Uncovering Cyberthreats Is a Matter of Comprehensive Visibility

Today's organizations rely more on new technologies to stay competitive. These range from accelerating service deployment using cloud technologies to leveraging AIOps, which empowers technicians to detect and resolve issues early. With these technologies, organizations can deliver positive experiences that bring more customers to their front doors.

In Asia Pacific, the region's digital transformation market is projected to reach USD1.2 billion by 2030. This growth can be attributed to introducing new digitization policies, an increasing reliance on online sales methods, and the growing adoption of AI and robotics technologies. While this trend shows that businesses in the region are using technology to improve, it also increases the risk of Singaporeans falling victim to cyber threats.

In 2022, Singapore's Cyber Security Agency (CSA) uncovered 81,500 infected infrastructures. Meanwhile, Singaporeans suffered 132 ransomware incidents, with more than one case reported every three days. However, because not all victims will report an attack, the number of cyberattacks is likely much higher. Controlling these incidents requires security teams to establish comprehensive visibility into their IT infrastructures as a central component of their security strategies.

Looking at the bigger picture

Comprehensive visibility means monitoring and assessing every part of the IT infrastructure. It is essential for preventing cyber threats, as without it, IT professionals will have a more challenging time identifying the types of incidents they are facing and how to counter them effectively. This, in turn, can lead to more extended downtimes and lost customers.

For example, a password management service provider with comprehensive visibility into its systems can reduce credential theft by monitoring potential attackers snooping around customer vault backups in the shared cloud environment. As a result, the provider can protect their customers from becoming victims of identity theft and unauthorized fund transfers.

How SIEM solutions can close security gaps

Cybersecurity solutions, including security information and event management (SIEM) solutions, can help users monitor activities across various environments, including networks, endpoints, users, and applications. Security teams can catch and resolve issues, including vulnerabilities or potential attack vectors, with an SIEM solution before they escalate. SIEM solutions are equipped with a wide variety of features, including:

• Log and event monitoring: SIEM solutions are designed to gather data from various sources, including end-user devices, servers, network components, firewalls, antivirus software, and cloud environments. From there, the data is matched and analyzed, allowing security teams to stay ahead of ransomware, brute force attacks, malware, SQL injections, and unauthorized backup activities.
• Anomalous behavior detection: SIEM solutions equipped with ML capabilities can establish baselines for normal behaviors. When a login attempt or system access deviates from the established baseline, the program can assign risk scores, allowing security teams to decide which actions require the most attention. This way, organizations can lower the risk of insider attacks, data exfiltration, and account compromise.
• Incident response and investigation: With incident dashboards, SIEM solutions can provide in-depth information about the threats currently lurking around the network. Specifically, security teams can learn more about the incident's origin, time of occurrence, and its effects on the IT infrastructure. This information is crucial in enabling security teams to combat attacks more effectively and prevent similar events in the future.
• Threat intelligence integration: Robust SIEM solutions can be paired with global threat feeds, allowing security teams to identify and block traffic from blocklisted IP addresses. Simultaneously, by correlating the threat feeds with their internal security data, teams can learn about cyberattackers' tactics and signs of a security breach. With these insights, security teams can take a more proactive stance in hunting down threats before they make their move.
• Cloud infrastructure monitoring: Organizations today rely on the cloud more than ever. An integrated cloud access security broker (CASB) enables complete monitoring across cloud and on-premises systems. With a CASB, security teams can mitigate the risks of shadow IT. Furthermore, teams can leverage deep packet inspection to analyze file contents for malicious programs, including ransomware and malware. And with audit-ready reports, organizations can ensure they comply with local and global cybersecurity regulations.

Organizations must secure every part of their IT environment from the modern threat landscape. This is where innovative cybersecurity solutions come into play, as they equip security teams with comprehensive visibility that empowers proactive threat hunting and discovery. With the ability to spot, analyze, and remediate threats with one solution, organizations can focus on strengthening customer relationships and empowering employee productivity.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of CDOTrends. Image credit: iStockphoto/YiorgosGR