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Traditional SIEM vs. Next-Generation SIEM

Traditional SIEM vs. Next-Generation SIEM

by | Jun 9, 2020

We often think of the SIEM of the “brain” of the IT network environment, but with news around “next-generation” SIEM, how can a next-gen SIEM improve the benefits and results for your IT security strategy? 

How do you define the traditional SIEM solution?

What is a SIEM?

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) – A SIEM platform centrally collects data from multiple devices on your network, including your existing security appliances. Through an advanced correlation engine, it is able to proactively identify security events not otherwise detected by standalone security technology.

A SIEM system centralizes logging capabilities on security events for enterprises and is principally used to analyze and/or report on the log entries received. The analysis capabilities of SIEM systems can detect attacks not discovered through other means and can direct the reconfiguration of other enterprise security controls to plug holes in enterprise security. Some of the top SIEM products — assuming an attack is still in progress — can even stop detected security breaches.

Read more SIEM FAQs

Traditional SIEM Solutions

Traditional SIEM solutions focus on collecting and indexing log outputs from applications and devices. These are used to search and find particular log details. Such as for this device search and display all logs for this particular day. Often generating 10s to 100s of pages of information, more (1000 pages) if there is something amiss with the device. SIEMs, therefore, allow additional filter parameters to help refine searches – such as this device at this precise time, or for these types of log event outputs. Typically requires high levels of expertise from the end-user to get filters correct.

SIEMs can correlate the logs from many sources when searching on a device- say by IP address. Great for forensic deep dives for auditing compliance event reporting for instance.

Some SIEMs will also take in-network data- but tend to have difficulty using such information effectively- it can generate a tidal wave of flow data for a device adding 1000s more line items in addition to the log data in a search. Therefore it is seldom used. This is a problem, as the network provides the other half of the needed data to detect the most active threats.

 

By contrast, what is Next-Gen SIEM?

What features or capabilities do these solutions have in contrast to traditional SIEM?

next-gen siem

Traditional SIEM solutions find information and some provide some analysis helping provide additional info indicating what might be happening. Such as “credential change logged for this user”, or “this user logged in from multiple devices simultaneously”.  However they tend to provide such info with every bit of collected data around that user, or the device in question – so you may see hundreds to thousands of lines of info to sort through to figure out what exactly is happening.

In contrast a Next-Gen SIEM – will ingest both log and flow data – it uses threat models to determine the threats rather than a human brain.

These are complicated models that can detect and match threat behaviors to a particular type of threat such as a DDoS attack vs. a brute force attack, malware infection, APTs loss of credentials, or insider attack. It will leverage but not rely on the proper use of Machine Learning to pick out behaviors that are not normal for the device, application, or user, and correlate these events with other rule triggers that can be correlated into a threat model- once a match is found an alert is built that continues to aggregate individual threat behaviors under the Single Line Alert on the UI – this is vs. 100s to 1000s of lines generated by a SIEM beforehand filtering. Better yet this one line tells you the type of threat and the devices and/or users involved and what to do about it.

The best Next-Gen SIEMs will be architected to detect the threats in minutes of becoming active. Stopping Brute force attacks, compromised credentials, and insider threats before critical data is accessed. SIEMs can’t promise this.

 

next gen siem vs traditional siem

Next-gen Siem is really a different category – This is a brand new concept to the industry a lot of education will need to take place – However that said, the benefits are so compelling that we expect a groundswell of adoption over the next 24 months.

Related: What is Firewall Logging and Why is it Important?

Cybriant offers a next-gen SIEM solution – take a look here that our clients utilize with our Managed SIEM with 24/7 Security Monitoring and Analysis service. This service has broad appeal to 90% of organizations that only have firewalls and some sort of simple endpoint solution which is ineffective at quickly or accurately detecting most of the threats discussed above in today’s dynamic environments.

Siem Definition security

Security information and event management (SIEM) is a security management system that provides organizations with a comprehensive view of their security posture. SIEM gathers data from multiple sources, including network traffic, user activity, and application logs. It then uses analytics to identify potential security threats and generate alerts.

SIEM can be used to monitor for a variety of security threats, including malware, hacking attempts, and insider threats. It can also be used to compliance purposes, such as tracking user activity or identifying unusual behavior that could indicate a security threat.

SIEM systems are often used in conjunction with other security tools, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDS), and intrusion prevention systems (IPS).

top siem vendors

There are a number of vendors that offer SIEM solutions. Some of the top vendors include:

1. IBM

2. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)

3. Splunk

4. LogRhythm

5. RSA Security (now a part of Dell Technologies)

6. McAfee (now a part of Intel)

7. AlienVault

8. SolarWinds

9. Kaspersky

10. Corelight

11. ManageEngine (a division of Zoho Corporation)

12.GrayLog2

13. Wazuh

14. AIDE-IDE

SIEM can be a valuable tool for organizations of all sizes. It can help small businesses to identify and respond to security threats quickly, and it can give larger organizations visibility into their overall security posture.

When choosing a SIEM solution, it is important to consider the needs of your organization and the features offered by different vendors. Some things to keep in mind include:

1. Ease of use: The SIEM solution should be easy to set up and use. It should also come with comprehensive documentation and support.

2. scalability: The SIEM solution should be able to scale up as your organization grows.

3. Integration: The SIEM solution should integrate with other security tools and systems, such as firewalls, IDS/IPS, and user activity monitoring (UAM) solutions.

4. Reporting: The SIEM solution should provide comprehensive reporting capabilities, including the ability to generate custom reports.

5. Pricing: The SIEM solution should be affordable and offer a good value for the money.

The SIEM market is growing rapidly, and there are a number of vendors to choose from. When selecting a SIEM solution, it is important to consider the needs of your organization and the features offered by different vendors. A SIEM solution can be a valuable tool for organizations of all sizes, but it is important to select the right solution for your specific needs.

Security Event Management (SEM)

SIEM is sometimes referred to as security event management (SEM). SEM is a legacy term that is used to describe the process of collecting, analyzing, and responding to security events. While SIEM encompasses all aspects of security event management, SEM only refers to the process of collecting and analyzing security events.

Legacy SIEM

Legacy SIEM systems are no longer able to keep up with today’s security needs. They often struggle to collect and monitor large volumes of security data and provide timely security alerts. In addition, these legacy systems lack the advanced analytics capabilities required for in-depth threat analysis and incident response.

That’s why many companies are turning to next-generation SIEM solutions that provide real-time security monitoring, advanced security analytics, and customizable dashboards for easy data reporting and analysis. These modern security information management systems offer a more efficient way to protect against cybersecurity threats while also streamlining security operations.

Investing in a next-generation SIEM is crucial for staying ahead of evolving security challenges and ensuring a secure infrastructure for your business.

 

Read Next: https://cybriant.com/managed-siem-service/

 

Considering a Next-Gen SIEM?

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Outsourcing Your AlienVault USM Anywhere

Outsourcing Your AlienVault USM Anywhere

by | Mar 5, 2020

Many organizations use AlienVault USM Anywhere because it’s no longer a matter of IF, but WHEN you will be attacked. While this is a great tool, what if you want to outsource the monitoring of your AlienVault USM Anywhere? Find out how Cybriant can help.

What is AlienVault USM Anywhere?

If you have not heard about AlienVault USM Anywhere, “it is a cloud-based security monitoring platform, it combines the necessary security capabilities needed for effective threat detection, compliance management, and incident response. USM Anywhere monitors cloud, on-premises environment, and a hybrid cloud all from one pane of glass. People can sign on and start detecting security threats in just minutes because it is delivered as a service.”

AlienVault® has introduced this comprehensive security management approach with Unified Security Management ™, the first USM product known as the USM Appliance™. USM Appliance become effective threat detection and response to companies of all sizes, specifically for those with limited resources like time, budget, or staff.

Is AlienVault a SIEM?

AlienVault USM Anywhere is more than a single-purpose SIEM. Single-purpose SIEM software solutions and log management tools provide valuable security information, but often require expensive and time-consuming integration efforts to bring in log files from disparate sources such as asset inventory, vulnerability assessment, endpoint agents, and IDS products.

Once you have the data, you then must research and write correlation rules to identify threats in your environment. These challenges multiply as you migrate workloads and services from on-premises infrastructure to public cloud environments.

For today’s resource-strapped IT teams, the time and expense required to deploy a SIEM seriously delay their time to threat detection, and thus, return on investment.

Why Should You Consider a SIEM?

If your organization needs to manage a large amount of data and prioritize any alerts or irregularities on your network, a SIEM is extremely important. it is easier for enterprises to manage security by filtering massive amounts of security data and prioritizing the security alerts the software generates.

By deploying a SIEM in your security stack, you have the ability to detect incidents that may go unnoticed. Logs are created that can identify signs of malicious activity. However, having a SIEM sounds great. But, using one and maintaining a large number of alerts, are a different story.

That’s where organizations like Cybriant come. Our team of security analysts understands the system, alerts, integrations, etc. Plus, we have a team working 24/7 to watch for alerts.

The Move from USM Appliance to USM Anywhere

With the early success of the USM appliance’s integrated security approach, customers knew they needed a single piece of glass to monitor all critical infrastructure, so they made a big decision on how to deliver USM Anywhere. As usual, this was a big change for IT.

Not only is infrastructure moving to the cloud, but in fact, almost everything is moving to the cloud. In practice, most applications are software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions, as SaaS vendors can achieve a single application scale economy that eliminates even the best performing IT shops. If provided, it will be more cost-effective. That calculation also applies to security vendors.

Customers say they love USM appliances because they solve security challenges. USM Anywhere can be deployed faster and it is easier to use. And it offers the same critical approach to integrated security to address today’s rapidly evolving security challenges. As a result, you can start detecting threats faster while significantly reducing your total cost of ownership.

However, AT&T Cybersecurity announced the end of life for USM Appliance through their reseller network in 2018. “Effective May 15th, 2018 we will no longer process USM Appliance orders for new customers through our reseller network.”

Cybriant recommends moving to USM Anywhere as soon as possible. This is something our team of security analysts has the expertise to help with. Just schedule some time with us to discuss.

AlienVault USM Anywhere Benefits

AlienVault manages the USM Anywhere Secure Cloud so you don’t have to worry about system upgrades, uptime, scalability, or the security of the system itself. We handle them all for you. For that purpose, simply drop the sensor into your environment and log in to your USM Anywhere account to start managing incident response and security analytics.

The USM platform stands up to the most sophisticated, expensive, enterprise-level SIEM product – but is fast, affordable, and easy-to-use. Plus, you get automatic threat hunting with continuous threat intelligence that fuels early threat detection so you can focus on fast response.

AlienVault USM has helped thousands of organizations get these key insights, starting on Day 1:

  • Identify vulnerabilities like unpatched software or insecure configurations
  • Discover all IP-enabled assets on your network
  • Detect network scans and malware like botnets, trojans & rootkits
  • Speed incident response with built-in remediation guidance for every alert
  • Generate accurate compliance reports for PCI DSS, HIPAA, ISO 27001, SOC 2, and more

AlienVault USM Anywhere Pricing

When we talk about the pricing of USM Anywhere, it offers the most affordable prices which may fit any kind of budget. By working with a certified partner like Cybriant, you will receive the best pricing and benefits.

Even if you are seeking a competitive quote for USM Anywhere from AT&T Cybersecurity, we can help. Our team can help you identify the best possible pricing available – even compared to AT&T!

USM Anywhere Already Deployed? Here’s How To Optimize It.

USM Anywhere is a powerful tool on its own. But, when you have a complete understanding of your organization’s needs and the tools available for integration with USM Anywhere, it can get complicated. That’s where Cybriant comes in.

From creating custom plug-ins or bundling additional services, we can help customize your experience with USM Anywhere.

AlienVault USM Anywhere Outsourced Monitoring

USM Anywhere detects malicious activity by correlating threat indicators, including the latest breach indicators that have contributed to the Open Threat Exchange community. But, how do you handle all the alerts that you receive? Is your team able to respond to those threats in a timely manner? Does ever alert need a response?

Before you can effectively monitor your AlienVault USM Anywhere instance, your SIEM needs to be properly tuned. Once tuned, you are able to filter out all the false positive alerts so you can focus on critical alerts.

Do you have staff that can monitor those alerts around the clock? Cybriant security operations center monitors AlienVault USM Anywhere instances for hundreds of clients. Many clients prefer the price level of AlienVault USM Anywhere but are then overwhelmed by the management of their SIEM.

Our primary expertise is with AlienVault. If you have any questions, about how we can help, let’s talk soon.

How to Select a Managed Security Services Partner (MSSP)

Hiring a managed service services provider (MSP) to manage your USM Anywhere deployment can offer many benefits. SIEM and cybersecurity solutions can be complex and time-consuming to manage, but an MSSP can take on this burden, freeing up your staff to focus on other priorities. In addition, an MSSP can provide expertise and resources that might be difficult or costly to obtain in-house. And finally, an MSSP can help you meet compliance requirements by providing the necessary reporting and documentation.

When selecting an MSSP to manage your USM Anywhere deployment, it is important to choose one with experience in SIEM and cybersecurity solutions. In addition, be sure to verify that the MSSP can meet your compliance requirements. Once you have selected an MSSP, they will work with you to deploy and manage your USM Anywhere solution, providing the necessary expertise and resources to keep your SIEM and cybersecurity program running smoothly.

Outsourcing SIEM and cybersecurity management can offer many benefits, from freeing up staff time to meeting compliance requirements. Once you have selected an MSP, they will work with you to deploy and manage your USM Anywhere solution, providing the necessary expertise and resources to keep your SIEM and cybersecurity program running smoothly.

Why Cybriant?

Our team is committed to helping companies improve their security posture with our 24/7 Managed SIEM. From SIEM deployment to log management to incident response to filling a skills gap on your security team, Cybriant has you covered.

Our Managed Security Services help businesses gain visibility, meet compliance, and lower overall IT Security costs. If you are looking for more than Managed SIEM, consider CybriantXDR, an comprehensive service that covers all your cybersecurity needs.

Our services include:

  • Managed SIEM
  • Managed Detection and Remediation (MDR)
  • Comprehensive Vulnerability Management
  • Mobile Threat Defense
  • Assessments
  • Mobile Security Risk Assessments
  • vCISO
  • Incident Response and Containment Services

“The resources I get from Cybriant are very knowledgeable and get my issues fixed. They have the experience to solve my immediate problem and can make recommendations on how to avoid similar issues in the future.” – Security Analyst, National Insurance Association

Getting started with Cybriant is simple!  Contact us to set up a conversation with a valued member of our team.

 

Learn More About Our AT&T Cybersecurity Partnership

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How Does a SIEM Work?

How Does a SIEM Work?

by | Jan 9, 2020

How does a SIEM work? You probably know that many organizations utilize a SIEM for compliance and security monitoring reasons. But how does it work? Read on to learn more about the inner workings of a SIEM. 

SIEM stands for Security Information and Event Management and is software that gives security professionals both insight into and a track record of the actions within their organization’s network. SIEM solutions provide a holistic view of what is happening on a network in real time and assist IT teams to be more proactive in the battle against security threats.

SIEM technology has been around for more than a decade, originally developing from the log management discipline. It linked security event management (SEM) – which examines log and event data in real-time to provide threat monitoring, event correlation, and incident response – with security information management (SIM) which gathers, analyzes, and reports on log data.

It is a solution that aggregates and analyzes activity from many different resources across your entire IT base.

The Need for Data Monitoring

In today’s digital market, it’s necessary to watch and secure your company’s data against increasingly advanced cyber threats. And odds are, your company has more data than ever before. There is no discussion about the fact that attacks on computer systems are steadily on the rise. Coin mining, DDoS, ransomware, malware, botnets, phishing — this is just a small list of the threats those fighting the good fight today are facing.

In addition to complicated tools being used to attack businesses – the attack surface has become much wider due to the development in data traversing our IT infrastructure. The capability to monitor all this data is increasingly becoming a challenge. Luckily, we have security information and event management (SIEM).

Related: 3 Benefits of an Incident Response Plan

How Does a SIEM Work?

SIEM provides two main capabilities to an Incident Response team:

    • Reporting and forensics about security incidents
    • Alerts based on analytics that match a certain rule set, indicating a security issue

At its core, SIEM is a data aggregator, search, and reporting system. SIEM collects enormous amounts of data from your complete networked environment and consolidates and makes that data human-accessible. With the data classified and laid out at your fingertips, you can study data security breaches with as much detail as needed.

However, experts say enterprise demand for greater security measures has driven more of the SIEM market in recent years. This is why Managed SIEM has gained popularity. Many IT departments are unable to spend the time necessary to draw the data out of a SIEM that will allow them to properly detect cyber threats.

A Managed SIEM forensics team will identify the activity that could identify a threat to the organization by monitoring a SIEM. The Managed SIEM team will determine the validity of the threat and begin to remediate the threat. SIEMs produce a high amount of alerts based on the fine-tuning of the SIEM. With a team of analysts monitoring a SIEM 24/7, they have the expertise to determine the priority of an alert.

Traditionally larger organizations utilize a SIEM as the foundation for the security strategy. Whether an organization uses a SIEM or MDR it is important to have a means of monitoring activity to prevent security threats.

What are SIEMs Used For?

Security Monitoring

  • SIEMs help with real-time monitoring of organizational systems for security incidents.
  • A SIEM has a unique perspective on security incidents because it has access to multiple data sources – for example, it can combine alerts from an IDS with information from an antivirus product. It helps security teams identify security incidents that no individual security tool can see, and helps them focus on alerts from security tools that have special significance

Advanced Threat Detection

    • Malicious insiders – a SIEM can use browser forensics, network data, authentication, and other data to identify insiders planning or carrying out an attack
    • Data exfiltration (sensitive data illicitly transferred outside the organization) – a SIEM can pick up data transfers that are abnormal in their size, frequency, or payload
    • Outside entities, including Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) – a SIEM can detect early warning signals indicating that an outside entity is carrying out a focused attack or long-term campaign against the organization

Forensics and Incident Response

  • SIEMs can help security analysts realize that a security incident is taking place, triage the event and define immediate steps for remediation.
  • Even if an incident is known to security staff, it takes time to collect data to fully understand the attack and stop it – SIEM can automatically collect this data and significantly reduce response time. When security staff discovers a historic breach or security incident that needs to be investigated, SIEMs provide rich forensic data to help uncover the kill chain, threat actors, and mitigation.

Compliance Reporting and Auditing

  • SIEMs can help organizations prove to auditors and regulators that they have the proper safeguards in place and that security incidents are known and contained.
  • Many early adopters of SIEMs used it for this purpose – aggregating log data from across the organization and presenting it in audit-ready format. Modern SIEMs automatically provide the monitoring and reporting necessary to meet standards like HIPAA, PCI/DSS, SOX, FERPA, and HITECH.

Benefits of Managed SIEM

There are many reasons to consider Managed SIEM including:

  • Finding and maintaining experienced SIEM/SOC Security Analysts is NOT EASY (and also expensive)
  • You could build it, but it will take much longer than outsourcing to a professional security services provider like Cybriant
  • You are getting everything from an MSSP only at a fraction of what you could spend internally
  • Scalable and Flexible
  • Greater Threat Intelligence – We’ve been doing this for a while and we’ve seen a lot of things.

Without the proper planning and expectations around people and processes up front, the odds of achieving even the minimal capabilities of a SIEM solution are slim to none.

Find out more about this: “Is Managed SIEM right for me?”

PREtect: A Tiered Approach to Cybersecurity

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WAIT! Ask These Questions Before Purchasing a SIEM

WAIT! Ask These Questions Before Purchasing a SIEM

by | Nov 6, 2019

Are you considering purchasing a SIEM? Here are the top questions to ask to help you make the best decision for your organization.

 

What is a SIEM (Security Information and Event Management)?

A SIEM provides an overall look at an organization’s security posture and helps correlate security events to discover threats.

A SIEM centrally collects data from multiple devices on your network, including your existing security appliances. Through an advanced correlation engine, it can proactively identify security events not otherwise detected by standalone security technology.

A SIEM centralizes logging capabilities on security events for enterprises and is principally used to analyze and/or report on the log entries received. The analysis capabilities of SIEM systems can detect attacks not discovered through other means and can direct the reconfiguration of other enterprise security controls to plug holes in enterprise security. Some of the top SIEM products — assuming an attack is still in progress — can even stop detected security breaches.

Read more: https://cybriant.com/managed-siem-faqs/

Questions to Ask Before Purchasing a SIEM

The first set of questions is for your internal purposes. A SIEM is not only a financial commitment but also a commitment in time and resources. Whether you are replacing a SIEM or investing in SIEM technology for the first time, these questions will help set you on the path to success.

  • It’s important to understand why you need a SIEM. Is it just for compliance or do you need to have a better idea of the events coming in from your servers, databases, applications, and desktops?
  • Will you be monitoring users internally or are your users mobile and working over VPN or the internet?
  • Which operating systems need to be covered?
  • Do you need to collect information from firewalls, routers, switches, wireless APS, etc?
  • Do you have compliance regulations that need to be met? For example, PCI DSS, ISO 270001, HIPAA, etc.
  • What reports are required from your organization?
  • Do you have the internal expertise to manage a SIEM 24/7? Will you provide ongoing training? Who will react to incoming threats? What alerting thresholds does your organization require?
  • What is the cost of the license of the SIEM? What storage retention requirements do you have and what is the cost for those?
  • What integrations are needed?
  • What steps will you take when a threat is realized?

When you are selecting the SIEM that is right for your organization, it’s important to do your homework.

  • Is the SIEM an on-premise tool, in the cloud, or hybrid?
  • Which integrations are available?
  • What threat intelligence is available?
  • What does the console or dashboard look like?
  • Does it identify Zero-Day attacks?
  • What steps will you take when a threat is realized?
  • What forensic capabilities are offered?
  • Will they support outsourcing?

Consider a Managed SIEM

A SIEM is a complex tool that requires expertise to implement and maintain. A SIEM must be constantly updated and customized to be effective because external threats and internal environments are constantly changing. It requires experienced security engineering to tune the SIEM to minimize false positive alerts and maximize the efficient detection of real breaches or malicious behavior.

Let’s look at circumstances that make security monitoring vital for an organization.

#1. Lack of internal expertise

Your organization can’t just throw people at security monitoring; you need the right people there. The right people are those with expertise in triaging alerts, closing complex problems, and understanding when they should alarm the incident response team. So if your organization has no sufficient internal expertise, you need a managed security monitoring

#2. Compliance Requirements

Virtually every regulatory mandate requires some form of log management to maintain an audit trail of activity. Ticketing and alerting capabilities also satisfy routine log data review requirements. Simply having a SIEM doesn’t mean it is effective, which is the point of the compliance requirement. Many companies prefer to outsource the management of the SIEM so it is used effectively.

#3. Advanced persistent threats

New attack vectors and vulnerabilities are discovered every day. Your organization likely has firewalls, IDS/IPS, and AV solutions installed that look for malicious activity at various points within the IT infrastructure, from the perimeter to endpoints. However, many of these solutions are not equipped to detect zero-day attacks and advanced persistent threats

#4. Around-the-clock monitoring

If you want 24/7 security monitoring, you will need more staffing to carry out the job, but managed services already have employees monitoring their security monitoring platform 24/7. That is why managed service is the better option when it comes to round-the-clock monitoring. Check out our document Insource vs. Outsource, a cost comparison for building a 24/7 security operations center.

Use cases where managed security monitoring is commonly used

  • Advanced detection
  • Device monitoring/alerting
  • Compliance reporting
  • And much more

No matter the size of your organization, you need to protect your data. And failure to protect your data puts the company at risk of financial issues, loss of goodwill, and legal liability.

Should You Consider Managed SIEM?

Utilizing and managing a SIEM in-house is typically reserved for large organizations that have the budget for developing a large, specialized team.

Deploying a fully managed SIEM also means that your team consists of security analysts that oversee your system around the clock and calendar. This is their only dedicated job, and not an additional task for an already overworked engineer.

One thing that most people in the industry can agree on – SIEM implementations are tough, invasive, and time-consuming. Each device must be touched, configured, and coordinated – this is a painstaking step that can’t be avoided. Then, the data starts flowing and you must have the expertise to use it.

Along with volumes of data come alerts, which in improperly tuned environments are often false alarms. When you work with Cybriant, our security engineers will tune the environment to squelch the noise created by false alarms, then on an ongoing basis, our analysts will determine which alarms are critical alerts.

Our team will look at any suspicious activity and determine which level of alert this activity falls under. When we identify a critical alert, we will open a ticket and follow a pre-defined escalation path informing the appropriate people in your organization with the information they need to take effective action.

When you are purchasing a SIEM, consider outsourcing the management of that SIEM to Cybriant. Our team will help guide your effort in choosing the best SIEM for your organization.

2020 Cybersecurity Planning Guide

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9 Unique Reasons to Outsource Cyber Security Monitoring

9 Unique Reasons to Outsource Cyber Security Monitoring

by | May 23, 2019

Keeping your business data safe should be the first and foremost concern for all businesses now. Here are 9 unique reasons to outsource cyber security monitoring to help make it a priority.

  1. Simplify Compliance Regulations
  2. Save Money
  3. 24/7 Access to Security Analysts
  4. Constantly Updated Threat Knowledge and Research 
  5. Ability to Focus on Your Core Business
  6. Layered Protection from Cyber Threats
  7. Around the Clock Monitoring
  8. Reveal Unknown Vulnerabilities
  9. Reduce Cyber Security Skills Gap

Due to the rising security breaches in many companies, data security against unwanted intrusion is on every business owner’s mind.

No matter the size of your organization, IT security is the biggest challenge that organizations face. When it comes to medium or small enterprises the impact of security threats can be more severe.

Security hackers pose special threats to our computer network security. They are technology and networking experts and they use their insider information to grant themselves access to other people’s computer networks. They do it without permission.

Our modern computing environment is always an open one and hackers with great knowledge of systems and computing can easily get their hands on very sensitive information. This is a major problem for businesses now and they can solve it easily when you outsource cyber security monitoring. 

Your important and sensitive information should be kept private and secured. One of the biggest risks to computers, mobiles, and every endpoint connected to the corporate network is identity theft or information theft. Many organizations have the tools necessary to manage cyber security in-house.

But for others, this can be an extremely expensive service to manage internally. Plus, if you get it wrong, you are at risk for exposure.

9 Unique Reasons to Outsource Cyber Security Monitoring

Managed cyber security monitoring is a service that monitors your network for threats through your SIEM.

When you outsource cyber security monitoring to Cybriant, our team will look at any suspicious activity and determine which level of alert this activity falls under.

When we identify a critical alert, we will open a ticket and follow a predefined escalation path informing the appropriate people in your organization with the information they need to take effective action.

Here are 9 reasons to outsource cyber security monitoring:

 

Simplify Compliance Regulations

HIPAA, SOC, PCI DSS, GDPR – no matter which compliance regulation you are required to follow, you likely are required to have a log of events that are happening on your network. Some organizations will purchase a SIEM tool, but not monitor or tune the tool properly.

By outsourcing the management of your SIEM, you’ll have expert specialists who can easily identify, solve, classify, and properly address the major security vulnerabilities. They can detect threats and can respond to cyber threats.

Not only that, if you go for outsourcing services you can expect to get important advice to protect your data or to resolve the issues of Cybersecurity with updated regulations and best standards like PCI DSS & GDPR.

Potential to Save Money 

Businesses are often not able to afford the expense of an in-house cybersecurity monitoring team of professionals. Luckily, many organizations like Cybriant offer an affordable option for tiered cyber security services, which could result in savings.

By outsourcing cyber security services, you won’t need to hire full-time staff or don’t need to pay huge monthly salaries to them. Outsourcing services are cheaper services and can expect assured and skilled dedicated services from highly skilled professionals.

Access to Dedicated and Skilled Security Service Providers

Are you confident in your IT team to solve all your security issues? Most often, the people tasked with managed security are not cyber security specialists.

When you outsource cyber security monitoring, you’ll have a dedicated team of highly trained cyber professionals. When you work with Cybriant, we not only alert you to cyber threats, we work with your team to advise on how to alleviate the issues.

Having an outsourced service means you can trust the intricate details of your cyber exposure to dedicated and expert cyber security professionals, who are trained and skilled to solve such issues.

Constantly Updated Threat Knowledge and Research

Imagine working with a cyber security firm that has seen almost every potential cyber threat, malware, hack, etc. If they haven’t seen it, they are aware of it. When you outsource, not only will these security professionals monitor your security landscape properly, but they are also up-to-date with the current techniques, tactics, and methods that cybercriminals usually use.

We apply the most up-to-date and experienced knowledge to improve your security and detect all threats and vulnerabilities. This expertise ensures that the business has enough knowledge to away the malicious adversaries.

Focus More on Your Core Business

If your business is protected and safe and you have outsourced your cyber security monitoring, you can focus more on your core business. By focusing on your core business, your IT team will thrive while leaving the cyber security to the outsourced professionals. Proper IT support and skilled security outsourcing can help you put to use your resources where they will be most valuable.

While we certainly want our clients involved in the managed SIEM process, we work with you to determine your level of involvement. Whether it’s weekly meetings or quarterly updates, we let you take the lead and tell us how involved you would like your team to be.

Layered Protection

Security hackers are more powerful now and only a high level of cyber security can protect your important data. Outsourcing is effective because you are provided with layered protection.

Most outsourced cyber security monitoring companies offer extensive and more efficient security checks and the right methods that can even prevent human errors or internal employee mistakes; it can even cause a huge level of data breaches.

At Cybriant, we typically begin with a security assessment to determine any gaps in your security strategy. Our core business is 24/7 security monitoring with managed SIEM. Many core clients also add services like Managed EDR, and Patch and Vulnerability Management. 

Around the Clock Monitoring Services

Protecting your organization’s information requires around-the-clock surveillance because cyber criminals are working 24/7 to find new ways to steal your data.

Monitoring and managing your cybersecurity requires 24/7/365 monitoring with more professionals. Outsourcing to cybersecurity with the specialist means you can achieve a higher level of monitoring services from a group of professionals, without spending money on training or hiring the in-house staff.

Reveal Unknown Vulnerabilities

It is quite risky to solely rely on your in-house staff for your cyber security monitoring.

No matter how reliable your team is, it always comes with a risk. If you work with independent partners for the validation processes and controls, including outsourcing cyber security monitoring, you can expect to get a more efficient service.

Independent service providers can easily uncover the weaknesses and vulnerabilities in different applications and systems that your IT team may not even know.

Reduce Cyber Security Skills Gap

The cyber security skills gap shortage is getting worse. Organizations are struggling to find properly training cyber security resources within an acceptable salary range.

You get an entire team of skilled cybersecurity professionals when you outsource cyber security monitoring – without having to worry about recruiting and training your staff. Due to the strict ethical principles laid down by the organizations, these professionals go the extra mile to ensure that there is no possibility of any compromise in the confidentiality of data.

Outsourcing for cybersecurity management is a brilliant idea because the professionals know better how to monitor your network and endpoints.

Start with an Assessment

Many organizations require an annual security assessment. Cybriant offers several levels of assessments and tests based on the needs of your organization.

At Cybriant, we offer assessments based on the NIST cybersecurity foundation. By having a foundation like NIST, you’ll be able to make all security decisions based on your framework.

Learn More About Managed SIEM Services

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The Ultimate Guide to Network Security Threats

The Ultimate Guide to Network Security Threats

by | Aug 8, 2018

Network security threats are here to stay. Read more to learn about the enemy and how to be prepared for these network security threats.

Network Security Threats: Comprehensive Guide

By simply using the internet, we are constantly being bombarded by multiple types of internet threats. All types of internet threats apply various forms of malware and fraud, in which every part of it uses HTTP or HTTPS protocols, and utilize other protocols and components, such as links in email or instant messaging, or malware attachments that have access to the Web.

Related: Comprehensive List of all Types of Internet Threats

Most types of internet threats assist cybercriminals by filching information for consequent sales and assist in absorbing infected PCs into botnets. Cyber-crime cases keep on increasing and expanding, intrinsically, cybersecurity should be considered a vital part of any business, and consequently be highlighted as part of its threat management detection system.

These types of internet threats profess an extensive variety of risks, comprising financial damages, personality theft, loss of private information, theft of network assets, damaged brand/individual status, and wearing away of user confidence in e-commerce and online banking. They have the ability for vulnerabilities to develop into attacks on computer systems, networks, and many more setups. They put users’ computer systems and professional computers at risk, so vulnerabilities must be secure so that attackers cannot penetrate the system and cause harm or loss. By deciding to overlook the perpetually present and potential threat of cyber-crime, businesses do not only put themselves at risk of monetary cost but also reputational damage.

Get to know the enemy, take a look at our guide, “The Comprehensive List of All Types of Internet Threats.”

Network Security Threats: How to Address Them

Hacking is easy. And profitable. An average phishing attack could potentially cost a mid-sized organization $1.6 million. Phishing is just one of the many ways that an organization can be attacked or breached.

Let’s talk about the top 5 most common network security threats, read more in our article “How to Address Common Network Security Threats”

What’s keeping you up at night? Is it hackers, insider threats, malware, or phishing? Maybe there are a few new types of network security threats that you haven’t heard of yet? You never know!

Even the most secure organization may have pitfalls that allow something to slip through the cracks. Consider Equifax and THE most talked about a breach of 2017 that could have been prevented so easily with a proper patching policy.

The fact of the matter is that the bad guys are constantly trying to catch us. You can train your employees all you want, but there’s still a chance that an employee may not be able to identify an extremely sophisticated phishing email. Phishing email creators are getting GOOD! These guys take anything from celebrity news, worldwide sporting events like the Olympics or the World Cup, or something as personal as W-2 information around tax time to make sure you will click on their email.

Read more in our guide, “Types of Network Security Threats and How to Combat Them.”

One big challenge with network security threats is the IPv6 DDoS attacks.

Every device on the Internet is assigned a unique IP address for identification and location definition. With the rapid growth of the Internet after its commercialization in the 1990s, it became evident that far more addresses would be needed to connect devices than the IPv4 address space available.

Because there are fewer than 4.3 billion IPv4 addresses available, depletion has been anticipated since the late 1980s, when the Internet started to experience dramatic growth. This depletion is one of the reasons for the development and deployment of its successor protocol, IPv6. Currently, IPv4 and IPv6 coexist on the Internet.

The total number of possible IPv6 addresses is more than 7.9×1028 times as many as IPv4, which uses 32-bit addresses and provides approximately 4.3 billion addresses. The two protocols are not designed to be interoperable, complicating the transition to IPv6.

Read more: How to Prepare for IPv6 DDoS attack

Network Security Threats: Improve Threat Detection

Do you have less hair now than you did when you first realized you need a SIEM? Do you avoid any meetings or emails that are about yet another issue with your SIEM? If SIEM challenges are causing you to hide under your desk, then continue reading.

At Cybriant, we get it. We speak to clients every day that are frustrated, angry, and hate having a SIEM in general. Here’s the thing though, a properly tuned SIEM that is managed by security people that have the right experience and expertise can help your organization tremendously.

Your organization needs cyber threat detection and response, it’s not a wish-list item anymore. It’s a must-have. But, many organizations think they don’t have the time, money, or resources to be able to properly do the cyber threat detection, analysis, and response that comes along with having a SIEM.

Do you agree with these? Check out the “5 SIEM Challenges that Cause the Most Stress.”

These days, working in a SOC (Security Operations Center) is not easy. According to the recent Cybersecurity Insiders Threat Hunting Report, which gathered insights from the Information Security Community on LinkedIn, detection of advanced threats remains the #1 challenge for SOCs (55 percent), followed by lack of security expertise (43 percent). 76 percent of respondents feel that not enough time is spent searching for emerging and advanced threats in their SOC. Lack of budget (45 percent) remains the top barrier to SOCs who have not yet adopted a threat-hunting platform.

Cybersecurity professionals are already challenged with the daily task of defending against the increasing number of security threats, and now the severity of those attacks has increased. Nearly 52% of organizations have experienced at least a doubling in security attacks. Over 28% of respondents say that the severity of the cyber-attacks has increased by at least 2 times in the past year.

Top Cyber Security Websites of 2022

Check out more stats at “3 Steps to Improve Network Security Threat Detection.”

A Security Operations Center (SOC) and a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) are two completely different species.

Check out the differences and how they work together to protect you from network security threats at “SIEM SOC: Your SIEM and Our SOC Working Together as One.”

Many of us have learned through our Fitbit that we’re not sleeping enough, exercising enough, or eating correctly. It’s the same scenario with continuous network monitoring, although instead of tracking your health, it monitors your organization’s security posture.

There are typically 5 critical cyber controls when it comes to continuous network monitoring. Read more here: Continuous Network Monitoring like a…Fitbit?

It’s 2018 and the spotlight is on if you are employed in any information security position. Your executive team, the board, your boss – any corporate stakeholder – wants to be sure that you have everything under control when it comes to cyber threat management. Communication about the tools you are using for cyber threat management will be key when the spotlight is on you.

No matter what regulatory compliance rules you are under, you will need certain cybersecurity monitoring tools. But, do you just have the tools or are you using them to your organization’s advantage? The cyber threat management tools we discuss will help take advantage of your compliance rules.

5 Tools to Simplify Cyber Threat Management

Network Security Threats: Start with a Cyber Security Assessment

The goal of a risk assessment is for an organization to understand “the cybersecurity risk to organizational operations (including mission, functions, image, or reputation), organizational assets, and individuals” – NIST Cybersecurity Framework

Find out more in the article, “5 Key Reasons You Need a Cyber Security Assessment.”

Network Security Threats: Industry Focus

Legal Industry Network Security Threats

Law firms must understand the importance of cybersecurity in their practice. Attorneys, in general, accumulate highly sensitive and personal information from each client – including corporations. That information, along with the mobility needed to carry data from the client to the courtroom, makes mobile security increasingly important.

Here are the top three reasons hackers target law firms:

  1. Large firms, especially those with over 100 lawyers, are targets because of the availability of large quantities of valuable and quality documents. By targeting law firms, they can quickly access such information as technical secrets, business strategies, and financial data for numerous clients.
  2. By handling the important information, Law firms provide a quick detour around the information of little value. The information that attorneys have access to is high-value information, which is more selective and valuable to hackers. By skipping the corporation and targeting their law firm, they more easily access the high-value data.
  3. Data security hasn’t traditionally been a priority at law firms. Larger law firms move at a fast pace and need access to information quickly. This means law firms may have sloppy or no data security practices in place.

https://www.cybriant.com/legal/

Manufacturing Network Security Threats

Manufacturers use advanced production processes that are often patented and extremely valuable to those companies. Opportunistic hackers target those production processes daily. Since there are often no manufacturing security safeguards, it is not difficult for even the most inexperienced hacker to find their way into your system.

The manufacturing sector is now one of the most frequently hacked industries. Automotive manufacturers are the top targeted manufacturing sub-industry, accounting for almost 30% of the total attacks against the manufacturing industry. Chemical manufacturers were the second-most targeted sub-industry.

https://www.cybriant.com/manufacturing/

Telecommunications Network Security Threats

Consumers are migrating to VOIP. The speed and storage are necessary grow year after year. Telecom solutions require unique protocols. These protocols require security controls. Hackers still pose a major risk to companies. According to PWC’s latest survey and analysis, only 50% of telecom companies have a security strategy for cloud computing.

“As telecoms pivot toward a more digital future, they will very likely encounter entirely new types of cybersecurity risks to data, applications, and networks.”  – according to the findings from The Global State of Information Security® Survey.

The Financial Industry’s Biggest Threat

Losing money to cyber criminals is the financial industry’s biggest threat today. Billions of dollars have been lost in 2022 alone due to cyber security incidents. This money is unrecoverable and can be blamed on one thing – poor cybersecurity practices. The money goes straight to the pockets of hackers so they can build bigger and better ways to hack and steal our money. Read More

 

Cyber Security Solutions Every Organization Needs

Combat Network Security Threats with Managed SIEM

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