Thanks to Leonard Jayakumar, Product Specialist at ManageEngine, for walking me through Browser Security Plus, a browser management solution that helps organizations secure their corporate data in the cloud and protect networks from web-based cyberattacks. Browser Security Plus provides organizations with a layer of management capabilities for browsers and their add-ons to maintain enterprise security. This allows enterprises to improve network health by preventing, detecting, and fixing any browser vulnerabilities.

As modern web, portable computing devices and other technologies have enabled employees to work anywhere, there's been a surge in cloud adoption among organizations, and browsers have evolved to be silent entry points for accessing corporate data. According to Statista, browsers have accounted for 23.47 percent of exploit attacks in 2018 as of Q1. This has a serious impact on enterprise security, as attackers leverage unsecured browsers and web applications to create lasting business repercussions.

To address this need, ManageEngine has developed a comprehensive browser management solution that can secure multiple browsers, such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Edge, which is used in Windows environments, since 88.18 percent of desktops worldwide run on Windows, according to Net Market Share.

"Browsers have been considered just another application. With cloud applications pivoting the way business is done, browsers have become endpoints in and of themselves, capable of achieving functionalities of a number of native applications put together," said Jayakumar. "By managing browsers the same way they manage endpoints like desktops and mobile devices, enterprises can seal their network from possible attacks at its most used threshold."

Cyber Hygiene Practices Implemented in Browser Security Plus

Compliance: IT teams can set rules required by their organization and also monitor compliance with Security Technical Implementation Guidelines (STIG) and industry security standards predefined by the Center for Internet Security (CIS).

Policy deployment: Browser configurations are intelligently grouped into policies that address specific requirements, such as threat defense and data leakage prevention.

Add-on management: IT teams can provide and revoke access to browser add-ons, like extensions and plug-ins, based on their reliability and also silently push mission-critical extensions to computers from a central repository.

Browser isolation: Trusted websites and business applications are segregated from their untrusted counterparts. Untrusted sites are rendered in a virtual browser to ensure enterprise data remains secure.

Browser Security Plus covers all critical aspects of securing a browser - from obtaining visibility, enforcing security policies, and controlling access to ensuring compliance with enforced policies. The company also plans to extend its browser management capabilities to macOS, followed by other operating systems in the near future.

About Browser Security Plus

Browser Security Plus is an on-premises solution that enables IT administrators to manage and secure Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and Microsoft Edge browsers on Windows machines, enforcing security policies, controlling browser extensions and plug-ins, sandbox and lock down enterprise browsers, and establishing and ensuring compliance with configurations. 

Browser Security Plus is available here. A fully functional, 30-day trial is available, as well as the free edition for startups and small businesses to manage up to 25 computers.