connect with Ace Cloud Hosting today to enhance your defense against modern cyberattacks, such as ransomware, with our managed security services.
