Imagine that your company network is a house. The firewall is the front door with a lock. But what about the windows? The back door? The laptop your employee took home for the weekend? All these entry points are called endpoints, and today they are the primary point of attack for hackers.

Endpoint security is about protecting the devices that connect to your network. It sounds simple, but it is far more complex than the antivirus program you may remember from when Windows XP was new.

What is an endpoint?

An endpoint is, in short, any device that can connect to your network or systems. It includes:

  • Laptops and desktop computers: both company-owned and personal (more on that later)
  • Smartphones and tablets: used for email, Teams and files
  • Printers and scanners: an overlooked attack vector
  • IP cameras and access control systems
  • IoT devices: smart displays, thermostat systems and the like

In a business with 20 employees, you can easily have 60–80 endpoints. Each one is a potential entry point.

Did you know? According to the analyst firm Ponemon Institute, more than 70% of all successful data breaches occur via compromised endpoints, not via attacks directly on servers or network infrastructure.

Why is traditional antivirus not enough?

For many years, antivirus was the standard. The software scanned files and compared them to a database of known threats, a so-called signature-based approach. The problem is that attackers today do not use the same malware twice. They continuously modify the code, and new variants emerge faster than virus databases can be updated.

Modern attacks also use techniques such as:

  • Fileless malware: code that runs directly in memory without leaving files behind
  • Living-off-the-land attacks: where hackers abuse legitimate Windows tools such as PowerShell
  • Zero-day exploits: vulnerabilities exploited before the vendor even knows about them

Traditional antivirus sees none of these threats because they do not match known signatures. This gives you a false sense of security.

What is EDR, and what makes it different?

EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) is the next generation of endpoint protection. Instead of only looking for known threats, EDR monitors all activity on the device in real time and looks for suspicious behavior.

Think of it as the difference between a simple burglar alarm (which only responds to known break-in methods) and a security guard who observes everything and reacts to anything that looks wrong.

An EDR system typically can:

  • Detect abnormal process behavior and stop it automatically
  • Isolate an infected device from the network with one click
  • Provide detailed visibility into what happened, and when
  • Generate alerts that are sent to you or an IT partner

Well-known EDR solutions include Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (included in many Microsoft 365 licenses), CrowdStrike Falcon, and SentinelOne. Several of these are realistic options for SMBs today. Prices have dropped significantly in recent years.

BYOD: when employees' personal phones are a risk

BYOD stands for Bring Your Own Device , and it is widespread in Danish companies. Employees check work email on their personal iPhone, connect to the company Wi-Fi with their old Android, or work from home on the laptop the whole family also uses for streaming and gaming.

The problem is that as a business, you cannot install and manage security software on devices you do not own. A personal device rarely has proper update management, may have free antivirus (or none), and is connected to many other networks.

There are two sensible paths forward:

  1. Implement a clear BYOD policy with requirements for updates and passwords, and have a system to enforce it
  2. Use Mobile Device Management (MDM): a system that lets you control what BYOD devices may access, and that can remotely wipe data in case of theft

Practical steps for your business

You do not need to wait for an attack before you get started. Here are four concrete things you can do now:

  1. Create an inventory of all devices: you cannot protect what you do not know exists. A simple spreadsheet with all devices, owners and OS versions is a good starting point.
  2. Replace legacy antivirus with EDR: talk to your IT provider about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, which is probably already available through your Microsoft 365 license.
  3. Ensure automatic updates: the vast majority of attacks exploit known vulnerabilities for which the vendor has already released a patch. Update quickly.
  4. Establish a clear BYOD policy: decide which devices may access what, and communicate it to your employees.

Important: Endpoint security is not a product you buy and forget. It requires continuous monitoring. Consider whether your business has the resources to do this in-house, or whether it makes more sense to outsource it to an IT partner with a Security Operations Center (SOC).

What does it cost to do nothing?

A successful ransomware attack via an unprotected endpoint can easily cost an SMB 200,000–500,000 DKK in downtime, data recovery, consulting, and potential fines. An EDR subscription typically costs 50–150 DKK per device per month. The math is simple.

Endpoint security is not a luxury, but basic hygiene in 2026. Start with an inventory of your devices. Then we’ll take it from there.