SIEM use cases

Let’s start with the definition of a SIEM system. The SIEM is a security information and event management system. SIEM class tools collect and analyze data, concerning security issues from various sources. 

This tool’s main aim is to trace the IT infrastructure maintenance and reveal current and potential threats targeting an enterprise. A SIEM solution basically helps to reveal whether some atypical and unusual activities are taking place within a company’s infrastructure. In order to be able to counter the ongoing risks it is required to have the full picture of what is actually happening within the corporate infrastructure. Corporate infrastructure typically contains numerous systems. The list includes, but is not limited to:

• Network monitors
• Antiviruses
• Applications
• Databases
• Operating systems of servers and PCs
• Active Directory

Enormous number of events is generated by corporate systems, and it is simply impossible to trace and analyze them manually. The SIEM system is in fact developed for this purpose – it collects and processes events from different sources. This functionality is of crucial importance, as it helps to detect attacks at an early stage and take the required protective measures. Besides dealing with various attacks, SIEM software is required to perform security audits, maintain compliance rules and reveal security problems.

Now we will examine more precisely, in which cases SIEM system will be useful. There are several top SIEM use cases.

Some of these use cases include:

• Detection of unusual network activity
• Detection of unusual logon activity
• Detection of vulnerabilities in the IT infrastructure
• Detection of malware
• Unauthorized access to corporate email
• Correlation of unrelated data. Some events, when detached, may seem normal. However, when considered together, they may turn out to be malicious ones. 

By implementing a SIEM , the organization can significantly improve the security of its IT infrastructure.

However, it is required to keep in mind that all SIEM systems have a specific peculiarity: the number of connectors is always insufficient. No matter how many connectors the SIEM system vendor provides, when the system is deployed it is always required to add extra connectors according to the customer’s requirements.