Prague, Czech Republic, May 25 ,2022 — Avast (LSE:AVST), a global leader in digital security and privacy, is planning a major update for existing Avast Business Antivirus Pro Plus customers. From May 23rd, Avast Business Antivirus Pro Plus customers will be automatically upgraded to the Avast Ultimate Business Security product for free until the subscription expiration date. Avast Ultimate Business Security is part of Avast Small Business Solutions, which includes a comprehensive patch management service for keeping systems up-to-date and safe.
The more one's business grows, the more digital security is required. Avast Ultimate Business Security offers simple, powerful, and affordable online security that small and medium-sized businesses can rely on for protection, without any extensive maintenance required. The product combines award-winning antivirus, data protection tools, and automated patch management - keeping all devices and applications up-to-date and secure.
Customers can keep their Ultimate Business Security managed in the Business Hub, Avast’s integrated, cloud-based security platform. The Business Hub helps businesses manage all Avast Business solutions deployed in their networks. It provides real-time visibility of threats, comprehensive reporting, and management capabilities, all from a single pane of glass.
Another advantage for SMBs is having Avast Patch Management included with their Ultimate Business Security. Patch Management automates the patching process to save time and money. It simplifies installation and configuration and uses powerful, automated discovery and deployment features to keep businesses safe and compliant with industry regulations and business requirements.
Fifty-seven percent of data breaches can be attributed to poor patch management, and 86 percent of reported vulnerabilities are found in third-party applications. Avast identified a total of 1,963 patches for all devices in Patch Management in April 2022 alone, of which 1,126 were security patches containing vulnerabilities that could potentially be exploited by hackers. For each individual device in Patch Management, Avast identified an average of 9.5 patches (6.2 security patches) in April 2022 that needed to be applied. Avast has one of the largest catalogs of supported third-party applications, automating the patching process not only for Microsoft Windows but for hundreds of popular applications like Slack, Dropbox, Google Chrome, Java, Adobe, and Zoom. Some of the security patches found on Windows devices newly enrolled in the patch management service were even over a year old. This means that the affected devices were vulnerable for a long time, since the longer the patch is not installed, the longer the vulnerability is present on the end device.
"Patches should always be installed as soon as possible - at the latest within the first 14 days of their release, according to industry recommendations. However, 74 percent of companies cannot patch fast enough because they do not have enough staff," explains Filip Hlinka, VP of Product, Avast Business. "Including Patch Management in Ultimate Business Security allows companies to automate this process and always have the assurance that security vulnerabilities are fixed as quickly as possible. This provides a significant security advantage, especially for small and medium-sized businesses that do not have a large IT department."
1 Ponemon
2 National Vulnerability Database