Developing a cyber security system that protects your business from data breaches and cyber-attacks is difficult. Many organisations will elect to use an off-the-shelf product with a lack of in-house expertise that doesn’t provide the level of protection they need.
At Wizard Cyber, we protect ourselves and our customers using Microsoft Sentinel, formerly known as Azure Sentinel. Sentinel allows us to identify security issues and malicious behaviour within your network and deal with them before you are affected.
In this article, we are going to explore what Microsoft Sentinel is, how it can help your business, as well as the possible side effects if you aren’t protected from cyber-attacks.
What is Microsoft Sentinel?
Fundamentally, Microsoft Sentinel is a security information and event management system (SIEM), combined with a security orchestration and automated response (SOAR) solution. If you are confused, don’t worry.
What this means is that Sentinel allows us to detect, investigate, and resolve cyber security threats. It does this by collecting and collating data from across your organisation’s network. When it detects something suspicious, it generates an alert which must then be resolved by an analyst or by the automation system within Sentinel.
Without going into too much technical detail, Microsoft Sentinel utilises state-of-the-art machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), combined with Microsoft’s research and knowledge of cyber security to protect your business from even the most dangerous cyber-attacks.
How can my business benefit from Microsoft Sentinel?
If you are looking at installing a SIEM or SOAR solution, chances are that many of them require expensive on-premises hardware. This upfront cost can be high, especially when you consider that you aren’t even protected once it is installed. Microsoft Sentinel doesn’t require any on-premises installation, making the initial deployment much more cost-effective.
From a data perspective, Sentinel provides your security operations centre (SOC) with an industry-leading view of your network’s security status and performance. Powerful connectors feed data into Microsoft Sentinel in real-time from every Microsoft service you use, such as 365 Defender and Microsoft 365. It also integrates with an enormous number of third-party solutions, giving you a true, 360° view of your organisation.
Due to its ability to be utilised as both a SIEM and SOAR solution, Sentinel gives your SOC much more power to deal with cyber threats. Data is collected and collated within Sentinel, alerts are then created for any irregular behaviour, and skilled analysts can then remediate the problem, all within Sentinel. This reduces the need for two separate solutions, saving your business time and making your cyber security processes more efficient.
Microsoft Sentinel fundamentally protects your business from dangerous cyber-attacks and data breaches, if managed correctly. With a team of cyber security experts at the helm, Sentinel’s industry-leading functionality can be properly utilised and ensure that your organisation won’t be affected by the ever-evolving landscape of cybercrime.
There are many other benefits that Microsoft Sentinel can bring to your business. If you are interested in finding out more, get in touch with us today. Our team of cyber security experts are on-hand to demonstrate the system to you and answer any questions you might have.
What are the potential outcomes from a data breach or cyber-attack?
As we mentioned in a previous blog, the average cost of a successful cyber-attack on a business has risen to over £815,000. For severe data breaches, this number can rise even further. Many organisations can’t afford to experience even one attack of this scale due to the problems it causes that extend beyond just financial damage.
Regulations are continuing to tighten around data security. If an organisation is breached and it is found that they weren’t complying with data regulation, they can be fined. This fine combined with the immediate need to repair the damage and put in place complying cyber security systems can cause even veteran businesses to close their doors.
As well as financial damage, reputational damage is a key concern for organisations. A successful cyber-attack is often well-publicised, and this can lead to customers and clients leaving, difficulty in acquiring new business, and huge investments needed in PR to repair the damage.
This just scratches the surface of what a data breach or cyber-attack can do to a business. All attacks of this kind can be prevented with a proactive and forward-thinking approach to cyber security. Microsoft Sentinel is one of the solutions to this problem which, if combined with an expert team of cyber security specialists, can protect your business from these potential pitfalls.
Are you interested in finding out more about Microsoft Sentinel and how it can protect your business? Get in touch with us today to speak to one of our cyber security experts who can demonstrate the system and answer any questions you might have.
