Proofpoint unveils new security features

Proofpoint has announced an expansion of its platform capabilities at its Protect conference in New York.

These enhancements aim at providing broader, adaptive human-centric security controls to safeguard organisations from a range of threats, including those targeting messaging, collaboration, and social media apps. The expanded capabilities are designed to stop threats, prevent account takeovers, protect information, and encourage safer behaviour among users.

The new offerings leverage two proprietary platform elements: Proofpoint Nexus and Proofpoint Zen. Nexus employs artificial intelligence, behavioural analysis, and threat detection to identify and mitigate risks, whereas Zen encompasses technologies that deliver protection across email, collaboration apps, the web, and data. Together, these components offer an integrated experience for end-users and security professionals.

Sumit Dhawan, CEO of Proofpoint, explained the rationale behind the new capabilities: "From ransomware to Business Email Compromise to data loss, the most damaging cyber risks all centre around humans and their identities. But human risk is difficult to tackle as we all work across email, collaboration apps, the cloud, and the web, creating threat risk, identity sprawl, and data exposure in new ways. Proofpoint pioneered human-centric security, and now we're redefining it by bringing together previously disparate processes and technologies into one unified platform to protect new digital channels, reduce risk for organisations, and better guide users in real-time, every day."

One of the key features announced is Proofpoint Collab Protection, which guards against targeted threats across various messaging, collaboration, and social media platforms such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and LinkedIn. Utilising the new ZenWeb browser extension, the solution provides advanced threat protection by blocking malicious URLs in real-time. This feature is deployable across multiple browsers, including Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Apple Safari.

The platform also addresses the challenge of securing SaaS applications and preventing account takeovers with Proofpoint Posture Management. Corporate identities are increasingly exploited by threat actors to hijack cloud accounts and exfiltrate data. According to Proofpoint, 96% of organisations have been targeted for cloud account takeover. Proofpoint Nexus aims to map user identity sprawl and common attack paths to detect configuration anomalies and prevent unauthorised access.

In addition to external threats, the platform includes features to mitigate insider risks. The Adaptive Information Protection function allows security teams to automate responses to risky user behaviour, making it possible to manage insider threats proactively rather than reactively. This capability shifts the focus from building manual policies to automating responses based on an individual's actions.

The platform's new GenAI protections are intended to help organisations deal with sensitive information that may be exposed when employees use generative AI tools for tasks such as summarising meeting transcripts or writing code. Proofpoint's new intent-aware GenAI protection helps identify and safeguard both structured and unstructured data from being overshared, while also educating end users through compliance notifications.

The company also aims to shift from traditional security awareness programmes to fostering sustained behavioural change among employees. Sumit Dhawan noted that traditional programmes are not wholly effective, pointing to research showing that 68% of employees still engage in risky behaviours despite the existence of security awareness initiatives. Proofpoint's new ZenGuide, previously known as Proofpoint Security Awareness Training, seeks to address this by personalising learning paths based on individual risk profiles and behaviours, thereby reducing risky actions through targeted, contextual education.

Proofpoint's expanded platform capabilities will be showcased at the company's Protect event series. Key components like Proofpoint's Collab Protection and Proofpoint Posture Management are expected to be available globally by the first half of 2025, while the Adaptive Information Protection is set for release in September 2024.