Analytics and Big Data in Cybersecurity

Using Analytics to Drive Decision Making

Analytics have never been more important in cybersecurity. Data — just like in any other industry — drives decision making across all levels of cybersecurity and keeps employees laser-focused on the most important, highest priority work.

But just how important are analytics to the security industry? What role does big data play in the day-to-day life of a security professional? And how can PlexTrac help you manage and analyze the data you collect? Let’s talk about it.

Monitor your security posture in real-time with Analytics from PlexTrac. To learn more about PlexTrac’s Analytics module, click here.

Analytics in Cybersecurity

The honest truth is that cybersecurity is hard work. But by using analytics and big data, the work becomes more manageable and more effective. Attacks on your organization are constant and come from all directions. As a security expert it is up to you to detect these threats, defuse them, and remediate the vulnerabilities exploited by the adversary.

But where are these threats coming from? How did these adversaries penetrate your defenses? And how do you ensure a similar attack isn’t carried out on you in the future? It is a constant struggle to keep up with a threat landscape that is continuously growing and evolving. This is where analytics can be an invaluable tool in your toolkit.

Analytics are a key element to building and maintaining cyber resilience. With attacks that are increasing in both number and sophistication, a breach is almost inevitable. That is why you must use analytics to shift away from a purely preventative security program and towards a new paradigm that focuses on detection and response in addition to prevention.

Why are Analytics Important?

In cybersecurity, knowing is half the battle. While the ultimate goal of the most proactive cybersecurity programs is prevention, detecting a breach and responding to it is just as important to a strong posture.

Analytics are a vital component of your security team’s detection ability. In addition to helping you spot breaches quickly when they occur, If you use your data correctly, you should be able to both identify and neutralize threats before they’re able to breach your defenses.

But how? The answer is quite simple, actually. Security analytics and analytics tools allow businesses and IT experts to find real, targeted solutions to complex risks and spot trends. These analytics also help your team better understand security threats and risks before they become a big problem. Cybersecurity analytics are truly only limited by the users ability to understand and utilize them.

Just collecting and housing big data isn’t enough to make it valuable. And even having analytics from several sources that are difficult to collate isn’t going to provide as much  benefit as it could. You have to be able to aggregate and analyze the data from all your  sources efficiently enough to put it to work for you. This is where the right tools and partners become critical components of a security team’s ability to achieve its goals.

PlexTrac as an Analytics Tool

PlexTrac’s Analytics module is a powerful solution that empowers users and provides security teams with a strong security posture. Blue Teamers especially need a way to visualize and attest the analytics they obtain. PlexTrac brings all of your analytics into one platform — a platform that can then create visualizations that allow you to see your posture in real time and make enlightened decisions about where to allocate your resources.

The PlexTrac Analytics module can provide a real time view of the attack surface  that you can use to prioritize risk and increase the speed of remediation to give your program a stronger security posture.

Want to learn more about Analytics with PlexTrac? Click here.

Care to see the platform live? Book a Demo of PlexTrac today and ask to see our Analytics module in action.

PlexTrac Team Editoral Group At PlexTrac, we bring together insights from a diverse range of voices. Our blog features contributions from industry experts, ethical hackers, CTOs, influencers, and PlexTrac team members—all sharing valuable perspectives on cybersecurity, pentesting, and risk management.