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Cybersecurity · SOC Analyst Foundations

Learn How Security Operations Teams Detect and Respond

Understand how a Security Operations Centre monitors, investigates and responds to security events, and practise the core tasks of an entry-level SOC analyst in safe lab scenarios.

  • SOC roles, workflows and escalation
  • Log analysis and SIEM concepts
  • Alert triage and phishing analysis
  • Incident response fundamentals and reporting
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Course overview

About This Course

A Security Operations Centre (SOC) is the team that watches an organisation's systems for signs of attack, investigates what it finds and coordinates the response. SOC Analyst Foundations explains how that work is organised and gives you practice with the tasks analysts handle every day.

Detection and response matter because no set of preventive controls stops every attack. Organisations rely on analysts who can read logs, separate real threats from noise, and escalate the right issues quickly and clearly.

You will learn where security data comes from, how a SIEM brings it together, how alerts are triaged and investigated, and how incidents are documented and handed over.

The course builds on Cybersecurity Fundamentals and is a natural next step for learners who want to work in, or alongside, a security operations team.

Who it is for

Who Should Take This Course?

  • Learners with security fundamentals

    You understand core security concepts and want to apply them to monitoring and investigation.

  • IT support, network and systems staff

    You already work with systems and logs and want to move towards security operations.

  • Students targeting SOC roles

    You want a clear picture of the day-to-day work of an entry-level SOC analyst.

  • Professionals who work with a SOC

    You hand over or receive security alerts and want to understand how the SOC works.

Learning outcomes

What You Will Learn

By working through the course, you will build towards being able to:

  • Describe how a SOC is structured, including analyst tiers, shifts and escalation paths.

  • Identify common log sources such as endpoints, networks, authentication systems and cloud services, and what each can reveal.

  • Explain how a SIEM collects, normalises and correlates events to raise alerts.

  • Triage alerts by judging whether they are genuine, how urgent they are and when to escalate.

  • Analyse suspicious emails safely using headers, links and attachment indicators.

  • Follow the incident response lifecycle and write clear, concise incident notes.

  • Relate observed activity to techniques in the MITRE ATT&CK framework.

Curriculum

Course Curriculum

The course is organised into modules. Session order and depth may vary by training arrangement.

  1. Inside the SOC

    How security operations teams are organised and how work flows through them.

    Topics covered include

    • SOC roles and analyst tiers
    • Shifts, queues and service levels
    • Escalation and communication
    • Key SOC terms and metrics

    Practical activity: Walk through a typical analyst shift using a sample alert queue.

  2. Logs and log sources

    Where security data comes from and how to read it.

    Topics covered include

    • Windows and Linux logs
    • Authentication and identity logs
    • Network, firewall and proxy logs
    • Cloud and application logs

    Practical activity: Investigate sample log data to reconstruct a sequence of events.

  3. SIEM concepts and detection

    How a SIEM turns raw events into alerts analysts can act on.

    Topics covered include

    • Collection and normalisation
    • Correlation and detection rules
    • Dashboards and searches
    • Tuning and false positives

    Practical activity: Read detection logic and decide what activity it is designed to catch.

  4. Alert triage and investigation

    A structured way to assess, prioritise and investigate alerts.

    Topics covered include

    • Triage questions and prioritisation
    • Enriching alerts with context
    • True and false positives
    • When and how to escalate

    Practical activity: Triage a set of simulated alerts and justify each decision.

  5. Phishing analysis

    How analysts handle one of the most common types of reported threat.

    Topics covered include

    • Email headers and sender checks
    • Link and attachment indicators
    • Using threat intelligence safely
    • Containment and user communication

    Practical activity: Analyse sample suspicious emails in a safe environment and record your findings.

  6. Incident response and reporting

    How incidents move from detection to closure, and how to document them.

    Topics covered include

    • The incident response lifecycle
    • Evidence handling basics
    • MITRE ATT&CK and threat intelligence
    • Writing incident notes and handovers

    Practical activity: Write an incident summary for a simulated security event.

Practical learning

Hands-On Learning

Security operations is a practical discipline, so the course uses scenario-based activities. Examples include:

Activities use sample data and authorised lab scenarios only. Ask us which activities and tools are included in your training arrangement.

  • Working through simulated alert queues
  • Investigating sample log datasets
  • Analysing sample phishing emails in a safe environment
  • Writing incident tickets and handover notes

Before you start

Prerequisites and Learning Requirements

  • Recommended background

    A grounding in cybersecurity fundamentals is recommended: security principles, common threats, and networking and operating system basics. Our Cybersecurity Fundamentals course covers this.

  • Technical prerequisites

    Comfort reading structured text such as log entries, and basic familiarity with Windows or Linux.

  • Software and tools

    A computer with a reliable internet connection for live online sessions. Any lab tools or sample datasets used will be confirmed when you enquire.

  • Prior experience

    Not intended as a first course for complete beginners. If you are new to security, start with Cybersecurity Fundamentals.

Learning Format

IT Champion Hub offers live, instructor-led online training and workshops. Formats, duration and schedules vary by course and are not the same for every program.

  • Live online sessions led by an instructor
  • Practical activities alongside explanations
  • Upcoming batches and schedules shared on enquiry

Enquire to find out the formats and upcoming batches available for this course. Enquire about this course

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to complete Cybersecurity Fundamentals first?

It is not mandatory, but you should already understand core security concepts, common threats and networking basics. If these are new to you, Cybersecurity Fundamentals is the recommended starting point.

What does a SOC analyst do?

SOC analysts monitor security alerts, investigate suspicious activity, decide what needs escalating, and document incidents so they can be resolved.

Will I work with a SIEM?

The course explains SIEM concepts in depth. Whether practical work uses a specific SIEM tool depends on the training arrangement, so please ask when you enquire.

Are there practical exercises?

Yes. Activities include triaging simulated alerts, investigating sample logs and analysing sample phishing emails, all in safe, authorised scenarios.

How can I enquire about upcoming training?

Select Enquire About This Course. The enquiry form will note that you are asking about SOC Analyst Foundations, and we'll get back to you with upcoming batches and available schedules.

Ready to Explore This Learning Path?

Have questions about the curriculum, prerequisites, or training arrangements? Get in touch with IT Champion Hub to discuss your learning goals.

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