“Monitoring and management” is a common phrase in the IT and cybersecurity space. And while it is vague, it is an incredibly important component of a strong cybersecurity plan. Between maximizing tool investments, detecting attacks and optimizing setups, here’s why you need cybersecurity monitoring and management.
Monitoring
The first half of this dynamic duo is monitoring. This simply refers to watching security tools to detect abnormalities such as a compromised device or asset going down. In the most severe of cases, this is when a cyberattack would first be detected. And when it comes to attacks, time is everything. There have been notable data breaches in which the environment was compromised for months because it was not being properly monitored.
Successful cybersecurity monitoring occurs when people and tools are combined to maximize features. Tools are how anomalies are detected; however, it is critical to also have eyes on the tool to respond to notifications.
Management
To round out the monitoring of tools and environments comes the overall management. We alluded to this a bit when discussing monitoring. Management is a huge factor in a truly proactive cybersecurity plan. A proactive approach allows for teams to plan and get ahead for prevention, versus a reactive scramble when there’s an incident.
One common issue is investing in a security tool and setting it up – and then not doing anything with it. That’s on the list of “What not to do: Cybersecurity edition.” Let’s be real, not only is that a waste of money, but also not productive or a secure method. Cybersecurity is ever-evolving and changing. Tools, processes and approaches need to reflect that and be frequently optimized for best performance.
Monitoring and Management
At the end of the day, you can’t have monitoring or management without the other. To truly leverage your tool investment for proactive security defense, tools must be optimized according to monitored behavior that is observed through management. This is why you need cybersecurity monitoring and management for better utilization of tools for a stronger defense.
Now, we should mention that monitoring and management is a 24/7/365 task. Unfortunately, attackers do not respect the 8-5 work schedule. Luckily, that is where a managed service can help. Even luckier, Brite’s BriteStar managed IT service is a fixed-per-user cost that is more than happy to work with you to monitor and manage your environment.
