HVAC systems and other networked devices on a corporate network can expose the network to attacks if not properly monitored and secured. A recent report found that over a third of security breaches started with compromised credentials from a third party vendor. Most companies have difficulty identifying the source of malicious attacks or seeing all devices connected to their network. Implementing endpoint profiling and authentication technologies can provide visibility into all endpoints and their behavior, enabling companies to quickly detect issues and prevent damaging breaches.

1. It might be difficult to believe, but your heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system could be
talking to your human resources database. At the very least this can cause heated situations for your
network teams, as they race to put out fires caused by constant attacks. At most, an unchecked HVAC
system could be leveraged to breach the network – ultimately costing millions.
Of course, the threat doesn’t stop there. If you aren’t monitoring every single network-attached endpoint,
you’re at risk. Everything from your sprinkler system to your security cameras can potentially expose your
network to criminals.
Some of the most damaging data breaches have involved credentials stolen from third-party vendors
working with companies, like:
• The one at the Home Depot
• Lowe’s data breach
• The security leak at Goodwill
These companies aren’t alone. A recent report found over one-third of security breaches started with
a third-party vendor’s credentials. Resulting, in some cases, in hundreds of millions of dollars worth of
damage for the company.
Lost in the dark?
Seeing and shutting down illegal attacks is incredibly difficult. Many endpoints attached to
corporate networks go unnoticed and event alerts from security solutions often lack proper
context. Companies may never realize the systems their vendors are involved with have network
access or access to privileged information until the damage is done.
One survey found that in 28 percent of malicious attacks, respondents could not find the
source of the breach. The study also found that IT professionals believe understanding where
the breach originated would help them enhance their security posture. The majority, though,
reported not having the capabilities to determine the source of the problem.
Insight into intrusions.
Gaining complete network visibility with endpoint profiling can help organizations solve the security
problems surrounding unidentified equipment on the network. If the example companies listed above
had visibility into all the endpoints touching the network, personnel might have known which devices
had access to the payment system. The attacks might have been stopped before they lost millions.
Go from putting out network security
fires to preventing them.
info@greatbaysoftware.com 1.800.503.1715 www.greatbaysoftware.com

2. 2
info@greatbaysoftware.com 1.800.503.1715 www.greatbaysoftware.com
Go from putting out network security
fires to preventing them.
People, like Patrick Printz, of Quinsigamond Community College, who’ve been using endpoint profiling
technology to help secure and manage the network for years will tell you about their positive experience
with the visibility it provides.
“As far as seeing what’s on the network, it’s all about visibility and troubleshooting.
When you’re trying to figure out, ‘what’s plugged into this port?’ and you can go
and see that in an endpoint profiler, it saves you time.” Printz said.
This insight can help to ensure that the network is properly segmented, so that only specific personnel
can access sensitive data. More importantly, endpoint profiling solutions monitor endpoints in real- and
historical-time. This information is crucial to protection.
With real-time monitoring, if any device starts exhibiting uncharacteristic behavior (like surfing the web
or fiddling through financial data) you’ll be alerted and can take quick action. With historical monitoring,
you’ll be able to look at the state of your network at any given date and time. This will help you make
determinations about when and where attacks occur. It could make a huge financial difference for your
company in the event of a data breach.
“With this technology I can look and see, ‘Hey, this is some different foreign device
that I’m not used to,’ and it gives you the model or the make of the device to help
you figure out what it is that you’re trying to troubleshoot,” stated Printz.
Clearly enhanced protection.
Coupling this information with an authentication technology helps further protect the company.
For example, if a device behaves uncharacteristically, an authentication server can get it off and
keep it off the system. If those measures seem too extreme, an authentication server can keep
that device on the network, but in quarantine to ensure it can’t do any major damage.
“When an IP phone or a printer comes online, authentication detects that it’s an HP printer or
it’s an IP phone and it meets certain criteria. Endpoint profiling automatically creates that active
directory account for that device,” Printz explained.
Authentication helps you to keep devices that are not supposed to be on the network off. It
makes it much more difficult for rogue devices or endpoints that have been MAC spoofed to get
on the network.

3. Bring your network to light with Beacon.
Great Bay Software’s Beacon product suite offers solutions that will help your teams secure
every network-attached device before your company becomes the next victim of cyber crime.
Beacon Endpoint Profiler combined with Beacon for Authentication provides unprecedented
endpoint visibility, access and control.
Beacon helps IT teams:
• Identify every single endpoint on the network
• Monitor the behavior of those endpoints at all times
• Enforce access to the network – ensuring what you want on the network gets
on and what you don’t stays off
“It’s shedding some light on what’s out there,” Printz explained.
If you are sick of running to stamp out one inferno emergency after the next – without real insight into the
full potential for damage, kindle those flames to your advantage instead, by implementing Beacon on your
network.
Call today to let the expert representatives at Great Bay Software reveal more about the superior protection
available through the Beacon product suite.
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info@greatbaysoftware.com 1.800.503.1715 www.greatbaysoftware.com
Go from putting out network security
fires to preventing them.