What is SIEM technology? What are SOC services? How do they differ, and how can they complement each other? They’re both vital aspects of a robust cybersecurity defence – if you have one and not the other, are you missing out?
Is SIEM Worth It If You Don’t Also Have SOC?
Do you know how SIEM and SOC are different, and how they work together to improve business security? In a nutshell, SIEM is the tool, and the SOC are the experts that use it. Read on to learn more about why SOC services may be necessary for you to get more out of your investment in SIEM.
When it comes to protecting against the ongoing, evolving cybersecurity threats in play today, managing cybersecurity is, understandably, a tall order. In order for you to effectively fill the role Invotec would play in your operations, you would need in-depth knowledge of how to select, install, manage and maintain increasingly complex IT security systems and the time to both maintain systems on an ongoing basis and respond to events as they occur.
In short, you need a wealth of specialized knowledge and the ability to focus solely on IT. For those reasons, it’s recommended that business owners simply outsource their IT management tasks to a more capable, more available Melbourne IT company, like Invotec. This can guarantee a level of quality and consistency in management and maintenance that likely can’t be achieved by you or by someone on your staff trying to manage IT on their own.
And nowhere is this truer than when it comes to advanced cybersecurity IT technologies, such as SIEM.
What is SIEM?
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) technology provides a secure cloud service that offers 24/7 security and operation monitoring to oversee a given business’ security needs, with adaptive threat protection that identifies active cyber attacks and takes action in real-time to protect your business.
By integrating intelligence from global threat monitoring feeds, this solution responds to network-based zero-day exploit attempts, drive-by downloads, and advanced malware that routinely bypass conventional firewall and antivirus technologies.
Further features of most SIEM products include:
- Termination of communications with blacklisted or untrusted remote sites.
- Continuous monitoring of and protection against new or abnormal user activity on your networks and systems.
- Automatic shutdown of your critical systems to stop active cyber attacks when necessary.
- Real-time notifications of any significant network activity with automatic remedial actions.
- Ongoing access to a dedicated cybersecurity expert that’s available on demand to address and resolve your security concerns as need be.
However, as touched on above, there is a key issue with SIEM implementation that needs to be taken into account.
What Is The Main Problem With SIEM Technology That Users Need To Address?
Simply put, businesses that invest in SIEM and try to handle it on their own experience a high rate of failure. Not because of any issues with SIEM itself, but because those operating a business likely don’t have the time or knowledge to properly make use of SIEM. As a result, SIEM becomes a wasted investment that does not help to enhance security for the business.
This is why SIEM is incomplete without SOC Services.
What Are SOC Services?
A Security Operations Centre (SOC) is a team of people, employing a range of proven processes and using carefully implemented technologies (such as SIEM) which are often centralized, and that – at the very least – gather and analyse user reports and a range of data sources – such as logs – from information systems and cybersecurity controls.
Typically, the main purpose an SOC serves in a business setting is to identify, address and eliminate cybersecurity events that could negatively impact an organization’s information systems or data. Depending on a number of factors – size, budget, industry, location, etc. – SOCs can vary from organization to organization and are implemented per structural cybersecurity priorities and risk tolerance.
Whereas one business’ SOC will oversee a cybersecurity event from detection to remediation, another may instead focus on supporting and coordinating incident responders and handling incident response communication, which could mean status updates and third-party communication.
The point of outsourced SOC services is that users don’t have to take on the responsibilities of an SOC themselves – they can instead rely on Invotec to shoulder those responsibilities as an outsourced service.
Without SOC services, you don’t have much-needed visibility into your systems, unless you happen to be looking at that server at that same time. As such, you may not be able to notice important warning signs like your CPU working much harder than normal, which can be an indication that you’re experiencing a cyber attack.
Do You Need SOC Services?
Depending on your business size or other operational factors, you may choose not to opt to invest in cybersecurity technologies like SIEM at all. However, for those businesses that are utilizing a robust cloud platform to connect remote employees to headquarters, or bring together multiple locations, then you may benefit from SIEM.
If you choose to utilize SIEM, it will more than likely be essential for you to have SOC services as well. To make the most of your cybersecurity technology and make sure your business is kept secure, you’ll need expertise on your side. This can be said for most of today’s enterprise-level technology, but no where is this truer than with SIEM.
SIEM and SOC go hand-in-hand in the eyes of most technology professionals. If you’re unsure about where you stand with regards to SIEM or SIEM support, then you should get in touch with Invotec to get an informed second opinion. They can tell you if SIEM is a good investment for your situation and offer guidance to help you make the best decision with regards to this technology and the role it will play in your operations.
Like this article? Check out the following blogs on cybersecurity and outsourced IT services in Melbourne to learn more:
Top Advantages To Local Small Business When They Outsource IT Services
Critical Questions CEO’s Need To Ask When Evaluating Cyber Security Risks
