There are a lot of cybersecurity products that companies can choose from. But how do you know which one to choose? To decide, you may need to know what threatens a company and what it takes to actually stop attacks. One of the options for this is a SIEM. But what exactly is a SIEM? And is it the right option for my business?
What is a SIEM?
SIEM stands for Security Information and Event Management. It is a system used to detect, prevent and resolve cyberattacks, while centralising all the security events from every device within a network. A SIEM gathers all the raw security data from a company’s firewalls, wireless access points, servers, and personal devices. The SIEM logs events and can be customised to detect suspicious activity and recognise actual threats.
At its core, SIEM is a data aggregator, search, and reporting system. SIEM gathers immense amounts of data from your entire networked environment, combines and makes that data human accessible. With the data categorised and laid out at your fingertips, you can research data security breaches with as much detail as needed.
SIEMs can create daily graphs and reports that show the user exactly what’s going on. They filter through events and categorise them by the severity of the threat. If the threat is not too serious but may carry some concern, a report is made. And if the event is critical, a notification is sent to a cybersecurity team immediately in order to diagnose the situation. When an audit or compliance check comes up, the SIEM will create any kind of report that is needed.
For businesses that want to know exactly what’s going on, and analyse potential threats, a SIEM is a great option.
Why Does My Business Need a SIEM?
From the section above, there are already multiple reasons as to why you might need a system as efficient as a SIEM, but to go further, you may benefit from learning more about what types of security threats are made against a network.
Cyberattacks today are more advanced than they’ve ever been. Old preventative tactics of simply using firewalls and antivirus software are outdated, and don’t offer enough protection. Attacks are no longer stopped simply by edge devices blocking incoming attacks from the cloud, as attacks can come from inside your network. Malware is now attached in emails, banner ads, pseudo websites, etc., and can gain access to your network through an internal device. Most cyberattacks we see rely on human error – often relying on phishing emails to trick key staff members. Intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS) alone won’t be able to detect or prevent malware like this, which is why a SIEM is so essential.
Additionally, SIEM solutions can gather data from across your entire network, and analyse this data together to limit false positives. They represent a reliable product that will detect attacks inside and out, and that reports threats accurately without producing false positives.
Choosing a SIEM solution is a great way to manage your cybersecurity issues. For any other questions about our SIEM services and how they may benefit you, contact us today.
