Managed SOC 24/7: what it is and how to prepare before you start

Many attacks happen at night or over weekends, when nobody is watching. Building an in-house team that covers all 24 hours takes people, training and continuous shift management — which is why many organisations choose a Managed SOC 24/7 service for round-the-clock monitoring, detection and response instead.

What a Managed SOC 24/7 service does

• Monitors security events from the systems in scope at all times
• Triages alerts, separating real threats from noise
• Notifies you with recommendations and helps respond according to agreed procedures
• Summarises reports and recommendations so defences keep improving

Five things to agree from day one

1. Scope

Be clear about which systems are monitored — firewalls, servers, endpoints or cloud services. The clearer the scope, the more accurate the detection.

2. Notification channels and escalation

Name primary and backup contacts, the channels to use and how incidents escalate by severity.

3. What the provider may do straight away

Agree in advance which incidents allow immediate action — blocking an IP or isolating a machine, for example — and which need your approval first.

4. Service levels

Service levels, such as notification times by severity, belong in the contract and should be reviewed together regularly.

5. Reports leaders can use

A good report is more than an alert count: it shows where the risk is and what to improve next.

For service details, see Managed Security Services (Managed SOC 24/7).