Respect, recognition, and a clear path to advancement are just a few of the benefits you’ll gain by joining the security team’s gold rush: the Managed Security Operations Center (SOC).
The SOC is the command center of a company’s cyber security. Here, analysts monitor internal and external alerts from devices and software, as well as other indicators like traffic volume and website traffic. They also monitor information from other security teams, such as malware and penetration prevention teams.
The job of a SOC analyst can be stressful but always interesting. Every alert is a race against the clock to determine if the event is a false positive or a real attack. And the responsibility for the safety of the company’s data falls on their shoulders. But if they do their job well, they won’t even be noticed. The SOC is like the tech version of a hidden bedroom in a house: it should be there, but you don’t want anyone to know its existence.
But as its name suggests, the SOC’s work does earn the security team respect within the company. This is especially true among other tech teams. SOC analysts often work with other security teams like malware, encryption, and penetration prevention to make the tech environment safe for the company and users. This close relationship with other tech experts will let you grow both professionally and intellectually.
The SOC also acts as a steppingstone to other careers within security, like investigation and forensics. And some SOC analysts decide to leave the command center and become security engineers or hackers—the heroes who build and repair security systems. If you’re thinking of a career in cybersecurity, the SOC should be on your list of career options.
When they detect an intrusion or other cyber-attack. Their job is to close security gaps and protect the company’s computers and networks from further damage. This can include repairing malware in a single computer or whole network or developing a strategy to prevent further attacks.
The cybersecurity analyst role combines the skills of a tech expert and a detective. They must know how to repair and defend a network, but also be able to identify who launched an attack—and, if possible, why. This requires close examination of digital evidence left by the attacker. Analysts then report their findings to the individuals and departments responsible for counteracting the attack.
The skills needed to succeed as a cybersecurity analyst combine traditional IT knowledge with core security skills. Many organizations start out with only one cybersecurity analyst, then expand the role as the need for security grows. Analysts can work either in the SOC or independently, depending on the size of the network and other security measures.
