Technology commission recommends keeping Bitdefender for now as log integration issue persists

The Franklin City Technology Commission on March 26 reviewed alternatives for endpoint protection and managed detection after IT reported that Bitdefender alerts are not currently integrating into the city's Rapid7 SIEM. Agency official (S2) presented three options: renew the existing Bitdefender GravityZone, adopt a managed EPP/SOC provider (Cynet) this year, or migrate toward Microsoft Defender/E5 tooling over a longer timeline.

The discussion focused on operational trade-offs, monitoring gaps and budget. Agency official (S2) said the log relay that previously forwarded Bitdefender cloud alerts into Rapid7 stopped working after a firewall migration, leaving Rapid7 without antivirus-specific logs. "Rapid7 cannot see what the defender is doing," S2 said, describing a failed Linux relay appliance and cross-vendor integration problems. S2 summarized the choices as: renew and "absorb the risk," adopt Cynet now (which would close the monitoring gap at added near-term cost and implementation work), or move to Microsoft Defender/E5 with larger licensing and configuration implications.

Commissioners pressed for details on timelines, staffing and costs. S2 said the GravityZone renewal is budgeted at about $13,500; adopting Cynet would add roughly $6,000–$7,000 to be over budget and carries a 30–45 day implementation window and a one-time installation fee. S2 also flagged uncertainty about full Microsoft E5 pricing and the operational overhead of migrating patch management and endpoint processes to a new platform.

The commission emphasized the need for routine review and auditability tied to CJIS requirements. S2 confirmed the department performs weekly reviews of alerts and records closure notes in the management console to demonstrate compliance; commissioners urged that someone be assigned regular review responsibility rather than relying on intermittent checks.

After discussion, the commission accepted the short-term recommendation to remain with the current Bitdefender deployment and improve monitoring discipline, with the caveat that IT return with specific budget numbers and a plan if the security gap or vendor performance changes. "I'm thinking we stick with Bitdefender," Committee member (S3) said; the recommendation was treated as consultative guidance rather than a formal, recorded vote.

The meeting also included a preview of a state-led project to consolidate police records into a centralized data warehouse (Paragrind / ProPhoenix) and a director's note that the Common Council recently approved a three-year ESRI enterprise license agreement to move GIS licensing to ESRI cloud subscriptions. The commission adjourned at the end of the agenda.

Next steps: IT will continue weekly alert reviews, supply detailed cost quotes for Cynet and Microsoft options to the commission and present any recommended budget changes in the next budget cycle.