# CIS Controls v8 13.1 — Centralize Security Event Alerting - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/13-1-centralize-security-event-alerting - Section: [Compliance](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance) › [CIS Critical Security Controls v8](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8) › Control 13 — Network Monitoring and Defense - Last updated: 2026-06-05 - Publisher: iCompaas, Inc. (https://www.icompaas.com) **CIS Controls v8**·Control `13.1`·high·Component: **Detect** ## What this control requires > Centralize security event alerting across enterprise assets for log correlation and analysis. Best practice implementation requires the use of a SIEM, which includes vendor-defined event correlation alerts. A log analytics platform configured with security-relevant correlation alerts also satisfies this Safeguard. > > — CIS Controls v8, Control 13.1 ### In plain English Centralize security event alerting across enterprise assets for log correlation and analysis. In practice, this means you can prove you log enterprise-level controls on a defined cadence. ## Why it matters The CIS Controls are an industry-vetted, prioritised defence: skipping a safeguard widens the attack surface that the safeguards above and below it assume is closed. Audit frameworks (FedRAMP, PCI DSS, HIPAA) all cite CIS as evidence of due care. This control is rated **high**. Auditors expect a named owner, a remediation SLA, and a tooling artefact that evidences continuous operation. ## What an auditor looks for A CIS-aligned reviewer wants to see (a) which Implementation Group you are targeting, (b) a documented owner for the safeguard, and (c) a tooling or process artefact (config, scan output, ticket) that proves the safeguard runs on the cadence the control demands. Within **Detect**, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Control 13.1) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement #### Cloud Posture **CSPM.** Run Wiz / Prisma / Defender for Cloud / Security Command Center over every account; auto-ticket findings above your accepted-risk threshold. #### Configuration Management **Policy-as-code.** Codify the control as Service Control Policies (AWS), Azure Policy initiatives, or Organisation Policy (GCP) so the platform enforces what the document promises. **IaC.** Gate Terraform / Pulumi / CloudFormation changes with Checkov / tfsec / OPA so misconfigurations never reach production. **Drift.** Run a CSPM (Wiz / Prisma / Defender for Cloud / Security Command Center) over every account and route findings to a single risk register. #### Logging Monitoring **AWS.** Org-trail CloudTrail to a central log archive account, GuardDuty in every region, and Security Hub for cross-source correlation. **Azure.** Pipe every diagnostic setting into a central Log Analytics workspace; onboard Microsoft Sentinel for SIEM/SOAR. **GCP.** Aggregate audit logs in a dedicated logging project with sink to BigQuery; enable Security Command Center Premium and route findings to Chronicle SIEM. ### Operational checklist - **Log.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Centralize.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** enterprise. ## Evidence to collect - **Infra Scan.** Continuous infrastructure-posture telemetry — AWS Config, Azure Policy compliance, GCP Organisation Policy, Wiz / Prisma findings. - **Vendor Risk Management.** `vendor_risk_management` evidence Infrastructure posture tooling (AWS Config, Azure Policy, Nessus) verifies platform hardening. Third-party risk management evidence (assessments, contracts, due diligence) shows supplier oversight. Focus: Centralize Security Event Alerting. ## Common pitfalls - Treating CSPM findings as a backlog instead of a hot queue: findings older than the policy SLA accumulate until the auditor asks why. - Manual cloud-console changes that never make it back to Terraform — drift accumulates until the next outage forces a reconciliation. - Per-account logging that nobody stitches together at the org level — incidents that cross accounts go undetected for days. ## How it maps to other frameworks Computed from shared tags, control component and key-operation subjects — handy when you are reconciling controls across an audit. - [**BSI C5:2020 OPS-14** — Logging and Monitoring - Storage of the Logging Data](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/bsi-c5-2020/ops-14-logging-and-monitoring-storage-of-the-logging-data) ## Related controls in CIS Controls v8 - [**Control 7.4** — Perform Automated Application Patch Management](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/7-4-perform-automated-application-patch-management) - [**Control 13.3** — Deploy a Network Intrusion Detection Solution](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/13-3-deploy-a-network-intrusion-detection-solution) - [**Control 4.7** — Manage Default Accounts on Enterprise Assets and Software](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/4-7-manage-default-accounts-on-enterprise-assets-and-software) - [**Control 15.6** — Monitor Service Providers](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/15-6-monitor-service-providers) - [**Control 8.5** — Collect Detailed Audit Logs](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/8-5-collect-detailed-audit-logs) - [**Control 8.10** — Retain Audit Logs](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/8-10-retain-audit-logs) ## References - [Center for Internet Security — CIS Controls v8](https://www.cisecurity.org/controls/v8) - Catalogue identifier: `Control 13.1` Topics: logging monitoringvendor riskcloud infrastructurecloud posturevendor managementconfiguration management ## Related compliance guidance - [SOC 2 compliance: a practical implementation guide for cloud-native SaaS teams](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/soc-2-trust-services-criteria): Configuration checks like this one are the technical half of a SOC 2 / ISO 27001 programme — the guide shows where they fit, what else an auditor expects, and how to evidence them. - [ISO/IEC 27001:2022 compliance: a practical implementation guide](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/iso-27001-2022): ISO 27001 Annex A.8 (technological controls) is where cloud hardening evidence lands; the guide shows how to run the ISMS around it.