NDR (Network Detection and Response)
NDR (Network Detection and Response) is a category of security solutions that monitor network traffic in real-time, using AI and machine learning to detect anomalies, threats, and suspicious activities such as lateral movement or data exfiltration.
What is NDR?
NDR (Network Detection and Response) is a category of security solutions that monitor network traffic in real-time, using artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect anomalies and threats.
What NDR means in practice: analyzing traffic between devices instead of agent data — which is why NDR also sees devices that cannot run an EDR agent, such as IoT. How NDR works with EDR, which attacks it detects and where the sensors go is covered in Network Detection and Response (NDR): why is network visibility critical to security?. Network traffic as a data source — alongside logs and endpoint telemetry — is used by the Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service.
How Does NDR Work?
NDR systems analyze network traffic (north-south and east-west) without the need to install agents on endpoints:
- Data Collection: Passive copying of network traffic (mirror port, TAP)
- Behavioral Analysis: Building a baseline of normal network behavior
- Anomaly Detection: Detecting deviations from the norm using ML/AI
- Event Correlation: Linking related alerts into incidents
- Response: Automatic or manual response to threats
What Does NDR Detect?
- Lateral Movement: Attacker’s sideways movement within the network
- Data Exfiltration: Unauthorized external data transfer
- Command & Control: Communication with C2 servers
- Malware: Malicious software based on network behavior
- Insider Threats: Suspicious activities by internal users
- Reconnaissance: Network scanning by attackers
NDR vs Other Solutions
| Solution | Monitoring Scope | Method |
|---|---|---|
| NDR | Network traffic | Behavioral analysis |
| EDR | Endpoints | Device agent |
| SIEM | Logs from multiple sources | Event correlation |
| IDS/IPS | Network traffic | Signatures |
Advantages of NDR
- Threat detection without agents
- East-west traffic visibility (lateral movement)
- Effectiveness against zero-day and advanced attacks
- Integration with SIEM, SOAR, EDR
- Forensics - complete network traffic history
Popular NDR Solutions
- Darktrace
- Vectra AI
- ExtraHop
- Cisco Secure Network Analytics (Stealthwatch)
- Microsoft Defender for Identity
When to Implement NDR?
NDR is particularly valuable when:
- The organization has a complex network with multiple segments
- There is a risk of APT attacks and lateral movement
- Visibility in OT/IoT environments is needed
- SOC requires an additional detection source
Learn more
- What Is a LAN Network? Architecture, Security, and Network Segmentation
- XDR Platforms: Incident Detection and Response in Cybersecurity