Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) is transforming modern cybersecurity by addressing the increasing complexity of cyber threats, reducing alert fatigue, and improving SOC efficiency. This article explores how SOAR works, its benefits and challenges, leading vendors in the market, and how it differs from traditional security operations. With real-world case studies and industry insights, we highlight why SOAR is essential for effective incident response and cybersecurity automation.
Table of Contents
What is SOAR ?
In cybersecurity, SOAR stands for Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response.
SOAR refers to a set of software solutions and tools that enable security teams to collect and analyze security data from various sources, automate incident response workflows, and coordinate security operations across multiple tools and systems.
Why is SOAR important for modern cybersecurity?
Modern cybersecurity faces increasing complexity, overwhelming security alerts, and growing demands for rapid incident response. SOAR solutions streamline security operations by automating security processes, reducing alert fatigue, and enabling security analysts to focus on critical threats. By integrating with SIEM and SOAR platforms, security orchestration and automation ensure seamless threat detection, data collection, and security event management. SOAR technology enhances collaboration between security teams by automating workflows, improving response efficiency, and reducing manual intervention.
In Security Operation Centers (SOC), SOAR platforms optimize resource utilization, improve mean time to detect, and enhance overall security posture. Organizations implementing SOAR best practices achieve faster security incident response, proactive threat mitigation, and streamlined security management. As cyber threats evolve, adopting an effective SOAR system is essential to maintain a resilient and efficient cybersecurity framework.
How does SOAR work?
Security teams deal with an overwhelming volume of security alerts daily. Manually analyzing and responding to each security incident increases response times and exposes organizations to greater risk. That’s where SOAR transforms security operations by streamlining workflows, reducing manual effort, and enabling a faster, more coordinated response to security threats. The SOAR market is experiencing substantial growth, valued at $1.6 billion in 2023 and projected to reach $6 billion by 2032.
A SOAR solution combines three essential capabilities:
- Security Orchestration – Security orchestration is the backbone of SOAR. It connects and coordinates multiple security tools and processes across an organization’s existing security system. SOAR platforms unify SIEM, endpoint security software, and other security solutions into a single, streamlined workflow.
- Security Automation – Reduces manual tasks by enabling automation and response mechanisms that detect and mitigate threats. Security automation enhances SOAR by eliminating repetitive, time-consuming tasks thereby reducing mean time to detect (MTTD) and respond (MTTR). A global fintech company faced challenges with manual and siloed security processes. By adopting a SOAR platform, they improved their mean time to respond (MTTR) by tenfold and automated 90% of Tier 1 Security Operations Center (SOC) activities, leading to substantial cost reductions and enhanced security posture. According to McKinsey, SOAR automation saves enterprises an average of $2.5 million per year.
- Incident Response & Case Management – Provides structured workflows to track and manage security incidents efficiently. Every security event is logged and categorized within a central SOAR system, ensuring transparency and auditability.
These functionalities work together to help security operations teams improve response times, reduce alert fatigue, and ensure that security processes are both scalable and repeatable.
What are the benefits and challenges of adopting SOAR?
Implementing a SOAR solution can significantly improve security operations automation, but organizations often face several hurdles during adoption.
Benefits of SOAR
| 1. | Faster threat resolution and containment | According to a 2023 IBM X-Force Threat Intelligence Report, organizations experience an average of 1,600 security incidents per day, making manual response impossible. SOAR accelerates incident response by automating containment actions, reducing mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR) to security threats. |
| 2. | Improved SOC productivity and efficiency | SOAR improves SOC efficiency by reducing manual workloads, allowing security analysts to focus on more complex security issues. A financial institution achieved more efficient and automated approach to security operations, addressing challenges in incident response processes and coordination issues by using SOAR. |
| 3. | Cost savings through automation | SOC teams receive over 10,000 security alerts per day, with 45% being false positives, according to a Palo Alto Networks study. Automation reduces the need for manual intervention, lowering operational costs and improving resource allocation reducing analyst burnout and alert fatigue. |
| 4. | Centralized security operations and monitoring | SOAR provides a unified platform for security event management, ensuring better visibility and coordination across security operations. |
| 5 | Enhanced compliance and audit readiness | Automated logging and reporting help organizations maintain compliance with security regulations and improve audit readiness. |
Challenges of SOAR
| 1. | Integration with existing security infrastructure | SOAR platforms must integrate with SIEM solutions, security tools, and other security operations technologies. Legacy systems, inconsistent APIs, and configuration complexities can disrupt security orchestration. |
| 2. | Overcoming resistance to automation in SOC teams | SOC teams may be hesitant to trust automation due to fear of job displacement or errors in automated incident response. Training and a phased approach can help ease this transition. |
| 3. | Ensuring accurate threat intelligence for automation | Effective SOAR security depends on real-time, accurate threat intelligence. Poorly configured SOAR platforms can misclassify security events, leading to inefficient security. |
| 4. | Managing false positives and automation failures | False positives and automation failures can overwhelm security teams. Continuous tuning of SOAR tools is required to improve alert accuracy and avoid unnecessary incident responses. |
| 5. | Addressing skill gaps in SOAR implementation | SOAR deployment requires expertise in operations, scripting, and automation. Many organizations face a skill gap, necessitating training programs and expert hiring to optimize security orchestration. |
Who are the leading SOAR vendors in the market?
The following SOAR vendors lead the market with robust security automation and orchestration tools, helping security teams manage security alerts effectively.
IBM SOAR (Resilient)
- Advanced security orchestration connects and integrates multiple security tools into a single platform for efficient incident response.
- AI-driven security automation reduces manual effort and enhances security automation.
Palo Alto Cortex XSOAR
- Automates security alerts daily with predefined security orchestration and automation workflows.
- Offers threat intelligence enrichment and extended detection and response (XDR) for advanced respond to security.
Fortinet FortiSOAR
- Provides scalable security orchestration to manage multiple security events efficiently.
Splunk SOAR (Phantom)
- Automates security event triage to reduce security alerts daily and improve overall security posture.
- Offers cloud-based SOAR platforms with flexible deployment and advanced security response features.
Rapid7 InsightConnect
- Centralized SOAR system integrates tools from different vendors for seamless operations.
- Enhances security automation by eliminating repetitive tasks and optimizing incident response workflows.
Eventus Security SOAR
- Provides end-to-end security automation to streamline threat detection, investigation, and response.
- Features advanced threat intelligence integration to enhance incident resolution with real-time data.
How does SOAR differ from Traditional Security Operations?
While Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) focuses on collecting, analyzing, and storing security logs, SOAR takes action by automating responses and orchestrating security processes. SOAR and SIEM are two sides of a coin. SOAR scores over other operations in terms of:
- Longer response times – Manual triage and investigation slow down incident response.
- Higher risk of human error in siem – Without security automation, critical threats may be overlooked.
- Limited scalability – Traditional operations struggle to keep up with the growing volume of security issues.
