PwC and Google Cloud Alliance

Revolutionizing security operations: the power of cloud-native SecOps platforms

  • Blog
  • 4 minute read
  • July 16, 2024

Matthew Wilden

Principal, Google Cybersecurity Alliance Leader, PwC US

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The security industry is undergoing a shift from relying on legacy architectures to harnessing the power and scale of data and intelligence in security operations (SecOps). As organizations struggle with challenges such as data overload, undetected threats and staff shortages, industry leaders are turning to cloud-native SecOps platforms to streamline operations, reduce costs and enhance their technology stack.

Conduct a thorough process evaluation

We suggest that companies looking to adopt a cloud-native SecOps platform should take a methodical approach to maximize a smooth transition and realize the benefits of a new platform. As you get started, begin with the following considerations:

  • Mission scoping: Determine the primary drivers for undergoing a transformation from legacy tooling to cloud-native SecOps platforms. The drivers will become anchor points throughout the life of the transition, and should align with both the objectives of the business and security.
  • Stakeholder alignment: Identify key stakeholders across the organization who will be affected by changes to security and broader IT operations. Ensure their involvement and buy-in throughout the process evaluation.
  • Process evaluation: Conduct a thorough evaluation of all processes across the value chain, rather than focusing on isolated areas. This holistic assessment will help avoid overlooking potential improvement opportunities, prevent a limited understanding of process efficiency as well as aid in identifying and resolving redundancies in security operations. Use various perspectives such as data, effort, pain points and legacy systems to prioritize critical processes for enhancement.
  • Future-State architecture planning: Based on findings from the process evaluation, envision a future-state architecture that addresses the identified issues and integrates necessary improvements. This should take into account larger and more diverse data sets being incorporated into security operations, as well as all stakeholders that interact with that data (both within and outside of security).
  • Detailed enablement plan: Develop a detailed enablement plan that provides a roadmap for implementing the improvements identified in the process evaluation. This plan should clearly communicate the value of process improvements to executive leadership and key stakeholders.

Understanding the impact

Adopting a cloud-native SecOps platform can help transform security operations, offering speed, scale, and economic efficiency. Key impacts of adopting a cloud-native SecOps platform include:

  • Real-time data stitching, unlimited scale and rapid response time across large amounts of data (i.e., potential reductions in mean time to respond and detect as correlations are applied as new data is ingested).
  • AI and automation can help enhance productivity, effectiveness and job satisfaction for SecOps practitioners on a per-threat event level.
  • Centralization of data within a single platform, instead of multiple on-prem tenants, in a scalable and cost-effective way, provides a significant gain for CISOs and their operational groups.
  • Better cost modeling to enhance visibility across the digital estate (i.e., no longer reducing your security org’s visibility due to costs or technical constraints with legacy SIEM platforms).
  • Response playbooks can easily span between disparate security teams and potentially increase opportunities for collaboration and efficiencies.
  • Increased interest from executive leadership in major cyber initiatives like SecOps transformations.

Google Security Operations

Google Security Operations is trusted by many large organizations across various sectors as their combined SIEM/SOAR platform. Google Security Operations is enhanced with generative AI (GenAI) for proactive suggestions, automation via machine learning for UEBA and data-driven decision making to stay ahead of threats and build efficient response playbooks. It’s used to detect behavior and patterns of adversaries, moving beyond simple static identifiers. The platform is leading the shift from siloed operations to converged security operations, with data being placed in a unified platform accessible to multiple disciplines within security (e.g., cloud security, network security, GRC, etc).

Overcoming challenges by adopting a cloud-native SecOps platform

While there are numerous benefits to adopting a cloud-native platform, there are challenges to be navigated such as external factors like licensing renewals, program timelines, budget constraints and the need to demonstrate a return on investment can arise. Key actions to overcome potential challenges include:

  • Adopting a methodical approach to manage external factors like licensing renewals, program timelines and budget constraints.
  • Establishing future-state architectures that consider larger, more disparate data sets, and how they will be routed and ingested, to overcome the challenge of managing overwhelming volumes of data.
  • Shifting to a collaborative approach that incorporates a transformation strategy so the organization is well-equipped to handle the transition.

We encourage businesses to carefully consider the advantages of these platforms, highlighting the shift from legacy technology to data and intelligence-driven approaches. By embracing cloud-native SecOps platforms, companies can empower their teams, mitigate risks and gain comprehensive protection against evolving threats.

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