27 Aug Demystifying Managed Security Services: A Comprehensive Guide

MDR’s capability to provide robust, 24/7/365 security operations makes it the preferred choice for businesses without the resources or expertise to manage these operations in-house.

– Steve Fielder, Senior Director, Managed SIEM & EDR Engineering, Optiv

Denver, Colo. – Sep. 1, 2024

Do you need help to keep up with the fast-paced, constantly evolving cybersecurity threat landscape? You are not alone. The rise in digitalization has seen an increase in the vulnerability of businesses to diverse cyber threats, resulting in a need for more advanced security measures specifically taking response actions to stop and mitigate threats.

Managed detection and response (MDR) goes beyond traditional security monitoring to provide detection and an active response to potential cyber threats. The core objective of MDR is to squeeze the time frame from the first intrusion to complete neutralization, ensuring your business stays resilient when it comes to your security infrastructure.

Key Definitions of MDR Services:

• 24/7/365 security monitoring: Active network surveillance for immediate detection and neutralization of threats
• Threat hunting and investigation: Proactive search for hidden threats and detailed investigation of intrusion attempts
• Incident response: Quick response to identified threats to minimize damage and protect assets
• Advanced AI and ML tools: Found either as a baseline feature or an add-on, these use sophisticated algorithms for more intelligent, faster detection and response.

MDR’s capability to provide robust, 24/7/365 security operations makes it the preferred choice for businesses without the resources or expertise to manage these operations in-house. By partnering with a seasoned MDR provider, you gain access to a dedicated team of security experts working tirelessly to protect your organization from cyber threats.

What are Managed Detection and Response Services?

Let’s start with the basics. Managed detection and response (MDR) services are a comprehensive approach to cybersecurity that combines technology with human expertise to identify and swiftly limit the impact of threats. This type of service is typically outsourced, providing organizations with highly skilled specialists adept at proactive threat hunting and incident response to drive most cost-effective outcomes.

An MDR service makes the security benefits of tools like endpoint detection and response (EDR) and proactive threat hunting accessible to customers of all maturity levels. By working with an MDR provider, organizations can leverage specialized technology and expertise to proactively look for intrusions into their networks and receive specific recommendations for incident response.

The Role of MDR in Cybersecurity

MDR is critical in cybersecurity by providing a robust, proactive and comprehensive approach to threat detection and response. Unlike traditional threat detection methods that rely solely on technology, MDR combines technology with human expertise, providing a more effective and efficient response to threats.

The modern MDR service plays an essential role in overcoming common cybersecurity challenges, such as the lack of in-house expertise, the need for continuous security services support and the challenge of integrating various cybersecurity technologies.

In the face of an increasingly complex and evolving threat landscape, an MDR service provides an essential layer of defense that can help protect sensitive data and assets, even if a threat eludes standard organizational security controls. With MDR, your organization can improve its security posture, become more resilient to potential attacks and focus on strategic projects rather than reactive incident response work.

The Benefits of MDR

Managed detection and response offer many benefits to organizations, especially those facing resource constraints, a lack of in-house cybersecurity expertise or a deluge of security alerts. Let’s take a closer look at how MDR can help overcome these challenges.

Overcoming the Cybersecurity Skills Gap

Cybersecurity is a complex and rapidly evolving field. It requires specialized skills and expertise to stay ahead of the curve. However, many organizations need help recruiting and retaining a fully staffed security team, especially mid- to enterprise-sized companies.

This is where MDR comes into play. By partnering with an MDR provider, you can access a team of cybersecurity experts well-versed in the latest threats and defenses. This means you don’t need to worry about finding, training and retaining a larger team of in-house security talent, allowing you to focus on your core business operations.

Reducing Time-to-Detect and Respond (TTD and TTR) to Threats

When identifying and responding to threats, time is of the essence. The longer a threat goes undetected, the more damage it can inflict on your organization. Some traditional security measures can take almost a full calendar year to detect a breach.

MDR services dramatically reduce TTD, reducing from months to as little as a few minutes. Optiv leverages advanced technologies and threat intelligence to rapidly identify and limit the impact of threats. The proactive approach includes threat hunting, incident investigation and response, helping to mitigate damage and restore security swiftly.

Addressing Alert Fatigue and Resource Constraints

As organizations adopt more security technologies, the number of security alerts they receive can become overwhelming. This alert fatigue can lead to significant threats being overlooked or not addressed in time.

An MDR service helps manage this deluge of alerts, ensuring each is appropriately assessed and acted upon. It prioritizes alerts based on their potential impact, freeing your team from sifting through a sea of low-fidelity alerts to focus on more strategic tasks.

Moreover, MDR services operate round the clock, providing continuous coverage and expertise. This 24/7/365 support is particularly beneficial for organizations with resource constraints, as it ensures robust, continuous security operations without needing a large in-house team.

Download our SecOps modernization checklist to discover how your organization would benefit from MDR services. 

MDR vs. Other Security Solutions

There are many security solutions available. How do managed detection and response services stack up against other alternatives? Let’s explore.

MDR vs. Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)

Endpoint detection and response is more often than not a component of MDR, focusing specifically on securing endpoint devices like computers, laptops and mobile devices in your network.

EDR is a tool deployed to solely monitor your endpoints, while MDR is a service that provides security monitoring and management across your entire IT environment. A one-stop-shop for security visibility within your cyber ecosystem. This means MDR generally provides a more comprehensive defense posture for organizations, monitoring not just endpoints but all users, networks, assets, emails and workloads.

MDR is a complete, integrated security service and platform while EDR is part of MDR’s toolkit.

MDR vs. Managed Security Services Providers (MSSPs)

MDR is a managed security service, but not all managed security service providers offer MDR. Small security teams struggle to keep pace with the evolving threat landscape. They face skill shortages, a rigorous slew of certification attainments every year and a general lack of resources to devote to training and enablement. MSSPs have access to a deeper bench of cross-vendor experts, allowing them to stay up-to-date on the latest threats and technologies to supplement organizations’ security teams.

MDR vs. Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

Security information and event management is a technology that aggregates data from various sources in your network to detect potential security incidents. While this sounds like MDR, there’s a big difference: SIEMs are technology solutions, while MDR is generally delivered as a service and/or platform.

As many organizations have found, SIEM solutions can be complex to implement and manage. They can generate many alerts, which when not tuned appropriately, may become false positives. Understanding and responding to these alerts requires specialized expertise, which many organizations may need to have in-house. In contrast, MDR services provide a seamless solution that includes not just technology but also the human expertise to interpret alerts and rapidly respond to threats accurately.

In summary, while EDR, MSSPs and SIEMs have their respective roles within the cybersecurity landscape, managed detection and response services offer a more holistic, proactive and practical approach to protecting your organization from cyber threats.

How well is your organization positioned for resiliency? Asses your SecOps program with this security maturity quiz.

6 Key Features of MDR Services

Managed detection and response services go beyond traditional security solutions, providing a comprehensive and proactive approach to cybersecurity. Here are several standard features you can expect with the leading MDR services today, and how they impact your organization:

1. Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) – Continuous monitoring to speed up investigations into potential threats
2. Vulnerability Management (VM) – Removes logging redundancies and false positives
3. Incident Response (IR) – Detailed incident investigation with customized, automated threat mitigation for faster recovery
4. Cloud Threat Detection and Response (CDR) – Protection that meets complex cloud security needs
5. Attack Surface Management (ASM) – Gain visibility into your assets and uncover new vulnerabilities
6. Threat Hunting – Proactively and/or reactively identify suspicious activity undetected by security tools in the environment, prioritizing actual threats and saving your team valuable time and resources

Choosing the Right MDR Service Provider

MDR services in the current cybersecurity landscape offer an effective solution to protect businesses from various threats. However, not all MDR providers are created equal. Here are some key areas to consider when evaluating potential providers.

Evaluating the Expertise of the Provider

The effectiveness of an MDR service largely depends on the expertise of the security analysts who manage them. These analysts should possess a deep understanding of the technological aspects of cybersecurity and the cultural, geopolitical and linguistic factors that influence threat patterns.

Look for a provider that offers a team of seasoned security analysts who stay current on the latest threats targeting organizations.

Assessing the Provider’s Access to Data and Threat Intelligence

An MDR service’s ability to detect real-time threats is crucial for adequate protection. This requires the service to have access to a wide range of data and systems. A cloud-native solution will most likely have the best access to the necessary data.

When evaluating MDR providers, ask about their data access capabilities. Can they access the breadth and depth of data necessary to do their job? How quickly can they access this data? At Optiv, our MDR service is designed to have real-time access to comprehensive data, allowing us to respond effectively to threats as they emerge.

Ensuring Effective Communication

Equally important is the provider’s communication capabilities. The MDR team should be able to seamlessly hand off their workflow to your team through a central communication hub. This ensures that your team’s response is not slowed down and that learning new systems is unnecessary. Get a communication process designed to minimize friction and maximize efficiency, allowing your team to respond to potential threats quickly.

Download Optiv’s threat detection and response infographic to learn more about choosing the right MDR provider.

The Role of Advanced Technologies in MDR Services

In the continually evolving cybersecurity landscape, advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) play an increasingly vital role. They enable managed detection and response services to deliver proactive, intelligent threat detection and response.

By helping automate the threat detection and response process, these technologies make it faster and more efficient. AI and ML algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data in real time, identify patterns and predict potential threats. This advanced analysis helps pinpoint anomalies that might go unnoticed, reducing the time to detect and respond to threats.

Moreover, AI and ML bring scalability to MDR services. They allow for continuous monitoring and analysis of an organization’s entire IT environment, regardless of size or complexity. Hence, using AI and ML enables MDR services to stay ahead of the curve, adapting to new threats and evolving cybersecurity landscapes.

Optiv: The Future of Cybersecurity with Optiv MDR

Cybersecurity must be proactive, intelligent and comprehensive. Traditional security measures are no longer sufficient to thwart advanced threats, and the skills gap in cybersecurity is a problem that most organizations grapple with. This is where managed detection and response services step in. Optiv MDR is an integrative detection and response platform backed by Optiv’s proprietary data and detection engineering, SOAR and lightning-fast log analysis designed around your unique security stack to achieve your unique business goals.

Optiv provides both the MDR technology and service — from data ingestion, processing, storage, detection and response actions to expert advice and recommendations.

With Optiv MDR your organization can shift from a reactive to proactive defense, increase risk awareness, shorten response times and remain resilient, all at a predictable cost structure.

For more information on how Optiv can help secure your organization with our advanced MDR services, visit our managed detection and response page. To understand how we are preparing for the future of cybersecurity, contact us today.

Steve Fielder is Senior Director, Managed SIEM & EDR Engineering at Optiv. John Pelton is Senior Director, Managed Detection & Response.

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