SOAR for Businesses: Automating Security Incident Response
SOAR helps companies automate repetitive tasks related to handling security incidents. In practice, the goal is to ensure that the security team doesn’t waste time on tasks that can be defined as procedures and performed automatically—and that the response to an incident doesn’t depend on whether the right person is available at that moment.
If a SIEM detects an event, SOAR helps move from alert to action: gather additional context, create a ticket, notify the appropriate people, trigger a playbook, and—where integrations, permissions, and organizational policies allow—lock the account, force a password reset, or isolate the device. Without SOAR, each of these steps is performed manually by someone—and the process varies depending on the day, time, and availability.
SOAR is most useful in situations where an organization already has security monitoring in place, but incident response is too slow, inconsistent, or reliant on manual actions by individual staff members.
When does SOAR make sense?
SOAR is worth considering when a security or IT team receives a large number of repetitive alerts and needs to reduce response times. Not every incident requires a full manual analysis from scratch—some actions can be defined as procedures and performed automatically or semi-automatically.
The most common signs that a company needs SOAR:
- Alerts are handled manually and inconsistently,
- The team wastes time on repetitive tasks instead of analysis,
- The response to the incident depends on the availability of one person,
- There is a lack of clear incident response playbooks,
- Escalations are handled via email or on an ad hoc basis,
- SOC or MSS needs better automation,
- SIEM generates alerts, but there is no effective response process.
SOAR doesn't replace analysts. It helps them focus on the issues that truly require their expertise and decision-making—rather than manually filling out tickets and notifying other people.
What can be automated in SOAR?
The extent of automation depends on the environment and the acceptable level of risk. Some tasks can be performed fully automatically, while others should require human approval—especially those that have a real impact on the production environment.
Examples of SOAR automations:
- enriching the alert with additional data (user context, login history, IP reputation),
- checking an IP address or domain against threat intelligence sources,
- automatic creation of a ticket in the ticketing system,
- notifying the team via Teams or email,
- assigning a priority to an incident based on risk,
- blocking a suspicious user account—if the organization allows such automation and the system has the appropriate permissions,
- isolating the endpoint from the network — if the EDR/XDR tool supports this response,
- forcing a password reset or re-authentication — in accordance with the organization's security policy,
- initiating the escalation process based on defined thresholds,
- Generating a report after the incident is resolved.
The most important thing is for IT security automation to comply with company policy. In some parts of the organization, SOAR can operate actively and independently trigger selected response actions, such as account suspension or device isolation. In others, it generates recommendations, gathers context, and awaits a decision from an administrator or analyst. The scope of automation should be determined by the level of risk, process maturity, and available
SOAR vs. SIEM and SOC
SOAR most often works in conjunction with SIEM and SOC. SIEM collects and analyzes events. SOC assesses risk and manages incident response. SOAR automates repetitive steps and ensures that the response is fast and consistent—regardless of who is on duty at the time.
Without SOAR, many tasks depend on the analyst’s memory, the administrator’s availability, and manually switching between systems. With SOAR, you can create playbooks that execute specific steps in the same order every time—with full documentation of every action taken.
This is especially important in crisis situations, when every minute counts, and the team shouldn't have to spend time figuring out who should do what and in what order.
How We Implement Automated Incident Response
Incident Scenario Analysis
We start by selecting the use cases that deliver the most value. You don’t automate everything at once—it’s best to start with high-frequency, repetitive scenarios: suspicious logins, malicious phishing messages, EDR alerts, and privilege escalation attempts. At this stage, we also determine which actions can be fully automated and which require human approval.
Playbook Project
We create playbooks—step-by-step response scenarios. We determine which steps are automated, which require approval, and who is responsible for escalation. This ensures that the response is predictable and documented, rather than dependent on an analyst’s improvisation under time pressure.
Testing and Optimization
We deploy playbooks within a controlled scope, assess their effectiveness, the number of false triggers, and their impact on the team’s work. Automation in security requires caution—it’s better to start with a smaller scope and expand after verification than to automatically block accounts based on a rule that hasn’t been fine-tuned.
You're getting alerts, but the response is still taking too long?
Benefits of Implementing SOAR
A well-implemented SOAR solution allows you to respond to incidents more quickly, reduce manual tasks, and streamline escalations. The organization gains a repeatable and documented process, a lower risk of missing an incident at night or on the weekend, and better visibility into what happens after a threat is detected.
SOAR is particularly valuable for companies that already have a SIEM or SOC and want to transition from an „analyze and report” model to an „analyze and act” model—with full documentation of every decision made.
Faster response to incidents
Escalation Management
Automation of Tasks
Frequently Asked Questions
No. SOAR automates repetitive tasks and supports the response process, but it does not replace analysts, business decisions, or security responsibilities. Its role is to relieve the team of routine tasks—so that specialists can focus on analysis and decisions that truly require human judgment.
SOAR is most often deployed alongside a SIEM or SOC, as it relies on alerts and incidents to trigger playbooks. In Microsoft Sentinel, SIEM and SOAR operate within the same platform. Integration with other security tools as a source of events is also possible.
It’s best to start with one or two recurring scenarios that currently take up a lot of time: suspicious logins, phishing, EDR alerts, or account lockouts following the detection of a risk. Once the first playbooks have been deployed and verified, the scope can be gradually expanded.
In Microsoft environments, the cost of implementing SOAR in Sentinel depends mainly on the number and complexity of playbooks, as well as integrations with other systems (ticketing, messaging apps, EDR tools). Playbooks based on Azure Logic Apps are billed based on the number of executions—with well-designed rules, operating costs are low. Contact us—we’ll provide an estimate based on your environment and priority response scenarios.
Learn about our other services
Business applications
Services for applications and turnkey solutions in the area of process digitization and modern work environment.
Full support and optimization of IT infrastructure, ensuring stable development of your business.
IT infrastructure
Security of deployment and maintenance of Microsoft 365 and Azure services that enable flexible management and cost optimization.
