XDR, or Extended Detection and Response, is an emerging security technology that is rapidly gaining popularity in the cybersecurity industry. It is a comprehensive security solution that offers a unified approach to threat detection, investigation, and response across multiple endpoints, networks, and cloud environments. In today's digital age, cyber threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated and diverse, making it difficult for organizations to detect and respond to them in a timely and effective manner. Traditional security solutions, such as antivirus software, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems, are no longer sufficient to protect against the complex and evolving threat landscape. It collects and correlates data from various sources, including endpoints, network devices, and cloud platforms, and applies advanced analytics and machine learning algorithms to identify suspicious activity and potential threats.

A year ago, NOV Inc. was in the middle of evaluating a new security product to help with securing its globally distributed workforce, spread across more than 60 countries. The oilfield equipment maker was considering deploying an extended detection and response (XDR) solution from SentinelOne -- and as part of the evaluation, NOV deployed the XDR platform across a company it had recently acquired. "Immediately" after deployment, SentinelOne's Singularity XDR detected and halted a cyberattack in progress against the acquired company, said NOV chief information security officer John McLeod -- and then remediated the attack, as well. "This was all done during the pandemic lockdown, in a country on the other side of the globe, where we didn't speak the same language," McLeod said in an email. Perhaps unsurprisingly, NOV ended up becoming a customer.