GRTech
Sophos Positioned a Leader in the 2023 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms for the 14th Consecutive Time


Sophos, a global leader in innovating and delivering cybersecurity as a service, has announced that it is positioned as a Leader in the 2023 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP), marking the 14th consecutive time the company has been a Leader in the report.
“We believe Gartner recognized Sophos again, due to our market-leading and flagship EPP solution, a Leader in this Magic Quadrant because we are consistently innovating our protection-first technologies to defeat current and changing cyberattacks,” said Raja Patel, chief product officer at Sophos. “Security vendors cannot stay static. There’s too much at stake. Adversaries will always look for the easiest and newest ways to avoid detection or take advantage of misconfigurations and other security gaps to reach their endgame. That’s why we always prioritize adaptive and preventative EPP defenses for our customers.”
Sophos Intercept X defends more than 300,000 organizations from ransomware, exploited software vulnerabilities and other modern cyberattacks, and leverages deep learning artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance protections. Intercept X includes the industry-first Adaptive Attack Protection, which automatically disrupts in-progress attacks and dynamically puts “shields up” to give defenders valuable additional time to respond to an intrusion. The Account Health Check capability also identifies security posture drift and misconfigurations, and provides the ability to remediate these issues with one click.
Sophos Intercept X with Extended Detection and Response (XDR) integrates telemetry sources from numerous technology and security providers, including Microsoft, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, Cisco Systems, Fortinet, Check Point, Duo, Proofpoint, Darktrace, and many others, through the Sophos Marketplace. Enhanced security operations and analyst workflow and case management features collate redundant alerts, offer complete visibility from a single console and reduce workloads with automated responses.
Already this year, Sophos was named a Customers’ Choice in the Gartner® Peer Insights™ Voice of the Customer for Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP) report. Sophos was the only vendor recognized as a Customer’s Choice across EPP, managed detection and response (MDR), network firewalls, and mobile threat defense. Like Intercept X, Sophos MDR is recognized and is the most reviewed MDR solution on Gartner Peer Insights and G2. As the most widely used MDR offering with more than 19,000 customers, Sophos MDR is the only MDR service that can be delivered across end users’ existing third-party security deployments as well as Sophos offerings.
Managed in the cloud-native Sophos Central platform, Sophos’ portfolio solutions are part of the Sophos Adaptive Cybersecurity Ecosystem, where security data is collected, correlated and enriched with additional context to enable automatic and synchronized responses to active threats. This platform is further optimized by Sophos X-Ops’ real-time and historical threat intelligence and expertise.
Download a complimentary copy of the 2023 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms report.


With Black Friday and Cyber Monday around the corner, we’re entering a high-risk period for cybersecurity.
A recent Sophos report highlights that malicious emails were the second most common root cause of ransomware attacks in critical sectors, responsible for 25% of cases.
During peak shopping days, this threat intensifies.
Here’s what happens: with the surge in online deals, more employees may be shopping from their work computers, feeling that Cyber Monday is a legitimate time to do so.
This increases the risk of them clicking more freely and potentially exposing the organization to malicious links or phishing attacks.
To keep your organization safe, encourage your team to follow these simple tips:
• Use an ad blocker – Advertisements are not only tracking your every movement and collecting enough information on your habits to make the FBI blush, but they are also a major source of malicious links and deceptive content on the internet. Not only is your browsing safer, but also faster and uses less bandwidth. Two of our favorites are uBlock Origin and Ghostery.
• Use private browsing or incognito mode – To prevent your shopping habits and interests from following you around from site to site (and potentially revealing what gifts you might be purchasing to others using your device, bonus!), you should enable private browsing (Firefox) or incognito mode (Chrome). This will block tracking cookies and help the internet forget your travels as the waves wash away your footprints in the sand.
• Make your browser “privacy smart” – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) provides a browser extension called Privacy Badger designed to automatically make all the right choices around browsing whilst maintaining our privacy and blocking invisible trackers.
• Avoid using one account on multiple services – When logging into an e-commerce site it is often tempting to use the “Sign in with Facebook” or “Sign in with Google” button. While it takes a few more minutes to create a new login, it will provide more privacy as you are not sharing all of the sites you shop at with these tech giants.
• Use guest login when available – In addition to letting you use an account from other websites, many have an option to use a guest login rather than creating a new account. This is a great option if you don’t expect to need technical support or to do business on a recurring basis. Fewer passwords, fewer personal details, fewer problems if they get hacked.
• Don’t save card details – Many e-commerce sites will default to storing your credit card information in your profile for your “convenience” (or their hope you’ll shop there again). They can’t lose what they don’t have, so tell them not to store your credit card unless it is absolutely necessary.
• Use temporary card numbers – Many financial institutions now offer temporary or one-time use credit card numbers. You can open the app on your phone or in your browser and get a single-use disposable credit card number preventing card fraud and tracking when merchants share card processors. Sometimes you’re even able to specify a card limit per temporary number to further protect your account.
• Use credit, not debit – All of us need to be wary of overspending during the holidays, but it is best to leave the debit card at home. Credit cards offer significantly more protection against online fraud, and you are in the power position in a dispute. You can simply not pay your bill while disputing the charge, rather than having criminals directly drain your bank account of your hard-earned cash.
• Beware of direct messages via social media/chat apps – With modern generative AI technology it is almost trivial to create an entire fake online store and lure people to share their personal information and payment data with you. It’s safest to shop at established sites or those personally recommended to you by friends and family. Many unsolicited messages lead to data collection or theft.
• Don’t click deals in email that look too good to be true or are from businesses you don’t have accounts from – these could be phishing emails hoping to bait you into clicking links to bogus, malicious web sites.
This season, small steps can make a big difference in protecting against cyber threats.
GRTech
It’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month and Sophos has Some Tips for You!
In the mood of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Christopher Budd, Director Sophos X-Ops, has compiled some tips for staying secure online.




Cybersecurity Pro Tips:
- Face Scans and Fingerprints are Safer Than Passcodes: Use features like Face ID or fingerprint scans for your devices as much as possible. These are safer than passcodes and devices have good built-in protections for this sensitive information.
- Use Multi-Factor Authentication: Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) whenever possible. This gives an important extra layer of security that makes it harder for cybercriminals to access your accounts. If you can’t use something more secure like secure authenticator applications or physical hardware security keys, use your phone number — it’s safer than using nothing. If you use MFA for only one thing, use it for your email: that’s what attackers want the most.
- Think Before You Share Publicly: Think twice before sharing any information publicly –cybercriminals can use it to access your accounts or to convince someone that they’re you.
- Think about those cute surveys on Facebook with questions about your first car, city you were born in: these are the same kinds of info cybercriminals can use to pretend they’re you and log into and take over your accounts.
- You Don’t Always Need (to keep) the App: Don’t feel pressured to download an app every time: you can often use the service’s website just as well. Apps collect much more data than websites, including your location, your contact list and other info you might not want to share.If you do download an app, think about deleting it when you’re done using it: you can always reinstall it next time you need it.
- Apps from app stores and websites that aren’t the official big names ones like Google Play, Apple’s App Store, Samsung’s Galaxy Store can be very risky. The official stores have security and privacy standards that can identify malicious activity. Always stick to official sources for downloading apps or, if they’re not on the official app stores, download the app from the developer’s official website or use the app’s web version.
- Be On Your Guard for Unexpected Emails and Text Messages: Phishing continues to be one of the most effective tactics cybercriminals use to compromise consumers. If you get an unexpected email or text message, ignore it or at least don’t interact with it (don’t open attachments, don’t click on links). If you think it might be legitimate, reach out directly to who you think sent it and check with them.
- Question Urgency in Emails and Calls: Cybercriminals use urgency to get you to let your guard down and make bad decisions. If someone contacts you saying they’re from a trusted organization like the IRS, police or your bank and need you to take action quickly or something bad will happen, stop and question it. Go to the trusted source like the number on the back of your credit card to independently validate the request.
- Practice Good Password Security: Every account should have its own unique complex password. A strong password is at least 12 characters long with a mix of numbers, upper- and lower-case letters, and punctuation characters. Passwords should not be based on any personal information, and the best ones use a phrase rather than single words. If these passwords are too tough to juggle, try a password manager to stay organized.
- Keep Everything Updated and Run Security Tools. Make sure all your apps and devices are always fully updated. Be sure to have some sort of security software on all of your phones and computers (even if you have a Mac).
- Get Rid of End-of-Life Devices and Software: Everything from operating systems to services to Wi-Fi routers “go stale” and must be replaced eventually. For example, it might surprise you, but your internet router is typically only supported with patches and updates for a few years after you get it. Attackers love out-of-date devices. When something is “out of support” it’s stale: get rid of it and replace it with something fresh.
- Back Up Your Data: While ransomware groups are mostly after businesses that can pay higher ransoms, they still go after people at home. It’s still important to have your data backed up so that you don’t have to consider paying a ransom.
Put Your Mind at Ease Regarding These Cybersecurity Concerns
Part of staying secure requires being able to filter out the noise and prioritize the security actions that matter. Here are things notto worry about. Focus your energy on real risks, not exaggerated threats.
- Public Wi-Fi is Safer Than You Think: Contrary to outdated advice, public Wi-Fi is generally safe due to encryption used by most websites and apps. Use it freely at airports or coffee shops, but avoid sensitive activities.
- Beware of Fearmongering Around New Tech Features: Not every new technology is as risky as it’s made out to be. For example, Apple’s NameDrop feature is generally safe and requires specific conditions to function. However, if you’re concerned, you can easily turn it off in settings.
Stop Stressing Over Public Chargers: The risk of “juice jacking” (data theft from public chargers) is extremely low. Don’t worry about using public phone chargers — just focus on real, more prevalent threats.


eSocialMint Inc., a tech startup based in Houston, is hoping to revolutionize social and professional events with its innovative new app.
Scheduled for launch in Nigeria at the end of the year, eSocialMint (eSM) offers a comprehensive platform that integrates features from popular apps like Facebook, TikTok, Zoom, WhatsApp, and Snapchat.
Designed to transform how events are conducted and experienced, eSM combines social media technology with advanced features such as virtual hologram technology.
Developed by IT architect Fisayo Olamigoke, eSM is available on both web and mobile devices. It offers a range of functionalities, including team events, social events, advertising, an eStore, and the unique “eSprayMe” feature.
This feature allows users to virtually spray money at events, replicating a popular Nigerian cultural practice while adhering to legal regulations.
Targeted at professionals, personal users, public institutions, and governmental bodies, eSM aims to save time and money by reducing the need for physical travel. With its cutting-edge technology and user-friendly interface, eSocialMint is poised to redefine the future of virtual interactions.