What Does IDS Stand For in Business?

An IDS solution provides immediate detection of network threats, allowing IT teams to act quickly and prevent attacks before they happen. IDS solutions use sensors to detect and analyze network activity, looking for unusual patterns that may indicate a cyberattack. They then alert IT personnel when suspicious behavior is detected and identify the type of attack that may have taken place.

There are many different types of IDS solutions, including network-based, host-based, protocol-based, and application-based. A network-based IDS (NIDS) monitors the entire protected network, analyzing traffic and identifying malicious activity. A host-based IDS (HIDS) monitors devices within a specific network segment, monitoring the activity of each device, ensuring security compliance and preventing data breaches. A protocol-based IDS is deployed at the network layer, leveraging connection protocols like TCP/IP and UDP to identify malicious activity. Finally, an application-based IDS is leveraged to protect against attacks based on specific applications, such as SQL injections.

Regardless of the type of IDS, all IDS solutions are designed to work in conjunction with other security solutions to shape the organization’s overall security strategy. IDSs often funnel their alerts into a security information and event management (SIEM) tool, where they are combined with other tools’ alerts to provide a comprehensive overview of all active incidents. This allows the IDS to filter out false alarms and prioritize alerts that are most likely to be of interest to the incident response team. IDSs aren’t standalone solutions, but rather are part of an integrated system that is constantly evolving to combat the latest threat tactics.