At some point, most mid-market businesses come to an unsettling realisation: the threats they face on a daily basis have outpaced their internal security capabilities. Alerts begin to slip through the cracks, especially after normal operating hours when the team is in bed. And the business does not yet have the resources needed to fill the gap internally.
If this sounds like you, the good news is that there’s another option available. One that reduces your risk of experiencing a major security incident without draining your entire IT budget. All you need to do is find the right partner.
What is a Security Operations Centre?
A security operations centre (SOC) is a team hired to monitor your IT environment for potential threats. They work around the clock, providing 24/7 coverage, and respond immediately when suspicious activity is detected.
A well-resourced SOC will provide a significant boost to your security, dramatically reducing your chances of experiencing a breach and ensuring a faster response time even when the worst does happen. But many mid-market businesses still haven’t implemented one. It’s not difficult to see why. An experienced, 24/7 security team is extremely expensive, putting it out of reach for many.
For these businesses, there’s another option available: managed SOC services.
Read more: Do Mid-Market Businesses Need Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)?
Managed SOC Services Explained
A managed security operations centre (SOC) offers all the same benefits as the in-house version, but with a twist: rather than hiring and maintaining the team yourself, you hand it all over to a third-party security expert.
Generally speaking, a managed SOC team will perform the following tasks:
- Monitor systems 24/7, using threat intelligence and behavioural analytics
- Investigate alerts to separate genuine threats from false positives
- Act quickly to contain potential cyber-attacks before they can spread
- Generate regular reports that provide you with better visibility into your IT environment
- Support compliance through documented monitoring, audit trails, and reporting
Managed SOC Pricing: What to Expect
Many businesses are wary of outsourced SOC services due to fears that they will somehow end up costing even more than an in-house team. While these concerns are valid, the truth is actually quite the opposite. To demonstrate why, it may be helpful to break down the expenses incurred by each.
The Real Cost of an In-House SOC
A functional in-house SOC team requires:
- Multiple experienced SOC analysts to provide coverage across work days, weekends, and public holidays (this may include salaries, benefits, training, office space, and equipment)
- A SIEM platform to aggregate and correlate security events across the environment
- Threat intelligence feeds, detection tooling, and response infrastructure
- Senior oversight and ongoing training to keep skills current in a fast-moving threat landscape
- Management overhead to run the function
The Reality of Managed SOC Pricing
Managed SOC pricing, in contrast, is typically presented as a single monthly fee. This amount will vary from business to business, depending on:
- Size and Complexity: The number of endpoints, networks, cloud services, and data sources being monitored affect the quote you receive.
- Coverage Scope: Many managed SOC providers offer multiple service tiers. In this case, the tier you choose will have an impact on pricing.
- Retention and Reporting Requirements: Longer log retention periods and more detailed reporting may increase the price.
- Service Level Agreements: Response time guarantees and other features covered by your service level agreement (SLA) may also have an impact on the price tag.
While the number itself varies, managed SOC services will almost always be more cost-effective than hiring in-house. This is because managed security service providers (MSSPs) leverage economies of scale.
Choosing Between Managed SOC Providers
If you decide that managed SOC services are worth pursuing, your next challenge is locating the right provider. Not all of the options available will suit your needs, so it’s important to vet out potential partners carefully.
Here are some important considerations to keep in mind:
- Transparency about Tooling: You should have a clear idea of which technological solutions are used to provide the service, and how they are implemented.
- Reporting Quality: Clear reporting and documentation is non-negotiable for all threat monitoring services. Ensure that they uphold both to a high standard at all times.
- The Process: Before you commit to a given provider, ask them to walk you through a typical day’s work. What happens when suspicious activity is detected? How much will they do before handing the issue over to your in-house team>
- Responsiveness: If a provider can’t even answer your emails or phone calls in a timely manner, this is a worrying sign. Choose one who is consistently responsive, decisive, and communicative.
- Understanding of Local Regulations: Select a provider with a solid grasp of the local laws and regulations your business must adhere to. This is especially crucial in light of changes made to the Privacy Act within the last few years, which hold you responsible for the actions of your partners.
Reduce Risk with the Right Partner
For Australian mid-market businesses, an in-house SOC team usually isn’t an option. It just isn’t feasible to devote so many resources towards 24/7 monitoring when there are dozens of other things to worry about. Managed SOC services allow you to close this dangerous gap without spending a small fortune – or missing out on other crucial investment opportunities – in the process.
If you’re considering managed security services, look no further. We’ve put together a guide that will help you locate MSSPs who have the credentials to back up their bold claims. Discover our top ISO 27001 certified companies today.
FAQs
What is SOC as a service?
SOC (security operations centre) as a service is when you hire a third-party expert to monitor your IT, identify potential threats, and contain them before they’re able to spread.
How is a managed SOC different from managed IT services?
Managed IT services take over all aspects of day-to-day technology management and support. A managed SOC team is a specialised force focused exclusively on threat monitoring, detection, and response.
Can mid-market businesses benefit from managed SOC Services?
Mid-market businesses can absolutely benefit from managed SOC services. In fact, they often stand to gain more than larger enterprises, as this service offering provides access to high-quality security measures at a much lower price than hiring internally.
What does managed SOC pricing look like?
Managed SOC pricing is typically presented as a monthly fee. The exact cost will depend on many factors, such as the size and complexity of your IT infrastructure and the exact level of service you require.
What should I look for when comparing managed SOC providers?
When comparing managed SOC providers, look for responsiveness, a good understanding of your local regulations, and complete transparency regarding the tools used.
