Guest: Simon Taylor (LinkedIn)
Company: Azul 
Show: Java Reloaded
Topic: Cloud Native, Security

Security teams today are drowning in alerts — most of which don’t matter. In the Java world, this problem is even worse. With complex dependencies and legacy components like Log4j lurking in production environments, managed service providers (MSPs) need smarter ways to separate real threats from background noise. Simon Taylor, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Partners & Alliances at Azul, explains how the Azul Intelligence Cloud gives partners that clarity — helping them pinpoint vulnerabilities faster, improve posture, and cut false positives dramatically.

The modern security stack is full of powerful tools — scanners, SIEMs, analytics platforms — all built to detect potential risks. The problem, according to Taylor, is that they often produce too much information and too little insight. “Traditional scanning products look for everything,” he says. “You might get millions of pieces of information, just like you would from network security tools. There’s a lot of noise.”

That noise has become a major operational burden for MSPs and enterprise security teams alike. To make sense of it, many organizations rely on analytics tools such as QRadar or Splunk to aggregate and correlate alerts. But even with those systems in place, one question remains unanswered: what’s actually being used, and therefore what’s truly vulnerable?

Azul’s Intelligence Cloud was built to answer exactly that. Instead of scanning for every theoretical issue, it starts from runtime reality. The platform collects usage data directly from the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), mapping which libraries, classes, and code paths are actively loaded and used in production. That gives a ground-truth view of an organization’s Java environment — not an estimate based on installation or configuration files.

“The challenge with most application vulnerability systems,” Taylor explains, “is that they don’t know whether a piece of code is in use, patched, or even reachable. They don’t give you direction.” By tying actual runtime usage to known CVEs, Azul Intelligence Cloud allows teams to immediately identify unpatched or high-risk components.

Taylor gives one clear example: Log4j. Years after the initial disclosure, many enterprises still have instances buried deep within legacy applications — often undetected by standard scanners. “There are people who still have Log4j sitting in their environments,” he says. “They just don’t know where it is. We can find that almost instantly.”

That speed comes from focus. Instead of generating broad signal traffic, Azul Intelligence Cloud filters down to the handful of vulnerabilities that genuinely pose a risk. The result is a much cleaner signal-to-noise ratio and far faster response times. “We’re not replacing incident management tools,” Taylor clarifies. “We’re providing the intelligence that helps you know exactly where to look.”

This distinction between detection and direction is key. The platform doesn’t just flag potential problems — it helps teams act with confidence. When a breach occurs, the same data that improves posture also accelerates triage. By integrating Azul Intelligence Cloud’s telemetry with existing incident management systems through REST APIs, MSPs can quickly correlate affected systems, pinpoint root causes, and guide remediation efforts.

The Intelligence Cloud also supports proactive defense. By continuously monitoring Java usage across environments, it identifies where patching has fallen behind, or where code versions don’t align with secure baselines. This allows MSPs to deliver regular posture assessments and compliance reports to their customers — not just after an incident, but as an ongoing managed service.

For security partners, that capability represents both differentiation and new revenue. Instead of reactive firefighting, they can offer structured vulnerability management, continuous compliance, and even automated alerting as part of their service stack.

“Posture is proactive,” Taylor emphasizes. “Incident response is reactive. We enable both.” With this dual capability, MSPs can move from being support vendors to strategic security advisors — providing real value where their clients need it most.

Taylor also highlights how the Intelligence Cloud fits seamlessly into broader enterprise architectures. “You can integrate our data into other products,” he says. “We expose the telemetry so you can push it into your own analytics tools and bring that intelligence together.” This openness ensures that partners can leverage existing security investments while adding Azul’s unique depth of Java understanding.

In practice, this means faster triage, fewer false positives, and measurable risk reduction — especially for organizations struggling to get visibility into legacy Java systems. For managed service providers, it’s also a way to deepen relationships and grow their service portfolios without heavy operational overhead.

“Azul Intelligence Cloud lets you find the vulnerabilities that matter,” Taylor concludes. “That’s what our partners are using it for — to deliver clarity where there’s been only noise.”