Absolute Software announced new research revealing the increasing complexity in enterprise device environments, including operating system (OS) fragmentation and volume of applications, is impacting security and compliance posture. The findings in Absolute's '2023 Resilience Index' antit the long-held belief that having more security solutions directly equates to more protection. Leveraging the analysis of anonymized data from millions of customer devices across the globe, this report provides insights and benchmarks for organizations looking to strengthen cyber resilience in today's widely distributed, hybrid workplaces.

The work-from-anywhere model is exacerbating the strain on IT and security teams compounding existing device health and security challenges with a broad mix of networks, hardware, OS versions, and patches. More than 80% of devices analyzed use the Microsoft Windows OS, with the large majority on Windows 10 and within that device population, there are 14 different versions and more than 800 builds and patches to manage. Absolute's telemetry data also shows there are 67 applications installed on the average enterprise device, with 10% of those devices having more than 100 applications installed.

While many of these tools enable employees to be productive, they also contribute to increased complexity. This complexity can create conflict among applications impede the patching and maintenance of devices and applications, especially if those devices are remote and lead to software failing or going offline over time. In this report, Absolute looks at common security applications deployed for hybrid workers and assessed the health of leading vendors within the categories of Endpoint Protection (EPP), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), and secure access.

The data shows seven of the 10 apps analyzed across these categories were installed and healthy on less than 80% of devices, on average and in some cases, as low as 47%.