Is Security Event and Information Management (SEIM) Finally Coming To The Mid-Market?

If you speak to many analysts in the information security space they will tell you that all roads lead to SEIM. Security Event and Information Managers represent the pinnacle of security technology. They proverbially tie the bow around all of the different security technologies and products you deployed, while giving you actionable intelligence into your security posture. However, SEIMs are also known for their complexity and have been deployed successfully in mostly large organizations. Now the time might be at hand where mid-market companies can leverage SEIM.

I am here this week at the RSA Conference in San Francisco. It is one of the largest if not the largest security information shows in the world. It is literally where the world gathers to talk security. Walking the show floor and meeting with many of my friends I am hearing of several ways that SEIM is being brought to the mid-market.

One method is harnessing the power of the cloud and SaaS delivery models, SEIM as a service is a play on Security as a Service. Taking the large upfront license fee out of the equation and wrapping a managed service around it vendors like Fishnet Security are now offering SEIM in affordable monthly bites with security services wrapped around it. Fishnet is not the only SEIM-as-a-Service either. Several MSSPs (managed security service providers) are also offering managed SEIM on top of the other security services they offer.

The as a service model offers several advantages for the mid-market organization. Besides less upfront cost and outsourced management of the service, expertise not available to organizations this size comes from the provider as well. Without these I don’t know how most mid-market companies can really utilize SEIM effectively.

Another option for SEIM in the mid-market comes from the open source security world. Alien Vault, makers of the OSSIM (open source security information manager) has just raised some significant new venture capital as well as a new management team. It seems that most of the executive team of Fortify software which was bought by HP as left to join Alien Vault.

Packaging several open source security products along with OSSIM, a mid-market company doesn’t have to go and buy different security technologies to feed data to the SEIM. This all in one is geared to mid-markets and gives them insight and views tailored to the needs. Alien Vault is also offering their mid-market customers the ability to share info on threats so that they are all better protected. The new management team is very high on bringing SEIM to the mid-market and believes the open source model is the way to go.

So it seems that finally the mid-market is going to enjoy the benefits of SEIM. Of course others have tried to bring SEIM down to the mid-market before and it hasn’t worked. While the jury is still out on these new ventures, it maybe that the time and technology are finally right to make this time the charm.

In other news from RSA, you would be hard pressed to know that the economy is not booming. The show floor was sold out, the meeting rooms are packed. There are lines to get in everywhere. Most of all, the parties by the vendors are some of the most extravagant and plentiful I have seen in my 10 years of attending RSA! Maybe security is finally being taken seriously by everyone.

This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet.