What is User Activity Monitoring? How It Works, Benefits, Best Practices, and More
User activity monitoring (UAM) solutions are software tools that monitor and track end user behavior on devices, networks, and other company-owned IT resources. Many organizations implement user activity monitoring tools to help detect and stop insider threats, whether unintentional or with malicious intent. The range of monitoring and methods utilized depends on the objectives of the company.
By implementing user activity monitoring, enterprises can more readily identify suspicious behavior and mitigate risks before they result in data breaches, or at least in time to minimize damages. Sometimes called user activity tracking, user activity monitoring is a form of surveillance, but serves as a proactive review of end user activity to determine misuse of access privileges or data protection policies either through ignorance or malicious intent.
How User Activity Monitoring Works
The purpose of user activity monitoring is to protect information while ensuring availability and compliance with data privacy and security regulations. UAM goes beyond simply monitoring network activity. Instead, it can monitor all types of user activity, including all system, data, application, and network actions that users take – such as their web browsing activity, whether users are accessing unauthorized or sensitive files, and more.
There are various methods implemented to monitor and manage user activity such as:
Video recordings of sessions
Log collection and analysis
Network packet inspection
Keystroke logging
Kernel monitoring
File/screenshot capturing
All of the information gathered must be looked at within the boundaries of company policy and the user role to figure out if inappropriate activity is in play. What constitutes “inappropriate user activity” is up to the company deploying the UAM solution, and can include anything from visiting personal sites or shopping during work hours to theft of sensitive company data such as intellectual property or financial information.
The Benefits of User Activity Monitoring
Any level of monitoring can accumulate large amounts of data. The goal of any user activity monitoring program should be to find and filter out actionable information that’s valuable in data protection efforts. With effective processes in place, you can immediately detect and investigate suspicious user activity. You can also find out if users are uploading sensitive data to public clouds, utilizing non-approved services and applications, or engaging in any other type of risky activity while using the company network or resources. User activity monitoring tools are also helpful in ensuring that employees do not take any of your company's confidential information when they are leaving the company.
In order to make the data collected by user activity monitoring solutions as useful as possible, that data must be analyzed for several items, including:
It also helps to have real-time identification along with detailed reporting of historical activity. Questions to answer are: Who did what, when and where? User activity monitoring helps to identify abuse to help reduce the risk of inappropriate actions that can lead to malware infections or data breaches. It also helps to decrease the cost of compliance, while offering intelligence needed to improve security measures.
User Activity Monitoring Tools
There are a variety of tools that can be used to aid in or support user activity monitoring. These tools range from general security software applications to targeted tools designed to track sessions and activity, creating a complete audit trail for every user. There are also tools known as privileged account security solutions, which aim to monitor and secure privileged account activity and centralize the management of policies.
The best user activity monitoring tools include real-time alerting systems. These tools monitor user activity in the background in real-time and notify IT and security teams the moment suspicious activity occurs. Without the real-time element, risks may go unnoticed while your IT department addresses other known issues. Thanks to today’s technology, it’s not necessary to have entire IT teams dedicated to live-monitoring user activity; a good security solution that supports user activity monitoring can do most of the heavy lifting.
User Activity Tracking and Monitoring Best Practices
User activity monitoring is an important line of defense against data breaches and other cybersecurity compromises. Many IT security teams lack visibility into how their users are accessing and utilizing sensitive data, leaving them susceptible to insider threats or outside attackers who have gained access to systems. Best practices for user activity monitoring include:
In addition to implementing user activity monitoring solutions, organizations should establish and enforce data protection policies, such as appropriate file sharing activity, handling instructions for sensitive data, authorized services and applications, and other policies outlining acceptable use. Educate users on these policies as well as effective cybersecurity habits through ongoing information security awareness programs.
User activity monitoring is an important component of data protection for enterprises today. While there are dedicated “point solutions” for monitoring user behavior, organizations should look to data protection tools that can combine user activity monitoring features with data discovery and classification, policy-based controls, and advanced reporting capabilities.