Modern businesses are entirely dependent on their IT infrastructure to perform regular activities. IT has helped organizations streamline processes and become more productive. With all the advantages it brings forth, there are disadvantages, too. Businesses face a persistent threat of cybersecurity and other such incidents.

Cybersecurity threats have become part and parcel of almost every organisation now. And, to counter such threats adequate safeguards, too, have been put in place.

Implementing firewalls and subscribing to antivirus software has become a thing of the past. Organizations are aware that cybersecurity threats are continually evolving, and criminal hackers are becoming more sophisticated day by day.

This is why businesses are looking forward to a more dynamic method of managing the security of their infrastructure within Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) software.

What is SIEM?

As the acronym suggests, SIEM combines Security Event Management (SEM) with Security Information Management (SIM).

The role of  two different security technologies can be described as:

  • SEM – to monitor and notify a business of cybersecurity threats based on suspicious events in any system.
  • SIM – primarily serves to report on log data, generate alerts, and issue security compliance reports.

With SIEM technology, security professionals in any organization can have a detailed look at all the activities that happen within their IT environment. It helps keep track of all activities on a real-time basis.

Traditional log management systems are now old and modern enterprises require more robust compliance management. SIEM solutions help gain detail-oriented and streamlined processes information.

SIEM also gives information on the level of monitoring and reporting that’s necessary to support major industry mandates, including:

  • Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
  • Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX)
  • Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DDS)

How SIEM Functions

SIEM provides a complete overview of the IT infrastructure. The information includes data from different devices, networks, applications, firewalls, antivirus software, wireless access points, and similar sources. This information is identified, analyzed, and categorized into different types of security threats experienced by businesses.

Moreover, SIEM software displays dynamic, updated information about the overall health of the security system for any given orgnization. The information is then used to complete security compliance reports, check upon areas of weakness, and strategize solutions that enable businesses to protect the entire IT system in the future.

Need of SIEM for businesses

  • Mass application

SIEM offers flexibility and this is why it is suitable for almost any business – no matter the size of the company or the field in which it works, or calculating the complexity of the existing IT infrastructure.

  • Enhanced threat detection

SIEM can detect a threat in quick succession. This quality helps reduce security breaches across the entire business IT infrastructure. When threats are identified rapidly, actions can be taken instantly and, thus, enterprises can make their IT systems more secure.

  • Straightforward compliance reporting

In a modern, data-sensitive world, compliance reporting is crucially important. Businesses, too, need to comply with regulations such as HIPAA, GPG13 (Good Practice Guide 13), and the European Union’s GDP (General Data Protection Regulation). SIEM lets businesses keep a constant watch on security issues that may be problematic in terms of compliance, which ultimately leads to limit compliance violations in the future.

Boosting IT security with AI-based SIEM

Following are some of the AI-based SIEMs that can help businesses boost their IT security:

  • Segregating noise from data

A typical SIEM consists of many monitoring data/logs, but SIEM report data is not actionable, hard to understand, and contains too much noise. An AI-integrated SIEM solution can efficiently handle big data and replace repetitive, redundant tasks with automated workflows.

Many AI programs provide data classification facilities, but AI still does not possess the capability of grouping unrecognizable data points and event information. On the other hand, Machine Learning (ML) makes use of data clustering capabilities that can identify unknown values and club them into categories based on known similarities.

  • Eliminating blind spots for growing organizations

As organizations grow, they become more susceptible to blind spot appearance. There might be chances that these blind spots remain unmonitored for months, or even for years too. Thus, these parts of the network may remain unattended for a longer time. These spots give hackers a chance to infiltrate and plant threats.

Thankfully, AI in SIEM helps improve network visibility. This can uncover blind spots periodically. It can also help determine security logs from bare blind spots, thus expanding the reach of any SIEM solution.

  • Pattern prediction

ML algorithms complement SIEM systems by using earlier patterns to predict and anticipate future data.

Consider the data patterns revealed during a security breach. ML skills allow systems to internalize those patterns and then utilize them to detect suspicious activity that could indicate a subsequent breach or infiltration.

AI-equipped SIEM can stop processes that are suspected to be malicious. It helps not just investigation and threat remediation threats but also helps mitigate damage much before incident response starts.

  • Securing future

For small businesses or those with basic IT infrastructure, the cost of an AI-enabled SIEM would most likely be exorbitant while providing little to no benefit when combined with proper security hygiene.

An enterprise’s massive and sophisticated IT infrastructure may justify the cost of an AI-enabled SIEM. However, it is usually a good idea to have a thorough examination of the products.

Deriving conclusion

SIEM systems are potent and bring a wide range of security and compliance-related protections to modern organizations.

As the globe generates more and more data in an increasingly digital economy, the security of key information in organizations is crucial. As cyberattacks become more sophisticated and frequent, threat intelligence-enabled cybersecurity technologies will become the most important asset for a corporation.

Turning a SIEM system into a force multiplier by automating and adding intelligence helps the team put less effort and focus more on value-added activities, such as preventing threats and proactive hunting. Thus, cyberattackers will spend less time operating within any organization resulting in less damage.

Combining the right security information with an event management solution helps enterprises gain comprehensive visibility into all types of data and threats.

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