SIEM is a system that creates a real-time scan through an organization’s information security systems. Includes log collection, clustering and aggregation, indexing, correlation rules, event prioritization and detection, incident management, and a display panel for threat incidents.
This tool helps enterprises manage cybersecurity threats by detecting and alleviating risks quickly with reduced time to situation awareness. Read on to learn about its operation model, features, and best practices for implementation.
SIEM
What is SIEM? Security experts can gain powerful insight into their IT environment in real-time and a history of occurrences with the help of SIEM solutions. They collect security event data from all components of an enterprise’s technology infrastructure and analyze data to look for trends pointing to an ongoing security breach or attack.
The best SIEM systems also include mechanisms to automatically initiate internal escalation processes and pass incidents to the right team member for rapid response. It helps to avoid a situation where a security incident goes unnoticed and potentially escalates into a full-scale cyberattack.
Most modern SIEM solutions also incorporate machine learning and AI capabilities to help ease the burden on overworked security analysts by automating threat detection and enhancing context and situational awareness while lowering the number of warnings that need to be examined. Allows security teams to focus on high-value activities.
SIEM’s Operation Model
A SIEM tool uses multiple technologies to collect, monitor and analyze logs. It helps analysts investigate any alerts and find suspicious activity. It’s a data aggregator and normalizer that can take event information from many different sources, ensuring that all data is “apples to apples.”
It also uses correlation to detect potentially malicious activity. A SIEM system might notify an employee that the company’s servers have been compromised, for instance, if they log in from a different place than average and upload multiple considerable files to their account.
The SIEM tools can sometimes trigger false alarms. Companies must develop a security incident response plan to react quickly to threats. It will minimize the impact of a data breach and prevent compliance violations. A managed service provider can help companies deploy the right SIEM solution for their organization. Then they can take care of hardware, software maintenance, upgrades, and support.
SIEM’s Features
The core function of a SIEM solution is to collect and aggregate security data from multiple sources into one usable dataset. This centralized, normalized, and structured information is critical for threat detection, digital forensics, and incident response activities.
SIEM solutions use rules and policies to detect anomalous behavior within the IT environment. These behaviors could indicate an attempt to breach the network or systems. They also identify suspicious activity and flag it for investigation by a SOC team.
With advanced features like UEBA (user and entity behavior analytics), SIEM tools detect malicious and criminal behavior and identify threats other agencies may not see. These capabilities help to automate the monitoring and response process, as well as reduce staff workload.
However, SIEM technologies are costly and require experienced staff to implement, maintain, and continually fine-tune the software. To get the most value from your investment, understand your company’s use cases and objectives before deploying a SIEM solution. Then, set up your solution to focus on the critical security events your business needs to protect.
SIEM’s Use Cases
A SIEM solution ingests and combes massive data from various IT environments—including firewalls, antivirus software, and more. It then combines this information into one unified security event console that helps IT teams find and identify threats faster.
Correlation and analysis of this large pool of alerts improve interdepartmental efficiencies and reduce response times by delivering valuable contextual information that wouldn’t be visible otherwise. For example, a single traffic anomaly alert from an antivirus filter might not be enough to panic the team. Still, when combined with network congestion and login attempts, it could signal a severe breach in progress.
The best SIEM tools provide a consolidated view of events from across the IT environment and offer pre-defined correlation rules to help identify possible threats in a timely fashion. Some solutions also provide automated detection and threat response capabilities to disrupt cyberattacks in progress. For example, if an organization detects a ransomware attack, an advanced SIEM can automatically shut down affected systems and communicate this action to other methods for rapid remediation.
SIEM’s Best Practices
SIEM is a potent security tool for information security teams that helps them spot serious IT breaches as they occur. The technology combines security tools in a single console for quick and thorough analysis. It does so by aggregating alerts from different security solutions and analyzing the events for abnormal behavior.
For example, a significant cyberattack may be underway if multiple alerts about traffic anomalies are received simultaneously. Moreover, it’s essential to understand that the effectiveness of any SIEM solution is directly dependent on the quality and accuracy of the data fed into it. A good analogy is that of a painter who begins with the highest quality paints, brushes, and canvas. Still, without thoughtful planning, execution, and mastery, even the best stains won’t help.
It’s a good idea for an organization new to SIEM to begin with a pilot project and gradually add additional capabilities over time. Developing strong SIEM use cases and a security roadmap can help organizations prioritize which capabilities to implement first and when.