Q1 Labs launches real-time social network tracking

Social Networking

Q1 Labs has launched a new security information and event management (SIEM) system, giving companies the ability to track employees' social network and multimedia use.

QRadar 7.0 is able to check anomalies in workers' use of applications to help detect any threats, as well as pick up on the kinds of information employees are making public in real-time.

Social network use can also be correlated with other access information. This allows administrators to check what sensitive databases have been accessed before the user has visited a social network, in case of any foul play or unwanted transmission of information onto the likes of Facebook or Twitter.

Another major feature of Q1 Labs' newest product is client-side vulnerability profiling, which identifies any potential threats on a network and then alerts when these are exposed.

Firms using QRadar 7.0 can also prioritise remediation steps based on the risk profile of each application.

On showing IT PRO the product in action, John Burnham, vice president of marketing for Q1 Labs, explained how the firm was delighted to have achieved an industry first in its social media and application monitoring, stressing the impact social networks have had on business.

"Social media is what the web was to enterprises in the mid-1990s," Burnham said.

The recent HP acquisition of ArcSight, along with the addition of this new product, will place Q1 Labs in a better position in the SIEM space, Burnham suggested.

"We were really pleased ArcSight was bought," he explained, adding that Q1 Labs is now the biggest independent firm in security intelligence.

As for whether Q1 Labs would ever be sold, Burnham stressed the company is "not for sale," although he expected to see other acquisitions in the space.

"Our goal is to become the Oracle of security intelligence," he added.

Tom Brewster

Tom Brewster is currently an associate editor at Forbes and an award-winning journalist who covers cyber security, surveillance, and privacy. Starting his career at ITPro as a staff writer and working up to a senior staff writer role, Tom has been covering the tech industry for more than ten years and is considered one of the leading journalists in his specialism.

He is a proud alum of the University of Sheffield where he secured an undergraduate degree in English Literature before undertaking a certification from General Assembly in web development.