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24/7 Security Monitoring Setup

📊Advanced18 min read📅May 15, 2025
SIEMMonitoringSOC

Setup of a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system for continuous security monitoring. From planning to operational SOC deployment.

1. SIEM Basics

💡 What is SIEM?

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) combines Security Information Management (SIM) and Security Event Management (SEM) for centralized collection, correlation, and analysis of security events.

SIEM Core Functions

📊

Log Collection

Centralized collection of logs from various sources

🔍

Event Correlation

Intelligent linking of security events

🚨

Alerting

Automatic notification for critical events

📈

Analytics

Statistical analysis and anomaly detection

📋

Reporting

Compliance and executive dashboards

🔧

Response

Automated incident response workflows

Leading SIEM Platforms

🥇

G-Data Security Center

German SIEM solution with GDPR compliance

✅ Cloud & On-Premise
Flexible deployment options
✅ Threat Intelligence
German threat feeds
✅ GDPR-Ready
Privacy policy compliant

Splunk Enterprise Security

Market leader with extensive analytics

IBM QRadar

AI-based threat detection

Microsoft Sentinel

Cloud-native Azure SIEM

LogRhythm NextGen

SIEM with integrated UEBA

2. SIEM-Architektur & Design

⚠️ Scalingsplanung

Plan for growth from the beginning. A typical enterprise SIEM processes 50,000-200,000 events per second (EPS).

Architecture Components

📡
Collectors

Log Sources & Agents

🔄
Processors

Parsing & Normalization

🗄️
Storage

Hot/Warm/Cold Data

🔍
Analytics

Correlation Engine

High-Level Architecture

┌─────────────────┐    ┌──────────────────┐    ┌─────────────────┐
│   Log Sources   │───▶│   Collectors     │───▶│  SIEM Platform  │
├─────────────────┤    ├──────────────────┤    ├─────────────────┤
│ • Firewalls     │    │ • Syslog         │    │ • Correlation   │
│ • Servers       │    │ • Agents         │    │ • Analytics     │
│ • Applications  │    │ • APIs           │    │ • Dashboards    │
│ • Network       │    │ • Database       │    │ • Alerting      │
│ • Cloud         │    │ • File Monitoring│    │ • Reporting     │
└─────────────────┘    └──────────────────┘    └─────────────────┘
                                                         │
                                                         ▼
                                              ┌─────────────────┐
                                              │   SOC Analysts  │
                                              ├─────────────────┤
                                              │ • Investigation │
                                              │ • Escalation    │
                                              │ • Response      │
                                              └─────────────────┘

Capacity Planning

🏢
Small Enterprise
1,000-10,000 EPS
100-500 GB/day
1-3 months retention
🏭
Medium Enterprise
10,000-50,000 EPS
500 GB-2 TB/day
6-12 months retention
🌐
Large Enterprise
50,000+ EPS
2+ TB/day
1-7 years retention

3. Log Management

Critical Log Sources

🌐 Network Infrastructure

  • Firewall Logs (Accept/Deny)
  • Router/Switch Logs
  • IDS/IPS Alerts
  • DNS Query Logs
  • DHCP Lease Information

🖥️ Endpoints & Servers

  • Windows Event Logs
  • Linux Syslog (auth, kernel)
  • EDR/Antivirus Logs
  • File Integrity Monitoring
  • Process Execution Logs

🔐 Identity & Access

  • Active Directory Logs
  • VPN Connection Logs
  • Multi-Factor Authentication
  • Privileged Access Management
  • Single Sign-On Events

🌐 Applications & Cloud

  • Web Server Access Logs
  • Database Audit Logs
  • AWS CloudTrail/Azure Logs
  • Email Security Logs
  • Application Error Logs

Log Normalization

# Example: Syslog Parsing
# Raw Log:
Jan 15 10:30:45 server1 sshd[1234]: Failed password for admin from 192.168.1.100

# Normalized Event:
{
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:30:45Z",
  "source_host": "server1",
  "source_ip": "192.168.1.100",
  "event_type": "authentication_failure",
  "service": "ssh",
  "user": "admin",
  "action": "login_failed",
  "severity": "medium"
}

4. Detection Use Cases

🚨 High-Priority Use Cases

Brute Force Attacks

Detection of repeated login attempts within a short time

IF (failed_logins > 5 AND timespan < 5min) THEN ALERT

Lateral Movement

Unusual internal network connections and privilege escalation

IF (new_admin_account OR unusual_network_scan) THEN ALERT

Data Exfiltration

Large data transfers to unusual destinations or at odd hours

IF (data_transfer > baseline_x10 AND time = after_hours) THEN ALERT

📊 Behavioral Analytics

User Behavior Analytics (UBA)

  • - Unusual registration times
  • - New devices/locations
  • - Deviating data access
  • - Privilege changes

Entity Behavior Analytics (EBA)

  • - Server performance anomalies
  • - Network traffic patterns
  • - Application response times
  • - DNS query anomalies

🔍 MITRE ATT&CK Mapping

Initial Access
T1078 - Valid Accounts
Compromised Credentials
Persistence
T1053 - Scheduled Tasks
Malicious Cron Jobs
Defense Evasion
T1070 - Indicator Removal
Log Deletion

5. Security Operations Center (SOC) Setup

💡 SOC vs. SIEM

A SOC is the team and process, while SIEM is the technology. An effective SOC requires people, processes, and technology.

SOC Roles & Responsibilities

👨‍💻

L1 - SOC Analyst

  • • Alert Monitoring
  • • Initial Triage
  • • Ticket Creation
  • • Basic Investigation
24/7 Monitoring
🕵️

L2 - Security Analyst

  • • Deep Investigation
  • • Forensic Analysis
  • • Correlation Analysis
  • • Escalation Decisions
Advanced Analysis
🎯

L3 - Senior Analyst

  • • Complex Investigations
  • • Threat Hunting
  • • Use Case Development
  • • Incident Response
Expert Level

SOC Processes & Playbooks

📋 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

Alert Handling
  1. Alert Receipt & Acknowledgment
  2. Initial Assessment (5 min)
  3. Data Collection & Context
  4. Impact Assessment
  5. Escalation Decision
  6. Documentation & Closure
Incident Response
  1. Incident Declaration
  2. Team Assembly
  3. Containment Actions
  4. Evidence Collection
  5. Eradication & Recovery
  6. Lessons Learned

24/7 Operations Model

# Follow-the-Sun Model
┌─────────────┬─────────────┬─────────────┐
│   EMEA      │   Americas  │   APAC      │
│  08:00-20:00│  08:00-20:00│  08:00-20:00│
├─────────────┼─────────────┼─────────────┤
│ Primary SOC │ Primary SOC │ Primary SOC │
│ Frankfurt   │ New York    │ Singapore   │
└─────────────┴─────────────┴─────────────┘

# Shift Model
- Early Shift: 06:00 - 14:00
- Late Shift: 14:00 - 22:00  
- Night Shift: 22:00 - 06:00
- Weekend: 12h Shifts

# Escalation Matrix
L1 → L2 (Complex Events)
L2 → L3 (Critical Incidents)
L3 → CISO (Major Incidents)

6. SOC KPIs & Metrics

📊 Operational Metrics

⏱️
MTTD
Mean Time to Detect
< 15 min
🚨
MTTR
Mean Time to Respond
< 30 min
🔧
MTTR
Mean Time to Resolve
< 4 hours
SLA
Service Level
99.5%

🎯 Quality Metrics

False Positive Rate

< 5%

Goal: Minimize false alarms

Alert Closure Rate

> 95%

Complete processing

Escalation Rate

10-15%

L1 to L2 escalation

📈 Business Metrics

Cost per Event

€15-25
Average processing cost

ROI Calculation

300-400%
Return on Security Investment
👁️

Tavo-IT Managed SOC Services

As certified G-Data Security Partners, we offer professional 24/7 Security Monitoring Services with German security standards.

🛡️ G-Data SIEM Integration
GDPR-compliant solution
👥 German SOC Team
Native-speaking experts
⚡ 24/7/365 Monitoring
Follow-the-Sun Model

SIEM Selection

Events/Sec5K-200K
Storage/Day100GB-5TB
Retention3M-7Y
Analyst:Events1:10K

Top Log Sources

Windows Event Logs
Firewall Logs
Proxy/Web Logs
DNS Logs
EDR/AV Logs

SIEM Tools