In the ever-evolving landscape of security, threat analysts are on the front lines, tasked with identifying and mitigating potential threats before they can inflict damage. However, as the volume of alerts generated by security systems continues to surge, many analysts are grappling with a phenomenon known as ‘Alert Fatigue Syndrome’.
Alert fatigue is a significant challenge facing threat analysts in the security field. As organizations deploy numerous security tools to protect their infrastructure, people, brands, and assets. Analysts are inundated with a high volume of alerts, some of which are false positives. This overwhelming influx can desensitize analysts, leading to missed critical threats and inefficient use of resources. What’s worse is that alert fatigue can impact the morale and overall well-being of your security staff. So, how do we unpack its cause and mitigate it? Well... utilizing the power of automation and integrated systems is a great way to start.
What is Alert Fatigue?
Alert fatigue occurs when security analysts become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of alerts generated by various security tools. This condition is exacerbated by the presence of numerous false positives, which can lead to security professionals becoming desensitized and important alerts being ignored or missed altogether. A survey by Palo Alto Networks found that security operations center (SOC) analysts can only handle about 14% of the alerts they receive, highlighting the extent of the problem.
Of course, when analysts start overlooking or dismissing alerts, assuming they are less critical, real threats can slip through the cracks.
Causes of Alert Fatigue
Many factors contribute to alert fatigue, spanning from aged internal processes and workflows to compliance intricacies and varied legislation that calls for cautious and meticulous monitoring of keywords of breadth and not depth. That said, the leading factors in alert fatigue are the sheer volume of alerts and the lack of integrated monitoring and investigative systems within an organization.
According to a related report by the IDC -
“Organizations have responded to the growing threats by adding evermore security tools while simultaneously struggling to fill the vacant seats in their security operations centers."
Security systems generate thousands of alerts daily, and amongst those that matter and enable you to avoid incidents, there are many that are low in precision but plentiful. Poorly configured search queries and/or manual monitoring punctuate this problem. It is compounded if the organization's workflow is fragmented and analysts must rely on several monitoring tools that spew out the same alerts.
Strategies to Mitigate Alert Fatigue
Here are four suggestions for both mitigation and addressing alert fatigue that will go a long way:
Optimize Security Tools: Streamlining and integrating security tools can reduce the number of redundant alerts. This involves consolidating security solutions to ensure the protection and awareness you need without overlap. Look for OSINT tools that cover monitoring, investigating, escalation, and incident management. Applications with this suite of capabilities easily allow for cross-departmental collaboration and information sharing with executives. Moreover, they remove the chance of duplicate alerts being raised on the same topic.
Automation: Implementing automation for routine alert triage and response can significantly reduce the burden on analysts. Automated systems can handle known issues and prioritize critical alerts.
As a Line of Business Application (LOBA) focused on automation can be costly for companies to build, look for monitoring tools that come with smart alert deduplication functionality. These tools help to filter out false positives and prioritize alerts that require human intervention. Automation such as this can significantly reduce the volume of alerts analysts need to review, allowing them to focus on genuine threats.
Enhance Training and Awareness: Regular training sessions can help analysts stay informed about the latest threats and trends. These sessions help analysts see the needle in a haystack and foster an environment of learning, making them better at detecting critical impact alerts.
Another benefit to these group training sessions is the wealth of information that comes from team communication and collaboration. In these sessions, analysts often share insights and strategies for dealing with alerts that could help their peers. At the very least, it fuels healthy conversation and brainstorming amongst the team.
Regular debriefing sessions post-incident can also provide a platform for discussing challenges and successes.
Review and Optimize Alerting Rules: Regularly reviewing and refining alerting rules can help eliminate unnecessary alerts. Organizations should assess their security tools to ensure they are configured to meet their specific needs and reduce noise at least every six months or when the threat climate calls for change,
Conclusion
While alert fatigue is a significant challenge for threat analysts, it is not insurmountable. By understanding its causes and implementing effective strategies, organizations can empower their security teams to work more efficiently and effectively.
Threats and bad actors are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and addressing alert fatigue is essential for maintaining robust security defenses. Also, by prioritizing mental well-being and operational efficiency, organizations can ensure that their threat analysts remain vigilant and capable of always safeguarding their infrastructure, people, brand, and assets.