Building a SOC (4/4): The SOC as the Heart of Cyber Resilience

From Lab to Operations

Once components and workflows are in place, the next step is moving from a SOC-as-a-Lab setup to a fully operational 24/7 centre. At this point, technology alone isn’t the challenge — it’s capacity, processes, and performance management.

The Operational Pillars of a Modern SOC

1. People and Skills Sustainable SOCs depend on defined roles, shift rotations, and continuous training. In smaller teams, automation and clear playbooks compensate for limited staff.

2. Processes and Documentation Every incident must have a traceable path - from detection to closure. A mature SOC maintains:

   • An Incident Response Playbook

   • A RACI Matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed)

   • A Communications Plan for escalation and external reporting

3. Technology and Integration Tools such as Wazuh, TheHive, Cortex, MISP, Zeek, and Velociraptor must work as a cohesive ecosystem, not isolated applications.

Measuring SOC Performance

Metrics turn raw data into actionable insight. An effective SOC measures how quickly and accurately it detects, investigates, and resolves incidents.

Metric	Description	CSEC Application Example
MTTD (Mean Time to Detect)	Average time to identify a threat	Time from first alert to confirmation in TheHive
MTTR (Mean Time to Respond)	Average time to contain/resolve	From incident confirmation to closure
Incident Closure Rate (%)	% of incidents closed within SLA	Indicator of response efficiency
Coverage (%)	Systems monitored by SOC tools	% of critical assets sending logs
Patch Latency (days)	Time between CVE publication and patch	Derived from CSEC CVE Tracker
False Positive Rate (%)	Ratio of false to true alerts	Indicator of SIEM tuning quality

CSEC model: By combining DecoyNet, ShadowServer data, and CVE Tracker insights, these metrics can be measured at the national and sectoral levels.

Learning Culture: Every Incident Counts

Every incident offers lessons. Leading SOCs encourage a learning mindset - not blame. They conduct:

• Regular post-incident reviews,

• SIEM rule tuning,

• Playbook updates,

• Cross-team knowledge sharing (CERT, CSIRT, IT).

Sustainability: A Shared Resource

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, a sustainable SOC model can be collaborative rather than costly. CSEC can act as a hub, integrating data and expertise from multiple partners. This reduces expenses and strengthens collective resilience and trust.

Key message: A SOC is not a destination — it’s a continuous state of readiness.

Conclusion: Resilience as a System Value

Building a SOC isn’t about software — it’s about building trust, capability, and learning. CSEC’s mission aligns perfectly with this vision: to become a shared cyber resilience hub for Bosnia and Herzegovina, connecting technology with people and partnerships.

This series isn’t a checklist — it’s an invitation to collaborate, to share, and to grow. Because cybersecurity isn’t about tools — it’s about trust and togetherness.