Insights from CISA’s red team findings and the evolution of EDR

A recent CISA red team assessment of a United States critical infrastructure organization revealed systemic vulnerabilities in modern cybersecurity. Among the most pressing issues was a heavy reliance on endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions, paired with a lack of network-level protections.

These findings underscore a familiar challenge: Why do organizations place so much trust in EDR alone, and what must change to address its shortcomings?

A cornerstone of cyber resilience strategy, EDR solutions are prized for their ability to monitor endpoints for malicious activity. But as the CISA report demonstrated, this reliance can become a liability when paired with inadequate network defenses. Here’s why:

1. Tunnel vision on endpoints: EDR excels at identifying threats on individual devices but struggles with network-wide attacks. This leaves gaps when hackers exploit lateral movement or unusual data transfers — activities that often require network-level visibility to detect.
2. Playing catch-up with threats: Traditional EDR tools depend on recognizing known indicators of compromise (IOCs). Advanced attackers can easily sidestep these tools by using novel techniques or blending in with legitimate activity.
3. Blind spots in legacy systems: Legacy environments often go unnoticed by EDR, giving attackers free rein. In the CISA case, these systems allowed the red team to persist for months undetected.
4. Overwhelmed defenders: Even when EDR generates alerts, security teams can become desensitized by a flood of notifications. As seen in the CISA assessment, critical warnings can slip through the cracks simply because defenders are too stretched to respond.

The challenges highlighted in the CISA report mirror broader issues organizations face with EDR:

• Detection without context: EDR tools often spot anomalies on endpoints but fail to connect the dots across the broader network. This lack of context can leave organizations blind to coordinated attacks.
• Weak network integration: Without network-layer defenses, EDR struggles to identify malicious activities like unusual traffic patterns or data exfiltration, key tactics in advanced breaches.
• Fragmented systems: Many organizations operate a patchwork of security tools, leaving critical gaps in coverage and making it harder to correlate data across endpoints, networks and cloud environments.

Recognizing these shortcomings, cybersecurity is rapidly evolving beyond traditional EDR. Here’s how:

1. Extended detection and response (XDR): XDR takes EDR to the next level by integrating endpoint, network and cloud data into a single platform. This broader scope allows organizations to see the full attack picture and respond more effectively.
2. AI-driven insights: Cutting-edge EDR solutions now harness machine learning to detect subtle behavioral anomalies. By identifying deviations from normal activity, these tools catch threats even when no IOCs exist.
3. Zero trust security: Zero trust architectures take endpoint defense a step further by ensuring no device or user is trusted by default. This integration of endpoint, identity and network security reduces dependence on EDR alone.
4. Network visibility: Modern EDR tools are incorporating network traffic analysis to close the gaps identified in the CISA report. Monitoring traffic for anomalies, such as unusual data flows or external connections, bolsters defenses.
5. Cloud-native solutions: As businesses embrace hybrid and cloud environments, EDR is evolving to provide seamless coverage across on-premises and cloud systems, addressing vulnerabilities in these critical areas.

Even with these advancements, many organizations struggle to fully address EDR’s limitations:

• Resource strains: Small security teams often lack the bandwidth or expertise to implement and manage advanced solutions like XDR.
• Budget constraints: Upgrading to integrated platforms or modernizing legacy systems can be costly.
• Legacy challenges: Outdated environments remain vulnerable, acting as weak points that attackers can exploit.
• Leadership missteps: As the CISA report pointed out, organizations sometimes deprioritize known vulnerabilities, leaving critical gaps unaddressed.

The CISA red team findings are a wake-up call: Endpoint protection alone is no longer enough. To outsmart today’s sophisticated adversaries, organizations must adopt a layered defense strategy that integrates endpoint, network and cloud security. Solutions like XDR, zero trust principles and advanced behavioral analysis offer a path forward — but they require strategic investments and cultural shifts.