Learn More About Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Software
Types of SIEM solutions
Traditional SIEM
Traditional SIEM tools are deployed on-premises with sensors placed on IT assets to analyze events and collect system logs. The data is used to develop baseline references and identify indicators of compromise. The SIEM product alerts security teams for intervention when a system becomes compromised.
Cloud or virtual SIEM
Cloud-based and virtualized SIEM software are tools typically used to secure cloud infrastructure and services a cloud provider delivers. These tools are often less expensive than on-premises solutions and more accessible to implement, as no physical labor is required. They are ideal for companies without local IT infrastructure.
Companies that do not have a full-fledged security program may choose managed SIEM services to aid in management and reduce work for internal employees. These SIEM services are delivered by managed service providers who provide the customer data and dashboards with security information and activity, but the provider handles implementation and remediation.
What are the common features of SIEM systems?
The following are some core features within SIEM software that can help users collect security data, analyze logs, and detect threats:
Activity monitoring: SIEM systems document the actions from endpoints within a network. The system alerts users of incidents and abnormal activities and documents the access point. Real-time tracking will document these for analysis as an event takes place.
Asset management: These SIEM features keep records of each network asset and its activity. The feature may also refer to the discovery of new assets accessing the network.
Log management: This functionality documents and stores event logs in a secure repository for reference, analysis, or compliance reasons.
Event management: As events occur in real time, the SIEM software alerts users of incidents. This allows security teams to intervene manually or trigger an automated response to resolve the issue.
Automated response: Response automation reduces the time spent diagnosing and resolving issues manually. The features are typically capable of quickly resolving common network security incidents.
Incident reporting: Incident reports document cases of abnormal activity and compromised systems. These can be used for forensic analysis or as a reference point for future incidents.
Threat intelligence: Threat intelligence feeds integrate information to train SIEM systems to detect emerging and existing threats. These threat feeds store information related to potential threats and vulnerabilities to ensure issues are discovered and teams are provided with the information necessary to resolve the problems as they occur.
Vulnerability assessment: Vulnerability assessment tools may scan networks for potential vulnerabilities or audit data to discover non-compliant practices. Mainly, they’re used to analyze an existing network and IT infrastructure to outline access points that can be easily compromised.
Advanced analytics: Advanced analytics features allow users to customize analysis with granular or individually specific metrics pertinent to the business’ resources.
Data examination: Data examination features typically facilitate the forensic analysis of incident data and event logs. These features allow users to search databases and incident logs to gain insights into vulnerabilities and incidents.
What are the benefits of using SIEM products?
Below are a few of the main reasons SIEM software is commonly used to protect businesses of all sizes:
Data aggregation and correlation: SIEM systems and companies collect vast amounts of information from an entire network environment. This information is gathered from virtually anything interacting with a network, from endpoints and servers to firewalls and antivirus tools. It is either given directly to the SIEM or using agents (decision-making programs designed to identify irregular information). The platform is set up to deploy agents and collect and store similar information together according to security policies set in place by administrators.
Incident alerting: As information comes in from a network’s various connected components, the SIEM system correlates it using rule-based policies. These policies inform agents of normal behavior and threats. If any action violates these policies or malware or intrusion is discovered. At the same time, the SIEM platform monitors network activity; it is labeled as suspicious, security controls restrict access, and administrators are alerted.
Security analysis: Retrospective analysis may be performed by searching log data during specific periods or based on specific criteria. Security teams may suspect a certain misconfiguration or kind of malware caused an event. They may also suspect an unapproved party went undetected at a specific time. Teams will analyze the logs and look for specific characteristics in the data to determine whether their suspicion was right. They may also discover vulnerabilities or misconfigurations that leave them susceptible to attack and remediate them.
Challenges with SIEM software
Staffing: There is an existing shortage of skilled security professionals. Managing SIEM products and maintaining a well-rounded security posture requires dedicated personnel with highly specialized skills. Some smaller or growing companies may not have the means to recruit, hire, and retain qualified security pros. In such cases, businesses can consider managed services to outsource the labor.
Compliance: Some industries have specific compliance requirements determined by various governing bodies, but SIEM software can be used across several industries to maintain compliance standards. Many industry-specific compliance requirements exist, but most require security teams to protect sensitive data, restrict access to unapproved parties, and monitor changes made to identities, information, or privileges. For example, SIEM systems can maintain GDPR compliance by verifying security controls and data access, facilitating long-term storage of log data, and notifying security staff of security incidents, as GDPR requires.
Which companies should buy SIEM solutions?
Vertical industries: Vertical industries, such as healthcare and financial services, often have additional compliance requirements related to data protection and privacy. SIEM is an ideal solution for outlining requirements, mapping threats, and remediating vulnerabilities.
SaaS business: SaaS businesses utilizing resources from a cloud service provider are still responsible for a significant portion of the security efforts required to protect a cloud-native business. These companies may jump for cloud-native SIEM tools but will benefit from any SIEM to prevent, detect, and respond to threats.
How to choose the best SIEM software
Requirements Gathering (RFI/RFP) for Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Software
The first step to purchasing a SIEM solution is to outline the options. Companies should be sure whether they need a cloud-based or on-premises solution. They should also outline the number of interconnected devices they need and whether they want physical or virtual sensors to secure them. Additional and possibly obvious requirements should include budgetary considerations, staffing limitations, and required integrations.
Compare Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Software Products
Create a long list
Once the requirements are outlined, buyers should prioritize the tools and identify the ones with as many features as possible that fit the budget window. It is recommended to restrict the list to products with desired features, pricing, and deployment methods to identify a dozen or so options. For example, if the business needs a cloud-native SIEM for less than $10k a year, half of the SIEM options will be eliminated.
When choosing a SIEM provider, focus on the vendor’s experience, reputation, and specific functionality relevant to your security needs. Core capabilities ensure essential threat detection, while next-gen features add advanced intelligence and automation, allowing for a more proactive security posture. Here’s a breakdown to guide your selection:
Core SIEM capabilities
- Threat detection: Look for SIEMs with robust threat detection, which uses rules and behavioral analytics, along with threat feed integration, to accurately identify potential threats.
- Threat intelligence and security alerting: Leading SIEMs incorporate threat intelligence feeds, aggregate security data, and alert you when suspicious activities are detected, ensuring real-time updates on evolving threats.
- Compliance reporting: Compliance support is crucial, especially for meeting standards like HIPAA, PCI, and FFIEC. SIEMs streamline compliance assessment and reporting, helping prevent costly non-compliance.
- Real-time notifications: Swift alerts are vital; SIEMs that notify you of breaches immediately enable faster responses to potential threats.
- Data aggregation: A centralized view of all network activities ensures no area is left unmonitored, which is crucial for comprehensive threat visibility as your organization scales.
- Data normalization: SIEMs that normalize incoming data make it easier to analyze security events and extract actionable insights from disparate sources.
Next-gen SIEM capabilities
- Data collection and management: Next-gen SIEMs pull data from the cloud, on-premises, and external devices, consolidating insights across the entire IT environment.
- Cloud delivery: Cloud-based SIEMs use scalable storage, accommodating large data volumes without the limitations of on-premises hardware.
- User and entity behavior analytics (UEBA): By establishing normal user behavior and identifying deviations, UEBA helps detect insider threats and new, unknown threats.
- Security orchestration and automation response (SOAR): SOAR automates incident response, integrates with IT infrastructure, and enables coordinated responses across firewalls, email servers, and access controls.
- Automated attack timelines: Next-gen SIEMs automatically create visual attack timelines, simplifying investigation and triage, even for less experienced analysts.
Selecting an SIEM vendor with both core and next-gen capabilities offers your organization a comprehensive and agile approach to security, meeting both current and future requirements.
Create a short list
Narrowing down a short list can be tricky, especially for the indecisive, but these decisions must be made. Once the long list is limited to affordable products with the desired features, it’s time to search for third-party validation. For each tool, the buyer must analyze end-user reviews, analyst reports, and empirical security evaluations. Combining these specified factors should help rank options and eliminate poorly performing products.
Conduct demos
With the list narrowed down to three to five possible products, businesses can contact vendors and schedule demos. This will help them get first-hand experience with the product, ask targeted questions, and gauge the vendors' quality of service.
Here are some essential questions to guide your decision:
- Will the tool enhance log collection and management?:
Effective log collection is foundational. Look for compatible software across systems and devices, offering a user-friendly dashboard for streamlined monitoring.
- Does the tool support compliance efforts?
Even if compliance isn't a priority, choosing an SIEM that facilitates auditing and reporting can future-proof your operations. Look for tools that simplify compliance processes and reporting.
- Can the tool leverage past security events in threat response?
One of SIEM’s strengths is using historical data to inform future threat detection. Ensure the tool offers in-depth analytics and drill-down capabilities to analyze and act on past incidents.
- Is the incident response fast and automated?
Timely, effective responses are critical. The tool should provide customizable alerts that notify your team immediately when needed so you can confidently leave the dashboard.
Selection of Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Software
Choose a selection team
Decision-makers need to involve subject matter experts from all teams that will use the system in choosing a selection team. For backup software, this primarily involves product managers, developers, IT, and security staff. Any manager or department-level leader should also include individuals managing any solution the backup product will be integrating with.
Negotiation
The seniority of the negotiation team may vary depending on the maturity of the business. It is advisable to include relevant directors or managers from the security and IT departments as well as from any other cross-functional departments that may be impacted.
Final decision
If the company has a chief information security officer (CISO), that individual will likely decide. If not, companies must trust their security professionals’ ability to use and understand the product.
How much does SIEM software cost?
Potential growth should be considered if the buyer chooses a cloud-based SIEM tool that offers pricing on the SaaS pay-as-you-use model. Some solutions are inexpensive at the start and offer affordable, low-tier pricing. Alternatively, some may rapidly increase pricing and fees as the company and storage need to scale. Some vendors provide permanently free backup products for individuals or small teams.
Cloud SIEM: SIEM as a service pricing may vary, but it traditionally scales as storage increases. Additional costs may come from increased features such as automated remediation, security orchestration, and integrated threat intelligence.
On-premises SIEM: On-premises solutions are typically more expensive and require more effort and resources. They will also be more costly to maintain and require dedicated staff. Still, companies with high compliance requirements should adopt on-premises security regardless.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Cloud-based SIEM solutions will provide a quicker ROI, similar to their lower average cost. The situation is pretty cut and dry since there is much lower initial investment and lower demand for dedicated staffing.
However, for on-premises systems, the ROI will depend on the scale and scope of business IT systems. Hundreds of servers will require hundreds of sensors, potentially more, as time wears on computing equipment. Once implemented, they must be operated and maintained by (expensive) security professionals.
