What is User Behavior Analytics?

Jan 03, 2023 / Kron

The increased interest in the process of transforming data into meaningful information seems to be one of the results of the integration of digitalization into every aspect of life. Created based on user data to make information meaningful, the analysis processes have begun to gain importance especially in the business world. The main analysis process type often preferred by organizations, User Behavior Analytics provides a comprehensive protection over business models in terms of data security with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). In this blog post, we will address in detail the access security benefits brought by UBA solutions to organizations. Let's start by making a comprehensive definition of UBA.

What is User Behavior Analytics?

User Behavior Analytics (UBA) refers to the advanced cybersecurity software that analyzes privileged accounts with access to sensitive data and critical data fields, and identifies user behaviors by certain means such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect users who exhibit risky behaviors. UBA examines all user activities carried out within the IT infrastructure of the organization such as network activity, launched applications, accessed documents, and e-mail activities, and prevents security breaches by protecting critical data stacks.

UBA does not only protect sensitive data and cybersecurity assets, but also enables compliance with industry and government regulations quite easily. Besides, after the definition created by Gartner, UEBA started to be used interchangeably with UBA in recent years. Standing for User and Entity Behavior Analytics, UEBA can be defined as a concept developed to distinguish standard users assumed to be humans from applications, IoT devices, and non-human users such as bots. Let's address the difference between this concept, which is used to determine the distinctive element in digital assets, and UBA.

What are the Differences Between UBA and UEBA?

Developed and announced by Gartner with the publishment of a market guide, UEBA differs from UBA in that it analyzes not only user behaviors, but also device, server, and data activities. In other words, UEBA builds a more complex process that combines user behavior data with data from digital assets rather than a process solely based on user behaviors.

UEBA, an AI-based solution just like UBA, manages to go beyond UBA in terms of controlling risky access and abnormal user behaviors. Capable of analyzing datasets on a much larger scale, the system has the ability to provide more advanced reports and use more advanced techniques during the analysis phase compared to UBA.

Finally, it should be noted that UBA is very successful in detecting data breach incidents that can be caused by internal threats. However, UEBA is also capable of detecting advanced cyber threats that have the potential of remaining hidden in legitimate network activities. Therefore, UEBA is also useful in detecting internal threats.

How Does User Behavior Analytics Help Organizations?

Thanks to its advanced features, UBA helps organizations build advanced cybersecurity infrastructure. The benefits of the system for an organization can be grouped under four main categories:

Detection of internal threats
Detection of security breaches
Optimization and scaling of business processes
Compliance with regulations

Let's take a look at these four main categories in detail to understand the importance of UBA for organizations.

Detection of Internal Threats

One of every five data breach cases is caused by insiders with access to critical data within the organization. In other words, privileged accounts within the organization can cause a data breach even with just a USB flash drive if they want to. However, UBA detects potential employees who may become internal threats and the risks they may create to help you create a defense mechanism. UBA can detect users showing risky behavior patterns in the network, and consequently, makes it easier for you to assign new authorized users or limit the current authorities.

Detection of Security Breaches

In some cases, it is not possible to come up with a solution or prevent the problem after the occurrence of a data breach no matter what its source is. Therefore, it is important to scan the network and identify any security vulnerabilities before a breach occurs. UBA significantly increases your chances of finding the source and methodology of security vulnerabilities. For example, in the case of an internal breach, you can identify the moment your employee accesses a website containing malicious software or opens an e-mail of similar nature. If someone outside the organization wants to damage your IT infrastructure through malicious activities, you can track their actions through UBA.

Optimization and Scaling of Business Processes

UBA helps you improve the efficiency of your business model. By combining the data you get from UBA with business intelligence analytics, you can identify the efficient processes in the company and the ones causing waste of time and cost. UBA, which can be integrated with business process mining applications, checks how each task is performed within the organization, and assists you in analyzing the results and developing new methods based on the results.

Compliance with regulations

UBA supports your entire IT infrastructure in detecting data breaches, which makes you automatically more compliant with regulations. It should also be noted that UBA offers an advanced system for detecting data breaches, and also makes it easier to fully comply with regulations on the protection of personal data.

Prevent Risks with User Behavior Analytics

Kron's User Behavior Analytics (UBA) solution helps you to prevent cyber threats that may occur in the IT infrastructure of your organization. The AI-supported UBA module of Single Connect, a part of our software products family in the field of Privileged Access Management, helps you track potentially malicious users and sessions.

Besides, Single Connect UBA scores users and sessions according to risk status and makes it easy to understand with advanced graphics while providing operational insight to your IT team. Evaluating risk scores in the light of behavior analysis, our product helps you define the privilege and authentication levels of users on the network. UBA also controls the actions of database administrators to eliminate doubts about database access.

The benefits brought on by Single Connect UBA for organizations can be addressed under four main categories:

AI-supported smart algorithms: Our AI-supported product can easily detect abnormal user behaviors such as unusual user activity, irregular session login time, and excessive access attempts. Our UBA solution also examines unusual command execution and keyboard typing behaviors.
Creation of risk scores: Single Connect UBA determines a risk score for each abnormal behavior it detects with its artificial intelligence-based smart algorithm. It groups users and risks according to these risk scores and prioritizes high-score risks.
Detection of risky behaviors: Our product detects risky behaviors and visualizes them with advanced graphics. This makes it easier to track user behaviors in the system in real time.
Reaction to threats: Our UBA solution informs system administrators and IT teams about the threats it detects. Single Connect UBA can terminate suspicious sessions detected to pose threats and quarantine critical systems by limiting access, if necessary.

If you have any additional questions about User Behavior Analytics (UBA) and want to learn more about Single Connect's UBA solution, please do not hesitate to contact us.