Mike Banic, Vectra Networks' vice president of marketing, discusses SOAPA's effect on cybersecurity, including data collection, technology integration, machine learning, and partner ecosystems. Credit: Gerd Altmann ESG’s security operations and analytics platform architecture (SOAPA) is catching on in the industry, but the goal here goes beyond ESG. An open, flexible, event-driven, security software architecture could help improve security efficacy and operational efficiency, thus benefitting large organizations and all of our data.Just this week, old friend and vice president of marketing at Vectra Networks, Mike Banic, stopped by to discuss SOAPA and its impact on cybersecurity. Some of the points Mike made:Network telemetry is important for security analytics. Mike reminded me that ‘the network doesn’t like.” In other words, cyber-attack kill chains are synonymous with network communications, so threat detection equates with knowing what to look for within network traffic patterns.SOAPA integrates with other technology. While Vectra monitors and analyzes network traffic, SOC teams also analyze and interact with other security telemetry. SOAPA is all about bringing all of these discrete analytics tools together to provide a more holistic perspective on security status. Mike said customers are asking for technology integration, and Vectra is responding on both incident detection and response.SOAPA adds value to the SIEM. SIEM tools remain a nexus of cybersecurity analytics and operations and thus are an essential component of SOAPA. Mike said many organizations rely on SIEM as a foundation for security operations processes, and Vectra helps streamline these processes with accurate analytics that can help provide a starting point for identifying the root cause of a problem.SOAPA helps with the cybersecurity skills shortage. I reminded Mike that while organizations understand they need better security analytics, they may not have the resources or skills to deploy complex new tools. Mike said Vectra sees this issue firsthand and has tried to design its products for ease of use and accuracy to promote security operations productivity.I always enjoy my chats with Mike; he’s both knowledgeable and entertaining. Watch the entire video here and more in part 2 of the SOAPA video with Vectra Networks soon.Note: If you have strong opinions on SOAPA, please let me know. Related content analysis 5 things security pros want from XDR platforms New research shows that while extended detection and response (XDR) remains a nebulous topic, security pros know what they want from an XDR platform. By Jon Oltsik Jul 07, 2022 3 mins Intrusion Detection Software Incident Response opinion Bye-bye best-of-breed? ESG research finds that organizations are increasingly integrating security technologies and purchasing multi-product security platforms, changing the industry in the process. By Jon Oltsik Jun 14, 2022 4 mins Security Software opinion SOC modernization: 8 key considerations Organizations need SOC transformation for security efficacy and operational efficiency. Technology vendors should come to this year’s RSA Conference with clear messages and plans, not industry hyperbole. By Jon Oltsik Apr 27, 2022 6 mins RSA Conference Security Operations Center opinion 5 ways to improve security hygiene and posture management Security professionals suggest continuous controls validation, process automation, and integrating security and IT technologies. By Jon Oltsik Apr 05, 2022 4 mins Security Practices Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe