Automating threat resolution has significantly improved our security operations. On average, I scan around forty million files, and the detection rate has been quite good.
The integration capabilities significantly enhance my existing security environment. It is a night and day difference compared to CylanceOPTICS by BlackBerry, which I used previously. While CylanceOPTICS was good, it relied on an algorithmic approach that flagged millions of potential threats, resulting in some false positives that needed manual analysis and training. SentinelOne, on the other hand, leverages eleven different engines simultaneously, including AI, machine learning, heuristics, and dynamic and static scans. This comprehensive approach offers robust protection, and if something falls through the cracks, it can consult a cloud database for the latest threat intelligence. Beyond its detection capabilities, SentinelOne offers exceptional visibility and control. I can easily investigate events at any time, like tracking who accessed Yahoo Finance within my organization across specific timeframes. The global tenancy feature empowers me to apply scans and threat signatures across different segments or even my entire network, ensuring consistent protection. The more I explore SentinelOne's features, the more impressed I am. It's incredibly powerful and versatile, offering a level of security and control that far surpasses my previous solution.
The interface is user-friendly, but there's a learning curve due to its extensive capabilities. Navigating for someone unfamiliar with threat hunting can be challenging as they may need to explore every option. However, some features have tooltips explaining their function when hovered over.
Accessing the knowledge base often requires a partnership with the company. While I lack this access, my distributor provided the comprehensive admin guide.
Ranger is an excellent feature for threat scanning. While alternative pen testing tools like Digital Defense exist, Ranger offers a unique advantage. It utilizes SentinelOne agents as probes within the network, allowing scans for irregular connections and identifying devices without the agent. This provides a comprehensive view of potential vulnerabilities. Imagine we decide to deny access to certain devices. In that case, every agent with those policies implemented, throughout our network, would individually isolate their traffic. This isolation prevents communication with the rogue devices. Consequently, even if one of those devices harbors a threat, it's unable to move laterally within the network. All other devices, recognizing it as unauthorized, will refuse to communicate with it.
Ranger requires no additional agents, hardware, or network modifications. It's essentially a built-in feature of the existing agent. Therefore, if we have the module, we already possess the capability. Activation can be done remotely through the cloud. So, when we decide to upgrade to Singularity Complete, they'll offer us the option of adding Ranger Plus. If we agree, a small additional fee, typically around a few dollars, will be applied per client. While it might seem a bit pricey, considering the value it provides, I believe it's worth the investment. It translates to roughly five dollars per client. For instance, with 50 machines, the monthly cost would be $250. In my experience, it hasn't significantly increased my expenses. There might be a slight increase, but I haven't noticed any substantial impact.
SentinelOne Ranger effectively prevents vulnerable devices from being compromised by isolating their network traffic. This feature is just one of many within the SentinelOne platform, which includes a built-in router and firewall integrated directly into the agent. This integration allows for seamless compatibility with Windows firewalls and offers granular control over network traffic. For example, Ranger enables modification of the firewall's IP stack, granting the ability to isolate specific traffic based on defined rules. This can be particularly useful for segregating vulnerable devices and preventing their communication. While not recommended for general use, advanced users can leverage SentinelOne's Singularly Complete feature on, for example, a VMware server to further isolate vulnerable devices. By running the client software on a separate network from the server, administrators can block unauthorized traffic based on Ranger's or the agent's identification. This effectively isolates the vulnerable device, even if it's compromised since it lacks any incoming network traffic. The server acts as a default gateway, filtering and controlling all incoming traffic.
Singularity Complete can help reduce alerts when a threat is identified and a solution is implemented. However, if a threat is known but no solution is available, using Singularity Complete might increase alerts. This is because suppressing alerts for a known threat without addressing it can create a false sense of security. While Singularity Complete allows manual blacklisting of threats, it cannot import large lists of threats from spreadsheets in one go, a feature available in CylanceOPTICS. This can be time-consuming for dealing with many threats. Overall, Singularity Complete has improved in its alert management, but it remains average compared to competitors. While detection is excellent, the alerting system still requires some refinement.
As a threat detector, I perform threat analysis to quickly identify threats. This has significantly reduced the time I spend on analysis, allowing Singularity Complete to free up about 30 percent of my time for other tasks.
Singularity Complete has achieved a 15 percent reduction in our mean time to detection. This efficiency gain is powered by eleven different detection engines running concurrently, ensuring comprehensive identification of potential threats.
Singularity Complete can reduce our mean time to respond by providing a clear path to the root cause of an attack. However, it doesn't always do this, and sometimes further investigation is necessary. Nevertheless, the tool significantly speeds up the process of identifying the root cause. For example, imagine the timeline indicates a suspicious file was executed. We can use Singularity Complete to find out when it last ran in our environment, even if it wasn't detected on the same day. If the threat appeared recently but the file ran a month ago, it suggests a potential Trojan was planted. This prompts further investigation into how the file arrived on the system. It could have been introduced through a USB drive, email attachment, copied file, or existing on a network share. While Singularity Complete won't explicitly state the location like "Share five," it will provide a hash that can often lead us to the network path.
Singularity Complete helps manage costs by eliminating the need for additional products with overlapping functionality. This saves us thousands of dollars per month on full scans, as our existing agent already possesses that capability. By deploying it across all organizational agents and enabling Ranger, we can conduct daily scans that provide comprehensive insights into our network activity.
Singularity Complete has helped reduce our organizational risk. However, it's important to remember that no system is foolproof. While I haven't experienced a security breach since installing it, I deliberately expose some machines to potential threats to test and observe new attack techniques. To strengthen our security posture, I've implemented additional measures. Some machines have less aggressive scan and detection settings to simulate vulnerabilities and observe attacker behavior. Additionally, our network is layered, with weaker points that serve as honeypots, while critical systems are protected by stricter security protocols. Beyond Singularity Complete, we utilize Palo Alto Networks and FortiGate firewalls for further protection. Ultimately, the decision to invest in additional scanning capabilities depends on the cost and our overall security strategy.