Last week, we held a webinar on Achieving Excellence in your Security Operations Center, or SOC for short (you can find the recording of that webinar here). It was the first time I had actually had the chance to present with Brian Tuskan, Sr. Director of Technology for Microsoft Global Security (MSGS). It has been about seven years that I have been lucky enough to work with Brian and his team at MSGS and it seems like only yesterday that they were planning the revamp of their new global SOC model, including their new incident management system, Perspective by PPM.
The goals of the model were laid out somewhat plainly: commercial off-the-shelf software, integrated together and working efficiently. The plan of course had much more depth to it and I remember way back when hearing Brian talk about the grand vision for the GSOCs using technology. But it was last week during his presentation in our webinar that it really clicked with me the success that program has achieved.
The presentations long ago were how the GSOC plan was created, how they work and much more. Last week, the presentation was simply on execution and how well the GSOC plans, identifies, responds, documents and investigates incidents globally, ranging from routine events happening on the Redmond Campus to spontaneous events such as the Boston Marathon bombings, where MSGS had to ensure and account for the safety of its employees nearby to the incident.
I have known all along the ability was there. We deal with the MSGS team on a very frequent basis, but sometimes when you are so involved in something you don’t get the chance to really sit back and look at the big picture. Last week I did, and can say without a doubt MSGS has achieved, and is the benchmark, in GSOC excellence. I can also say that having seen the planning and teamwork that went into the GSOC program over the years; this is an essential ingredient in its success. If you have never been for the MSGS GSOC tour, I suggest you put it on your security to-do list. The technology starts at reception with an Xbox automated attendant to greet you, and continues with how the entire operation works, including the opportunity to see Perspective DispatchLog in action and talk to investigators at Microsoft on how they use the system to document some very complex investigations.
Looking back, what a great project, team and opportunity this is to be part of.
—Brian McIlravey, CPP, Co-CEO