Application Whitelisting works by specifying which applications can execute (The Whitelist) leaving everything else implicitly or explicitly denied (The Blacklist). Granted, there will always be some that fall in the middle (The Greylist) but those should be reserved for administrative decision.

While the ability to monitor network traffic in and out of your network, sometimes known as North-South traffic, is well known, understood, and managed, there is a greater risk that is more challenging. Monitoring the traffic inside of your network that never leaves the boundaries of your systems, also sometimes known as the East-West traffic, can be very difficult.

Data is the gold rush of this century, and it represents a tremendous amount of value to those that have it and those that want it. Data can be anything from personally identifiable information to intellectual property to a strategic advantage to information about vulnerabilities in systems. In the right hands, it represents incredible strength and advantages. In the wrong hands, it causes significant harm and disadvantage. It makes sense to take reasonable steps in safeguarding your data.