What’s the Difference Between EDR and MDR?
Understanding the key differences between EDR and MDR can unlock their full value and reveal how, when effectively integrated, they work together to fortify your security posture. By understandingg these distinctions, you’ll see how each approach uniquely contributes to a more resilient defense strategy.
EDR is software
[Related Reading: What Is Endpoint Detection and Response?]
MDR is a service
MDR is a service that provides continuous monitoring, prioritization, and response to cyber threats, driven by expert analysts. When integrated with EDR solutions, MDR enhances analysts’ capabilities, enabling them to take specific actions on endpoints. These actions include collecting data to better assess threats—such as retrieving information on active services, applications, logged-in users, and local files—or executing containment measures like quarantining files or shutting down services.
By combining the core principles of network security monitoring with advanced detection and prevention tools, MDR providers strengthen security postures and broaden threat coverage from network monitoring to endpoint protection.
Better Together
While they are two different security solutions, they integrate to fill in security and resource gaps. Simply put, MDR can leverage EDR’s technologies to enhance its threat detection, analysis, and response capabilities.
Fortra’s Alert Logic knows the risk your organization faces from all sides, every day. Our endpoint security monitors and isolates endpoint attacks at the earliest opportunity. With scalable pricing and an expert security operations team, you can count on us to make cybersecurity easy for you.
