How does IPS check custom signatures?

The Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) in Symantec Endpoint Protection operates by scanning inbound and outbound traffic packets against a defined list of signatures. This process aims to identify known attack patterns or anomalies that signify potential security threats.

When IPS detects a match in the traffic packet based on these custom signatures, the following sequence occurs:

Initial Detection and Match:The IPS engine actively monitors traffic in real-time, referencing its signature table. Each packet is checked sequentially until a match is found.

Halting Further Checks:Upon matching a signature with the inbound or outbound traffic, the IPS engine terminates further checks for other signatures in the same traffic packet. This design conserves system resources and optimizes performance by avoiding redundant processing once a threat has been identified.

Action on Detection:After identifying and confirming the threat based on the matched signature, the IPS engine enforces configured responses, such as blocking the packet, alerting administrators, or logging the event.

This approach ensures efficient threat detection by focusing only on the first detected signature, which prevents unnecessary processing overhead and ensures rapid incident response.