Decoding SIEM: Safeguarding Networks and Enhancing IT Security - Free Essay Sample

Security information and event management (SIEM) is a combination of security information management (SIM) and security event management (SEM) that provides real-time monitoring and analysis of events as well as tracking and logging of security data for purposes of compliance and auditing (Jenkins, 2011). SIEM is a proven technology that helps companies and organizations detect potential security threats and loopholes before they disrupt business operations.

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SIEM is tailored to identify outliers and respond with appropriate measures. The information management part of SIEM collects data from firewalls, intrusion tools, and anti-virus tools (Jenkins, 2011). In contrast, event management offers solutions in areas that pose threats to the system, ranging from human errors to malicious codes trying to break in ("SIEM strategy & plan: Steps to successful implementation," 2019). It surfaces user behaviour anomalies and employs artificial intelligence to automate many of the processes it handles with threat detection and incidence response in security and compliance management use.

For SIEM to offer a holistic view of an organization’s security information, it provides event log management that consolidates data from various sources and real-time visibility across an organizations security system ("SIEM strategy & plan: Steps to successful implementation," 2019). It notifies admins about security issues and establishes correlations among security events. Through data consolidation and correlation, SIEM consolidates, analyses, and parses log files. Events are placed according to the raw data collected and correlation rules are applied to combine individual data events into meaningful security issues. If something triggers a SIEM rule, the security personnel are then notified by the system to take action.

SIEM setup has various phases that it undergoes. IT begins with the discovery and planning phase. The organization reviews where it stands in terms of security and determines where it wants to move using the SIEM tool ("SIEM strategy & plan: Steps to successful implementation," 2019). The company comes up with a list of objectives and goals to be achieved in the rank of their importance to the organization. Identification of tasks and processes that are critical in supporting the implementation of the security system is crucial in the setting up of the SIEM tool.

The SIEM system needs to be piloted so that the company can establish if the system brings a return on investment and has a working model as well as a runbook. At this setup stage, all assumptions that were created at the discovery stage need to be tested factoring in some growing devices. All the data and information required to proceed to the controlled deployment stage is obtained, and the deployment should not be done in one swift phase. Successful SIEM setups are not a one-time thing.

SIEM is worth being integrated into an organization's network system because it helps monitor logs and notify of any suspicious threats where any human may not be able to make sense of the too much-generated data ("benefits of using a SIEM to improve IT security," 2020). SIEM also helps an organization in data presentation in a variety of ways, including customized reports and out-of-the-box reporting. The personnel can quickly spot anomalies, threats, traffic spikes, and other problems that might be a threat to the data security of an organization. The reports and dashboards serve as a cornerstone hub of information to determine where and how to narrow down any abnormal activity. SIEM too helps in compliance assistance. The system makes a report on how companies safeguard PII, an individual accessing data, and from where the individual is from.

References

The benefits of using a SIEM to improve IT security. (2020, March 3). SecureOps. https://secureops.com/security/blog-what-is-a-siem/

Jenkins, S. (2011). Learning to love SIEM. Network Security, 2011(4), 18 19. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1353-4858(11)70041-1

SIEM strategy & plan: Steps to successful implementation. (2019, May 23). Stackify. https://stackify.com/siem-implementation-strategy-and-plan/