Highlights
Just a few years ago, outsourcing a Security Operations Center (SOC) seemed like a curiosity, perhaps even a bold vision of the future. Today, it is already an everyday reality. Year after year, its importance grows, and for many companies it is becoming a real and increasingly attractive alternative to fully in-house teams. Organizations that spent a decade debating whether to build their own SOC or choose outsourcing are now more often opting for support from specialists available 24/7. And Microsoft Sentinel is emerging as one of the foundations of this transformation.
But with growing popularity comes an increasing number of questions – usually revolving around one key dilemma: if we outsource the SOC, are we also giving up control over security?
If you share these doubts – you’re in the right place. And if you’re just getting started with security, our previous materials are a good starting point: What is a SOC? How does a SOC operate daily? What is SIEM and why is it the heart of SOC?
Microsoft Sentinel - the foundation of a modern SOC
Microsoft Sentinel fits perfectly into the needs of security teams working around the clock. It is a combination of SIEM and SOAR: it collects logs, correlates events, detects anomalies, automates responses, and scales almost without limitations.
However, it’s important to remember that Sentinel itself is not a SOC. It is a “tool” that shows its full potential only in the hands of experienced analysts. And that’s exactly why the competencies of the SOC team – whether internal or external – are crucial.
What Is SOC outsourcing?
In the SOCaaS model, an external team takes over the operational part of cybersecurity: monitoring, analysis, and response. But your organization still decides on priorities, policies, and escalation rules.
In practice, outsourcing solves a problem most companies face today – chronic specialist shortages. In 2024, the cybersecurity market reported more than 4 million unfilled positions*, so building a complete, experienced in-house SOC often proved to be an illusion.
Professional operations centers begin cooperation with a telemetry review – and rightly so. This is one of the most neglected elements in organizations that attempt to build their own SOC.
Myths about SOC outsourcing
Myth 1: “If I outsource SOC, I will lose control.”
This myth returns regularly like a boomerang. In reality, external cooperation in the SOCaaS model is based on the principle of shared responsibility. You retain control over data, policies, and decisions, while the SOC partner responds according to clearly defined procedures.
In mature deployments, mechanisms such as Just-in-Time Access are used, ensuring the SOC team receives access only when absolutely necessary. It’s hard to imagine a more transparent model of cooperation.
Myth 2: “Data in Sentinel + SOCaaS is less secure than locally.”
The belief that “my server room is safer” is becoming increasingly disconnected from reality. Most serious incidents in 2024 resulted from misconfigured on-prem environments and weak authentication security.
Sentinel provides, among other things:
- data encryption,
- access control based on RBAC,
- GDPR compliance and data residency control,
- built-in analytics and Threat Intelligence.
What does this mean? Sentinel enforces security best practices – practices that on-prem environments often treat as “nice to have,” but rarely enforce.
Myth 3: “An external SOC won’t understand my environment.”
A professional SOC does not operate “blindly.” The onboarding process includes architecture analysis and log integration from business applications. Often, this is far more than organizations with in-house SOCs ever do.
Mature teams also use threat modeling – mapping threats specific to a given environment. Thanks to this, they know not only what your infrastructure looks like, but also how it is most likely to be attacked. This is a major advantage – data-driven prevention works better than any other protection mechanism.
Facts that really matter
Fact 1: Outsourcing + Sentinel = faster response
SOAR automation can significantly shorten response times (estimated by as much as 40–60%)*, and 24/7 monitoring eliminates the risk of missing an incident “overnight” or “after hours.” Considering that most successful attacks result from late detection – this is an advantage that cannot be overstated.
Fact 2: Access to skills missing in the market
Analysts working in SOCaaS environments support hundreds of environments. They recognize common threat patterns, update detection rules faster, and refine playbooks more efficiently.
This “cross-client” experience is something that cannot be reproduced within a single organization. Even the best in-house team won’t see such a broad spectrum of incidents.
Fact 3: Shared responsibility increases security
The division of responsibilities is key:
- You manage identities, access, and environment configuration,
- SOC manages detection, analysis, and escalation.
This approach addresses the two most common causes of incidents in 2025:
- Lack of logs
- Inappropriate permissions
SOC outsourcing minimizes both problems – practically and operationally.
Conclusion – is SOC outsourcing with Microsoft Sentinel safe?
Like any service, SOCaaS comes with some risks – unclear SLAs, mismatched permissions, or incomplete telemetry can affect detection effectiveness. That’s why choosing the right partner is crucial -one who understands both the technology and processes aligned with NIS2, DORA, or ISO 27001.
SOC outsourcing with Microsoft Sentinel is often much safer than trying to build a team from scratch. It’s more than a simple service; it’s a synergy of technology, experience, and automation that truly increases organizational resilience against threats. It is your must-have in today’s cyber world, constantly exposed to attacks. It is your security barometer, your guarantee of control over the dangers lurking around you.
“Contrary to the concerns of many organizations, SOC outsourcing does not limit control – in fact, it helps structure it. Sentinel provides full visibility and auditability of actions, while our specialized SOC team reduces risks resulting from configuration errors and lack of telemetry. It is the synergy of technology and expert experience that determines defense effectiveness today“.
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Bibliography:
- https://www.isc2.org/Insights/2024/10/ISC2-2024-Cybersecurity-Workforce-Study [access: 11.12.2025]
