Introduction
According to the Exabeam State of Threat Detection, Investigation, and Response Report, global cybersecurity spending is projected to grow from $92 billion in 2022 to over $170 billion by 2027, pushing security teams to invest in solutions that enhance threat detection, investigation, and response (TDIR).
Many organizations have relied on on-premises security information and event management (SIEM) solutions for threat monitoring, incident response, and compliance. These self-hosted deployments offer control, data sovereignty, and predictable costs. However, as cyberthreats become more sophisticated, security teams must adapt.
A hybrid SIEM strategy—enhancing an on-prem SIEM with cloud-powered capabilities—delivers the best-of-both-worlds. By integrating cloud-driven analytics, behavior modeling, and real-time threat intelligence, organizations can improve detection accuracy, reduce noise, and scale security operations efficiently.
This blog explores how on-prem SIEM users can maximize their investment with cloud-enabled enhancements while maintaining the control and security benefits of their current deployment.
Enhancing On-Premises SIEM with Cloud Capabilities
A self-hosted SIEM offers control and customization, but integrating cloud capabilities improves efficiency, scalability, and precision. Here’s how:
Behavior Modeling: Smarter Threat Detection
The same report found that 57% of organizations experienced significant security incidents in the past 12 months—incidents that could have been mitigated with stronger behavior analytics and automation.
Cloud-based user and entity behavior analytics (UEBA) applies machine learning (ML) to security data, detecting anomalies related to insider threats and compromised credentials. By establishing baselines for normal behavior, behavior analytics helps security teams detect anomalies and prioritize potential threats more effectively. ML-powered entity context classification also differentiates between workstations, servers, service accounts, and human users, reducing manual investigation time.
Real-Time Threat Intelligence: Proactive Defense
A hybrid SIEM approach enables security teams to leverage cloud-based threat intelligence for real-time insights into emerging attack tactics and adversary behaviors. By correlating on-prem security logs with cloud-driven intelligence, organizations gain broader situational awareness across their entire infrastructure.
Cloud threat intelligence feeds provide continuous updates on indicators of compromise (IoCs), attacker tactics, and newly discovered vulnerabilities. This real-time data allows security teams to respond proactively, reducing dwell time and the risk of undetected breaches.
Streamlined Workflows: Scaling Security Operations
According to the Exabeam report, nearly 50% of organizations automate at least half of their investigation and mitigation workflows. Additionally, security teams spend 57% of their time on TDIR activities, highlighting the need for automation to reduce manual workloads.
A hybrid SIEM approach offers elastic scalability, preventing on-prem resources from becoming overloaded. Cloud-powered UEBA enables security teams to shift from reactive security to proactive threat hunting, improving response times and operational efficiency.
Use Case: Enhancing LogRhythm SIEM with LogRhythm Intelligence
LogRhythm SIEM provides end-to-end security monitoring, log management, and compliance capabilities. However, as cyberthreats evolve, organizations require greater visibility, advanced analytics, and automation. This is where LogRhythm Intelligence, a cloud-native add-on, enhances LogRhythm SIEM.
While LogRhythm SIEM includes over 1,000 pre-built correlation rules and 28 compliance frameworks, LogRhythm Intelligence strengthens these capabilities with ML-driven behavior analytics. By analyzing user and entity behavior, LogRhythm Intelligence can:
- Detect anomalies that indicate insider threats, compromised accounts, or administrative misuse.
- Establish behavior baselines and automatically adjust detection thresholds to reduce false positives.
- Provide entity context classification to distinguish between workstations, servers, service accounts, and human users.
Additionally, LogRhythm Intelligence includes a generative AI-powered Copilot that streamlines security operations within LogRhythm SIEM. Exabeam Copilot generates automated threat summaries mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK® framework and suggests next steps for investigation and response, accelerating decision making.
By adopting a hybrid SIEM approach, LogRhythm Intelligence transforms LogRhythm SIEM into a next-generation security operations platform, enabling security operations center (SOC) teams to detect, investigate, and respond to threats more efficiently.
Conclusion and Next Steps
Security teams no longer have to choose between on-premises control and cloud-driven innovation. A hybrid SIEM strategy provides the stability of a self-hosted SIEM with the adaptability of cloud analytics—delivering greater visibility, precision, and efficiency.
By integrating advanced cloud capabilities like UEBA and real-time threat intelligence, security teams can stay ahead of evolving threats.
Next Steps for SOC Teams Considering a Hybrid SIEM:
- Evaluate your current SIEM challenges: Where are the gaps?
- Assess your data ingestion needs: Are your log sources comprehensive enough to detect modern threats?
- Review your threat intelligence strategy: Are external threat feeds enhancing detection capabilities?
With a hybrid SIEM approach, security teams can maximize their existing on-prem investment while gaining the agility needed to outpace cybercriminals.
Discover how cloud-native SIEM enhances security operations. Read .
