The cyber threat landscape has been expanding, unchecked and at an unfathomable rate. The threat surface has become thinner with the fusion of the digital and real world. The vulnerability of every sector has increased multi-fold. Countering these threats from internal and external sources has become daunting. In 2022 there has been a huge difference between the number of attacks that occurred in Q2 and Q3. This difference is bigger when comparing the 2021 and 2022 attack numbers.
Statics show in Q3 2022, the number of cyberattacks increased by 1/3rd compared to Q3 2021, and by 10% compared to Q2 2022. More than numbers, the sophistication level of the threats is a cause for worry. The ransomware attack against AIIMS Delhi showed how threat actors are stronger with much more advanced tools at their disposal.
A recent study says that having a Security Operations Center (SOC) improves an organization’s ability to contain any threats by 43%. By a general definition: ‘SOC is a centralized function within an organization. It employs people, processes, and technology to continuously monitor and improve an organization’s security posture. All this while preventing, detecting, analyzing and responding to cybersecurity incidents.’ A traditional SOC however was good when threats were traditional and not rampant. Today, especially for businesses, using a traditional SOC will only pose challenges:
#Challenge 1: Missing critical alerts due to overloading
A mid-size organization faces threats on an everyday basis. Data suggests that for a workplace of 1,000 employees, almost 2 million events are generated daily. An overload of alerts overwhelms security teams and critical events are missed.
#Challenge 2: Gaps in visibility with security solutions
By using multiple security applications, specific alerts are targeted one-on-one and the issue is resolved. When this happens analysts miss the whole picture and have visibility in silos. The value is often limited by the type and depth of the data collected and the level of correlated analysis possible. The lack of integrations is a supreme challenge in traditional SOC.
#Challenge 3: Conducting a difficult and time-consuming investigation
An overwhelming number of alerts are generated in a day which leads to missing critical alerts. But once the alerts are neutralized security teams always try and investigate the alerts. This may not always be possible due to a lack of in-depth knowledge and resources, especially since it would be done manually.
#Challenge 4: Increase in risks due to slow response and detection
Combing through millions of alerts unable to find which are critical leads to higher risks for organizations. When there is a delay in detection, the response to mitigate the alerts is also slow affecting the operations of any organization negatively. This stage is achieved when other challenges are snowballed and thrown at the security teams. This is the biggest challenge faced when using a traditional SOC.
Eventus TechSol has understood this and designed Managed SOC platform which is also known as SOC-as-a-Service. This platform gives complete visibility across multiple security layers processing millions of events. It has enriched threat intelligence driving faster threat detection and automated response combined with expert threat analysis. While Managed SOC provides the best results in mitigating threats, a sophisticated level of security is achieved by combining XDR and Managed SOC. The XDR Powered SOC collects and automatically correlates data across multiple security layers and allows faster detection of threats, improved investigation and response time. It provides full visibility of the kill chain of an attacker.
“Eventus has decades of understanding of the cyber threat landscape and the evolving technology. This is why we have designed our Managed SOC close to the needs of organizations. We take pride in stating that our SOC platform is the ‘Next Gen Way’. Its strength is the presence of Extended Detection and Response (XDR). The XDR-powered SOC platform is ideal for keeping endpoints, networks, cloud and servers secure. Our specialized threat detection and hunting platform, combined with the deep knowledge of security experts, delivers faster responses with a higher degree of confidence 24*7*365,” says Manish Chasta, Co-founder & CTO at Eventus TechSol.
A traditional SOC works in silos, hence giving rise to the need of using an XDR-powered SOC in modern times. A combination of XDR and SOC will automate the entire SOC-as-a-Service offering. This is a modernization of the solution while negating the challenges faced by traditional SOC. The XDR-powered SOC is “context-driven” which provides the entire visibility of the kill chain of an attacker. Our AI-supported XDR is powered by Trend Micro. It extends continuous threat detection and monitoring, and automated response beyond endpoints. It ingests threat intelligence streams to allow organizations to defend against known attacks. This allows security analysts to address actual threats faster. Eventus here has an upper hand, where they also provide MXDR i.e Managed XDR portfolio as part of the Managed SOC solution. Eventus’ Managed Services monitor the MXDR deployment 24*7 and remotely investigate all critical security events. Real-time events from endpoints and networks will be continuously sent to the SOC via event logs and alerts. If a critical event is detected and validated, it will be immediately escalated to take action.
“Generally using an XDR-powered SOC means that it augments the traditional SOC. So by using this tool an organization sees improvement in vulnerability assessments. A proactive strategy is taken up prioritizing the risks that are countered by analyzing the threat patterns and meeting the expectations of cyber insurance providers. Naturally, the XDR portfolio powered by Trend Micro provided by Eventus is highly modernized. It aids the SOC in streamlining the threats and ensuring that the SOC team focuses on the most pertinent threats. Our MXDR can even recognize IoT devices or unmanaged endpoints such as BYOD devices that may have been compromised, making use of advanced AI to analyze and prioritize threat data. This is evidenced by our CERT-In Empanelment, a testament to the quality of our security solutions,” says Manish Chasta, Co-founder & CTO at Eventus TechSol.
Experts believe that the Next-Gen SOC will help organizations deal with an enormous amount of data generated and the threat info that accompanies them. The XDR also helps address the general, yet important shortcomings of a traditional SOC. This should be taken into consideration. While threat actors are evolving in terms of technology being used to attack, cybersecurity solution providers cannot stay in the legacy mindset.
