Cyberattacks have been on the rise in the past few years. The complexity of these attacks has also increased. As such, organizations are using various advanced tools to protect their critical data and tools. One of the cybersecurity tools that offers a comprehensive view of the threat landscape is extended detection and response (XDR).
This blog explains to you what XDR is. It covers the various components of XDR and its importance in the modern landscape. The key stats for the extended detection and response market and the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) have also been covered. Let’s dive in!
Extended detection and response is a unified security solution in the cybersecurity market. The security coverage of XDR is more than that of traditional endpoint protection tools or EDR. They provide a foundation for the development of a zero-trust security strategy. The security provided by XDR covers multiple players. Cloud workloads, endpoints, and cloud services are also covered. The holistic visibility provided by XDR helps in neutralizing multi-stage attacks. It also improves the security posture of an organization.
Understanding the detailed workflow of XDR is essential to make the most of its potential. Here’s a detailed look at the investigation and response workflow of XDR:
Incident Detection
Monitoring and aggregation of logs and alerts from different security tools across the IT infrastructure of an organization is continuously done by XDR platforms. Monitoring and aggregation is done across networks, endpoints, cloud environments, and identity and access management. This initial phase focuses on the identification of potential security incidents. It is done by collecting data from various sources. That way, it becomes possible to get a centralized view of all alerts and security events. Then the integration of global threat intelligence improves the ability of the platform to detect known and emerging threats. Related events from the data collected from various sources are stitched together into combined events. This helps broaden the initial context.
Incident Analysis and Scoring
The first step involves the detection of a potential incident. This is followed by the grouping of related alerts into a single incident. This tells the story of the attack as it unfolds. It also provides a comprehensive context. The assessment and prioritization of the incident by severity is the done. The security score can then be used by analysts for prioritizing their investigation.
Response Actions
Based on the determined verdict, appropriate response measures are taken for mitigating the threat and remediating the affected systems. Here, identified malicious indicators, such as file hashes and domains, are blocked by the platform. The isolation of the affected endpoints from the network is done to further prevent the spread of the threat. Response actions also include session management, where clearing and revoking of user sessions takes place. Multi-factor authentication is used for securing accounts. If required, passwords are reset to prevent unauthorized access.
Monitoring and Continuous Improvement
Regular scans and continuous monitoring ensure that the security posture of an organization remains robust. It also makes sure that new threats are promptly identified and addressed. Dashboards allow for the proactive management of threats by providing real-time visibility into the status of incidents and state of endpoints. Periodic scans help in the identification of dormant malware that may get activated in specific conditions.
Our newly published research report reveals that the XDR market is expected to witness rapid growth in the years to come. The market for extended detection and response stood at USD 5.79 billion in 2024. It is projected to account for a CAGR of 30.8% between 2025 and 2034.
The rising number and complexity of cyberattacks have created a need for a more integrated approach to security among organizations. The growing adoption of technologies such as remote work platforms and cloud services is also having a favorable impact on the market expansion.
Increased Visibility
XDR expands the view of organizations. It offers a clearer understanding of their security landscape. XDR also integrates telemetry data from various domains, including identities, endpoints, and cloud applications. This helps in uncovering threats that otherwise won’t be detected.
Streamlined SecOps Workflows
Automatic correlation of alerts by XDR streamlines notifications. This reduces noise in the inboxes of analysts and the amount of time it takes for the manual investigation of threats.
Enhanced Incident Prioritization
XDR is capable of evaluating and highlighting in-progress incidents that require prompt investigation from analysts. Recommended actions are also provided by XDR. These actions are aligned with the custom requirements of an enterprise and regulatory standards.
Improved Productivity and Efficiency
With XDR, automation of repetitive tasks is possible. It also allows assets to self-heal. This reduces labor and frees up analysts for higher-level activities. Centralized management tools increase the accuracy of errors and simplifies the number of solutions analysts need to access for investigating and remediating threats.
Accelerated Threat Detection and Response
XDR is capable of identifying cross-domain threats in real-time. It can also deploy automated response actions. These capabilities take away or reduce the time cyberattackers have for accessing the data and systems of an enterprise.
The AI in cybersecurity market reduces the time it takes to analyze large volumes of telemetry data in real-time. AI-based XDR systems can correlate signals faster as compared to human employees. This helps reduce false positives. The use of AI means security teams can have insights into threats across the complete IT ecosystem. Advanced pattern recognition of attacks makes it easier to predict potential threats.
Extended detection and response is changing the way security is being approached by organizations. The rise of IoT and hybrid work has expanded attack surfaces. So, XDR security is essential for today’s organizations to get unified visibility. XDR security can prevent the problems caused by security breaches, such as damaged reputation and irreparable damage to other sectors of the economy. The key players in the extended detection and response market are continually focusing on innovation to improve their offerings.