A leader's guide to integrating EDR, SIEM and SOAR

A quick primer on EDR, SIEM and SOAR

Before delving into the strategic value and real-world use cases of these three technologies, it's worth reviewing what they do.

EDR

EDR tools focus on endpoint devices, including servers, workstations, laptops and similar components. Their goal is to detect, investigate and remediate malicious activity. EDR tools use agents to watch processes, isolate hosts, quarantine files and take other actions as needed.

SIEM

SIEM systems ingest and correlate log files and events from endpoints, network devices, applications, identity providers and other components. They work with cloud and on-premises resources to centralize alerting, archiving and analytics for security data, aiding investigations, threat hunting and demonstrating compliance.

SOAR

SOAR tools tie everything -- SIEM, EDR, ticketing, etc. -- together to automate incident response workflows using playbooks. This reduces manual efforts, speeds responses, establishes containment and implements remediation.

Playbook functionality might include blocking IPs, disabling accounts, opening tickets and enriching alerts and indicators of compromise.

The strategic value of integrating security tools

Integrating security tools and establishing automated responses yields strategic value to the organization. Today's security threats require quick identification and remediation. These interlaced layers of security give precisely that.

Integrated security tools improve visibility and eliminate gaps at endpoints, on networks and in cloud environments. This visibility illuminates threats and vulnerabilities -- after all, you can't fix what you don't know about.

Yet, improving identification is only one facet of visibility. Better visibility also reduces the number of false positives -- and subsequent alert fatigue -- generated by logging services, local event viewers, users and other services. Integrated security tools help correlate and collate alerts, ensuring accurate and timely information.

The result is strategic benefits any IT leader can appreciate. These include reduced risk exposure, improved resilience, improved compliance and greater operational efficiency.

Real-world use cases

SOAR, building on SIEM and EDR, helps organizations sidestep serious security concerns. Consider the following:

• Insider threats. Cross-tool enrichments enable quicker identification, context and responses.
• Cloud workload protection. Cross-platform, unified visibility and automated responses across on-premises and cloud environments ensure resilience.
• Ransomware identification, protection and containment. Automated endpoint isolation triggered by correlated SIEM alerts and SOAR playbooks provides immediate responses.
• Threat hunting. Enriched alerts, correlated telemetry, improved data access and automated responses aid in threat detection.

Architecture and key integration considerations

What's the best way for IT leaders to think about an integrated security landscape? There are many considerations, but most come down to the following three concepts:

Begin by understanding the core architectural model. First, EDR tools feed information into the SIEM system. Next, the SIEM system correlates events and builds context. Finally, the SOAR tool automates responses. Understanding this flow is critical to visualizing, understanding and working with integrated security tools.

The flow is driven by various tool capabilities and structures, including the following:

• Recognize data pipelines and data normalization. Ensures consistent data formats and fields and streamlines ingestion.
• Expect API-driven interoperability. Use tools with extensive integration capabilities.
• Plan for scalability and storage while reducing latency. Recognize future growth and the integration of new on-premises and cloud systems. Ensure tools can grow effectively without communication bottlenecks.
• Establish governance and access controls. Modern deployments require governance and integration with compliance and authentication and authorization utilities.

Implementation and ongoing maintenance guidance

Establishing a solid deployment plan improves the likelihood of success for almost any project. Use the following practices to guide the implementation:

• Phase the rollout by starting with a limited set of high-value automations and high-risk endpoints.
• Stress the importance of continuous tuning to correlate results, optimize rules, provide enrichment resources and generate effective playbooks.
• Emphasize governance from the start, including routine audits, recognition of evolving threats, change management and oversight.
• Schedule regular playbook reviews to ensure no extra steps exist and no necessary steps are skipped.
• Establish metrics to measure value, such as reduced response times, improved automation and greater analyst efficiency.
• Create a cross-team documentation repository and keep it current and maintained.

Security tool integration using EDR, SIEM and SOAR technologies is a continuous improvement deployment that benefits from regular attention. It's an ongoing cycle of tuning, improvement and optimization that evolves as threats change.

Anticipating common challenges

Any major technology implementation presents its own unique challenges. Use the following considerations to help avoid these issues before they derail your project:

• Identify IT and security team skills gaps. Address the need for training, collaboration and role clarity within the ITOps and SecOps groups.
• Prepare for alert overload in the early phases. Set expectations for high numbers of alerts until the system is tuned.
• Establish change management. Establish change management governance, including stakeholder and communication loops to ensure adoption, clarity and consistency.
• Be aware of integration complexity. Use open standards to ensure easy connectivity and integration.
• Recognize vendor lock-in risks. Pay close attention to vendor lock-in concerns, including proprietary data formats and limited communication and integration options among vendors.

Other challenges center on the specific tools themselves. For example, EDR tools might see coverage gaps or agent sprawl. They could also register false positives until security teams implement and complete regular tuning cycles. Also, be aware of multi-platform support issues, especially for less common OSes.

SIEM systems might struggle early on with alert overload, log volume and cost management, based on scale. Establishing data normalization is essential for SIEM systems.

SOAR tools require good integration among diverse tools, which is a tricky balance to achieve. Workflow design might be challenging early in the project, too.

All of these challenges necessitate skilled administrators. It takes time for them to learn the tools and achieve good results.

Design an effective EDR, SIEM and SOAR integration as a strategic imperative rather than merely as a technical upgrade. By taking this approach, the organization's security posture can gain an advantage in speed, risk reduction, response time and resilience.

Damon Garn owns Cogspinner Coaction and provides freelance IT writing and editing services. He has written multiple CompTIA study guides, including the Linux+, Cloud Essentials+ and Server+ guides, and contributes extensively to InformaTechTarget, The New Stack and CompTIA Blogs.