Threat intelligence solutions are an information security discipline that seeks understanding of sophisticated cyber threats by collecting, enriching, and analyzing the information of advanced threats and employing the best actionable intelligence to counter the threats and their targeted attacks. It refers to the ability of organizations to understand and analyze the information on threat vectors collected from various sources and preventing advanced threats through a comprehensive threat intelligence strategy.

This market study includes the MicroQuadrant matrix that provides information about the major players that offer threat intelligence solutions. The vendor evaluations are based on two broad categories - strength of product portfolio and business strategy excellence. Each category includes various criteria, based on which the vendors are likely to be evaluated. The evaluation criteria considered under strength of product portfolio include breadth of offering, feature/functionality, delivery, scalability, and support. The evaluation criteria considered under business strategy excellence include reach (regional presence), industry coverage, channel network, viability, roadmap, and organic and inorganic growth. The products offered by these top players are loaded with many features and capabilities. Additionally, these players have adopted various business strategies to maintain their leading positions in the global threat intelligence market.

Vendors who fall in this category generally receive high scores for most of the evaluation criteria. They have strong and established product portfolios and a very strong market presence. They provide mature and reputable threat intelligence solutions, as well as strong business strategies.

They are established vendors with very strong business strategies, but a weak product portfolio.

Innovators in the MicroQuadrant matrix are vendors who have demonstrated substantial product innovations as compared to their competitors. They have very focused product portfolios, but do not have very strong growth strategies for their overall business.

They are vendors with niche product offering, who are starting to gain their market positions. They do not have much strong business strategies as compared to other established vendors. They might be new entrants in the market and require some more time before getting significant traction in the market. Today’s businesses are widely deploying advanced technologies to increase their productivity. This adoption of IT technologies has made organizations concerned about the security infrastructure to secure their business applications from being attacked by the cyber criminals. Threat intelligence solutions are deployed in various industry verticals, such as government, BFSI, IT and telecom, healthcare, retail, transportation, energy and utilities, manufacturing, and education. The IT applications used for various operations hold highly sensitive data and hence, are majorly targeted by cyber criminals and hackers. Threat intelligence solutions help organizations to monitor, detect, and respond to large amounts of data generated inside and outside the organization to expose hidden threats, detect patterns, and mitigate vulnerabilities.

GOVERNMENT Cyber criminals have turned their interest toward the government sector, as it holds critical information. The government vertical consists of four institutional units - central government, state government, local government, and social security funds. The implementation of e-governance in several countries across the globe has led to the increasing adoption of threat intelligence solutions in the government vertical. The government sector handles highly secured and private data of individuals, departments, processes, and agencies. A large chunk of content generated in the sector is undisclosed and highly classified. Government agencies are subject to stringent security policies and regulations, owing to the critical nature of the data. Thus, the deployment of threat intelligence solutions and services can minimize the risks associated with evolving cyber-attacks. BFSI The BFSI sector is also popular for cyber criminals, as it holds very sensitive information of employees, customers, assets, offices, branches, and operations. As this industry is always improving its processing and transaction technologies, it is on the lookout for security solutions and services. The risk of identity thefts, intellectual property frauds, and cyber-crimes is impacting the BFSI vertical, and has accelerated the extent of losses from fraudulent cases. Threat intelligence helps in identifying and predicting threat occurrences and analyzing their impact, thereby enabling organizations to take required actions. The BFSI industry frequently keeps introducing new and improved financial products and services to improve its business operations, and cyber criminals are attracted toward this sector to grab sensitive customer information. The threat landscape is continuously evolving, due to which the financial institutes need to safeguard their online assets from these threats, but they lack actionable intelligence.

IT AND TELECOM sector includes the IT solution and service providers, consulting companies, internet service providers, and communication companies. This industry is constantly evolving, in terms of technology, and also remains an early adopter of the innovative technological solutions. The IT and telecom companies are deploying a large number of services through web and mobile applications. ICT has become a major part of the daily activities of industries, governments, families, and consumers. And a main driver for economic and social growth. Nowadays, online fraud is one of the most critical issues causing difficulties for cyber experts, network operators, service providers, and users around the globe.

Cyber-attacks are rapidly increasing and harming the critical assets of organizations. The security vendors are offering a variety of threat intelligence solutions to protect sensitive information and prevent data loss. Threat intelligence solutions and services help to combat advanced threats and vulnerabilities, and secure the infrastructure in organizations. The different threat intelligence solutions include SIEM, log management, IAM, risk management, and SVM. These solutions protect the systems individually, and when integrated with the threat intelligence platform, provide comprehensive security to the users.

SIEM

SIEM is a combination of security information management (SIM) and security event management (SEM) functions. SIEM, for analysis purpose, collects logs and other security-related documentation, and is quite expensive to deploy and complex to operate and manage. SIEM technology supports threat detection and security incident response through real-time collection and historical analysis of events. It also audits and detects a wide variety of events and contextual data generated by users and data interaction, operating system (OS) activity, network hardware, and applications. SIEM also supports compliance auditing and reporting requirements, and enhances security operations. It simultaneously monitors all database transactions and provides a complete audit trail of database activities, including queries, results, authentication activities, and privilege escalations.

LOG MANAGEMENT

Log management is the process of collecting, archiving, managing, and reporting log data, generated from various devices, such as firewalls, routers, servers, switches, and other log sources. The main objective of log management is to track security events and network activities. Log management solutions in the threat intelligence market help to monitor a large number of security events generated from network devices to identify security breaches and enhance the security levels within organizations, which helps in threat intelligence. This platform protects networks, endpoints, and devices from various malicious attacks, sophisticated cyber criminals, ransomware, and APTs. The implementation of log management in the threat intelligence platform can prevent security threats, help to cut down business costs, and enhance the information security infrastructure.

IAM

Identity management is the process of managing or authorizing attributes, such as phone numbers, email addresses, or social security numbers. Access management is the process of authenticating the identities. IAM solutions allow the right individuals to access the right resources at the right time and for the right purpose. The IAM solution comprises provisioning, advanced authentication, directory technologies, password management, audit, and single sign-on.

IAM is a business security framework that manages digital identities scattered both inside and outside the enterprises. IAM solutions manage the access to information and applications across enterprises by undertaking security and risks considerations. These solutions in threat management facilitate enterprises to create, store, delete, and maintain user identities and their related access permissions, automatically.

The varied technological environments, strict compliance requirements, and increasing digital identities across enterprises are driving the demand for IAM solutions for information security in the threat intelligence solutions.

SVM

SVM is a proactive approach to secure sensitive data by eliminating the network security weaknesses, which include contingent cyber threats, such as dormant malware attack and other advanced invasion techniques. Vulnerability management is a continuous process of recognizing, remediating, and overcoming vulnerabilities, and helps in tracking systems, applications, devices, and databases in a network and their vulnerabilities, throughout the lifecycle of the applications, devices, and databases. It also helps in fixing the vulnerabilities to prevent system hacking, thus helping organizations to boost their efficiency and operate smoothly.

The process includes risk identification, along with mitigation and patching of the unwanted software program. Businesses rely on the solution to quickly assess and prioritize the vulnerabilities, along with scanning the network asset information, security configuration, and threat intelligence.

RISK MANAGEMENT

Risk management is a necessity for seamless business functioning in the long run. Many enterprises are exposed to cyber criminals, due to the lack of a proper risk management mechanism. Taking timely inputs from the incident and risk register; analyzing, identifying, monitoring, and controlling the risks; conducting risk impact analysis; and prioritizing the risks to enterprises are the major risk management tasks.

Enterprises, which do not follow a proper risk management program are liable to fall prey to various risks, such as paying large amounts in penalties for not conforming to regulatory requirements, financial crisis due to mismanagement of financial controls, or other natural risk sources, such as earthquakes and flooding.

Some of the risk management solution vendors provide risk management for mitigating and resolving risks. This helps organizations to identify enterprise risks and align them toward critical business processes, financial control management, automatic risk notification, and management of IT security controls.

The risk management approach mitigates the impact of risks on business processes, and employs detection, mitigation, transfer, and control of the critical events for a business; hence, this solution helps an organization to combat a wide range of risks related to technology, commerce, information security, and operation, among various others.

INCIDENT FORENSICS