two women security analysts in a SOC

SOC Services Explained: What Does a Security Operations Center Do?

Nobody wants to get caught off guard by a cyber attack—especially companies responsible for critical data. You want eyes on your environment constantly. You want to know that your data is secure. And in the same way you’d protect valuable physical assets, you need to protect your digital assets. This is where a Security Operations Center (SOC) comes in.

 

What Is a Security Operations Center?

In short, a security operations center is an information security team.

The security team monitors an organization’s security posture by analyzing and responding to security events and incidences. The security team works closely with the incident response team to respond to issues.

Every SOC solution is different. You can either use a third party SOC-as-a-Service (SOCaaS), like BitLyft, or establish your own in-house. SOCs perform two primary functions, both of which involve a lot of work. For this reason, many organizations outsource their SOC.

What Does a Security Operations Center Do?

The purpose of a security operations center is to provide ongoing security support. A SOC team monitors environments for immediate threats. However, they are not responsible for the security architecture, strategy or long-term planning.

Staff members consist largely of security analysts. These team members are trained to monitor and analyze events. They also use tools to collect and review security events. This makes it easier to identify incidents as quickly as possible.

Note: Even though a security operations center doesn’t deal with security strategy, it requires a strategy to get started.

Why Use a Security Operations Center?

Companies use security operations center for many reasons.

  • An organization might use a SOC if they run an online service for the public. They might also use a SOC if they host sensitive databases accessed by customers or staff.
  • Some businesses use a security operations center if they need a single security plan that covers several locations.
  • A SOC offers a single point of visibility and makes organizing large volumes of sensitive data easier.

SOC Services Explained

Despite the many factors involved in providing these services, security operations centers tend to offer only a few. The most commonly offered SOC services include security monitoring and management and incident response.

Security Monitoring and Management

Security monitoring and management aims to monitor and analyze the day-to-day security events for an organization.

A good security operations center provides 24/7 monitoring to protect the network. This type of monitoring combines the right tools with expert analysts to deliver the service.

Although automated systems filter and flag the most important security events, having an educated staff is still important. SOC staff should be able to identify threats, analyze behaviors, and manage solutions.

SOC monitoring and management includes the operation of security tools such as SIEM, firewalls and others. Updating these tools is required to minimize vulnerabilities. A SOC service augments your team to help cover the work.

Incident Response

Security operations centers also provide incident response.

Ideally, the transition between monitoring security events and dealing with alerts should be seamless. When an incident occurs, dealing with it as soon as possible is vital. It’s necessary to mitigate any damage so operations can quickly return to normal. Acting fast saves time, money, and reputation. Even if a breach is only suspected, it still needs attention.

A good security incident plan is necessary for an effective response. This plan outlines the steps needed to solve a security incident. A security incident response plan should include which assets to protect and which staff members are responsible for tasks. A good plan should get updated with each incident.

SOC as a Service vs. In-house

Organizations can choose between using an in-house SOC or a SOC as a Service company.

Hiring a SOC as a Service is often the more convenient choice. It saves organizations time and money. Working with a third party allows your IT team to focus on other things. Choosing a SOC as a Service ensures expert care for security structure all without having to dedicate any resources.

A security operations center significantly helps any organization. Contact us today to learn how BitLyft’s SOC team helps organizations meet their security goals.

BitLyft AIR® Security Operations Center Overview

 

Building a Security Operations Center: In-House vs Vendor

Jason Miller

Jason Miller, Founder and CEO of BitLyft Cybersecurity, has dedicated his 20-year IT career, including co-founding SaaS pioneer Reviora, to removing cybersecurity barriers for mid-sized enterprises. Establishing BitLyft in 2016, Jason set out to unburden security teams with innovative, approachable, and affordable solutions, a vision which has made BitLyft a respected managed detection and response provider. Outside his cybersecurity pursuits, Jason is an avid tree farmer and outdoor enthusiast, planting nearly 300 trees on his ten-acre plot and finding joy in hiking, hunting, and driving his white Tesla Model 3. His diverse passions mirror the balanced blend of expertise, dedication, and joy he brings to BitLyft.

More Reading

BitLyft security engineers in our operations center
SOC as a Service: Outsourced SOC
SOC
Have you been thinking about an outsourced SOC? Here are some great reasons why using a managed SOC might make sense for your organization.
soc as a service companies
What Are SOC as a Service (SOCaas) Companies?
SOC
Should you consider a SOCaaS Company?
security engineer in an operations center looking at their computer
SOC-as-a-Service: What You Need to Know
SOC
Cybercriminals today have become more advanced and sophisticated than we could’ve ever imagined in the past. They are no longer lone wolves finding exploits in systems and exploiting them for...