Dell Adds Cylance Artificial Intelligence to Endpoint Security Solution

Hardware giant Dell is beefing up endpoint security for its commercial PC lines with new artificial intelligence technology from Cylance that proactively prevents, rather than just reactively detects, threats and malware.

Dell will integrate Cylance technology into its Dell Data Protection endpoint security solution, the company said in a press release. The collaboration builds on an investment Dell Ventures made in Cylance earlier this year as part of a commitment to support new businesses that are in line with Dell’s strategic direction, the company said.

Business customers need more than signature-based anti-virus and anti-malware solutions that typically are used to protect endpoint devices that connect to the corporate network, according to Dell. By integrating Cylance technology into its Endpoint Security Suite Enterprise—which it plans to do early next year—Dell can help customers protect against the execution of advanced persistent threats and malware,  including zero day attacks, scripting attacks and targeted attacks such as spear phishing and ransomware, said Steve Lalla, vice president, Commercial Client Software and Solutions at Dell.

“The security landscape is changing rapidly and businesses are increasingly exposed to new malware and advanced persistent threats,” he said in the release. “Our collaboration with Cylance provides our customers with the most comprehensive endpoint and data security solutions to protect their data and prevent advanced persistent threats without hampering productivity and mobility.”

Dell’s Endpoint Security Suite Enterprise integrates authentication, encryption and advanced threat protection in one suite as well as provides remote management of all components in a single console. It’s designed to use only a fraction of the system resources typically associated with anti-virus and malware solutions, which results in better performance for end users, according to Dell. The suite also enables compliance with industry standards, meeting PCI DSS Requirement 5 and HIPAA requirements for anti-virus and anti-malware solutions.

The suite is available for Dell Latitude and OptiPlex PCs, but also works across heterogeneous environments to protect data as it moves across various devices and through public and hybrid clouds, the company said.

Testing has shown that with the addition of Cylance technology, Dell’s endpoint protection can stop 99 percent of malware and advanced persistent threats. The average for many traditional anti-virus solutions is 50 percent, according to Cylance.

“Traditional signature-based solutions are completely ineffective in defending organizations from cyber threats,” said Stuart McClure, CEO of Cylance, in the release. “Marrying Dell’s industry-leading endpoint security with Cylance’s artificial intelligence approach provides enterprise organizations with unprecedented protection to actively predict and prevent malware and advanced threats.”