Email this article   Print article 


IBM On Board With Big Data Security Analytics

By Robert Westervelt
January 31, 2013    10:46 AM ET

Page 1 of 2

IBM and RSA this week unveiled big data security analytics, merging their security monitoring systems with the Hadoop software framework in a move that executives at both firms predict could create a whole new breed of intelligent information security systems. But some security analysts predict a number of hurdles ahead.

IBM, Armonk, N.Y., is merging its QRadar security information event management (SIEM) appliance with its InfoSphere BigInsights analytics platform. IBM InfoSphere BigInsights is the company's Apache Hadoop product designed to use the open-source software framework to analyze structured and unstructured data for business purposes. It was unveiled in October on its PureSystems line of servers and is based on the data warehouse appliance technology IBM acquired when it bought Netezza in 2010.

The QRadar platform will remain the dashboard for IT security analysts. IBM has added a BigInsights querying interface it calls BigSheets. Data from QRadar is fed into the analytics workbench.

[Related: 8 Ways Big Data Will Change Our Lives]

Only a limited number of companies will deploy big data security analytics, said Marc van Zadelhoff, vice president of security strategy and product management at IBM, adding that he expects early adopters to be in the "low hundreds of customers in the next couple of years." Organizations in the defense and financial industries and government agencies would be the first to merge security data and unstructured data to expand visibility.

"We're not saying SIEM is falling down; that is not our problem," Zadelhoff said. "We're seeing customer requirements changing significantly. They want the ability to add unstructured data."

A number of other security firms are making the attempt to merge SIEM system data with Hadoop implementations for deep data analysis. RSA is integrating its multiple acquisitions into a single security analytics platform. RSA and IBM have similar network analysis and visibility components and log and event management integration, said John Kindervag, principal analyst at Forrester Research. Hewlett-Packard, which has not yet unveiled a security analytics platform, is said to be working on a connector to its Vertica Hadoop engine, but Kindervag said its ArcSight SIEM platform is limited to log correlation and analysis.

NEXT: Challenges Ahead For Big Data Security Analytics

1 | 2 | Next >>

To continue reading this article, please download the free CRN Tech News app for your iPad or Windows 8 device.
Related: Videos | Slide Shows | Comments

SHARE THIS ARTICLE

More Security

Recent Articles

10 Security Companies That Have Scored CIA Funding

CIA-funded venture firm invests millions in technology startups, mostly security firms. Find out which security companies won In-Q-Tel funding.

Head-To-Head: Symantec Vs. McAfee In Endpoint Protection

McAfee and Symantec are archrivals with a firm grip on the North American security market. CRN pits both vendors' endpoint security products against each other and names a winner.

The 8 Steps Behind The Massive $45M Cyber Bank Heist

More than $45 million was stolen from banks in the U.S. and 19 other countries in a scheme that law enforcement is calling an international conspiracy to drain millions from bank accounts using stolen debit cards and PIN numbers. Here's how they did it.

  More Slide Shows




Related Videos
Loading...