Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) is a technology used by managed service providers (MSPs) to remotely monitor and manage their clients’ IT infrastructure and systems. RMM tools allow MSPs to proactively monitor and maintain their clients’ networks, servers, workstations, and other devices, ensuring that they are running smoothly and resolving any issues that may arise. RMM tools typically offer features such as remote access, patch management, software deployment, network monitoring, and asset inventory, among others. This technology helps MSPs deliver efficient and proactive IT support to their clients, minimising downtime and maximising productivity.

Centralised Access Management (CAM) refers to a system or approach that enables organisations to centrally manage and control access to their resources, systems, and applications. It provides a unified and centralised platform for managing user identities, authentication, authorisation, and access privileges across the entire organisation.

CAM systems typically involve the use of a centralised directory or identity management system that serves as a single source of truth for user identities and access permissions. This central repository stores user information, such as usernames, passwords, and access rights, and allows administrators to manage and enforce access policies consistently.

With CAM, organisations can streamline access management processes, improve security, and enhance user experience. Some key features and benefits of CAM include:

1. Single Sign-On (SSO): CAM enables users to access multiple applications and systems using a single set of credentials. This eliminates the need for users to remember multiple passwords, simplifies the login process, and improves productivity.

2. Centralised User Provisioning and De-provisioning: CAM allows administrators to provision and de-provision user accounts, roles, and access privileges from a central location. This ensures that users have the appropriate access rights based on their roles and responsibilities, reducing the risk of unauthorised access.

3. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): CAM systems often support RBAC, which involves assigning access permissions based on predefined roles within an organisation. This approach simplifies access management by associating users with specific roles and granting them the necessary permissions automatically.

4. Auditing and Compliance: CAM provides comprehensive audit logs and reporting capabilities, allowing organisations to track and monitor user activities, access requests, and changes to access privileges. This helps organisations meet compliance requirements and enables quick identification of any unauthorised access attempts or policy violations.

5. Enhanced Security: By centralising access management, CAM enables organisations to enforce consistent security policies and standards across all applications and systems. This helps prevent unauthorised access, reduce the risk of data breaches, and improve overall security posture.

6. Self-Service Access Requests: CAM systems often include self-service portals that allow users to request access to specific resources or applications. These requests can be automatically routed to the appropriate authorities for approval or denial, streamlining the access request process.

In summary, Centralised Access Management (CAM) provides organisations with a unified and centralised approach to managing user access to resources, systems, and applications. It simplifies access management processes, improves security, enhances compliance, and enables organisations to efficiently and effectively control access to their critical assets.

This is the process of backing up and protecting data in Microsoft 365, which includes popular applications such as Microsoft Outlook, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams. While Microsoft provides certain built-in data protection measures, such as redundancy and replication, they do not offer comprehensive backup and recovery capabilities for individual user data.

365 backup solutions are designed to fill this gap by offering additional layers of backup and recovery for Microsoft 365 data. These solutions typically provide features such as automated and regular backups, point-in-time restores, granular item-level recovery, long-term data retention, and the ability to recover data in case of accidental deletion, data corruption, or other data loss scenarios.

By implementing a 365 backup solution, organisations can ensure that their critical data in Microsoft 365 is protected and can be easily recovered if needed. This is particularly important as data loss can occur due to various reasons, including human error, malicious activities, sync issues, and software bugs.

It’s worth noting that while Microsoft 365 backup solutions offer an added layer of protection, they should not be considered a replacement for other data protection strategies such as regular system backups, robust security measures, and proper user training and awareness.

Next Generation Anti-Virus (NGAV) is an advanced cybersecurity solution that goes beyond traditional antivirus software to provide comprehensive protection against modern cyber threats. Unlike traditional antivirus solutions, which rely on signature-based detection to identify known malware, NGAV uses advanced techniques such as behaviour-based detection, machine learning algorithms, and real-time threat intelligence to detect and prevent sophisticated attacks:

Behaviour-based detection 

NGAV monitors the behaviour of files and processes on a system, looking for suspicious activity that may indicate the presence of malware. By analysing the behaviour of files in real-time, NGAV can identify and block malicious activity, even if the malware has not been seen before.

Machine learning algorithms 

NGAV leverages machine learning algorithms to analyse large amounts of data and identify patterns that may indicate the presence of malware. By continuously learning from new threats and evolving attack techniques, NGAV can adapt and improve its detection capabilities over time.

Real-time threat intelligence 

NGAV is constantly updated with real-time threat intelligence, which includes information about the latest malware strains, vulnerabilities, and attack vectors. This ensures that NGAV can detect and block new and emerging threats, providing organisations with up-to-date protection against the ever-evolving threat landscape.

Patch management is the process of acquiring, testing, and deploying software updates, or patches, to computer systems and applications to address security vulnerabilities, fix bugs, and improve overall system performance. Patches are typically released by software vendors to address known issues or vulnerabilities in their software products.

Patch management involves several steps:

1. Patch Identification: This step involves staying informed about the latest patches released by software vendors. This can be done by subscribing to vendor notifications, security advisories, and utilising vulnerability management tools.

2. Patch Assessment: Once patches are identified, they need to be evaluated to determine their relevance and impact on the organisation’s systems. This involves assessing the severity of the vulnerability, understanding the potential impact on system stability, and considering any compatibility issues.

3. Patch Testing: Before deploying patches to production systems, it is crucial to test them in a controlled environment to ensure they do not cause any unintended consequences or conflicts with existing software. Testing helps identify any compatibility issues or conflicts that may arise from applying the patch.

4. Patch Deployment: After successful testing, patches are deployed to the target systems. This can be done manually or using automated patch management tools that streamline the process by centrally managing and deploying patches across multiple systems.

5. Patch Verification and Monitoring: Once patches are deployed, it is essential to verify that they have been successfully applied and are functioning as intended. Ongoing monitoring is also necessary to detect any issues that may arise after the patch deployment.

Patch management is critical for maintaining the security and stability of computer systems, as it helps organisations stay protected against known vulnerabilities and exploits. It is a best practice to establish a well-defined patch management process to ensure timely and effective patching across all systems and applications.

MDR stands for Managed Detection and Response. It is a service offered by cybersecurity providers to help organisations detect, investigate, and respond to security incidents and threats. MDR combines advanced threat detection technologies, expert security analysts, and incident response capabilities to provide comprehensive and proactive security monitoring and management.

With MDR, organisations can outsource their security monitoring and incident response functions to a specialised team of cybersecurity professionals. These experts utilise a range of tools and techniques to continuously monitor an organisation’s network, endpoints, and cloud environments for signs of malicious activity.

MDR services typically include the following:

1. Threat Detection: MDR providers use a combination of threat intelligence, behavioural analytics, machine learning, and other advanced detection technologies to identify and prioritise potential security threats.

2. Incident Investigation: When a potential threat is detected, MDR analysts investigate the incident to determine its nature, scope, and potential impact. They analyse indicators of compromise (IOCs) and conduct forensic analysis to understand the attack vectors and methods used by threat actors.

3. Incident Response: MDR teams work closely with organisations to develop and execute an effective incident response plan. They contain and mitigate the impact of security incidents, working towards their eradication and recovery. This may involve isolating affected systems, removing malware, and restoring compromised data.

4. Threat Intelligence and Reporting: MDR providers offer insights into emerging threats, attack trends, and vulnerabilities. They provide regular reports on security incidents, including detailed analysis, recommendations, and guidance to enhance an organisation’s overall security posture.

MDR services help organisations improve their threat detection capabilities, reduce response times, and augment their internal security teams with external expertise. By leveraging specialised tools, skilled analysts, and industry-leading practices, MDR enables organisations to better protect their critical assets and data from evolving cyber threats.

A key component of Trustack’s Beyond support package is the inclusion and access to, an Incident Commander (IC) for when cyber incidents occur. The IC is responsible for leading and coordinating the response efforts during a cyber incident. The IC’s role is crucial in managing the incident, making critical decisions, and ensuring effective communication and collaboration among the response team members. 

Here are some key responsibilities and tasks the Incident Commander will manage during cyber security incidents:

• Incident management: The IC takes charge of the overall incident management process. They establish the incident command structure, define roles and responsibilities for team members, and oversee the execution of the incident response plan.
• Decision-making: The IC makes critical decisions throughout the incident response process, considering factors such as risk assessment, legal requirements, business impact, and resource availability. They prioritise actions and allocate resources accordingly.
• Incident containment and mitigation: The IC oversees the technical and operational activities aimed at containing the incident and minimising its impact. This involves coordinating with technical experts to identify and isolate affected systems, implement remediation measures, and prevent further spread of the incident.

The Trustack Incident Commander has a strong understanding of cybersecurity principles, incident response methodologies, and relevant regulations. They also possess leadership and decision-making skills, excellent communication and coordination abilities, and the capacity to remain calm and focused in high-pressure situations.