Big data consultancy services help businesses become more secure. This entails employing big data solutions to scout a company’s digital perimeters to ensure that weak points are fortified and cyber attacks are kept out.
Ever since computing was invented, there have always been hackers out there that would exploit any vulnerability to illegally gain access to a system. It could be for a number of reasons: steal data and information, prove to others that they can hack into your system, or plainly out of boredom.
Even if attacks such as keylogging, denial of service, waterhole, fake WAPs, phishing, click jacking and other forms of hacking techniques grow in both frequency and size, the good news is that users now are much smarter. Companies are also looking at the latest technologies to help fortify their systems’ security.
For instance, big data services are now used in battling cybercriminals and hackers. These systems use machine learning and advanced analytics on big data to detect possible intrusions and to fight attacks.
Big data solutions are looking for irregular patterns from a steady stream of information that comes from a business’ digital footprint. These big data solutions were first developed for the military and have since been adapted for businesses.
For instance, there is Palantir. Palantir is the third biggest startup in the United States after Uber and Airbnb. The national security company is valued at $20 billion and was initially funded by the CIA. That is right, the Central Intelligence Agency. The company does not, however, create rockets, weapons, or space suits. Instead, they deal with data analysis. Palantir would take seemingly unrelated events and try to figure out if there is some threat out there. Like, for instance, it will sound the alarm when it detects a bombing being planned from such events as plane ticket purchases, purchases of parts used for a bomb, or even tickets to get into the place to be bombed.
Palantir, however, now provides the same kind of services to businesses. They use big data solutions to keep track of different data streams to avoid getting hacked or falling victim to data breaches.
These data breaches could prove to be disastrous for enterprises as it can lead to loss of consumer confidence and trust, getting trade secrets and other valuable information exposed, and even being liable for hefty fines.
How businesses are using big data to fortify their security?
Businesses today are now trying to find ways on how to be more competitive and secure in an environment that is increasingly automated and digital, and always online. But companies are also doing things that are new to them and might prove to be a vulnerability. For instance, more and more organizations are now relying on cloud services and storage. As a result, companies are now putting their data and information outside of their own offices and trusting third-party providers to keep it safe for them.
This means that the way you do business is always changing as new technologies or new requirements come in. And businesses might not be prepared security-wise; hackers would be waiting to pounce on any vulnerability that they can find.
As you adapt new technologies, you are effectively opening up new areas that could be vulnerable to attack. These weak points are going to be used by hackers to get into your network, sleuth around, and steal your assets.
Take time to make sure that all of these access points are covered. You will need to get data from different parts of your IT system and create a cohesive overall picture.
It is important that you are aware of how new technology may open your business systems to threats. Big data solutions can help you secure everything in your system, as well as identify weak points that you should plug.
The good news is that there are big data consulting firms that can help you with this process. A big data consultancy company usually provides services and software that would help you assess security threats, detect attacks and ultimately prevent data loss.
Another front where big data solutions can help is when new attacks are coming in. Cyber attacks are not only launched from hijacked desktop computers, but also from the connected devices that we call the Internet of Things (IoT). That means that your own smart TV, for instance, can be used to hack into your computer. The IoT uses big data solutions to help you understand the data that these devices gather, making it somewhat easier to have big data monitor for these devices to see if something is off.
Big data solutions allow you to gather, blend, manage and analyze data from different sources. These data may be structured or unstructured.
If there is something irregular or if the solution detects a pattern that would signal a hacking attempt and other similar threats, it will alert you immediately, even in real-time. It can also automatically mitigate any risks and address security threats.
Big data solutions can put together event data from different sources, and even get telemetry data from different devices. These sources would include your traditional security protocols, business systems, and detection software and tools.
What makes big data solution better though is that it will be able to cut days or weeks of threat investigation and response down to only seconds. That means, you can ward off the hackers before they even get a chance to do damage.
The cycle will continue, unfortunately. Businesses will be introduced to new technology and they will probably test it out and adapt it if it suits their needs. This will create new weak points that big data solutions would need to identify and security professionals would need to plug. On the other end of the spectrum, hackers will become more and more resourceful and relentless, as security becomes stricter and hacking becomes more difficult.
There is no time for you to rest. If you do not have the IT team to help you employ big data solutions to help you with your security, then contact reputable and able big data consulting companies to help you.
Four Cornerstone to the rescue!
Four Cornerstone can help you get started on big data solutions. We can serve as your big data consulting partner. We can advise you on hardware and software that can help you ease your worries or help you take advantage of all the technology that is available to you. All it takes is just one phone call to +1 (817) 377-1144. Or you can fill out our contact form and we would be the one to call you.
Photo courtesy of Raymond Fruseth Gangstad.
