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Security Operations Center (SOC)

A dedicated function responsible for monitoring, detecting, and responding to cybersecurity threats in real time.

Security OperationsAlso called: "security operations centre"

A SOC combines people, processes, and technology to keep the organization resilient.

Typical roles

  • Tier 1 analysts triage alerts.
  • Tier 2 analysts investigate and coordinate response.
  • Threat hunters proactively search for hidden adversaries.
  • Engineers maintain detection content and automation.

Key metrics

  • Mean time to detect (MTTD) and respond (MTTR).
  • Coverage across networks, endpoints, and cloud workloads.
  • Volume of alerts per analyst and automation rate.