Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust Improves Device Security with Absolute Secure Endpoint
Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust is an integrated organization providing acute health care services from Torbay Hospital, as well as community health services and adult social care. The Health Informatics Service provides support to the Trust, which includes Torbay Hospital as well as five community hospitals. The Trust collectively employs approximately 6,500 staff and, in a typical year, oversees 500,000 face-to-face contacts with patients in their homes and communities and sees over 78,000 people in its Emergency Department (A&E).
Establishing Visibility of All Devices
Endpoint security is a foundational part of protecting the thousands of devices leveraged by the staff of the Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust. As part of a review of its device management processes, the Trust turned to Absolute Secure Endpoint to identify unused and unprotected devices and improve overall security.
Using the patented Absolute Persistence® technology, which is embedded in the firmware of more than 600 million devices, the Trust launched an initiative to improve visibility across its laptop estate—comprised of approximately 6,000 devices in total.
By working with Absolute, we not only have the ability to ensure all endpoints are secure, protected, and updated, but we also have complete visibility into the status of our device estate. This means we can ensure each and every laptop is fully operational, and that unused devices can be quickly updated and returned for use.
How They Did It
Maximizing Device Resources with Geolocation
With Absolute Secure Endpoint’s geolocation and device tracking capabilities, it became clear that approximately 100 laptops were inactive or unused within the Trust’s network. These laptops were quickly retrieved, updated, and re-deployed for use, saving the Trust thousands of pounds and helping to maximize resources. In addition, the Trust established a system whereby inactive devices that remain unused for a period of 30 days automatically lock.
Keeping Cyber Protections Installed and Up-to-Date
The Trust can now quickly update security scripts across the entire Windows device estate, meaning it can ensure encryption and cyber protection systems are installed, up-to-date, and running.
Ensuring Compliance with Mandatory DSPT Requirements
Furthermore, the IT team has full visibility into the status of the device fleet that is connected to or is off the corporate network, allowing the Trust to comply with the mandatory Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) requirements by ensuring that devices are secure at all times. In the event of a lost or stolen device, they can take action by locking the device and, if needed, deleting any sensitive files or wiping the device fully to meet NIST standards. The Trust can also produce a certificate to confirm the data wipe and can prove encryption was present at the time of loss or theft.
Managing a large fleet of laptop devices - each containing critical confidential data - is an incredibly challenging task and we take information security extremely seriously.
Improve Security with Complete Visibility
Unidentified and unprotected devices increase the risk of cyberattacks. With Absolute Secure Endpoint, the Trust has complete visibility into the status of its device fleet, allowing them to ensure every device is fully operational, updated, and protected.
For Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, Absolute Secure Endpoint:
- Identified approximately 100 laptops that were inactive or unused within the Trust’s network and quickly retrieved, updated, and re-deployed them for use
- Establishes a policy whereby inactive devices that remain unused for a period of 30 days automatically lock
- Quickly updates security scripts across the entire Windows device estate and ensure encryption and cyber protection systems are installed, up-to-date, and running
- Provides full visibility into the status of the device fleet that is connected to or is off the corporate network, allowing the Trust to comply with DSPT requirements by ensuring that devices are secure
