Using the Latest Cybersecurity Solutions Like XDR To Keep Up With Today’s Threats

Welcome to this week’s blog. We’re getting close to the end of the series in which I explore the “Top 10 List of the Challenges Cybersecurity Professionals Face,” as found in our Cybersecurity Insights Report 2022: The State of Cyber Resilience.

Coming in at number three on our list: Identifying and Utilizing the Latest Cybersecurity Solutions This is not surprising, as just under half of security decision-makers strongly agree that their cybersecurity teams can quickly prioritize threats based on trends, severity, and potential impact.

Cybersecurity Analysts use various tools in their jobs, which can be organized into a few categories: network security monitoring, encryption, web vulnerability, penetration testing, antivirus software, network intrusion detection, and packet sniffers.

Types of Tools

Network security monitoring tools

These tools are used to analyze network data and detect network-based threats. 

Encryption tools

Encryption protects data by scrambling text so that it is unreadable to unauthorized users. 

Web vulnerability scanning tools

These software programs scan web applications to identify security vulnerabilities, including cross-site scripting, SQL injection, and path traversal. 

Penetration testing

Penetration testing, also known as “pen test”, simulates an attack on a computer system to evaluate the security of that system. 

Antivirus software

This software is designed to find viruses and harmful malware, including ransomware, worms, spyware, adware, and Trojans.

Network intrusion detection

An Intrusion Detection System (IDS) monitors network and system traffic for unusual or suspicious activity and notifies the administrator if a potential threat is detected. 

Packet sniffers

A packet sniffer, also called a packet analyzer, protocol analyzer or network analyzer, is used to intercept, log, and analyze network traffic and data. 

Firewall tools

Monitor incoming and outgoing network traffic and permit or block data packets based on security rules.

Detection and Response Platforms

Detection and response services analyze and proactively detect and eventually eliminate cyber threats. Alerts are investigated to determine if any action is required.

As I pointed out in a previous blog, enterprise organizations have deployed over 130 security tools. Here’s a look at the current technology security teams use or plan to invest in.

What’s even crazier is this stat: CyberDB claims to have more than 3,500 cybersecurity vendors listed in the United States alone. So, how are security professionals supposed to keep up with the latest trends or innovations in technology?

Thankfully, we live in the digital age where information is just a click away. I typically start my day by reading news websites and blogs from security experts and check the twitter. You can also attend webinars and conferences or communicate directly with someone well-versed in the field.

Get Social

Social media networks are excellent sources for finding new content. (Shameless plug, make sure you’re following us on LinkedIn and Twitter)

Twitter is particularly useful if you know what hashtags to search for or who to follow. You can see discussions in real-time to get yourself into the conversation; create feed lists to weed out the noise by specifying what security vendors, influencers, and developers you’d like to be in your lists (or lists).

LinkedIn is also good to connect with peers and industry analysts to keep tabs on what’s going on. There are also communities you can join based on your interests. 

Industry Analysts and Experts

Subscribe to newsletters from Industry Analysts like Gartner, ESG, EMA, Tag Cyber, etc…give them a follow on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up with what’s going on or follow the debate on what XDR is. 

Join Industry Groups and Organizations

Get involved with industry groups and organizations, like SANS or Ponemon, or become a member of more niche groups on LinkedIn.

Listen to Podcasts

There’s no shortage of industry podcasts. Podcasts are great because they allow listeners to enjoy content while commuting or working out. You can download them onto your phone or tablet, then listen to them when driving, walking, or exercising.

XDR – The Latest Cybersecurity Solution to Keep Up With

I’d be remiss if I didn’t write about XDR, as extended detection and response is the latest cybersecurity solution cybersecurity experts are trying to understand.

As I’ve written previously, XDR centralizes, normalizes, and correlates data from multiple sources, including cloud security, to break down security silos and provide complete visibility and insights for faster detection and response. XDR helps accelerate threat detection and response to achieve comprehensive visibility while avoiding a deluge of false positives that can sometimes accompany other security solutions.

XDR solutions make life easier for analysts, helping them monitor and manage security incidents across their entire environment. Security incidents are visible to security teams using a single platform. Security policies can be applied consistently across diverse infrastructures, including cloud and on-premise environments.XDR gives you a single view of your entire network, allowing you to identify potential threats quickly. With XDR, you won’t have to switch between different tools and dashboards to collect information about your network. This gives security personnel the ability to detect threats quickly, mitigate them, and recover.

The bottom line – everyone’s busy and wishes they had more time in the day. Whether you’re chasing alerts or false positives, you just need to find out what works best to consume the content you’re looking for. It’s out there.

I hope you’re enjoying this series. Thanks for reading. We’re getting close to the end. Join me next time as I look at number two on our list. 

In the meantime, download our Cybersecurity Insights 2022 report or scroll through below for direct links to the other blogs in this series.