How to choose the best security case management platform for your organization

Ekaterina Makhinova -

In an era where cyber threats are constantly evolving, it is paramount for organizations to set up a high-quality incident response. For that, you need a platform with vast case management features to streamline investigations, boost collaboration, and ensure a swift and organized reaction to threats. 

There are a lot of dedicated solutions on the market, which signifies an inspiring demand: more and more companies pay attention to their incident response capabilities and cybersecurity posture. But how do you find The One among so many? Meaning, how do you choose a case management platform that would not only work best for you but also be agile, easy to use—and reliable?

StrangeBee is here to help you with what you should look out for.

1. Reputation and security

The things anyone should start from while looking for a security case management platform are the number of its users, their reviews, and testimonials. You want a mature and proven product. 

The vendor’s reputation is just as important. Give preference to those with extensive experience in the field, specializing in just one platform, not a range of software for different purposes. This way, you’ll be sure to have found experts who fully commit to the quality of what they offer and don’t spread themselves over numerous products. For the same reasons, the platform itself should be specialized, too. It’s better not to go for those with security case management features added on top of some general foundation. 

Don’t forget about compliance with relevant regulations. It would not only protect your organization from legal and financial repercussions but also demonstrate the vendor’s commitment to data privacy and security. Prioritize platforms that offer robust measures to safeguard sensitive data. Access control and secure authentication mechanisms are fundamental elements that contribute to the overall security posture.

2. Integration capabilities

Make sure the case management platform seamlessly integrates into your existing cybersecurity infrastructure. By connecting it to your SIEM, EDR, issue tracking, and other systems, you’ll create a cohesive ecosystem and acquire a single pane of glass that will show you the whole security landscape of your organization. Also, check if the platform can receive alerts from custom sources like email reports or logs for better convenience.

Some vendors have options that will facilitate the integration of their products into your organization’s infrastructure. It may even be special formats like IaaS or SaaS, where you’re provided with a customized deployment code, and maintenance is managed by the vendor.

A quality integration will enhance your case management platform's functionality and ensure that the organization's existing investments in cybersecurity are leveraged to their full potential.

3. Scalability and customization

Scalability ensures that your incident response capabilities can adapt to the dynamic nature of cyber threats. Look for a platform that can accommodate a growing volume of tasks if your organization’s operations expand. To evaluate this, assess whether the platform can support multiple users and handle an increasing workload. A scalable solution is always an investment in the long-term effectiveness and sustainability of your cybersecurity strategy.

Also, every organization has unique processes and requirements when it comes to incident response. A security case management platform should offer customization options, allowing one to tailor it to specific needs. Customizable forms, fields, and templates enable companies to truly align the platform with their internal processes. Such capabilities ensure that it becomes a flexible and adaptive tool that can evolve alongside the changing cybersecurity landscape.

4. Automation features

A good security case management platform should save you time and energy. Automation is a huge benefactor here. It makes the lives of analysts easier, accelerates your time to resolution, and reduces the likelihood of human error.

Check if a platform can automate routine tasks like collecting alerts from siloed tools, notifying about them, analyzing observables, triggering responses, and other vital processes. Plus, we’ve already mentioned the importance of having templates: they, too, can help you make the most out of the limited incident response time by not having to start things from scratch every time.

5. User-centric approach

Your security case management platform must speak your language—literally and figuratively. If you see an extensive list of available languages and can understand the interface straight away, it’s usually a good sign. The general rule is that if the developers made an effort to make their product accessible to everyone, it means they’ve cared a lot about other things inside it, too.

A user-friendly interface not only accelerates the learning curve for cybersecurity teams but also contributes to faster and more accurate incident response. Some platforms on the market may seem attractive because they have a lot of features, but it’s not worth it if you must spend an eternity to master them. Moreover, you may eventually find out you don’t need many of these features—so it’s better not to waste time and resources to begin with.

6. Case enrichment and triage

It’s evident that a case management platform is meant to provide you with quality case management capabilities. This means you should have all the tools you need for your incident investigations and response. For example, you should be able to create tasks, identify similar cases and alerts, add metrics, comments, and custom fields, attach pieces of evidence, and record your progress in a convenient way.

Pay attention to analysis and response capabilities. It’s crucial for your incident response that the platform is integrated with trusted threat intelligence solutions and frameworks like MISP, MITRE ATT&CK, or others. This way, you will be able to triage cases in a matter of minutes, while good response features will guarantee you can swiftly take necessary measures to avoid any possible impact of a threat.

7. Collaboration opportunities

Teamwork makes the dream work. It goes for incident response as well. Look for a collaborative case management platform that will allow you to involve other members of your cybersecurity teams in investigations.

Collaboration features are important for a number of reasons:

  • They facilitate real-time communication among incident responders, allowing them to share information, updates, and insights instantly. This enables a more agile and efficient response to mitigate the impact of the incident. 
  • They break down silos and facilitate coordination among these teams, ensuring a unified and cohesive response effort. 
  • They enable the assignment of tasks to specific team members or groups. This helps to ensure that responsibilities are clearly defined and that nothing falls through the cracks during the incident resolution process. 

Look out for multi-tenancy. It should allow defining groups with different scopes and perimeters for different incident classification, sensitivity, and privacy. For example, you should be able to create one organization for all your security analysts and another for just some selected users, as it would only contain very sensitive cases. It would also be helpful if you could share a case or its elements with other organizations.

In summary, working together is essential for promoting effective communication, coordination, and knowledge sharing. It contributes to a more organized, efficient, and adaptive approach to incident handling in an increasingly complex and dynamic threat landscape.

8. Training and support

While working with a security case management platform, you want to ensure that your teams are well-equipped to leverage its full capabilities. For that, give preference to vendors who provide free and adequate training materials, documentation, and support channels. Assess the vendors’ commitment to providing direct aid and not just sending you links to their “how-to” articles.

Consider that some will offer you a quicker response time while others may respond a bit slower. That doesn't necessarily mean the latter isn't worth your time. Frequently, it's the other way around, and such vendors may provide much more expert consultations, diving deeper into the roots of a problem.

9. No surprises

Evaluate the total cost of your platform’s ownership, which includes not only the initial licensing fees but also any additional costs for support, training, or future upgrades. A transparent and predictable pricing structure allows organizations to plan effectively and guarantees that there are no surprises in terms of costs.

Another thing you want to check to ensure total predictability is the vendor’s attitude toward updates. It’s important they don’t depend on the market’s fluctuations and instead are only influenced by customers’ feedback and the current cybersecurity situation in the world. 

10. See for yourself

And, of course, before making a final decision, be sure to take advantage of trial versions or demos offered by vendors. This will allow you to assess your platform's functionality in a real-world setting:

  • The platform's compatibility with your organization’s existing infrastructure;
  • Its user-friendliness;
  • Overall performance.

Thorough testing will help you make an informed decision based on firsthand experience, ensuring that the chosen platform meets your specific needs and requirements.

Summing up

In conclusion, here’s what you should be looking for to find your best case management platform:

  1. Reputation and security—make sure both the software and its vendor are known and respected across the global community, as well as specialized.
  2. Integration capabilities—assess how well the platform fits your infrastructure; consider options provided by vendors.
  3. Scalability and customization—think about how you can adapt it for potentially increasing workload and for your organization’s needs.
  4. Automation features—check how the platform can help automate incident response and optimize case management processes.
  5. User-centric approach—everything inside your platform should be easy to understand.
  6. Case enrichment—you should be free to add whatever information you deem necessary for your investigations.
  7. Collaboration opportunities—you should be able to engage other analysts to facilitate and accelerate incident response.
  8. Training and support—the vendor should be at your direct service with any help that you need.
  9. No surprises—ensure total predictability in terms of future costs and updates.
  10.  See for yourself—always try demo versions before making your final decision.

With well-chosen incident response software, organizations can fortify their defenses and respond with agility to the challenges of today's digital landscape. You can click here for a product that meets all the described criteria—TheHive by StrangeBee. Trusted by cybersecurity professionals across the globe, this collaborative security case management platform will become your best friend in elevating your incident response.

Our company is proud to be among the pioneers in the field. For more than 8 years, we have been fully dedicated to making TheHive better and stronger with each new version, always considering our users’ feedback and keeping a keen eye on what’s happening in the cybersecurity world. What started as an open-source incident response software quickly became one of the market’s most trusted case management platforms.

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