Think of a security guard at a big event like a concert or a sports game. They have a lot of people to keep an eye on, and they need to be able to quickly respond if something goes wrong. But it takes work for one person to keep track of everything and make decisions quickly.

That’s where SOAR comes in. It’s like having a team of security guards working together with tools that help them coordinate and respond quickly to any issues. They might use automated alerts, pre-defined response actions, and machine learning to help them identify and respond to security incidents faster.

By using SOAR, security teams can be more efficient and effective at detecting and responding to threats, which helps keep the company and its customers safe.

A typical SOAR activity involves the following steps:

Detection: The SOAR system first detects a security event or incident, such as an attempted data breach, phishing attack, or malware infection.

Alerting: The SOAR system then generates an alert to notify the security team or analyst of the incident, typically including details such as the type of incident, severity, and affected systems or users.

Triage: The security team or analyst will then triage the alert to determine the scope and impact of the incident, using the information provided by the SOAR system and other sources.

Investigation: The security team or analyst will then investigate the incident further, using various tools and techniques to gather additional information and determine the root cause of the incident.

Response: Once the incident has been fully assessed, the security team or analyst will determine the appropriate response actions, which may include things like blocking network traffic, quarantining affected systems, or notifying users.

Remediation: After the incident has been contained, the security team or analyst will work on remediating any damage or vulnerabilities that were exposed by the incident, such as patching systems, updating security policies, or reconfiguring network defences.

Reporting: Finally, the SOAR system will generate a report summarizing the incident and the response actions taken, which can be used for compliance, auditing, and other purposes.

A SOAR activity aims to streamline and automate the security incident response process so that incidents can be detected, triaged, investigated, and responded to more quickly and effectively, reducing the risk of data loss, system compromise, or other security breaches.

Running a simulation on a SOAR system can be a helpful way to test and refine your incident response processes, identify gaps in your security defences, and train your security team on how to respond to different types of security incidents.

Here are the general steps to follow when running a SOAR simulation:

Define the Scenario: Decide on the type of security incident you want to simulate, such as a phishing attack, malware infection, or data breach. Determine the scope of the simulation, including the systems and users that will be affected.

Plan the Simulation: Develop a detailed plan for the simulation, including the specific steps that will be taken by the SOAR system and the security team in response to the simulated incident.

Prepare the Environment: Set up the test environment for the simulation, including any test systems or applications and any test data or accounts that may be needed.

Run the Simulation: Initiate the simulated security incident and allow the SOAR system and the security team to respond according to the plan developed in step 2.

Evaluate the Results: Evaluate the effectiveness of the response to the simulated incident, including the response time, accuracy, and completeness of the actions taken. Identify any gaps or weaknesses in the response process or the security defences.

Refine the Plan: Based on the results of the simulation, refine the incident response plan and make any necessary changes to the security defences, processes, or training.

Repeat: Repeat the simulation periodically to ensure the incident response plan remains practical and up-to-date.

By running a SOAR simulation, you can help ensure that your security team is prepared to respond to security incidents promptly and effectively, reducing the risk of data loss, system compromise, or other security breaches.