Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption vs. Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption

Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption vs. Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption

Find out which endpoint protection product is right for your business.

Encryption concept

With the frequency and severity of cyberattacks rising, it’s increasingly important for businesses to take multipronged approaches to protect their organizations, networks and devices. Many decision-makers do that with endpoint protection (EPP) products.

These solutions prevent cybersecurity issues by checking files as they enter a network. The idea is that risky ones get detected and kept away from the devices they’d have otherwise infected.

It’s not always easy to determine which products in this category are best for your needs. However, Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption and Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption are two of the leading options. Here’s a breakdown of what to know about them.

How are these products similar?

Both Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption and Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption protect a wide range of devices typically used by businesses, ranging from Mac and PC laptops and desktops to removable media devices. They also have features that allow cybersecurity leaders to establish and enforce encryption policies across teams.

Both of these products also have automated features to facilitate policy reinforcement across the organization. The Broadcom Symantec product allows the automatic locking out of devices that can’t successfully connect to a network after a given period due to the failure to meet security minimums.

How are these products different?

When devices containing workplace files get stolen, it’s especially important to take quick action against what could happen once people have unauthorized access. Two standout features of Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption are the remote lock and remote kill options that people can rely on after discovering that someone lost a device or had it stolen. There is also a feature to remotely reset a device. A user could deploy any of these three choices even before the device in question boots up.

Both of these products have options to prevent data loss occurring from unauthorized movement off a company device or into a different location. However, the extent to which they offer it is slightly different.

Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption maintains logs of when users try to move sensitive content to removable devices. However, it does not automatically block that attempt. Instead, they see a customizable prompt that asks whether they would like to encrypt the file before moving it.

However, in the case of Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption, the product merely integrates with another product (Trend Micro Integrated Data Loss Prevention) to protect data at rest and in motion. This means a user would need to buy another Trend Micro product to get those preventive features.

Another differentiating factor is that Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Protection has a sandbox feature. It allows people to quarantine suspicious files from the rest of the network.

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What other features should you know about?

It’s also useful to learn about a few other things that’ll help you make an informed decision about these products. These specifics should be helpful as you weigh your company’s needs against the offerings.

Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption

  • Offers support for Apple FileVault and Microsoft BitLocker
  • Allows administrators to customize what happens to users after failed password attempts
  • Provides multiple administrative and user accounts per device for better flexibility
  • Enables creating policy-based encryption measures to match specific regulations
  • Gathers device-specific information based on aspects such as the CPU identifier and MAC address
  • Generates reports segmented by device, person and company department

Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption

  • Due to single sign-on functionality, users only need to enter their passwords once to gain access to the main system
  • Broadcom Symantec provides self-service and staffed help desk support for users who have forgotten their credentials
  • Compliance reporting is an out-of-the-box feature, helping organizations stay compliant with regulations
  • People using this program on removable media can insert the drive into any PC or Mac and continue receiving endpoint protection, even without this solution installed on that machine.

What are the possible downsides to consider?

Virtually every endpoint protection product you consider will have some potential disadvantages. Here are a few to keep in mind.

Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption

  • Some users say the user interface looks slightly outdated and could be more seamless to navigate
  • Initial configuration can be time-consuming, although users generally like the product after getting it set up

Broadcom Symantec Endpoint Encryption

  • File and folder-based encryption is not included with Endpoint Encryption, though is available separately through a different product
  • People report that it takes a long time to set up and configure, but they like the product’s effectiveness after getting through those early challenges

A downside relevant to both of these products is the lack of price transparency. Neither company displays pricing online, and you have to contact a sales representative to get specific details about costs for your organization.

Indeed, that’s a standard practice for many tech products. However, it could be a minor barrier for decision-makers that are particularly cost-conscious or on tight budgets and want a general idea of if the product is in their price range before doing more research about it.

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Which product will you choose?

In closing, there’s no universal “best” option for companies that need endpoint protection. Making the right decision for your circumstances requires understanding the primary needs your company has currently and the requirements that may arise soon. After that, consider making a list of must-have features for an endpoint protection solution and seeing which one of these products gets closest to the ideal.

Both of these possibilities have plenty of appealing features to help companies stay safer against cyberattacks. They also get updated frequently, which means desired functionality that is not available yet could be in the pipeline for a future release.

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