Zoho launches patch management solution for cloud to bolster endpoint security

By Anirban Ghoshal

  • 06 Feb 2018
Credit: Thinkstock

ManageEngine, the enterprise division of IT and business software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider Zoho Corporation, on Tuesday launched its patch management solution for the cloud to bolster endpoint security for its customers.

According to the company, Patch Manager Plus on Cloud enables admins to automate the entire patch management process - from detection to deployment - without any infrastructure investment, thereby securing devices from multiple vulnerabilities and cyberattacks.

The automated patch management solution for Windows and third-party applications is available immediately, Zoho said in a statement.

“With dynamics of digitalization fast changing and massive adoption of cloud technology, there is a greater need for automation in the endpoint management space, as endpoints are the major entry points of cyberattacks,” said Rajesh Ganesan, director of product management at ManageEngine.

According to Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), which is part of the US Department of Justice, an average of 4,000-plus ransomware attacks have taken place every day since 2016.

CCIPS also quotes several victims of ransomware such as WannaCry and Petya admitting that their failure to react and patch their business-critical computers/servers on time has made them fall prey to longstanding business issues.

CCIPS also recommends an automated and centralised patch management system as an effective prevention and response action that can significantly mitigate the risk posed to organisations from cyberattacks.

The risk is higher nowadays with a growing mobile workforce in a data-sensitive world that increasingly uses automation and cloud-based solutions.

Early last year, technology research firm Gartner stated that the year-on-year growth of cloud application service (SaaS) offerings would increase by 20% in 2017, predicting that the market share for cloud computing would continue to increase as well.

According to Zoho, ManageEngine’s new Patch Manager Plus on Cloud is specifically designed to instantly procure, test and approve patches before deployment for Windows and more than 850 third-party applications automatically.

The cloud solution also runs a health check every 90 minutes and generates a report on any vulnerable machines for that hour, thereby keeping the systems robust round the clock apart from keeping cyberattacks at bay.

The cloud version of Patch Manager Plus allows IT teams to remotely patch their servers, desktops, laptops and virtual machines from anywhere in the world by quickly creating an account and installing agents remotely.