AppGuard
A Revolutionary Approach to Endpoint Cybersecurity

With a unique approach to preventing breaches from both known and unknown cyber threats, AppGuard provides an effective solution to the complex challenges of endpoint security. In an interview with CIO Applications, Jon Loew, CEO of AppGuard, discusses in detail about the company’s patented technology that prevents cybersecurity breaches.

Could you elaborate on your unique approach toward cybersecurity?

Conventional endpoint security solutions primarily rely on whitelisting and blacklisting to identify and assign a digital signature to malicious software before distributing it among other software agents globally in an attempt to stop it. However, this is not a sustainable practice due to the sheer magnitude of new threats unleashed daily. AppGuard does not depend on common detection methods and scanning to keep track of every individual threat that exists, but instead leverages its patented adaptive isolation technology to automatically block all non-policy conforming actions at the process level, thus preventing security breaches. AppGuard was originally developed for the government community by Blue Ridge Networks, a Virginia based cybersecurity solutions provider. In 2017, AppGuard was established as a joint venture with Blue Planet-works, a cybersecurity company based in Japan, to enter the private sector globally, backed by investments from major Japanese corporations.

Please explain the features and functionalities of AppGuard.

AppGuard provides a new level of breach prevention, it does not require constant critical security patch updates and does not disrupt the user experience nor degrade system performance. It ensures that attacks are blocked at the initial stages, thwarting unauthorized intrusions that lead to compromised workspace and system resources. The solution is scalable to over 100,000 endpoints and provides a central management architecture that is simple, elegant, and cloud efficient. AppGuard is immediately deployable on any endpoint system whether it is a laptop, desktop, smartphone, or server. We call it an automated endpoint security system because it requires little to no management after the initial configuration and setup, which, for large enterprises, typically take less than two weeks. For companies burdened with the oversight and continual management needed to operate security services, including Incident Response along with additional costs for software upgrades, AppGuard is a cost-effective, low maintenance alternative. Our system does not interfere with an enterprise’s existing security software, but instead works in tandem with it. We are proud to state that AppGuard is the only endpoint security product in the marketplace that is currently undefeated by any kind of attack.

What sets AppGuard apart from other cybersecurity solutions in the market?

The “Zero Trust” concept as a paradigm is quickly on the rise as cyber criminals violate virtually all aspects of endpoint protection. AppGuard accounts for the inherent vulnerability posed by the human element in cybersecurity by focusing on prevention rather than detection of malware. Employees in an organization unintentionally releasing malware, account for a majority of insider attacks. Our solution is designed to avoid dependency on end-users making the correct choice. It guards against all types of malicious code, threats including ransomware, phishing, botnets, weaponized documents, and DDoS attacks. Regardless of what a user decides to “click,” AppGuard prevents cyber attacks and files from being altered or deleted by any system running at an endpoint.

Instances of successful client engagements that you can share?

One of our clients, a global airline, needed a low maintenance endpoint solution that could function in instances of non-persistent virtual desktop infrastructure. The client also wanted to cut down on human resources and additional expenses associated with managing such a solution. AppGuard was a perfect fit with its automated, cost-effective, and less resource intensive solution and the client agreed to 40,000 licenses for worldwide deployment. We consider ourselves a cyber safety company and not necessarily a cybersecurity company, and this distinction was crucial in our discussions with the client. If your credit card information were stolen, it would result in a minor inconvenience, but if someone was to interfere with the functionality of an airplane, then that escalates to a major safety issue.
We had another client, a bank that was experiencing a significant amount of fraud related incidents and did not have the personnel or financial resources to update security at each endpoint. After a demonstration of AppGuard’s effectiveness in blocking a WannaCry ransomware attack on a laptop that had not received any kind of security update in two years, the client was certain that it had found a truly standalone autonomous protection solution.

How is the work culture at AppGuard?

At AppGuard, we encourage all our employees, at every level, to take ownership of any project that they are working on. We are a results-oriented company that does not resort to micromanagement, but rather provides an open arena to motivate employees and help them reach their goals.At the same time, our executive management behaves as coaches; we like to lead by example and help people complete their jobs. The work environment that we have created in our company has drawn like-minded people who believe that we are pursuing something that will have a global impact.

What is your roadmap for the future?

While our research and development teams in the U.S. and Japan continue to grow, we believe that we have reached a critical mass to not only adequately serve our existing clients but also cater to new ones. The diversification of our client base is a big milestone that we have achieved this year, along with several accolades from various publications and organizations. We also participated in several security conferences including the RSA Conference and the Black Hat. Moving forward, we are expanding our product offering to cater to different business sectors and will soon release our IoT security application in 2018. As I mentioned before, AppGuard considers itself a cyber safety company, prepared to provide innovative solutions that mitigate threats by securing endpoint systems.