Digital immune system: How to build one and shield your assets

A recent CISA report reveals how attackers exploit vulnerabilities not only for initial access to a system but also to execute malicious code, avoid detection, and grow their control once they’re inside. The techniques used at these stages target multiple layers of infrastructure, so it’s paramount for organizations to employ a proactive, automated approach to ensuring resilience. Building a robust digital immune system stands out as one of the most effective strategies for achieving such comprehensive defense. So, what is a digital immune system, how can it enhance your cybersecurity, and how do you build one? Let’s explore its key principles, advantages, and implementation steps.

Digital immune system: Definition and key principles

Gartner defines a digital immune system (DIS) as a set of practices and technologies for software engineering, testing, automation, and analytics combined to protect digital assets from threats. Imagine a cybersecurity framework that doesn’t just identify risks but anticipates and responds to them. This is what differentiates digital immunity from traditional static approaches to security—this model aims to incorporate dynamic, adaptive, and proactive defense mechanisms.

Much like the biological immunity it mimics, a DIS autonomously identifies anomalies, isolates potential threats, and recovers from disruptions without manual intervention. To achieve comprehensive security, digital immune systems rely on several principles and technologies. First, let’s explore six core practices and concepts to keep in mind when building a DIS for your organization.

1. Observability

Observability grants engineering teams the ability to evaluate a system’s health by analyzing the data it generates—logs, metrics, and traces (steps in the journey a request takes through a system). It enhances system reliability and resilience since you gain all the necessary information to quickly detect anomalies and pinpoint the root causes of any errors or inconsistencies.

By tracking user interactions and system performance, observability also keeps customer satisfaction levels high and increases application uptime. It can be achieved with third-party tools like Prometheus and AppDynamics, as well as native offerings from top cloud providers, such as AWS CloudTrail.

2. Autonomous and AI-augmented testing

Automation lies at the heart of a digital immune system in network security and minimizes human intervention, following the principle of biological immunity. This approach encourages the implementation of autonomous testing to reduce manual labor, accelerate testing cycles, and improve software quality.

When it comes to fully autonomous testing, AI-driven tools handle the entire process, from test planning and creation to execution and analysis. Such systems can learn from past test results and optimize test cases for better coverage. They can also detect changes in applications and update test cases, respectively. AI-augmented testing, on the other hand, uses AI to assist testers by detecting anomalies and providing insights, leaving test design and ultimate decision-making to human engineers.

Discover more security applications of AI: Top 10 use cases of generative AI in cybersecurity

3. Auto-remediation

Auto-remediation takes autonomous testing a step further and enables systems to self-heal by not only detecting but resolving issues without human input. It minimizes service interruptions and performs quick recovery by embedding context-aware monitoring and automated corrections. This proactive approach mitigates threats and addresses issues as they arise, helping maintain a stable, operational state of your systems with less manual effort.

4. Chaos engineering

Chaos engineering is a testing practice that allows you to find weaknesses and potential vulnerabilities in a system. Essentially, it helps prepare your systems to withstand various disruptions and exposes cracks in the armor before attackers can take advantage of them. Parts of this process may resemble penetration testing, although chaos engineering simulates a more diverse range of scenarios like server crashes, resource exhaustion, and network latency. This process can be applied in both low-stakes pre-production and live environments, depending on the readiness of engineering teams.

5. Site reliability engineering (SRE)

Site reliability engineering contributes to digital immunity by incorporating software tools and operational practices to automate system monitoring and management. At its core, the main goal of SRE is to ensure applications stay reliable, even during frequent updates, especially when it comes to large-scale systems that would be unsustainable to manage manually. SRE focuses on enhancing user experience and improving collaboration between development and operations teams.

6. Software supply chain security

A software supply chain consists of all the processes, tools, and third-party components necessary to create, deliver, and maintain software. To secure this vast ecosystem, organizations need to follow specific practices, such as maintaining a detailed inventory of components used in their software—known as a software bill of materials (SBOM). Other measures may include using artifact repositories, enforcing strict version control, and closely monitoring the reliability of third-party components throughout the software lifecycle.

Why do businesses need a digital immune system?

Digital immunity spreads its impact across multiple aspects of an organization, including customer engagement, regulatory compliance, and supply chain resilience. Here are the main areas it enhances:

• Maintaining system resilience. A digital immune system in network security ensures your operations remain stable and secure, even during cyberattacks or unexpected disruptions.
• Safeguarding sensitive data. By proactively addressing potential vulnerabilities, such systems can prevent data breaches and loss, protecting critical assets.
• Delivering consistent and reliable user experience. Automatic recovery and minimized downtime ensure users can enjoy uninterrupted access to applications. In fact, Gartner predicts that enterprises will improve customer satisfaction with an 80% decrease in downtime after implementing a DIS.
• Enabling proactive threat detection and mitigation. Real-time monitoring and automated responses allow you to preempt threats before they escalate, reducing the impact of potential incidents.

How to build a digital immune system for your organization

So, you’ve decided to strengthen your cybersecurity posture by implementing a comprehensive DIS. Where do you begin? Your starting point and strategy will depend on your business objectives and current state of defense, among other factors. When partnering with a security consultant like N-iX, this journey typically begins with a thorough needs and readiness assessment, followed by roadmap development and implementation. Here’s how we can help:

1. Implement industry best security policies

We draw on our experience and industry-recommended practices to help you develop security policies tailored to your operations, compliance requirements, and risk profile. Our team also guides you toward establishing a routine of reviewing and auditing these policies to maintain their relevance and effectiveness.

2. Integrate relevant tools

A digital immune system in network security relies on an ecosystem of tools to cover key avenues of vulnerability exploitation. Here are several examples of software we can implement alongside custom solutions:

• For network security: FortiGate by Fortinet;
• For endpoint security: Microsoft Defender Antivirus, CrowdStrike, SentinelOne;
• For security automation, orchestration, and response: FortiSOAR, KnowBe4 PhishER, Cortex XSOAR.

3. Develop a disaster recovery plan

A well-designed and validated disaster recovery plan allows you to get your systems back up and running in case of a critical failure. By preparing for disaster recovery, we help you minimize downtime and maintain ISO 27001, GDPR, PCI DSS, and other compliance certifications that require this provision.

4. Conduct regular risk assessments

With N-iX application security testing services, you can identify vulnerabilities in your infrastructure and take steps to mitigate threats. Routine risk assessments are essential for staying ahead of evolving threats—they help uncover weaknesses, assess their potential impact, and prioritize remediation efforts.

5. Launch employee training and build awareness

Employees’ awareness is a crucial part of any cybersecurity strategy. We conduct tailored training sessions to prepare your staff to recognize risks, follow security policies, and effectively use the newly implemented tools.

The essential tools, technologies, and modules for digital immunity

All principles of digital resilience are achieved with specific technologies. From vulnerability scanning to automation, security tools form the backbone that makes this approach effective. We have asked N-iX engineers about the key components they incorporate when building a digital immune system for a client, and here are the main points they’ve shared.

SOAR technology

Security orchestration, automation, and response tools are what differentiates a DIS from other cybersecurity approaches. SOAR automates cyberattack prevention and threat mitigation. These platforms provide a unified workspace for security teams, enabling them to integrate various solutions, automate workflows, and act quickly in case of an incident. So, what are their three main functions? Let’s review.

• Orchestration coordinates and integrates internal and external software. It connects security tools like vulnerability scanners, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems to centralize the data they gather. By correlating the data from multiple sources, orchestration enables context-aware analysis and enhances threat detection.
• Automation enables you to create tasks that are executed without manual intervention, typically via playbooks. Playbooks are collections of specific workflows that run automatically and can be triggered by a particular rule or incident. They allow you to create tailored and automated responses to threats and help manage alerts.
• Response helps different teams collaborate and efficiently manage everything related to incidents: coordinating mitigation efforts, recording steps taken, documenting the process, etc. This module typically includes a centralized dashboard, as well as tools for case management and reporting.

Security information and event management (SIEM)

SIEM solutions collect and analyze activity data across an organization’s environment, providing a bird’s-eye view of your security landscape. Similarly to SOAR, SIEM tools can respond to incidents, but their main purpose is helping you achieve greater visibility. When we implement a SIEM system, our specialists ensure that its functionality can support the following:

• Log management: SIEM solutions collect and centralize device, application, and network logs, ensuring all activity data is readily available for analysis.
• Threat detection: SIEM helps identify potential security threats by employing advanced analytics to recognize patterns of suspicious behaviors.
• Compliance reporting: SIEM systems simplify the process of aligning your enterprise with regulations, such as GDPR and HIPAA, by documenting security controls, tracking user activities, and generating compliance reports.
• Incident response: SIEM enables automated incident alerts and predefined workflows to help security teams quickly address threats, minimizing damage and enabling faster recovery. For example, if a SIEM system detects multiple failed login attempts, it might automatically lock the user account, notify the team, and generate a report of the event.

Perimeter security

True to its name, perimeter security forms a shield around your network to prevent external threat actors from getting in. It creates multiple layers of protection between your environment and the Internet, detecting and countering suspicious activity. Here are several key components that we can build into your system to establish perimeter security:

• Firewalls: A firewall is a crucial part of a digital immune system in network security. It’s a system that analyzes all incoming and outgoing traffic, either allowing or denying it based on a predefined set of rules. This helps filter out potentially malicious traffic before it can cross your private network’s doorstep.
• Virtual private networks (VPN): A VPN is a service that encrypts and reroutes your Internet traffic, establishing a secure connection. It helps mask your device’s location and protects sensitive data in transit, making it difficult to intercept.
• Intrusion detection systems (IDS): An IDS functions as a security camera for your network. It monitors activities within the network using strategically placed sensors and alerts you to any suspicious behavior.
• Intrusion prevention systems (IPS): While an IDS focuses on detection and reporting, an IPS is designed to automatically defend your system against suspected threats. Modern intrusion prevention systems often use Machine Learning to identify and learn from patterns in network activity, continuously improving their ability to counter dynamic hazards.

Endpoint security

Endpoint security focuses on protecting endpoints—desktops, laptops, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, smartphones, and other devices. The main components our engineers focus on in this category include:

• Antivirus and antimalware software: These tools provide foundational protection by identifying and neutralizing known threats. Antivirus solutions are geared toward detecting viruses, while antimalware software additionally protects devices from all kinds of malware, including worms, trojans, and ransomware.
• Endpoint detection and response (EDR): EDR solutions are comprehensive tools that continuously monitor, log, and respond to activities on endpoints. They enable real-time visibility into device behaviors and provide round-the-clock protection.
• Device control: This component outlines a set of policies rather than tools. Device control policies regulate the use of external devices, such as USB drives, to ensure only trusted hardware can interact with your network.
• Patch management: This encompasses a combination of policies, processes, and tools to ensure endpoint software stays updated with the latest security patches.

Identity and access management (IAM)

Identity and access management frameworks help establish need-based and role-based access to your digital assets. They allow you to create and manage user identities, achieve high visibility into user permissions, and ultimately prevent both malicious and unintentional data leaks. N-iX security specialists configure the following components when implementing IAM:

• Multi-factor authentication (MFA): It reinforces security by adding layers of access checks beyond passwords, such as one-time passcodes or biometric authentication.
• Role-based access control (RBAC): RBAC assigns permissions to users based on their roles and responsibilities within an organization, minimizing over-privileged access.
• Single sign-on (SSO): SSO helps balance security and ease of use, improving user experience. It enables users to gain access to multiple systems after logging in once, removing the need to repeat authentication.
• Central identity repository: This module helps store user identities in one place, enforcing consistency across systems and making it easier to keep permissions up-to-date.

Wrapping up

Digital immunity isn’t a single tool you can deploy—it’s a product of coordination and automation of specific processes, principles, and technologies to ensure comprehensive protection. Building such a system requires more than just implementing and maintaining security tools. It demands embedding corresponding policies into every aspect of operations, from development to DevOps and security.

While this may seem like a monumental task, the process becomes approachable when you partner with an experienced tech consultant. Their expertise helps you achieve digital resilience with minimal operational disruptions, ensuring each component is implemented to the highest standards.

Why should you trust N-iX to secure your organization with a digital immune system?

• During our 22 years of experience on the market, N-iX teams have completed over 100 cybersecurity projects.
• We maintain compliance with essential data protection standards and regulations, including ISO 27001, ISO/IEC 27701:2019, PCI DSS, SOC2, and GDPR.
• Our team of more than 20 dedicated security consultants works closely with our DevOps, cloud, and software engineering professionals to deliver complex cross-sectional projects.
• We have a track record of providing comprehensive cybersecurity services to businesses in over 20 industries, including banking, telecom, and healthcare.