Understanding Managed SIEM Solutions

It's no longer a nice-to-have to stay ahead of the curve. There is a lot of data out there for organizations, and security events are always rising to the top. How, though, do you tell the difference between the safe minnows and the possible sharks? The answer is Managed Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solutions. These are strong tools that can help you sort out the noise and find real threats before they hurt your security.

The numbers do the talking for you. A new study from IBM says that the average cost of a data breach around the world in 2023 was an amazing $4.35 million [source: IBM Cost of a Data Breach study 2023]. There's a big price tag there for any group to pay. Cyberattacks are getting smarter all the time, and old security methods are often not able to keep up. This is where SIEM comes in. It gathers log data from all of your devices and apps and acts as a security nerve center.

Imagine having one piece of glass that lets you see everything that's going on with your protection. That's what makes SIEM great. SIEM can find anomalies—those strange events that don't quite fit the bill—by collecting and evaluating this data. You can think of it as a bloodhound looking for threats that are hidden. SIEM is a bloodhound, but it's also a very good investigator. It can connect these strange events with threat intelligence feeds, which helps it see more clearly what security problems might happen.

However, setting up and managing a SIEM system in-house can be hard and require a lot of time and money. Here's where the idea of "managed SIEM" comes in handy. You don't have to worry about anything because managed SIEM providers take care of everything for you. They do everything, from setting up and deploying to monitoring and threat research regularly. It's like hiring a group of security pros who are on duty all the time to keep your systems safe.

By using managed SIEM, businesses can get the newest security tools and advice without having to pay a lot of money upfront. It's like having a top-notch security team at your fingers, which frees up your staff to work on more important tasks. Because cybersecurity is always changing, managed SIEM can mean the difference between being ready for attacks and being able to respond quickly to them. If you want to learn more about this powerful option, keep reading to learn more about managed SIEM and how it can help your business.

SIEM, or Managed Security Information and Event Management, is a service offered by outside defense groups. It includes managing, analyzing, and keeping an eye on all security events happening in a client's IT infrastructure from one place. SIEM technology is used in this service, and it is set up, maintained, and managed by expert third-party providers. One of the main goals of managed SIEM services is to make a company safer. It also wants to make handling cybersecurity solutions in-house easier and cheaper.

Things that managed SIEM providers do

Managed SIEM companies offer several features that improve the security of a business. Different providers may offer different features, but some popular ones are:

• Centralized Monitoring and Management: Security events and logs from different parts of an organization's IT system are collected by service providers, which allows for full monitoring.
• Real-Time Threat Detection: Advanced analytics and correlation methods help find possible security risks right away. This lets organizations move quickly and lessen the effects of incidents.
• Incident Response and Remediation: As part of the services, security alerts are often looked into to find their root causes, and help or advice is given on how to fix problems.
• Compliance and Reporting: Providers help businesses meet standards for compliance such as GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI DSS. They have tools for making notes and making sure that logs are kept properly.
• Threat Intelligence Integration: Threat intelligence feeds from different sources are included in managed SIEM services. This helps find new risks and weak spots so that defenses can be prepared ahead of time.
• 24/7 Monitoring and Support: Most providers give monitoring and support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This makes sure that problems are found and fixed quickly, no matter what time it is.
• Scalability and Flexibility: Solutions are made to grow with the needs of a company without putting security at risk.
• Providers keep SIEM technology up to date with the newest security patches and features, and they also take care of any infrastructure updates that need to be done.
• Customized Alerts and Notifications: An organization can change the alert levels and notification settings to fit its risk tolerance and operational needs.

There are many benefits to managed SIEM services that go beyond their direct features. These benefits are very important to businesses.

• Cost Savings: Companies can cut their total cost of ownership by a large amount by outsourcing SIEM monitoring. This includes money saved on things like software fees, infrastructure, and upkeep. It also cuts down on the costs of hiring, training, and keeping cybersecurity workers.
• Faster Deployment: Managed SIEM providers bring knowledge and experience that make it possible to set up and launch SIEM solutions quickly. This makes it easy for businesses to improve their security tracking quickly.
• Focus on Core Business: When companies outsource SIEM management, they can use their own resources to focus on core business tasks while still keeping strong security measures.
• Access to Specialized Knowledge: Managed SIEM providers hire security experts who are experts in a wide range of fields. This lets businesses get access to expert skills without having to train their staff.
• Regular Security Checks: A lot of managed SIEM providers do regular security checks. These help groups figure out where their security is weak and where it needs to be improved.
• Using the knowledge and advanced tools of managed SIEM providers can lower the chances of cyberattacks and data breaches succeeding. This is because they can keep an eye on things more closely.
• Better Security Awareness: Managed SIEM services make a company more aware of its overall security. They give useful information about current threats and weak spots, which encourages people to be mindful of security.
• Better Use of Resources: Companies can make better use of their internal security resources by working on important projects and tasks. SIEM systems are managed by professionals, who make operations run more smoothly.

Choosing the right managed SIEM service is important for keeping an eye on, finding, and responding to security events in your company's IT system. To make sure you pick the best-managed SIEM provider for your needs, here are seven important things to think about:

1. Knowledge and Experience: Choose a service provider that has a history of handling SIEM solutions for businesses like yours that are in the same line of work. Make sure they have security researchers and experts with a lot of experience who can handle and analyze security events quickly.

2. Check the SIEM technology that the company uses and make sure it works with your platform. Make sure it works well with the IT systems you already have and that it can handle logs from different sources, such as firewalls, intruder detection systems, and endpoint security solutions.

3. Customization and Scalability: Make sure that the hosted SIEM service can be changed to fit your needs and can grow with your business. The provider should be able to change the rules, policies, and settings of the SIEM system whenever they need to.

4. Knowledge of compliance and regulations: If your company has to follow certain rules, like HIPAA, GDPR, or PCI DSS, make sure that the managed SIEM service knows these rules and can help you follow them.

5. Threat Intelligence: Pick a service company that has up-to-date threat intelligence. They should use this information in their monitoring and research to make their strategies for finding things and responding to them more accurate and useful.

6. Recognizing and fixing incidents: Look at what the service provider can do for incident response, such as how they find, analyze, and handle security incidents. To help your company recover quickly and lessen the effects of incidents, make sure they offer clear communication and support.

7. Reporting and Visibility: The service provider should provide powerful reporting tools, such as real-time dashboards and regular logs that give you information about how secure your system is. This will help you keep an eye on how well your security steps are working and make smart choices about your cybersecurity.

Managed SIEM systems are a major step forward in cybersecurity. They are a powerful tool that businesses can use to improve their security. These solutions make it possible for an organization's network to be fully monitored, analyzed and responded to when security events happen. They make sure that threats are found and dealt with quickly. Managed SIEM finds complex threats that might not be seen otherwise thanks to the knowledge of dedicated security pros and advanced analytical tools. Companies can focus more on their main business tasks when they use controlled SIEM. They are sure that professionals are meeting their protection needs. In the end, using managed SIEM as part of your protection plan can make breaches much less likely. In addition, expert help from SafeAeon can further make your company's general security stronger.