Top 3 Tips for Improving Productivity in a SOC

Summary: The smallest mistakes can have the greatest impact in a security operations center. It’s important to implement a variety of threat-management programs, trained staff, and a manager that can oversee the entire operation.

Your business is prone to hacks and cyber attacks from all over the world. Even the finest security solutions deployed across your network will eventually succumb to one of these dastardly threats. Whether it is a malicious threat, an attack exploiting a backdoor, or something that is designed to bypass traditional security systems, something will eventually break through.

Utilize the Right Infrastructure

Assembling a well-guarded Security Operations Center (SOC) should be your top priority when assessing your situation. An SOC is a facet of your security team and a pivotal component of your enterprise. A true security operations staff will identify any potential security threat and handle them swiftly and efficiently. Note that your cybersecurity team is not a help desk, so it’s important not to treat them as such. Doing so will only create unnecessary stress and potentially allow threats to wreak havoc on your SOC.

Be sure to keep your center up-to-date with the latest technological equipment such as an advanced security operations center video wall, security information and event management systems, and numerous data collection tools. Ideally, you’ll want to protect any and every aspect of your company.

Employ the Right Specialists

A talented security specialist will need to be able to monitor the alert queue and the health of all security equipment, perform a deep analysis, and is experienced in all facets of cybersecurity. All of these positions require advanced training in their position-relevant areas. Now, not every enterprise will have the luxury of finding the right person within their employment reach. In these cases, some companies will enact a hybrid staffing system, which teams the staff they do have employed with a solution provider to fill in any position gaps. Moreover, working with a solution provider and an A/V integrator such as Constant Technologies, Inc. for example will enable your security operations center to operate at full capacity 24 hours a day.

A Reliable Manager is Crucial for Success

SOCs are notorious for being chaotic in nature, and enterprises can be hit by a variety of different threats and attacks that require investigation. Communication between departments can be muddled if the right security operations center manager cannot handle both internal and external crises.

Therefore, your enterprise will need a qualified manager who is capable of holding each analyst accountable for his or her actions as well as keeping them on task when threats appear. The ideal candidate should possess outstanding project management skills, a solid understanding of incident response management, and a natural ability to lead by example.