dns, a key player in the managed security services industry, has announced the availability of its new managed security information and event monitoring service (SIEM). With 24/7 monitoring of security events across the enterprise, incidents from a range of security devices and critical IT assets are systematically collected, correlated and analysed in real-time.
The two forms of security monitoring, Security Event Management (SEM) and Security Information Management (SIM), combine to form SIEM, enabling organisations to react effectively to security incidents and providing reporting and analysis of data to support regulatory compliance initiatives, internal threat management and security policy compliance management.
With regulations such as PCI, Memo 22, Sarbanes-Oxley and ISO27001 increasingly demanding effective security monitoring of organisations’ IT infrastructures, security managers are finding that they simply do not have the time or resources to perform this to an acceptable level. The level of complexity involved and the sheer amount of time required to effectively react to security incidents, means that it is much better suited to a team of highly qualified experts monitoring for security events 24/7.
The dns service monitors a range of data sources including firewalls, intrusion detection/prevention systems, networking equipment, security software, host activity logs, database activity logs, directories, identity and access management systems, application logs and transaction logs. Through this comprehensive set of sources, dns’s team of experts can monitor for incidents against set security policies and compliance requirements. Once an incident is identified the team can work with the security manager to ensure a quick, intelligent and appropriate resolution.
For example, if a call centre operative is expected to access 15 customer files in an hour, any dramatic increase would signal a security event as outlined by the organisation’s own policy - once identified, the necessary action can be taken quickly to neutralise the risk. All reports of incidents are handled by dns’ dashboard, which provides a one stop, on-line information point for clients to check on the status of their managed security services 24/7. The reporting is flexible and tailored to each organisation’s individual requirements, but also, crucially, reduces risk and provides key controls for regulations and standards such as PCI and ISO27001.
“We are delighted to be able to offer this service to our clients. We feel this really is the next stage of development for our suite of services, and one that companies have been crying out for in light of increasingly strict regulations and standards,” said Don Smith, technical director at dns.
“A managed service has a huge amount of benefits for organisations. The reporting of all security incidents helps with adherence to regulations and standards such as Sarbanes-Oxley, whilst reducing the total cost of ownership for organisations as we provide the technology, people and processes as well as the peace of mind that security is in the hands of a dedicated team of experts.”
