Top 5 Benefits of Implementing IDS and IPS in Your Cyber Security Strategy
Both systems monitor networks, activity, and devices for signs of malware. IDS detects and alerts administrators of abnormal traffic, while IPS can take proactive steps to prevent damage. Explore the Benefits of IDS and IPS for enhanced threat detection and effective network security.
The ability to proactively respond to threats helps shape security strategies and eases regulatory compliance. These tools also provide visibility into vulnerabilities to help organizations understand risk and establish more robust defenses.
1. Prevents Data Loss
While firewalls protect network data from unauthorized access, IDS and IPS go further in preventing cyber threats by detecting intrusions and alerting the network of suspicious activities.
This reduces the burden on IT teams who might otherwise need to monitor highly digitalized enterprise environments around the clock, ensuring they have sufficient resources for other security tasks.
IDS detects potential attacks by monitoring data and comparing them against the known characteristics of cyber threats, which is why they are also called threat detection systems. They can use signature-based detection, anomaly-based detection, or ML-powered behavior models to identify cyber threats.
Anomaly-based detection uses a baseline of regular activity to recognize abnormal behaviors indicative of an attack, such as many logins during non-work hours. Once a threat is detected, IDS logs the event and transmits a notification to pagers or consoles to ensure all parties know the situation.
It also updates router, firewall, and server policies to thwart the attack. IDS can also help address compliance issues by monitoring incidents for logging and reporting purposes.
Deploying IDS and IPS in cyber security is pivotal, providing a comprehensive defense strategy by actively detecting and thwarting potential threats to safeguard digital assets and networks.
2. Prevents Unwanted Traffic
The primary function of an IDS is to monitor the system for suspicious activity and generate alerts when it detects potential threats. This enables human administrators to review the alerts and take action, such as blocking or filtering specific traffic or system activities.
Signature-based detection compares incoming network traffic and system files against a database of known attack patterns. When an exact match is detected, the system will generate an alert and flag it as a threat. However, this method can also leave a window of opportunity for unknown attacks and malware.
Anomaly detection is a more sophisticated approach that uses advanced
to identify deviations from normal behavior. However, it can create false positives that flag legitimate traffic as a threat. IPS prevents unwanted traffic from entering your system by blocking or modifying network and application packets in near real-time.
This enables the system to maintain security without impacting critical business functions and fulfills compliance requirements, such as PCI DSS and HIPAA. It can also help prevent data loss from unauthorized access.
3. Prevents Denial-of-Service Attacks
IDS monitors network traffic and system activities to detect any abnormal behavior. It alerts security teams to suspected threats and provides on-the-spot analysis. It can also block malicious activity from entering the network while reducing the time bad actors spend in your network, thus minimizing the impact of their attacks.
Anomaly detection compares incoming data against known attack signatures and patterns in a database. It also builds a baseline of normal behavior and triggers an alert when an activity significantly differs from the norm.
Unlike IDS, primarily a diagnostic tool that scans for possible security violations, an IPS solution acts upon detected threats. It uses a database of threat signatures or an ML-powered behavioral model to identify malicious threats and prevent cybersecurity breaches. In addition to detecting threats, IPS can offer automated responses and thwart them before they cause damage.
This makes IPS an essential component of any cyber defense. It can also enforce business policies at a network level. This is a key benefit because it helps organizations meet regulatory compliance requirements, including CIS controls.
4. Prevents Network Attacks
Both IDS and IPS prevent network attacks by spotting threats and taking action to stop them. These tools monitor networks, traffic, and activity across devices and servers to spot threats. They also alert you when they detect them.
IDS and IPS can use machine learning and artificial intelligence to help them spot patterns and minimize false positives. They also log data and alerts for future reference.
Depending on the detection system used, IDS and IPS can take various automated responses when they discover a threat. For example, a policy-based IPS solution uses security policies created by the administrator and then blocks activities that violate them. It can also drop malicious packets or shut down access to restricted resources, limiting damage to the network and protecting sensitive information.
Signature-based IDS solutions compare current network traffic to a list of known attack signatures, such as open ports, network access violations, and other indicators of compromise. However, the lag between discovery and application can leave an attacker with a window of opportunity to steal data or cause disruptions.
5. Prevents Protected Data Loss
IDS and IPS monitor network activity and system activities to detect attacks that antivirus software or firewalls might miss. These systems then take various actions to stop these cyberattacks before they can cause any damage.
These actions include closing sessions, blocking IP addresses, removing damaged or infected files, strengthening firewalls, and more.
IPS solutions typically record information about observed events and produce reports for security administrators. Many also offer response capabilities that can thwart attacks by closing holes, changing the behavior of a server, or stopping attackers from accessing protected data.
Final Words
Signature-based detection identifies malicious patterns by comparing inbound and outbound traffic to known attack signatures and patterns databases. This approach can quickly detect known threats, but it’s not helpful against unknown malware or zero-day vulnerabilities.
Behavioral analysis uses regular network or system behavior models to recognize deviations from these standards, which can indicate an intrusion event.
This method also helps to prevent false positives by ensuring that only anomalous events generate alerts. The system can then notify the appropriate team and take action as needed.
See Also: Cyber Security For Small Businesses: Importance & Implementation
