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How charities can stay one step ahead of cyber criminals
22 Dec 2020by Aidan Paterson
Patch management can ensure that charities stay one step ahead of cyber criminals looking to exploit vulnerabilities in commonly-used office software
A patch is a software update issued by developers to account for any vulnerabilities that may present an opportunity for cyber criminals. Patches are issued fairly frequently. Any charity using multiple types of software will have to ensure that these updates are installed regularly, which requires a strategy of patch management.
Every IT professional will agree that patch management is critical to ensuring a healthy network. Yet a recent security assessment of 500,000 endpoints showed that only 29% of the devices passed the patch test. This is not a surprise.
Keeping up with the volume of patches needed and finding times to deploy them without interrupting other systems and operations are common challenges. While patches are designed to fix vulnerabilities or security gaps in operating systems and application software, staying on top of patch management often requires time and resources IT teams simply may not have.
Why patch management is so important
Many businesses are reluctant to patch due to the frequency that patches are issued. Patching can be an inconvenient process - it often interrupts operations, and they can cause problems with other systems.
But you have to weigh this inconvenience against that of a cyber breach, something that charity IT staff are inviting to happen by not patching frequently.
Without the right updates, software vulnerabilities remain unchecked. These vulnerabilities become more and more well-known to cyber criminals over time. The longer you leave a patch uninstalled, the greater the risk you expose yourself to.
How Patch Mangement software can help
Without an automated solution, patching can be something of an ad hoc process, requiring a lot of time and resources.
An automated patch management solution can simplify the whole process. It’s also an effective solution for any charity working remotely, as you can distribute thoroughly tested patches to thousands of devices in minutes with minimal impact on your network.
An effective patch management solution will allow you to patch all Windows devices anywhere – whether they’re behind the firewall, on the road, at remote sites, or even asleep.
Avast Business Patch Management takes the guesswork out of patching by identifying critical vulnerabilities and making it easy to deploy patches across all endpoints from one central dashboard.
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Easier, centralised, and automated patch management
Avast has stepped up to the patching challenge with the release of the new Avast Business Patch Management service. Delivered through their Cloud Management Console and deployed with any of their Managed Antivirus products (Antivirus, Antivirus Pro, Antivirus Pro Plus), it provides an easy way to centrally set up, acquire, test, approve, and install system updates and patches - all from the Management Console.
Here are just a few of the features and benefits:
Flexible deployment schedules: Schedule and deploy approved patches at desired times or manually deploy to groups or individual devices.
Intuitive dashboard: All patches can be easily deployed, monitored, and managed through our Management Console. Quickly view installed patches, missing patches, and patches that failed to install on any device under management.
Customisable patches: Choose software vendors, products, and the severity of patches to scan and install. Easily create exclusions for applications.
Master agent capabilities: Download all missing patches to a master agent that seamlessly distributes patches to all managed devices in the network.
Patch scan results: View patch scan results from the management console that includes information on missing patches, severity levels, knowledge base links, release dates, descriptions, and more.
Advanced reporting and new console export feature: Easily determine the health and security of device software with a variety of simple-to-configure reports. Export to PDF with one click from the console.
Automatic scans: Schedule patch scans to run automatically every 24 hours and set patches to deploy automatically every Thursday. These default settings can be modified at any time.
Patch support for Windows and thousands of third-party applications: Access updates for all Windows operating systems as well as thousands of other third-party software applications from 100 vendors.
Patch notifications: Receive automated notifications of patching status. From the console, search, sort, and find history of any failed patches.
Avast Business Patch Management Service Beta tested across SMB IT environments
Our customers and channel partners beta tested the new Patch Management Service across a range of IT environments – schools, banks, manufacturing, technology, and more.
“I’ve been looking for a good patching solution to automate and manage third-party and OS patching. Having the Avast Business Patch Management Service integrated right into the console is a great advantage. Since implementing the service, I have reduced administration time by at least 50% and created a new patch process that improves efficiency and quality of patch updates by 75%.”
“From the patch management display in my console, I can go to device settings and choose the scans I want, schedule the time to deploy these, and access restart options if patches fail for any reason. I receive automated alerts and can quickly search, sort, and gain more detail for any failed patches.”
- Thomas Glass - IT Manager, Saint Gertrude High School
Is it time to automate and streamline your patch management from one central platform? Find out more information about the new Avast Business Patch Management Service.
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Find out more about Avast Patch Management at discounted charity rates
Aidan Paterson
Aidan Paterson
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