In our last post, we discussed the importance of threat-detection solutions that can find and stop cyber threats that have secretly taken root in your network. The good news is that C-level executives and board members are taking an increased interest in cybersecurity and actively encouraging increased investment in threat detection and other security controls. The bad news is that these investments can sometimes inadvertently undermine security.
Organizations now use an average of 76 separate security tools, and research suggests this is contributing to highly siloed environments. All tools have different ways of presenting alerts and logs, making it difficult to combine and analyze data from different sources. According to one recent study, security teams spend more than half of their time manually producing reports, which inhibits their ability to defend against threats.
More than three-quarters of IT security pros surveyed by IDG said the number of security tools in use is increasing risk. Because the tools don’t work together, security teams must follow disjointed and manual workflows to investigate and respond to security incidents. This can lead to inefficiencies and longer response times as analysts switch between different tools and interfaces, hindering their ability to respond quickly and effectively.
WatchGuard Technologies is addressing this issue with its recently launched ThreatSync extended detection and response (XDR) solution. Designed for cross-product threat detection, ThreatSync extracts data from multiple security components to identify and respond to incidents across domains and environments.
Single-pane-of-glass visibility across the entire security ecosystem speeds detection and response capabilities, relieving administrators of the need to log in to multiple consoles to piece together what is happening during an attack. This reduces mean time to detect (MTTD), improves accuracy and ultimately enables faster remediation.
When suspicious activity is detected, ThreatSync calculates a numerical risk score based on an algorithm that correlates data from multiple WatchGuard products and services. Threat scores help organizations prioritize their response to potential threats based on severity and likelihood. This enables more efficient resource allocation, ensuring that the most significant risks receive the appropriate attention and resources.
Other key ThreatSync features include:
Automated Threat Response
Administrators can create policies that launch automated threat responses based on a threat’s risk score. For example, spam emails with advertising might be categorized as a low-risk threat that might simply be flagged or blocked. For more severe threats such as ransomware or DDoS attacks, administrators might create policies to delete files, isolate devices or kill malicious processes. Such automated responses reduce mean time to respond (MTTR), limit the potential damages of an incident, and ensure that essential services and operations experience minimal disruption.
Easy Configuration
Most XDR solutions need to integrate data from multiple sources such as web browsers, mobile apps, IoT devices and more. Configuring these data integrations can be complex because each source may have different data formats, protocols and APIs. ThreatSync features a user-friendly interface and documentation that make the configuration more straightforward.
Comprehensive Security
A key component of WatchGuard’s Unified Security Platform, ThreatSync works in concert with the company’s portfolio of security products and services. ThreatSync leverages WatchGuard’s network security and endpoint detection and response (EDR) capabilities to provide enhanced protection from fileless and malwareless attacks, zero-day attacks, advanced persistent threats and advanced ransomware.
Business leaders today understand the need to invest in advanced cybersecurity protections, but implementing dozens of discrete, standalone tools can actually compromise security. With cross-product threat detection and increased automation, ThreatSync offers a more efficient and comprehensive approach. Contact us to learn more about ThreatSync and XDR solutions.
