Highlights
In recent years, the Security Operations Center has become one of the key elements of organizational protection. In previous articles, we have already discussed in detail what a SOC is, how to build a SOC, and what roles SOC specialists play. Now it is time to look into the future – and it promises to be exceptionally interesting. Automation and artificial intelligence are bringing SOC to an entirely new level of operational maturity.
SOC in the era of growing threats
The scale of cyberattacks today is growing faster than the defensive capabilities of many organizations. CERT Polska recorded as many as 600,990 reports and 103,449 incidents in 2024 – 29% more than the year before*.
In practice, this means that the classic, manual approach to SOC work is becoming insufficient. When a single analyst must review tens of thousands of alerts a day, most of which are false positives, “alert fatigue” stops being a trendy phrase and becomes a real operational problem.
Automation in SOC – a response to new challenges
Automation is no longer a gadget but the foundation of a modern SOC. With its implementation:
- playbooks take over 20% to 70% of repetitive tasks,
- SIEM and EDR seamlessly cooperate with SOAR without human involvement,
- systems automatically add context to alerts – from IOC reputation to asset criticality*.
As a result, the incident response process – from triage to containment – becomes faster, more precise, and less error-prone. Automation takes over the monotony, and analysts can finally focus on incidents that truly require human experience. This is what real efficiency looks like.
SOAR – the new standard in security operations
The extensive ecosystem of SOC tools we previously wrote about (from SIEM to EDR to Threat Intelligence) is now complemented by another element: SOAR, a platform that connects all these solutions into one logical whole.
For a SOC team, SOAR primarily means operational consistency – something we have been waiting for for years.
Thanks to it:
- a single playbook triggers actions across many systems simultaneously,
- blocking an IP or isolating a host is a matter of seconds,
- correlation rules automatically update based on the latest Threat Intelligence data.
According to a report by Cybersecurity Insiders, already 31% of companies use AI in SOC, and 34% are running pilots* – most often in the areas of response automation and SOAR analytics. If your company has not yet tackled this topic – we’re sounding the alarm – it’s high time!
AI and Machine Learning in SOC
But mere reactivity is no longer enough. The SOC must predict which behaviors deviate from the norm. This is where AI and machine learning come into play.
In practice, this means, among other things:
- anomaly detection based on behavioral profiles,
- dynamic incident prioritization based on context and criticality,
- automatic reduction of alert noise (often by 30–40%)*,
- event correlation across systems that, without AI, remain “data islands.”
According to CybersecStats, by 2025, two-thirds of organizations use AI solutions in SOC, though at various maturity levels*. And we all know – maturity is valuable, so it’s worth diving deeper into this topic.
Threat prediction – a step toward a proactive SOC
The concept of a predictive SOC – one that can detect threats before they become real incidents – generates the most excitement. Does it sound like black magic? It isn’t. Trust us – AI models analyzing historical, telemetry, and Threat Intelligence data can truly do a lot. What are their superpowers?
- Detecting unusual C2 communication patterns.
- Predicting the likelihood of an attack on specific assets.
- Identifying symptoms of new phishing campaigns.
- Recognizing anomalies in OT/ICS environments before production processes are disrupted.
It’s a natural, logical step toward proactivity – an approach that differentiates a SOC vs. NOC not only through tools but above all through mindset.
The impact of automation and AI on the role of SOC analysts
With automation comes the recurring question: will AI replace analysts? From the perspective of our SOC, the answer is clear – it will not replace them, but strengthen them. SOC is primarily about competencies – not tools. In the article about key roles in the SOC team, we explained how important interpretation, analysis, and decision-making are. And today we reassure you – AI is an opportunity, not a threat.
AI may well be the cure for all the routine and monotony of the SOC world, because:
- it will take over repetitive tasks,
- it will accelerate data analysis,
- it will allow specialists to focus on complex incidents and strategic actions.
“From the perspective of a SOC specialist, I can say one thing: AI will not take our jobs – it will take our boredom. Automation and AI will not replace SOCs. They will replace SOCs that do not know how to use them. And we do not build those”.
Prospects for SOC development
The SOC of the future is a hybrid of:
- automation operating 24/7,
- AI that analyzes data faster than humans,
- and analysts who can interpret, connect, and draw conclusions.
And what will the coming years bring? Certainly full automation of some IR processes, an increased role of SOAR in 24/7 operations, greater use of predictive models, and even tighter integration of AI + Threat Intelligence + hunting.
The future of SOC is not a futuristic vision but a logical evolution of all the topics we have discussed so far – from the role of SIEM to team building to operational processes. Now it’s time to unlock their full potential.
_
Bibliography:
- https://cert.pl/uploads/docs/Raport_CP_2024.pdf [access: 04.12.2025r.]
- https://www.cybersecurity-insiders.com/pulse-of-the-ai-soc-report-2025-from-alert-fatigue-to-actionable-intelligence-how-ai-is-reshaping-detection-response-and-analyst-confidence/ [access: 04.12.2025r.]
- https://www.cybersecstats.com/security-ai-statistics-for-2025/ [access: 04.12.2025r.]
