Horizon3.ai has launched Endpoint Security Effectiveness (ESE) within its NodeZero® Offensive Security Platform, announced on August 28, 2025. This feature provides security teams with evidence-based insights into their Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools’ performance against real-world attacker tactics, addressing critical gaps in traditional EDR metrics.
Horizon3.ai introduces ESE in NodeZero® to evaluate EDR effectiveness.
Analyzed 7,000+ RAT installation attempts, revealing EDR bypass vulnerabilities.
97% of bypasses used stolen credentials, not software exploits.
Median compromise time: 3 minutes; Linux attacks as fast as 20 seconds.
ESE healthcheck simulates attacker behavior without disrupting operations.
Enables teams to tune EDRs and validate fixes for proactive security.
Horizon3.ai’s Endpoint Security Effectiveness (ESE) feature, integrated into the NodeZero® platform, enables organizations to test their EDR tools in live environments safely. Unlike traditional metrics like agent installation checks, ESE simulates real-world attacker tactics, such as credential-based intrusions, to reveal blind spots. “Our research shows that credential-based attacks can bypass EDRs in minutes, often undetected,” said Snehal Antani, CEO and Co-founder of Horizon3.ai. This capability aims to maximize EDR investment returns by providing actionable insights.
Analysis of over 7,000 NodeZero remote access tool (RAT) installation attempts showed that 97% of EDR bypasses relied on stolen credentials rather than software vulnerabilities. Once inside, attackers completed critical actions like data collection in a median of 3 minutes, with Linux compromises as quick as 20 seconds. These findings expose the limitations of static signature-based EDRs and inconsistent behavioral triggers, which fail to detect sophisticated credential-driven attacks.
The ESE healthcheck transforms every NodeZero pentest into a controlled EDR evaluation, deploying a test RAT to mimic attacker behavior. It reports whether the EDR blocks, alerts, or misses the activity, enabling teams to:
Assess EDR performance against real-world tactics, including credential misuse.
Identify and tune configurations to improve detection and response.
Validate fixes through rapid retesting, ensuring resilience against fast-moving threats.
This approach shifts cybersecurity from reactive to proactive, emphasizing continuous validation over assumptions.
The ESE launch aligns with Horizon3.ai’s mission to deliver evidence-based cybersecurity. By providing clear data on EDR performance, NodeZero empowers organizations to strengthen defenses, reduce risks, and optimize security investments. Available immediately to all NodeZero customers worldwide, ESE addresses the growing need for robust, real-world testing in an era where credential-based attacks dominate.
Horizon3.ai empowers organizations to continuously verify their security posture with NodeZero®, the industry’s leading autonomous pentesting platform. Built to think and act like an attacker—but operate safely in production—NodeZero identifies exploitable weaknesses, prioritizes fixes based on real-world impact, and verifies remediation at scale. Customers across manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and national security rely on NodeZero to reduce risk and accelerate security outcomes.
Horizon3.ai empowers organizations to continuously verify their security posture with NodeZero®, the industry’s leading autonomous pentesting platform. Built to think and act like an attacker — but operate safely in production — NodeZero identifies exploitable weaknesses, prioritizes fixes based on real-world impact, and verifies remediation at scale. Customers across manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and national security rely on NodeZero to reduce risk and accelerate security outcomes.
TechIntelPro empowers B2B technology decision-makers with the latest industry trends, deep insights, leadership perspectives and actionable intelligence to drive both organizational and professional milestones—and thrive on the tech pulse.