I.B.M. turns to Big Data algorithms for computer security

As oxymorons go, “corporate security” falls somewhere in between “wedded bliss” and “light beer.”

Businesses spend billions of dollars each year on firewalls, applications and antivirus software in a desperate attempt to ward off hackers and yet, even the companies, like Symantec and RSA, that sell “security solutions” can’t keep themselves hacker-free.

The crux of the problem is that businesses have taken a piecemeal approach to security. They use antivirus software to weed out malware and firewalls to keep the bad guys out, but none of these systems communicate with each other in an intelligible way. When meaningful messages do emerge, it’s often too late — trade secrets are long gone or customers’ credit card data has already been compromised.

I.B.M. is now the latest company to attempt to take a more holistic approach to corporate security using “Big Data.” On Wednesday, the company will roll out QRadar, its new security intelligence platform, to track corporate vulnerabilities in real time and cross-reference unusual activity with I.B.M.’s X-Force database, the world’s largest repository of threat and hacker information.

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