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Splunk vs SolarWinds Security Event Manager for SIEM
UPDATED: August 29, 2023
When it comes to Event Log Monitoring and management, scalable overviews and the ability to respond to incidents and rectify problems is of the utmost importance. Two of the more popular and powerful monitoring programs are SolarWinds SEM and Splunk, and this article will outline key features and comparisons for each. The main application discussed from SolarWinds will be the Security Event Manager and Splunk.
As far as installation goes, Splunk is definitely easy and quick. There is one base program to install, and then modules and add-on applications may be added from that program. The base program is fairly empty, and requires the user to add the necessary modules in order to make full or even partial use of the tool. On the plus side, the modules and add-ons are Free.
SolarWinds also has a fairly easy install. However, SolarWinds also separates key functions of network monitoring into several different installable programs. For example, if you want to monitor web traffic, you need to install the Network Traffic Analyzer add-on to the Network Performance Monitor program.
SolarWinds Security & Event Manager – FREE TRIAL
Features
Eliminate threats faster with instant detection of suspicious activity and Event correlation with Rules and Event-based reporting and alerts
Using threat intelligence groups across the internet that monitor DDOS, botnets, SPAM and other threats online, SolarWinds SEM updates BAD IPs and Bad activity and assists you in Pinpointing Potential Security issues that could potentially cause issues in your infrastructure.
Threats that SEM protects you against include:
- Malware Infections
- Phishing Attempts
- External Attacks from Known Malicious IP's and Hosts
SEM Allows you to create Rules and Filters that will automatically use the Threat intelligence data to help you thwart any attacks that could arise in your network before they occur.
Graphs and Reporting Features that assist in showing the constant threats and security issues that have been avoided within your Network and help meet compliance issues.
File integrity Monitoring will help you comply with policy based auditing of files and registry keys and activity. You'll understand and have an overview of what files have been read, modified and deleted.
Monitoring file integrity will also assist with Compliance of Regulations including:
- PCI DSS
- HIPAA
- Sarbanes-Oxley
On top of all the features mentioned above, File Integrity Monitoring is more important than ever right now with the constant worry of Ransomware attacks and Malware that is posing threats on every business in the world.
SolarWinds helps you pinpoint file modifications and allows you to see what is going on within your network computers.
USB Drive monitoring is another great feature of SolarWinds SEM which assists you in blocking malicious executables that are set to auto-run when plugged into a USB port. The SEM Dashboard shows you threats from USB Devices, including USB Files that are created, modified, deleted, attached and Detached.
You have the ability to specify the blocking of USB executables along with other threats that are Auto-Run via USB Devices within the Dashboard.
Comparison of SolarWinds SEM vs Splunk
Below you'll find a quick Comparison of the SolarWinds vs Splunk for SIEM and Event Log Analysis and Monitoring. For more information on each software, Please visit their Respective website to Download a Trial of the Software and test it out in your network. Download Links are available below as well!
| SolarWinds SEM | Splunk | |
|---|---|---|
| Compliance Auditing (PCI DSS, Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), HIPAA, ISO, NCUA, FISMA, FERPA, GLBA, NERC CIP, GPG13, DISA STIG) |
✔ | ✔ |
| Detect Suspicious/Malicious Activity | ✔ | ✔ |
| Real-Time Event/Threat Detection & Aggregation |
✔ | ✔ |
| Real-Time Threat Remediation | ✔ | ✔ |
| Reports & Graph of Threat Management | ✔ | ✔ |
| File Integrity Monitoring (FIM) | ✔ | ✔ |
| Hardware device Monitoring (USB Drives) |
✔ | ✔ |
| Customizable Dashboards | ✔ | ✔ |
| Robust Event Log Search/Indexing | ✔ | ✔ |
| Forensic Event & Incident Analysis | ✔ | ✔ |
| Threat Correlation Tracking & Analysis | ✔ | ✔ |
| Single Sign-On/LDAP Functionality | ✔ | Only Available in Enterprise and Cloud Versions |
| High Availability, Clustering & Disaster Recovery |
✔ | Only Available in Enterprise and Cloud Versions |
| 30-day Free Trial | Learn More |
Both SolarWinds and Splunk have an Array of Features, Tools and Capabilities that make them extremely attractive for SIEM, Threat Detection and Event Log analysis. We've Suggest you download either one of these Solutions based on your requirements to get a better feel for the software package.
Pros & Cons
Splunk
Pros:
- Uses excellent visuals to display collected data and insights
- Supports a multitude of environments for data collection
- Uses machine learning to identify new data sources and monitor behavior
- Caters to enterprises with excellent support and a wide range of integrations
Cons:
- Many features and services cater to large enterprise networks
SolarWinds Security Event Manager
Pros:
- Enterprise-focused SIEM with a wide range of integrations
- Simple log filtering, no need to learn a custom query language
- Dozens of templates allow administrators to start using SEM with little setup or customization
- Historical analysis tool helps find anomalous behavior and outliers on the network
Cons:
- SEM Is an advanced SIEM product built for professionals, requires time to fully learn the platform
https://www.splunk.com and Click on “FREE SPLUNK” in the Top Right corner.
Splunk has a basic Free Version That gives you Limited Access access to the Features, which is good for testing out at a basic level:
SolarWinds offers a 30-day Free Trial that gives you Full Access to their Software suite without any Limitations.
