Top Challenges in Endpoint Management

Endpoint management is a superhero today. It caters to various requirements of an organization. These go beyond just security, and cover device management, compliance, operations. To cover these aspects effectively, organizations need a multi-pronged approach to endpoint management, driven by the choice of right software and expert implementation.

The global unified endpoint management market size is anticipated to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.4% from 2023 to 20301. This testifies to the growing importance of endpoint management. Security of endpoints is a key issue across enterprises. However, they face multiple challenges in ensuring this security. Some of the major reasons behind these challenges are the ever-evolving threats, changing work environment, and strict regulatory requirements.

Let’s discuss these challenges in detail, and see how a robust endpoint management strategy can help organizations manage these challenges.

What are the Challenges Facing Organizations in Endpoint Management?

Challenges in endpoint management abound, ranging from blind spots in endpoint visibility, to adhering to compliance requirements and minimizing the scope of human errors. Let’s look at some of them:

• Lack of Visibility: Security teams often face blind spots with respect to visibility of devices. This can stem from factors like inadequate monitoring tools, diversity of devices, geographic barriers etc. This challenge intensifies with work modes like hybris and remote, in which endpoints exist outside the security perimeter of the organization.
• BYOD Policies: BYOD policies are being increasingly implemented by organizations. This is introducing a myriad of endpoints into the network, operating outside the organization’s controlled environment. With the percolation of personal devices, there might be cases of insufficient security measures being implemented, resulting in compromised security.
• Human Error: Human factor remains a prime factor in security incidents. Often, employees can be the target of attackers that use phishing and data breach methods. They also might unknowingly install unauthorized software that could compromise the network’s security.
• Ensuring Regulatory Compliance: Keeping up with the regulatory laws can be difficult. While each law is different, in the end, most focus on limiting local admin privileges and user access. Non-compliance of regulatory laws can put organizations at the risk of incurring regulatory fines and losing customer and investor trust
• Resource Constraints: Endpoint management can be costly, especially for SMEs. Investment in a solution, implementation, maintenance and support can be heavy on IT budgets. The expertise of specialised staff may increase costs. Hence, budgetary constraints are a significant challenge for endpoint management.

With the existence of these challenges, it is not enough for enterprises to work on acquiring the right solution. It is important to ensure the right solution-strategy fit.

Robust Solution and Strategy Fit is the Way Forward

Organizations must understand how the endpoint challenges materialise in their environment, and the importance of choosing the right endpoint management strategy and solution. The right solution and strategy will depend on the specific complexities that exist in their IT ecosystem. By addressing these, organizations can maintain control over their increasingly diverse and complex IT environments, safeguarding sensitive information, including the organization’s data, from potential security vulnerabilities.