Advanced-level data analytics, bolstered by technological advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, permeate every major market and digital security is, fortunately, no exception. “The increased frequency and sophistication of cyber attacks are causing the security ecosystem to flourish and push the industry into the hunt for more reliable, in-depth, and high-quality security analytics intelligence,” said Dimitrios Pavlakis, Industry Analyst for ABI Research.
There are, however, quite a few pervasive challenges for security analytics both in what they encompass and what they can and should offer, as well as how the technology should evolve. “Most organisations understand security analytics as an elusive cluster of different technologies encompassing ‘a little bit of everything’. While on a top level they are somewhat correct on that respect, they, unfortunately, opt to pick whatever makes sense budget-wise,” explained Pavlakis. “The issue is not only that they choose a lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over security, but also have unrealistic expectations about the intelligence-gathering and the level of cyber security readiness of their chosen solution.”
However, it is rather insufficient to pick just one intelligence-gathering aspect of certain vital security tools, and many organisations are still unclear about what are the prerequisites for reliable sources of security intelligence. ABI Research’s latest market report addresses these issues and argues that the security analytics ecosystem must evolve towards providing truly interoperable solutions powered by advanced security analytics.
This includes, among others, an amalgamation of intelligence gathered from Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems, User and Entity Behaviour Analytics (UEBA), Intrusion Detection/Prevention Systems (IDS/IPS), Unified Threat Management (UTM), next-generation firewalls, a steady stream of API data from cloud vendors, tied up behind powerful new innovative technologies such as cognitive computing and Natural Language Processing (NPL) classifiers.
Innovative market players named by ABI Research, and each with a different specialisation in security analytics, include prominent leaders like IBM, Cisco, and Logrhythm, as well as innovative vendors like Crowdstrike, McAfee, Dartrace, and Empow.