While cyber threats continue to become more advanced, organisations need a security solution that goes beyond traditional defence mechanisms. From data breaches to operational disruptions, relying on outdated security tools or fragmented monitoring systems can make businesses vulnerable to many problems. However, Microsoft Sentinel can be a better approach to enhancing security.
It comes with modern capabilities to detect and respond efficiently to threats. Ensuring businesses get comprehensive management, it enables real-time response through automation. In this guide, we will dive into the key benefits of Microsoft Sentinel and how it can help organisations improve their overall security posture.
Microsoft Sentinel is a security information and event management platform, aka SIEM. SIEM platforms are cloud-based and delivered as a service, typically as a managed service. They are designed to offer a unified and comprehensive view of IT infrastructure security.
SIEM platforms, such as Microsoft Sentinel, can gather information from various network applications and multiple hardware and software vendors used across an organisation.
However, SIEM is a method to find, monitor, record, and analyse cybersecurity for businesses. Unlike traditional tools, this offers real-time service, where they can go through complex sets of data, finding suspicious activities or breaches faster.
Previously known as Azure Sentinel, Microsoft Sentinel comes as an effective SOAR and SIEM-based solution. It allows for holistic security, offering enhanced capabilities than the other traditional platforms.
Key Components | Overview |
Data Connectors | Enables data ingestion from various sources like Azure logs, syslog, AWS, and CEF. Custom applications and OT logs can also be integrated. |
Workbooks | Interactive dashboards for monitoring and investigation. Built-in and custom templates help analyse data efficiently. |
Log Retention | Stores data in Log Workspaces with options for long-term storage in ADX. Querying requires Kusto Query Language aka KQL. |
Analytics | Uses rules to correlate alerts into incidents. Machine learning and custom rules help detect anomalies and improve threat detection. |
Threat Finding | Helps analysts identify threats that bypass traditional detection. Queries and bookmarks help in tracking sophisticated attacks. |
Incidents & Investigations | Automates incident creation, linking data for visual investigation, and assigning tasks for response. |
Automation Playbooks | Uses SOAR capabilities to automate responses, reduce workload, and integrate security workflows. |
Many companies now prefer platforms that allow them to scale security infrastructure as per their needs. However, Sentinel can be one such comprehensive solution, especially as it works by integrating AI in cybersecurity. To put it simply, sentinel works according to a cycle, from log management to providing the best responses to alerts. Let us understand how.
Used as part of essential cyber security, especially for organisations lacking robust protection, Sentinel can make it easy to have a single and integrated view of your security posture. Needless to say, this can further make resolving security incidents easier as well as more effective. Here’s how opting for Microsoft Sentinel can be a good decision for you, offering numerous Microsoft Sentinel benefits for enhanced security management.
Built cloud-natively, Microsoft Sentinel scales without having to put in any effort, handling huge data volumes and analytics. In addition, it can optimise resource use as well as adapt to real-time demands.
Many consider it an umbrella platform, particularly for providing better security visibility across the entire organisation. From detection to remediation, it can gather and analyse data from all enterprise workloads.
However, it uses playbooks to create automated responses to threats. By running a collection of procedures, it reduces time and effort in response to an alert.
Microsoft Sentinel offers deep customisation for every stage of your security incident response, from initial detection to final resolution. Some of the important customisation options you can get are data connectors, custom analytics rules and custom playbooks for incident management.
Microsoft Sentinel provides real-time analytics, allowing it to detect threats instantly. With one-minute query intervals, though, it delivers highly responsive threat detection.
Besides, you can explore other SIEM platforms, such as Splunk, IBM QRadar, or Sumo Logic. These platforms too offer robust threat detection, analytics, and incident response capabilities.
Opting for Microsoft Sentinel can be a crucial advantage, particularly if you consider today’s complex cyber threats. Through intelligent security analytics, scalable cloud architecture, and AI integration, however, it can help empower your organisation, allowing it to proactively defend against such growing breaches. By streamlining security operations, reducing false positives, and providing actionable insights, Sentinel ultimately strengthens your security posture and safeguards your essential data.