Meeting compliance requirements with Splunk and CrowdStrike: A Trifork Security guide, part 1/2

Compliance, 2024-11-28

Compliance, 2024-11-28

In today’s regulated digital landscape, meeting compliance requirements is no longer just a best practice, it’s a necessity. From GDPR to NIS2, organizations face a complex web of regulations designed to protect sensitive data and ensure cybersecurity. Navigating this landscape can be daunting, but with the right tools and expertise, compliance can become a driver of organizational resilience and trust.

This is part one of a two-part blog series exploring how Splunk and CrowdStrike, combined with Trifork Security’s GRC expertise and LogOne solution, can help your organization meet compliance requirements. In this installment, we focus on the upcoming NIS2 directive in the EU.

Splunk and CrowdStrike provide a robust technological foundation for addressing the core pillars of compliance. In this post, weโ€™ll dive into the role of Splunk.

Data security and privacy

NIS2 and GDPR require organizations to protect and monitor log sources, ensuring logs are secure, incidents are documented and compliance is maintained. Splunk supports these mandates by identifying and classifying sensitive data, securing log backups and detecting unauthorized changes that could impact business operations. It also helps detect and mitigate attacks targeting backup solutions by tracking log status and host telemetry, giving you a complete overview of your backups to ensure readiness when incidents occur.

These regulations also demand detailed records of data access and processing activities. Splunk provides visibility into who accessed which systems, when, and from where, helping to detect unauthorized access or suspicious activity.

Furthermore, Splunk offers a comprehensive view of where sensitive data resides, enabling organizations to implement robust governance and security controls. By integrating with DLP solutions, Splunk enhances compliance efforts by detecting and preventing unauthorized data exfiltration, ensuring data protection regulations are met.

Security controls, Incident Response and risk management

NIS2 requires organizations to respond to incidents within 24 hours while mitigating risks that could impact their business continuity. Splunk Enterprise Security (ES) helps meet these requirements by analyzing log data for threat detection and response. For example, if an unauthorized user attempts to access sensitive data or modify firewall settings, Splunk detects the activity, correlates it with other suspicious events, and triggers an alert for quick action.

Risk management within the scope of NIS2 involves identifying, documenting and mitigating risks. Splunk integrates with tools like Tenable for continuous vulnerability monitoring. For example, if Tenable identifies a critical vulnerability in payment data systems, Splunk triggers a workflow to prioritize patching and alerts the IT team. Splunkโ€™s triggers, workflows and alerts help organizations assess, prioritize and address vulnerabilities, with Trifork Security consultants offering support in implementing mitigation strategies.

Splunk ES also enables risk-based alerting, prioritizing critical security events. For example, if a brute-force login attempt on a privileged account is detected, Splunk escalates the alert for immediate investigation. NIS2 requires prompt communication during incidents and Splunk streamlines this by automatically notifying relevant personnel. For example, if Erik from Finance tries to execute administrative commands, Splunk flags it as suspicious, alerts IT and logs the event for compliance reporting.

Meeting the NIS2 directive with Trifork Security and LogOne

The EU’s NIS2 directive, which is expected to come into full effect on July 1st 2025, introduces stricter cybersecurity requirements for a wide range of sectors. Organizations must implement measures to manage risk, prevent incidents and report on cybersecurity events. Our GRC team (Governance, Risk and Compliance) has the expertise to help organizations meet regulatory requirements like NIS2. We provide guidance and support with:

NIS2 gap analysis

To assess your current NIS2 compliance status, our consultants are prepared to evaluate your security posture. We analyze how NIS2 impacts your business and identify the most critical risks specific to your organization. Our team will deliver a comprehensive report detailing your compliance with all NIS2 controls, highlighting areas where you are compliant and identifying any gaps. By collaborating with relevant stakeholders, we provide tailored recommendations to help you address these gaps effectively.

Risk management framework

Effective risk management is essential under NIS2 to identify, prioritize and mitigate risks, which could impact your business continuity and supply chain. Trifork Security tailors a risk management framework to your business, helping you assess and address NIS2-related risks based on their likelihood and impact. Through practical workshops we ensure a focused and efficient approach to safeguarding your organization and reducing your vulnerability surface.

Incident Response planning

Reporting incidents is one aspect of compliance, but responding to them requires thorough preparation and coordination to ensure you can effectively mitigate risks when they arise. Trifork Security supports this by conducting workshops to develop tailored incident response strategies and providing guidance on their effective implementation. We are also available on standby to assist when incidents occur.

LogOne: Your compiance data foundation

LogOne, is a log management platform developed by Trifork Security, built on Splunk, specifically designed to support compliance and security monitoring. It centralizes logs from across your IT-infrastructure, including servers, network devices, applications, and cloud services, and normalizes them for easy analysis.

With LogOne, you can quickly generate pre-configured compliance reports that focus on NIS2 requirements, such as monitoring privileged access rights, user activities, and capacity management. LogOne integrates seamlessly with security solutions like Crowdstrike Falcon, providing a unified view of your security posture and enabling automated incident response to ensure meeting compliance requirements and mitigating risks.

Conclusion

Meeting compliance requirements in today’s complex digital landscape is essential for organizational resilience and success. Splunk, combined with Trifork Security’s GRC expertise and LogOne solution, provides a powerful foundation for achieving compliance. By taking a proactive approach and leveraging the right tools and expertise, you can turn compliance from a burden into a strategic advantage.

Stay tuned for our blog post next week, where we will explore how CrowdStrike assists in meeting compliance regulations.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you achieve your compliance goals.