Security Analytics and Intelligence Platform to Identify High-risk Threats With Real-time Correlation

In recent years, the growing number of information security threats has forced organizations to deploy tools that can upgrade the competence of their existing security infrastructure. Deploying security analysis tools and analytics software will allow large and medium-sized organizations to collect, filter, integrate, and link various types of security event information, so as to acquire a more comprehensive view of the security of their infrastructure.

As a part of IT security analysis, most of the smaller companies are today, deploying, endpoint protections and deeper network defenses. If there is a security threat in an infrastructure, the security analysis tool will help organizations identify and eliminate the threat from the architecture.

Purpose of Security Analytics

With security analytics IT professionals can detect the attacks as fast as possible, they can block or stop such attacks and provide detailed information to rebuild an attack. This is done by collecting, correlating, and analyzing extensive series of data. That way the companies will detect the vulnerabilities exploited to breach their systems and address weaknesses in their existing infrastructure.

Information Security Analytics dissipates the myth that analytics in the context of data security area is constrained to simply security incident and event management frameworks and basic network analysis. Rather these analytics help organizations to mine information and recognize patterns and connections in any manifestation of security data.

Security Risk Analysis

The security risk analysis process facilitates organizations in tracing key informatics through which effective decisions can be made pertaining to information security. This analysis recognizes the current security controls in the infrastructure, measures vulnerabilities, and assesses the influence of threats on each part of the vulnerability.

In most cases, the cost incurred for performing risk analysis will be lesser than the impact of risks and the budget fixed for security solution which is intended to manage such risk. Risk controlling cost must not exceed the loss if the risk is left unseen. If the solution for the risk exceeds the loss value of the risk, then the security analyst will make a decision whether to solve the risk or not. If a remedy of such risk may eliminate many other risks, then the analyst will solve such risk.

A security risk analysis is an investigation of the association among assets, threats, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures to regulate the existing level of risk. Compiling Information security and risk assessment starts with recognizing the data Assets, sensitivity of data, values, countermeasures, and probable threats. This data is later used to compute vulnerabilities and risks. The system risk analysis procedure comprises eight different, yet interrelated steps.

• Phase 1:  Identify and evaluate Assets
• Phase 2:  Identify applicable threats
• Phase 3:  Identify/describe vulnerabilities
• Phase 4:  Pair threats and vulnerabilities
• Phase 5:  Determine the impact of threat occurrence
• Phase 6:  In-place countermeasures
• Phase 7:  Determine residual risk
• Phase 8:  Identify additional countermeasures

After accomplishing the entire task a “Risk Analysis Report” will be designed. This report helps admiration to analyse the level of security in their architecture. The risk analysis report includes the following entities.

• Vulnerability levels
• Applicable threats and their frequency
• The use environment
• System Connectivity
• Data Sensitivity Level;
• Residual risk, expressed on an individual vulnerability basis
• Detailed Annual Loss Expectancy calculations

Process of Information Security Risk Assessment

Information security risk management is a recurring process of identifying, assessing, and prioritizing risks. Risk management is composed of major activities, i.e., risk assessment and risk control. Risk assessment is a crucial decision-making strategy that traces out the information security assets that are exposed to threats. It also prioritizes the risk incidents, by calculating the quantitative or qualitative value of risks.

IT Security Risk Assessment Methods

AHP and Fuzzy comprehensive method are the most widely used methods for performing IT security risk assessment. 

AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process)

AHP is one of the prime methodologies being used by the organization to enable effective decision making on prioritizing, ranking and evaluating alternative for ensuring information security. To do this, AHP combines both qualitative and quantitative factors; it also permits multiple actors, criteria and scenarios to be included in the analysis. To resolve complex group decision situations, AHP a flexible and effective tool. modeling, valuation, prioritization, and synthesis are the four stages in AHP.

Step 1: Modelling: Structure a Hierarchy

• In this stage, a hierarchy is built, which describes the problem. The final goal or mission is positioned at the top of the hierarchy and the main attributes, criteria, and subcriteria are positioned in the following levels below.

Step 2: Valuation: Pair-wise Comparison

• In this stage, all the criteria pertaining goal will be compared, and then compare each criteria with all the alternatives pertaining to such criteria. In the analysis, the criteria preferences are included as pairwise comparison matrices.

Step 3: Prioritization: Estimate the Relative Weights

• Based on the eigenvalues of the comparison matrix in the above stage, the local priorities are derived. Using the hierarchic composition principle, the global priorities are derived.

Step 4: Synthesis: Check the Consistency

• Synthesis of each alternative of global priorities is done in this stage, so as to acquire their total priorities.

Fuzzy Comprehensive Method:

The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation is also called the fluffy synthesis decision-making. The core competence of this method is to focus on the weight set. Determining the weight can be done by using the subjective method, objective method, i.e., through the analytic hierarchy process, and the comprehensive exponential method.

The entropy weight strategy can build a quantifiable extension between the subjective and target routines, and speaks to a decent approach to focus weights. Subsequently, the extensive assessment technique for deciding the assessment grid and the entropy weight strategy for deciding the weights of indicators so as to fabricate the matrix structure of the synthetic evaluation model will be utilized.

The following are the steps involved in executing the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method

• Determine the element set and assessment set
• Establish the fuzzy assessment matrix
• Determine the weight of every index layer utilizing the entropy weight technique)
• Calculate the compound decision vector

Security Analysis Tools

Security analysis tools are expected to collect an extensive range of data types. Security investigation devices help identify breaches and gather information, yet it is essential to have a response plan before recognizing occurrences. Organizations would prefer not to make up their response plan as they are reacting to an occurrence. There is a lot of potential for slip, miscommunication, and loss of confirmation to hazard an ad hoc reaction to a security breach.

Types of Security Analysis Tools:

Scanners

These are the tools that spontaneously examine networks for hosts and/or vulnerabilities.

Port Scanners investigate the entire network so as to trace out all of the active computers, open ports, and services, e.g.: Foundstone’s SuperScan 4

Vulnerability Scanners scans network for tracing out in-detail information, e.g.: Nmap, Nessus

Packet Sniffers

Collects and analyzes copies of packet from a network that you want to sniff, e.g.:Ethereal

Content Filters

Content filters allows system administrators to restrict content from unauthorized fields from entering the network, e.g.: NetNanny

Trap and Trace Tools

Trap: Enticing an intruder/attacker into the network, e.g.: Honeypot

Trace: Effort to regulate the uniqueness of someone discovered in unapproved areas of the network, e.g.: Recourse Technologies’ ManHunt