Auditing IAM events with SIEM

Did you know logging and SLA are also part of security compliances for an organisation ?

As per ISO 27001,

"Logs that record activities, exceptions, faults and other relevant events shall be produced, stored, protected and analysed."

"Networks, systems and applications shall be monitored for anomalous behaviour and appropriate actions taken to evaluate potential information security incidents."

In today's digital landscape, effective Identity and Access Management (IAM) is critical to securing organisational infrastructure. However, IAM systems are only as strong as their ability to detect and respond to suspicious activities. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by integrating IAM with a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system. By centralising and analysing audit logs, organisations can detect and mitigate threats before they disrupt operations. Here’s how you can audit IAM events effectively.

1. Why Integrate IAM with a SIEM System?

SIEM systems are powerful security solutions that collect, correlate, and analyse log data from across an organisation’s infrastructure and applications. Integrating IAM with SIEM ensures that all access-related activities are monitored in real-time. This integration allows organisations to:

• Detect unauthorised access attempts.
• Identify anomalous behaviour, such as excessive failed login attempts.
• Monitor changes to IAM roles, permissions, and policies.

By leveraging SIEM, organisations can achieve a unified view of their IAM-related events and correlate them with other security events, enhancing threat detection and response capabilities.

2. Types of Logs to Monitor

IAM audit events generate a wealth of data that can reveal potential security threats. To maximise the effectiveness of your auditing strategy, focus on capturing the following types of logs:

Centralised Logging: Log Better, Debug Faster, Be Safer

API Access Logs

API access logs track all interactions between users, applications, and your IAM system. These logs help identify:

• Unauthorised API calls.
• Usage patterns of APIs by specific roles.
• Anomalies such as unusually high API activity from a single user.

Control Panel Activity Logs

These logs document actions performed within the IAM dashboard or management console, including:

• Logins and logouts.
• Configuration changes.
• Failed authentication attempts.

Control panel activity logs are particularly useful for identifying compromised administrative accounts or unauthorised configuration changes.

IAM Roles and Policy Change Logs

Changes to IAM roles, permissions, and policies can have a significant security impact. Monitoring these logs helps detect:

• The addition of overly permissive roles.
• Unauthorised alterations to policies.
• Role escalations that deviate from the principle of least privilege.

By capturing and analysing these logs, organisations can ensure that access control policies remain secure and compliant.

3. Ensuring Longer Log Retention

Log retention policies play a vital role in compliance and security. Regulatory requirements, especially in sectors like banking and finance, mandate extended log retention periods. Here are some best practices:

• Comply with Regulatory Standards: Retain logs for at least 1–2 years, depending on the regulations governing your industry. For example, financial regulators often require logs to be retained for audit purposes for a minimum of 12 months.
• Store Logs Securely: Use secure storage solutions, such as cloud-based archival systems, to prevent unauthorised access or tampering.
• Implement Tiered Storage: Consider using a tiered approach for storage, where recent logs are stored in high-performance systems, and older logs are archived in cost-effective solutions.

Proper retention ensures that logs are available for forensic analysis during security investigations or compliance audits.

4. The Role of SIEM in Early Threat Detection

SIEM systems are designed to detect and mitigate threats in their early stages by analyzing log data and identifying patterns of suspicious activity. Here’s how SIEM enhances IAM auditing:

• Correlation and Alerting: SIEM tools can correlate IAM events with other log sources, such as network activity or application logs. For example, an unusual login followed by a series of failed API calls might indicate an attempted breach.
• Behavioural Analytics: By analysing historical IAM data, SIEM systems can establish baselines for normal behaviour and flag deviations as potential threats.
• Real-Time Monitoring: SIEM systems offer real-time alerts for critical events, such as unauthorised role changes or multiple failed login attempts.

Through these capabilities, SIEM transforms raw IAM logs into actionable insights.

5. Challenges in Auditing IAM Events

Auditing IAM events is not without its challenges. Organisations must address several key issues to ensure effective monitoring:

• Log Volume: The sheer volume of IAM logs can overwhelm SIEM systems. Implement log filtering to focus on high-priority events.
• Latency: Delays in log collection and processing can hinder real-time threat detection. Use high-performance log ingestion pipelines to minimize latency.
• Hybrid Environments: In hybrid cloud setups, logs may be distributed across multiple platforms. Ensure centralised log collection to maintain a unified view of IAM events.

Addressing these challenges requires a combination of robust infrastructure, well-defined processes, and advanced tools.

6. Best Practices for IAM Auditing

To build a robust IAM auditing framework, consider the following best practices:

1. Set Up Granular Logging: Configure your IAM system to capture detailed logs for all access-related activities.
2. Use Automated Tools: Leverage automation to streamline log collection, analysis, and alerting.
3. Implement Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Restrict access to IAM logs to authorized personnel only.
4. Conduct Regular Reviews: Periodically review log data to identify trends and refine detection rules.
5. Test Incident Response Plans: Simulate security incidents to validate the effectiveness of your SIEM and IAM auditing processes.

Conclusion:

Auditing IAM events is a critical component of modern cybersecurity. By integrating IAM with a SIEM system, organisations can achieve comprehensive visibility into access-related activities and detect threats before they escalate.

Through the collection and analysis of API access logs, control panel activity logs, and IAM role change logs, businesses can strengthen their security posture and meet regulatory requirements.

Combined with longer log retention policies and proactive threat detection, IAM auditing ensures that your organisation remains resilient in the face of evolving threats.

I hope this article can help you answer some of the your security and compliance needs.

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