AlienVault USM Powers Brier & Thorn’s Managed Security Services Practice

• Cybersecurity & Privacy - Intrusion Detection
• Cybersecurity & Privacy - Security Compliance

• Finance & Insurance
• Oil & Gas
• Retail

• Business Operation
• Quality Assurance

• Intrusion Detection Systems
• Regulatory Compliance Monitoring
• Remote Asset Management

• Cybersecurity Services
• System Integration

Brier & Thorn first began searching for an all-in-one security solution in early 2013 when they were tasked with conducting an incident response investigation for one of their clients. Their client had clicked on a weaponized attachment that led to a Spear Phish attack. This required Brier & Thorn to identify what the hackers had access to in their client's network and if any data exfiltration was occurring. At the time, Brier & Thorn was lacking visibility into their client’s network, so they needed an incident response forensics tool that enabled them to see traffic going in and out of the network.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in San Diego, California, Brier & Thorn is a global IT risk management firm that supports companies in their important strategic decisions on operational security, IT risk management, and managed security services. With a workforce of 51-200 employees, Brier & Thorn delivers managed services from their global security operations centers in the U.S. and Europe. They specialize in providing comprehensive IT risk management solutions, including incident response, penetration testing, and the development of Information Security Management Systems (ISMS). Their clientele spans various industries, including retail, financial services, and oil & gas, all of which have stringent regulatory compliance requirements.

In their search for the right solution, Brier & Thorn came across AlienVault’s Unified Security Management (USM) platform and its Open Threat Exchange (OTX). After a few conversations with AlienVault, Brier & Thorn determined that the functionality provided by USM delivered the ideal tool set for their incident response investigation. Once acquired, AlienVault USM enabled Brier & Thorn to determine the source of the Spear Phish attack, which country it was coming from, and which machines on their client’s network had been compromised. After the investigation, Brier & Thorn decided to take a hard look at the IT risk management consulting services they were providing. They realized that by building an Information Security Management System (ISMS), performing penetration testing, and incident response for clients, they were only addressing one small part of their client’s problems. This realization propelled Brier & Thorn to develop a service that would support their clients’ security needs post-implementation. They built their first Security Operations Center (SOC) and added a new managed security services practice to their service portfolio. Since USM proved to be a perfect fit for Brier & Thorn’s previous incident response investigation, it was the first solution they evaluated to power their new managed services program.

• AlienVault USM allows Brier & Thorn to detect and alert on communication with malicious hosts on their clients’ networks.
• Brier & Thorn is able to provide their clients with a huge cost savings because of USM’s all-in-one, single pane of glass design.
• Brier & Thorn use AlienVault USM to help their clients more easily meet security compliance standards.

• Brier & Thorn currently have over 100 sensors under management across 70 countries.
• They have built their second AlienVault powered SOC in Stuttgart, Germany.