Security can’t be set aside for later. Protecting your devices and endpoints is essential, which means they need the latest security patches and updates to defend against threats and vulnerabilities. Real-time patching makes this not only possible, but easy and convenient.
As workforces grow more remote and businesses embrace Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies, cybersecurity threats have evolved to match. Organizations must keep their devices and applications properly patched to safeguard distributed environments, which requires tools that can both automate patch rollouts and work across remote endpoints.
With that in mind, let’s examine real-time patching, why it matters, and how solutions like Splashtop AEM make it possible.
Why Traditional Patching Is Insufficient
The first question many will ask is: What’s wrong with manual patching? While it may seem like manually patching devices takes little more than clicking an “update” button and calling it a day, managing patches across large and remote endpoint environments can be a challenge and prone to error.
Traditional patch management has several setbacks that can delay patching and leave security vulnerabilities unaddressed, including:
Delayed deployment: Manually patching endpoints and applications can be a time-consuming process that often interrupts work. As a result, it’s often delayed, either intentionally to avoid interruptions or unintentionally as other endpoints are updated first.
Manual oversight: When organizations have multiple endpoints to manage, manually updating each one can be time-consuming and prone to human error. Real-time automation tools can eliminate the need for manual oversight by automatically detecting and rolling out patch updates across endpoints.
Inconsistent compliance: Manual patching can also lead to inconsistent patching across endpoints, as devices are skipped or missed. This risks leaving devices vulnerable and open to exploitation, providing cyber threats with an easy point of access.
Vulnerabilities exploited before patching: Patches are designed to close known and newly discovered vulnerabilities, and if programmers are aware of the vulnerabilities to address, attackers likely are too. Waiting to install a patch runs the risk of letting attackers through, and once they exploit a vulnerability, patching it won’t undo the damage they can cause.
How Delayed Patching Fuels Data Breaches & Compliance Failures
Nearly everyone has seen an update notification pop up on their device and selected “Remind Me Later” at least once, if not more. After all, patch updates can take time and interrupt a busy workday, so delaying them for a better time seems reasonable. Of course, they then delay it again the next time it pops up, then the time after that, and so on.
Postponing patches can be incredibly risky. It leaves systems exposed to known vulnerabilities, which hackers, cyber attackers, and other bad actors can easily exploit. This leads to an increased likelihood of data breaches and failure to meet security compliance standards.
Timely updates are essential for maintaining security. Not only does keeping devices and applications patched reduce vulnerabilities and attack surfaces, but it’s also a requirement for many IT compliance and regulatory standards.
From Detection to Defense: How Real-Time Patching Secures Endpoints
Fortunately, these issues and risks can easily be avoided with real-time patching. Automatically patching apps and endpoints as soon as updates become available helps close the gap between vulnerability detection and threat exploitation, as it keeps devices up to date without needing manual intervention.
This essentially shifts patching from a reactive, manual task to a proactive, automatic defense. With a solution like Splashtop AEM (Autonomous Endpoint Management), you’ll know as soon as a patch becomes available, then schedule and deploy the patch across distributed endpoints without needing to update each device. Splashtop AEM can even schedule automatic updates to the most convenient times, thus avoiding interruptions.
As a result, endpoints can remain continuously protected without interrupting business processes or taking up the IT team’s day.
Why Real-Time Patching Matters for IT & Uptime
With that in mind, let’s examine some of the benefits of real-time patching, particularly regarding its impact on IT teams and business productivity. In addition to enhanced security, real-time patching brings multiple benefits to IT teams and businesses, including:
Improved compliance: Security standards and regulations typically require that devices and applications remain fully updated and patched to keep them protected against known vulnerabilities. Real-time patching helps ensure that endpoints are patched as quickly as possible, ensuring regulatory compliance.
Reduced downtime: Patching can take time, which means that manual patching can slow down work as employees wait for patches to install and reboot their devices. Real-time patching can automate patch installations, scheduling them for a more convenient time that won’t interrupt work.
Less burden on IT teams: Manual patching can be a repetitive, time-consuming process for IT teams, especially when they need to update multiple remote endpoints. Real-time patching and automation tools can eliminate this burden by automatically scheduling and installing patches, freeing up IT teams to address more immediate concerns.
Increased productivity: When you have better security, the latest updates, less downtime, and a readily available IT team, it’s only natural that productivity will improve. Real-time patching frees time for employees and IT teams alike to focus on their work without distractions and helps keep their devices safe, leading to improved efficiency across an organization.
Real-Time Patching: The Future of Remote IT Environments
Real-time patching isn’t just a “nice to have” feature; it’s a necessity for future-ready security strategies, especially given the rise of hybrid and remote work, BYOD environments, and the Internet of Things (IoT).
Continuous and automated protection is essential for supporting hybrid and remote workforces, as any unprotected endpoint or outdated application can jeopardize not only devices, but your entire network. Employees must be able to work from the devices they prefer and from any location without taking security risks, which requires proper patching and up-to-date security.
At the same time, it’s important to use a patching solution that can scale easily, keeping up with your growth as new devices join your network. This helps ensure that you can maintain proper patching and updates for all your employees and endpoints, regardless of how your environment changes or what devices connect.
Adopting scalable, automated, real-time patching does more than reduce risk. It future-proofs your cybersecurity posture, so you can keep your endpoints updated and secure no matter where your employees work.
Real-Time Patching with Splashtop AEM: Reduce Downtime, Strengthen Security
If you’re looking for a robust, powerful solution with real-time patching and automated endpoint protection, Splashtop AEM (Autonomous Endpoint Management) has everything you need and more. With Splashtop AEM, you can automatically detect and deploy patches across distributed endpoint environments, along with CVE-based vulnerability insights powered by AI, proactive alerts, and automated fixes via Smart Actions..
Splashtop AEM’s automated patch management protects against vulnerabilities and keeps security up to date by automating updates for operating systems and third-party software. As soon as a patch is available, Splashtop AEM can begin scheduling and deploying the patch across remote endpoints, keeping systems secure in real-time without requiring IT teams to update each device manually.
As a result, Splashtop AEM can rapidly deploy security updates, address vulnerabilities across devices, and ensure uninterrupted operations, even for remote teams.
Splashtop AEM gives IT teams the tools and technology they need to monitor endpoints, proactively address issues, and reduce their workloads. This includes:
Automated patching for OS, third-party, and custom apps.
AI-powered CVE-based vulnerability insights.
Customizable policy frameworks.
Inventory tracking and management across all endpoints
Alerts and remediation to automatically resolve issues.
Background actions for troubleshooting and system management without disrupting end users.
Want to experience Splashtop AEM for yourself? Get started today with a free trial.
