Companies already have substantial cyber data, but are struggling to use it, a cyber expert discussing a BAE Systems Detica software solution said in a briefing with reporters at the Farnborough Internation.

“Either you collect all of the relevent data and look for all indicators of possible attacks, and drown under the sheer weight of alerts, or you only focus on those alerts that are definitely attacks and accept that the most dangerous will go undetected,” said Tom Burton, a cyber expert with BAE Systems Detica.

Burton was discussing the company’s Treidan product, which is designed to filter data on network activity to reduce the workload on analysts.

The system sufficiently simplifies the flood such that even non-cyber experts can monitor its feeds, Burton said. Given the limited number of cyber experts available, reducing the workload it critical, he said.

“Yes, it is a finite resource, and most finite resources are best employed if leveraged.”