5 Key Questions to Consider When Assessing a Fresh Cybersecurity Technology

The Challenge of Choosing Cybersecurity Technologies

The cybersecurity technology industry is growing exponentially, making it difficult for organizations to choose the right products or solutions to solve their security weaknesses. The ecosystem we have created in adding new technologies to our security stacks is clearly not working. Security personnel are struggling to manage every new technology, and threat actors are consistently penetrating our protection technologies. Companies must start asking fundamental questions before investing in new security solutions or evaluating existing ones.

Assessing the Value of Security Technologies

The value of a security technology is not solely determined by its ability to perform as promised, but also by its net positive impact on the management teams and the entire security stack. In the new era of cybersecurity, every investment must be prudent. Organizations should consider five fundamental questions when assessing the value of cybersecurity technologies:

Question 1: Is the Technology Proactive or Reactive?

A proactive technology is one that sits “left of boom” or before a breach happens. Unfortunately, almost every cybersecurity technology claims to be proactive, but very few can deliver. For example, the only left-of-boom technologies in common security frameworks such as MITRE/NIST/zero trust are the firewall and next-generation firewall (NGFW), which are decades-old technologies. Organizations need to invest in more proactive technologies rather than depending on outdated solutions.

Question 2: How Much Cyber Intelligence Can the Technology Leverage?

Cyber/threat intelligence is increasingly crucial in the war against cybercriminals. The more cyber intelligence a technology can act on, the better. A cybersecurity technology must make informed decisions based on data. Without enough information to inform decision-making, threat actors gain an upper hand. Organizations should evaluate how a technology can make use of cyber intelligence before investing.

Question 3: Is the Technology Truly Autonomous?

“Autonomous” has become a buzzword in the cybersecurity industry, but it’s critical that organizations evaluate what we mean by the term. With a cybersecurity staffing shortage that doesn’t look like it’s going away anytime soon, organizations need to know how much time technology requires from their employees. A truly autonomous technology should require zero hours of an employee’s workday, no additional staff to manage alerts or logs, and automatic updates. Anything else is not an autonomous technology.

Question 4: How Does the Technology Scale?

Threat actors are adaptable, inventive, and persistent. The technologies used to defend against them must be flexible enough to adapt to evolving threats. Cybersecurity technologies should be evaluated for their ability to grow and adapt to changing realities. They should be able to handle higher volumes, deeper obfuscations, and new attack vectors as needed.

Question 5: Can the Technology Work Easily with Existing Technologies?

“Alert fatigue” is caused by too many technologies detecting threats or breaches but being unable to communicate with each other properly. This leads to multiple erroneous and duplicate alerts, which cybersecurity teams must sift through. Information interchangeability must be effortless between technologies, feeding intelligence to other implemented technologies and making them easy to manage.

Editorial: Finding the Best Cybersecurity Technology

Investment in cybersecurity technology is a priority, but it’s essential to undertake a thorough assessment before investing. As the industry grows, so will cybersecurity technology. Still, organizations should take a strategic approach to prioritize technologies that answer these five critical questions. This would help optimize cybersecurity investments and better protect against cyberattacks.

Advice for Organizations

Organizations should take the initiative to ask the right questions when looking for cybersecurity solutions. By doing so, you’ll discover how much value each technology can add to your security stack. Find the most value in every security technology. Additionally, companies must take a more holistic approach to their security infrastructure. They must be proactive, leverage cyber intelligence, evaluate autonomy, consider scalability, and ensure compatibility with the existing security infrastructure.