Top SOC Analyst Interview Questions for 2024

Role of a SOC Analyst 

The primary role of a SOC analyst is to monitor the company's systems, including network activity, and prevent attacks. They also collaborate with other departments, such as sales or human resources, to ensure the safety of their systems. In addition, the SOC analyst is also responsible for investigating and resolving any computer issues that may arise within any department, showcasing their problem-solving skills and contribution to the company's operational efficiency. 

Some major roles and responsibilities of SOC analysts include:

Participation in Security Orders

Security audits are important for maintaining an organization's security. They let you catch vulnerabilities before malicious actors or hackers can exploit them. The SOC analyst participates in this audit directly by helping prepare and review data later.

Stay Updated With the Latest Security Threats

SOC analysts must be updated about the latest cyber attacks or threats to boost their organization's security. They can do so by keeping tabs on which hackers use hacking tools or educating themselves about new phishing attempts. This knowledge lets them act instantly on any potential issues before their company faces them.

Surveillance of Systems in Networks of an Organization

The SOC analyst analyzes the organization's IT infrastructure. This consists of monitoring applications, security systems, and networks for irregularities that indicate an attack or a breach.

Assess and Mitigate Security Threats

Whenever the SOC analyst identifies a threat, they work with the team to acknowledge the anomaly’s cause within the system and implement methods to prevent it from recurring.

Incident Response and Investigation

When an incident requires further investigation or action by law enforcement agencies, the SOC analyst works with the team to thoroughly investigate it. Once the investigation is complete, a comprehensive report is prepared for the agency. 

After each incident is investigated, they report any new information received about cyber threats or vulnerabilities in their network.

Implement Best Security Practices and Solutions With Other Team Members

SOC analysts must collaborate with other teams to ensure the company implements the correct procedures to continue safe and secure operations. This consists of implementing new systems and updating the present ones whenever required.

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SOC Analyst Interview Questions

Go through some of the top SOC analyst interview questions and answers discussed below to prepare well for your upcoming SOC analyst interview:

Q1. Explain firewall

A firewall is a device that blocks or allows traffic for the defined rules on the boundary of trusted and unregistered networks.

Q2. What is XSS? How can you mitigate it?

Cross-site scripting (XSS) is a vulnerability of JavaScript in Web apps. A script is provided by the user in the client-side input that gets processed in the absence of validation. It results in untrusted information being executed and saved on the client’s side.

Countermeasures:

• Filter application at the point where input is received
• Usage of appropriate response headers
• Content security policy being enabled
• Escaping from untrusted characters
• Encoding the output

Q3. What is a black hat, white hat, and gray hat hacker?

Black hat hackers hack without any authorization. White hat hackers perform ethical hacking with authority, and white hat hackers performing unauthorized hacking tasks are considered gray hat hackers.

Q4. What is IPS, and how is it different from IDS?

IPS is an intrusion prevention system. It detects the intrusion and implements measures for prevention. However, IDS is an intrusion detection system that detects the intrusion. After detection, the administrator takes action. Both of them work on the same concept, but the placement differs.

Q5. What do you understand about security misconfiguration?

Security misconfiguration is a vulnerability. When an application network or device is configured for a cyber attack or fraud, the attacker uses it according to their requirements. Security misconfiguration means providing a gap that the attacker can utilize to their advantage. 

Q6. What is CSRF?

Cross-site request forgery, or CSRF, is a web application vulnerability under which the server does not check if the trusted client has sent the request or not. The request gets processed easily without any assessment.

Q7. Define SOC

An SOC is a centralized location where a team of highly skilled security analysts, with their expertise and experience, proactively checks the organization's systems and computer networks. They constantly monitor network activity, investigate security breaches, respond to security incidents and alerts, and apply security protocols and controls to protect against threats. Their proficiency is a key factor in the organization's cyber security, providing reassurance about the proactive nature of their work.

Q8. NIDS or HIDS, which is better?

NIDS stands for network intrusion detection system, and HIDS stands for host intrusion detection system. Although both systems work in the same way, their placement is unique. HIDS is located on every host, and NIDS is in the network. NIDS is considered to be more easily manageable than HIDS.

Q9. What is the CIA triangle?

CIA triangle demonstrates:

• C: confidentiality, keeping the information secret.
• I: integrity, altering the data.
• A: availability, the information is accessible to all the authorized parties.

Q10. What do you mean by Port Scanning?

Port scanning forwards messages to get information about the system or network by analyzing the received response.

Q11. Define compliance.

Compliance means abiding by a set of standards established by an organization, government, or independent party. A compliance officer is responsible for ensuring that the organization adheres to these regulations and standards, helping to mitigate risks and maintain ethical standards within the company.

Q12. What are the objectives of basic web architecture?

A basic web architecture should include a web application server, a front-end server, and a database server.

Q13. What is the difference between penetration testing and software testing?

Penetration testing helps to identify and acknowledge security vulnerabilities. However, software testing ends on the functionality of the software and not security.

Q14. What do you understand about the red team and blue team?

The red team is the attacker, and the blue team is the defender. Being on the red team is fun, but being a part of the blue team is tricky, as you must know the methodologies and attacks that the red team can follow.

Q15. Which tools are used for securing a standard network?

Endpoint antiviruses, firewalls, security procedures and policies, IDS/IPS, and password managers are used to secure a standard network.

Q16. Mention the stages of SOC implementation.

The SOC implementation stages until the following:

• Build a strategy for the security operations center
• Create a SOC solution
• Procedures, training and processes must all be developed
• Ensure your surroundings are ready
• Execute your plan into action
• Deploy use cases from start to end
• Keep updated solution

Q17. Explain cognitive cyber security.

Cognitive cyber security implements artificial intelligence technology for detecting threats and defending digital and physical systems on the basis of human mental processes.

Q18. What is the difference between firewall deny and drop?

The difference between firewall deny and drop is:

Deny rule: when the firewall is set to deny the rule, it blocks the connection and forwards back a reset packet to the requester. Hence, the requester knows that the firewall is deployed.

Drop rule: when the firewall is set to drop rule, it blocks the connection request without sending a notification to the requester.

How to Prepare for a SOC Analyst Job Interview?

To help you prepare effectively for a SOC analyst job interview, here are some amazing tips mentioned below:

Stay Updated With the Industry

To stay updated with the ever-evolving industry and rising sophisticated attacks, you will be asked how you keep yourself well-versed with the latest advances and threats. Be prepared with how to monitor and investigate alerts, develop and implement IDS and signatures, configure and manage security tools and escalate security events.

Elaborate Yourself

Some of the primary skills required to become a SOC analyst include working under pressure, collaboration, technical skills, and more. The interviewer will want to know more about you. Answer honestly and be yourself!

They might also ask you why you are willing to become a SOC analyst and acknowledge your strengths, professional work ethics, goals, weaknesses, and aspirations to check if you can be a fantastic fit for the team. Some commonly asked personal questions in a SOC analyst interview include:

• What is your greatest weakness and strength?
• How will your supervisor describe your work ethic?
• Why do you want to work with our company?
• Where do you see yourself in the upcoming five years?
• What do you prefer doing when not at work?
• What value will you bring to our company?
• Why should we hire you?
• What do you know about this job position?
• Why did you prefer becoming a SOC analyst?
• Are you familiar with scripting and programming languages?

These are some of the personal questions that you can encounter during your interview; hence, ensure that you prepare well before appearing for the interview with these questions.

Prepare for SOC Analyst Technical Interview Questions

The interviewer will check if you have an updated technical expert and are suitable for the SOC analyst role. Hence, they will ask you multiple technical questions to determine your in-depth technical knowledge, so be sure to brush up on your primary technical skills before you appear for the interview.

Career Growth Opportunities for SOC Analysts

SOC analyst is not just a single profession but brings along a wide range of career growth opportunities for other professions. They can opt. for many positions, such as:

• Systems Security Analyst
• Security Operations Monitoring Analyst
• Security Analyst
• Network Security Analyst
• Information Security Analyst
• Information Assurance Analyst
• Cyber Threat Detection Analyst
• Cyber Security Operations Analyst
• Cyber Risk Defense Analyst
• Cyber Fusion Analyst
• Cloud Security Analyst

Conclusion

This article discusses some very useful and effective preparation tips and SOC interview questions. We hope these prove to be helpful for your success in your upcoming SOC analyst interview. 

Apart from only preparing these interview questions, being well-prepared and skilled with the latest cyber security information and skills is also essential. To better understand such concepts and become an industry professional, opting for the Advanced Executive Program in Cybersecurity would be a great option. This course offers real-world applications and a masterclass by an ex-NPCI expert. It's designed for individuals seeking a new, more fulfilling career. You will learn comprehensive approaches to cryptography, API security, encryption, network security, malware analysis, penetration testing, and more.

FAQs

1. What are common tools used by SOC Analysts?

Some common tools used by SOC analysis include vulnerability assessment, asset discovery, behavioral monitoring, intrusion detection, and security analytics.

2. What technical skills are essential for a SOC Analyst?

Some technical skills that a SOC analyst must have include ethical hacking, analytical reasoning, incident response, incident handling, and network security.

3. How important is experience with SIEM systems for a SOC Analyst role?

For the role of SOC analyst, it is essential to have experience with SIEM systems, as they are multifaceted tools and are used for aggregating and contextualizing security data, simplifying compliance, and automating threat detection. It stands as a backbone of strong cybersecurity defenses.