Which component is responsible for gathering security data in Splunk ES?

The Splunk Universal Forwarder is the component specifically designed for gathering and forwarding security data to the Splunk environment. It is a lightweight version of Splunk that is installed on source systems where log and event data are generated. This forwarder collects various types of data, including logs from operating systems, applications, and other security-related information, and then sends it to a Splunk deployment, such as indexers.

Its key function is to ensure that the data is efficiently transported from remote systems to the central Splunk indexers, where the data can be processed and eventually indexed for search and analysis. By using the Universal Forwarder, organizations can ensure that they gather comprehensive data required for security monitoring and incident response while maintaining minimal impact on the performance of the source systems.

The other components mentioned, such as the Search Head, Indexer, and Deployment Server, play different roles within the Splunk ecosystem. The Search Head is responsible for executing searches and presenting results to users, the Indexer is tasked with storing and indexing the data received from forwarders, and the Deployment Server is used for managing and deploying configuration updates to Splunk instances across the environment.