Cyber Operations · Intermediate
SOC fundamentals: what to monitor first
You cannot watch everything on day one. Here is the order that actually reduces risk.
Most new Security Operations Centers drown in alerts within a month. The fix is sequencing.
Start with identity
Authentication events are the highest-signal telemetry you have. Impossible travel, first-time device, privilege changes: wire these first.
Then the money paths
Map every system that can move money or change payment details. Alert on configuration changes there before you alert on anything else.
Then the exits
Data leaves through a small number of doors: email, cloud storage, USB, APIs. Instrument the doors, not every corridor.
Only then, the noise
Endpoint telemetry, network flows, the full firehose: valuable, but only once the first three are calm and owned.
A SOC that watches five things well beats one that watches five hundred badly.