Everything you need to know about the SOC, your cybersecurity watchdog

Since the business ecosystem has been going digital at breakneck speed (mobile users, cloud applications, teleworking), IT risks have multiplied. According to a Comparitech study, 195.4 million items of data were compromised in 2024 as a result of a cyber attack.

In order to respond to these threats as effectively as possible, many companies have integrated a Security Operation Centre (more commonly known as the SOC) into their departments.

What are the attributes of this team of IT security experts? How can you implement it in your own organisation? What benefits will you gain? We'll tell you all about the SOC, the guardian of your cyber security.

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What is an SOC in IT?

Definition of an SOC in cybersecurity

A Security Operation Centre is a structure that plays a central role in a company's cybersecurity strategy. Find out more about its attributes for dealing with malicious software.

An SOC is made up of a team of IT security experts who continuously monitor a company's information systems. As a control and monitoring tower, it protects the IT infrastructure against cyber threats at all levels (prevention, detection, reaction and redundancy).

What are the challenges in the face of IT threats?

• Prevention, detection and response to incidents:

  • Anticipating cyber-attacks through constant monitoring,

  • rapid identification of suspicious activities using detection tools (EDR, NDR),

  • neutralisation using predefined procedures.

• Security management and administration: collection, archiving and analysis of security logs, systems maintenance and access management.

• Ensuring regulatory compliance through protection of sensitive data, implementation of security policies, reporting and audits to avoid sanctions.

• Crisis management and business continuity: crisis response planning, back-ups and execution of system restores.

How does a cybersecurity SOC work?

The SOC is a complex machine that combines human, analysis and communication resources that work in synergy. Here's a look at how this organisation works as a whole, and how each of its cogs works.

The members of an SOC and their roles

A successful SOC relies on a team with complementary skills.

👤 At its head is the SOC manager. His or her role? Establish the overall strategy, manage the teams and maintain effective communication with the other departments.

👥 Here are the other team members and their roles:

• The SOC architect: He or she keeps the Security Operations Center platform up to date to ensure its performance.

• Level 1 analysts (N1): They are responsible for the initial monitoring of alerts generated by the systems and manage routine incidents.

• Level 2 analysts (L2): They carry out investigations into more complex incidents to provide appropriate responses.

• Level 3 analysts (N3): They intervene during serious incidents when a team of experts is required.

Tools to be used: analysis, management and monitoring

The technological arsenal of an effective SOC includes several complementary solutions:

• SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) centralises logs.

• Endpoint Detection and Response ( EDR ) monitors endpoints.

• NDR (Network Detection and Response) analyses network traffic.

• Threat intelligence platforms provide data on current threats.

• SOARs (Security Orchestration, Automation and Response) automate incident response to improve responsiveness.

Processes and procedures to be deployed in the event of an incident

An SOC is not just about experts and cutting-edge tools, it is also about implementing a proactive strategy for all its responsibilities. For each situation, the SOC defines processes and documentation to provide the most appropriate solution. This includes :

• Detection processes, with continuous monitoring of systems, detection of threats and analysis of alerts,

• qualification processes, with the assessment of the importance of a validated incident and then the choice of the appropriate response,

• Incident response processes, which involve implementing the solution in several stages (analysis, correction, documentation) to reduce the impact of the incident,

• administration processes: team management, tool maintenance and security compliance, etc,

• and finally, monitoring processes such as updating threat databases and training analysts.

Communication and coordination infrastructures

Responding effectively to IT threats requires constant responsiveness. To act as quickly as possible, the SOC must have faultless communications infrastructures. 💪

Centralising operations plays a big part in achieving this objective. Virtual centralisation with dashboards and physical centralisation with a crisis management room.

Visualisation tools also enable the organisation's security status to be shared in real time. Management and the departments concerned thus have a complete and up-to-date view of the key metrics for IT protection.

SOC members also use secure communication tools. Encrypted messaging, direct telephone lines: these solutions enable exchanges to take place without the risk of compromising essential data in the event of an incident.

Finally, a crisis management system, based on ticketing, means that each technician knows exactly what his or her task is. A method of coordinating efforts that ensures complete traceability of interventions.

Redundancy and continuity of operations

The final role of the SOC is to maintain the company's activity, even in the event of a crisis. To accomplish this task, servers are protected within a security centre with very strict access controls. 🔐

All data, and systems, are backed up regularly and integrated on a cloud or independent physical support. This ensures total redundancy.

In the event of a major crisis, recovery plans enable compromised data to be replaced with healthy back-ups.

This ensures business continuity for the company.

Reporting and process optimisation

As well as responding to incidents, the SOC is also responsible for documenting all its actions. 📝 It produces reports with the aim of optimising solutions to future threats.

This reporting to other technicians and management teams helps them to understand what has worked, or not, in the response provided.

Documentation is also a way of keeping track of operations in the event of an audit.

What are the benefits of an SOC?

1) Continuous monitoring and improved responsiveness

Hackers don't take holidays. In the age of AI and machine learning technologies, their productivity has increased tenfold. To respond to their threats, organisations need constant monitoring, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This is the role of the SOC. Made up of several teams working in succession, it provides continuous monitoring and maximum responsiveness in the event of an incident.

2) Centralised security for greater visibility

Corporate networks are becoming increasingly complex. Digitalisation projects are encouraging migration to the cloud, the integration of an Internet of Things strategy and remote working.

This new way of working in the enterprise makes it considerably more difficult for IT teams to maintain security. An SOC centralises all network and connection flows to provide better visibility of potential weak points in the infrastructure.

3) Reducing cyber security costs

In 2023, a study by Asterès estimated that a cyber attack would cost a company €59,000. The same study indicates that a company suffers an average of 1.8 successful cyber attacks per year. This is an exorbitant cost that a security operations centre can save you, despite its operational cost. Centralising the SOC also makes it possible to achieve economies of scale, by avoiding the costs associated with the multiplication of licences and cybersecurity contracts.

4) Greater collaboration

With an SOC, all human and material resources are integrated into a single security team. As a result, in the event of an incident, employees report the threat directly to the members of the SOC. The information does not have to circulate from sector to sector. The key players are informed as quickly as possible and can intervene more effectively.

What are the limits of an SOC?

The main limitation of a SOC is, of course, its cost. Setting it up, running it and maintaining it all require a substantial budget. For small and medium-sized businesses, this investment is often prohibitive. Especially if you opt for a division of in-house experts.

Beyond the financial aspect, the difficulty lies in recruiting and, above all, retaining experts. IT security professionals are in great demand, and the competition is fierce for companies.

Finally, the biggest difficulty is integration into the company's overall strategy. Without good collaboration with other departments, the SOC can quickly become an isolated part of the organisation. A situation that risks undermining the centre's effectiveness.

How do you deploy an IT SOC?

Would you like to integrate an SOC to ensure your organisation's IT security? Internal or external SOC? We've got all the information you need.

Assess your IT security needs

The first step in implementing a Security Operations Centre at your company is to assess your security needs.

• How big is your business?
• How sensitive is the data you collect and use?
• How many critical assets (endpoints, firewalls, etc.) do you need to integrate?
• What regulatory requirements must you comply with? etc.

Once these questions have been answered, you will need to define the scope of your future security operations centre. What processes will it be responsible for, and which will be handled outside the division?

☝️ For this initial assessment, you need to bear in mind that the SOC is not responsible for the overall management of your organisation's IS, but only for its security. Imposing tasks on the SOC for which it is not qualified risks having a negative impact on both your IT security and the smooth running of the IS.

The different SOC models and their advantages

Do you want to host your security operations centre on your own premises or outsource it?

👉 The advantage of an in-house SOC is direct communication and self-managed security. On the other hand, setting up and maintaining such a division requires a significant budget. We'd advise you to opt for an external solution, which is more economical but just as effective.

👉 You can also choose between a dedicated SOC and a shared SOC. With a service provider entirely dedicated to the security of your IT system, you benefit from solutions that are 100% tailored to your needs. However, the adaptation process is lengthy and the necessary budget substantial.

A shared solution is quicker and cheaper to set up. You share proven teams, tools and processes with other companies. In most situations, that's more than enough.

The essential technologies and their scalability

A Security Operations Center is not just about using a SIEM platform. It must also integrate other elements to create a complete ecosystem.

Event logs are generated for every action performed on an application or system. They are collected, recorded and centralised to identify potential threats.

EDRs (Endpoint Detection and Response) secure workstations more comprehensively than antivirus software.

Firewalls and Active Directory complete the range of technologies integrated into the SOC.

A few best practices to be aware of

To perfect the implementation of your SOC, here are a few additional best practices to follow:

• Map your IT infrastructure before embarking on your project.

• Define relevant performance indicators for your SOC.

• Constantly adjust your strategies to optimise your security.

• Carry out regular simulations of attacks.

• Train SOC members and staff in best practice in the event of an attack.

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Take your IT security to the next level with the SOC

The SOC is an essential link in your IT security chain. Thanks to a combination of human expertise and cutting-edge technology, you have optimum protection against IT threats. In an ever-changing digital environment, the Security Operations Centre is no longer a luxury for businesses - it's a necessity.