SOAR Security Orchestration Use Cases Part III

How does SOAR work?

A SOAR platform can automatically respond to security alerts, with all tools and technologies orchestrated together. Response actions are executed through playbooks and runbooks to suit different threats. The aim is to auto-respond to alerts while freeing analyst time for higher-priority tasks such as threat analytics.

SOAR aims to improve efficiency, efficacy, and consistency in security operations and incident response.

What are common SOAR use cases?

• Vulnerability Management
• Forensic Investigation
• Insider Threat Detection
• Failed Access Attempts
• SSL Certificate Management
• Endpoint Diagnostics
• Malware Analysis

How does SOAR support vulnerability management?

After receiving a potential threat notification, a SOAR tool gathers and analyzes SIEM data, correlates events to identify priority and criticality, and automatically generates incidents for investigation. It can query connected tools for diagnosis, consequences, and remediation details tied to vulnerabilities.

SOAR can also maintain a repository of threats, incidents, historical responses, decisions, and outcomes.

How can SOAR improve forensic investigation?

Forensic investigation often requires manual data collection across disconnected systems, which is time-consuming. A SOAR playbook can automatically collect contextual information from disparate tools and provide investigators the data needed for faster analysis.

How does SOAR help insider threat detection?

Insider activity can emulate normal behavior and is difficult to detect quickly. SOAR orchestration integrates multiple tools for faster detection and response. Automated playbooks can trigger investigation, triage, and response workflows, while escalating for human intervention when needed.

How does SOAR handle failed access attempts?

SOAR can track failed access attempts and initiate user confirmation over email or mobile once thresholds are exceeded. Based on playbook logic, it may trigger password reset workflows and confirmation messages. If suspicious activity is confirmed, SOAR can lock accounts and gather supporting context such as IP and location details.

How does SOAR support SSL certificate management?

SOAR playbooks can query endpoints for certificate expiration and related issues. When a problem is identified, automated workflows can notify responsible users and managers, initiate update actions, and run periodic follow-ups until confirmation is complete.

How does SOAR support endpoint diagnostics?

Endpoint security generates high log volumes that can overwhelm teams. SOAR automation can analyze SIEM data, query supporting tools, gather malicious activity context, kill malicious processes, remove infected files, and update signatures. It can also automate repeat controls to reduce recurring attacks.

How does SOAR support malware analysis?

SOAR platforms ingest data from SIEMs, mailboxes, threat intelligence feeds, and malware analysis tools, then extract files for detonation. If malware is confirmed, SOAR can update watchlists, quarantine endpoints, open tickets, and reconcile findings with third-party threat feeds.

Why is SOAR adoption increasing?

According to Gartner's SOAR market guide, "by year-end 2022, 30% of organizations with a security team larger than five people will leverage SOAR tools in their security operations, up from less than 5% today." This rise is driven by SOCs being understaffed, overworked, and overloaded by alerts from multiple security systems.

Key Takeaways

• SOAR is most effective in repetitive, high-volume security workflows.
• Playbooks and runbooks reduce manual effort and response delay.
• Operational use cases include vulnerability, endpoint, access, certificate, and malware workflows.
• SOAR helps SOC teams scale response without proportional headcount increase.