🧩 The Hard Truth About Building a SOC

A Security Operations Centre (SOC) isn’t a product you install — it’s a capability you cultivate.

Whether you’re building internally or outsourcing to a Managed Detection and Response (MDR) provider, the margin for error is small and the consequences significant.

The most successful SOCs are not those with the biggest budgets, but those that avoid the predictable mistakes others make.

Below are the high-impact errors that derail SOC initiatives before they deliver measurable value.

❌ 1. Treating the SOC as a Project, Not a Program

A SOC is not a “go-live” event — it’s a continuous operational discipline.
Many enterprises treat it like a technology rollout, with start and end dates, rather than an ongoing capability that must evolve with threats, technologies, and the business.

• Budgeting ends after initial implementation.
• Continuous improvement isn’t prioritised.
• Detections and playbooks age out within months.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“A SOC doesn’t end with deployment — it begins there.”

❌ 2. Underestimating Operational Costs for running a SOC

Initial cost estimates usually focus on tools and staff, overlooking the run-rate expenses that keep a SOC alive — content tuning, training, log storage, and platform renewal.
This leads to budget shortfalls and capability decay within the first year.

• Inadequate staffing for 24×7 coverage.
• No budget for detection content updates or analyst certification.
• Cost-cutting that undermines response readiness.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“If your SOC budget stops at people and tools, it’s already underfunded.”

❌ 3. Failing to Define Clear Objectives and Scope

Too many SOCs launch without clarity on what they’re defending, what success looks like, or how results will be measured.

Without defined KPIs and mission scope, analysts chase noise instead of risk.

• Undefined coverage zones (e.g., endpoints, OT, cloud).
• Misaligned metrics (alert count vs business impact).
• Lack of measurable improvement goals (MTTD, MTTR, false-positive ratio).

Tip: Start with a SOC Charter that defines purpose, scope, and measurable outcomes.

❌ 4. Choosing Tools Before Process

Enterprises often start by buying a SIEM or XDR platform — believing technology equals capability.
Without mature processes, trained staff, and clear workflows, these tools become expensive alert generators.

• Tool-centric approach without process design.
• Poor data onboarding and tuning.
• Neglecting automation and orchestration workflows.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“Technology amplifies capability — it doesn’t create it.”

❌ 5. Overreliance on Vendor Defaults

Relying on default detection rules, dashboards, and playbooks is a silent killer.
Out-of-the-box configurations rarely align with your specific threat surface or business risks.
Without custom tuning, you end up detecting noise — not threats.

• Vendor rules not mapped to your environment.
• Detection gaps in proprietary applications.
• Missed indicators due to irrelevant baselines.

Tip: Customise detection logic based on MITRE ATT&CK coverage and your industry’s threat profile.

❌ 6. Ignoring Governance and Escalation Paths

A SOC without defined escalation authority becomes paralysed during a live incident.
Analysts detect, but no one is empowered to act.
Response times increase, and accountability dissolves.

• No clearly assigned incident commander.
• Disconnected lines between IT operations and security.
• Delays waiting for management approval to contain threats.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“Response without authority is just observation.”

❌ 7. Overlooking Integration with Vulnerability Management

Many SOCs focus exclusively on monitoring and alerts, leaving vulnerability management as a separate, reactive process.
This creates a disconnect between detection and prevention.

• Unpatched vulnerabilities repeatedly exploited.
• Lack of context linking vulnerabilities to active threats.
• Missed opportunities for proactive risk reduction.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“A SOC that doesn’t feed from vulnerability data is only fighting half the war.”

❌ 8. Poor Vendor Due Diligence When Outsourcing

When outsourcing, some organisations select MDR/MSSP partners purely on price or brand, without verifying operational maturity.
The result is misaligned expectations, slow response times, and lack of transparency.

• No shared visibility into incident workflows.
• SLAs that measure uptime, not response quality.
• Data stored in non-compliant regions.

Tip: Evaluate MDR vendors against clear criteria — visibility, integration, detection content quality, and response agility — not marketing claims.

❌ 9. Lack of Executive Sponsorship and Cross-Department Buy-In

A SOC cannot succeed in isolation.
Without board-level sponsorship and cross-functional cooperation (HR, Legal, IT, Risk), it becomes siloed and politically vulnerable.

• Resistance from IT teams during investigations.
• Delayed access to systems or evidence.
• Lack of alignment with enterprise risk appetite.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“SOC success requires executive champions — not just budget approval.”

❌ 10. Neglecting Continuous Modernisation

The threat landscape evolves faster than static SOCs can respond.
Failure to review detection logic, update playbooks, or adopt new telemetry leads to stagnation.

• Detections fall behind new TTPs.
• Analysts lack exposure to new threat models.
• Incident playbooks remain outdated.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“SOC relevance decays every six months — unless you rebuild it.”

🧭 Summary Table — Mistakes vs Consequences

Common Mistake	Consequence
Treating SOC as a project	Rapid degradation post-deployment
Underestimating cost	Capability loss and staff turnover
Undefined objectives	Ineffective detection and triage
Tool-first approach	Alert noise and poor efficiency
Default detections	Missed targeted attacks
Weak governance	Delayed incident response
Ignoring vulnerabilities	Repeat exploitation cycles
Poor vendor due diligence	Missed SLAs, compliance risks
Lack of sponsorship	Organisational resistance
No modernisation cycle	Obsolescence and declining ROI

💡 Strategic Takeaway

Avoiding these mistakes is not about perfection — it’s about discipline.
SOC success depends on operational clarity, governance maturity, and continuous adaptation.

Whether built or outsourced, the SOC must be treated as a living system — one that evolves with the adversary.

Quote from Loris Minassian (Founder @ CyberStash)
“Your SOC fails not when it misses a threat, but when it stops improving.”