Analyst in SOC - interview preparation tips
hal9k2
Member Posts: 77 ■■■□□□□□□□
Hi
Next week I am going to have job interview for Analyst in Security Operations Center.
I personally never worked in IT security area, (I am currently implementation engineer sort of programmer, tester, pm) with several years of experience in OCR market, but don't like this position however it pays good.
I was preparing for this some time getting basics certs like Security+, eJPT. Recently I decided to give it a try and applied for that position.
I passed two phone interviews (both of them were technical), and on first I was told that I am to good for that position and they will offer me something more (tier 2 or tier 3 Analyst??) but didn't say what, on second was asked other technical questions like what is cyber kill chain, vectors of attacks, approach for setting up security perimeters in networks. Last phone interview was with SOC manager. Now he invited me to face to face interview where as I was told they will check my other technical skills.
I know I will need to demonstrate some digital forensics skills and probably some other, however now sure what?
So my question is to people with experience in such positions or similar. What I can expect, and what to prepare for that interview?
Any tips appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Next week I am going to have job interview for Analyst in Security Operations Center.
I personally never worked in IT security area, (I am currently implementation engineer sort of programmer, tester, pm) with several years of experience in OCR market, but don't like this position however it pays good.
I was preparing for this some time getting basics certs like Security+, eJPT. Recently I decided to give it a try and applied for that position.
I passed two phone interviews (both of them were technical), and on first I was told that I am to good for that position and they will offer me something more (tier 2 or tier 3 Analyst??) but didn't say what, on second was asked other technical questions like what is cyber kill chain, vectors of attacks, approach for setting up security perimeters in networks. Last phone interview was with SOC manager. Now he invited me to face to face interview where as I was told they will check my other technical skills.
I know I will need to demonstrate some digital forensics skills and probably some other, however now sure what?
So my question is to people with experience in such positions or similar. What I can expect, and what to prepare for that interview?
Any tips appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Comments
“The measure of an individual can be difficult to discern by actions alone.” – Thane Krios
Hope some of the folks here will be able to point you in the right direction.
My biggest concerns is that my salary will go down by 20% of my current salary and negotiations failed, they didn't want to rise to the same level I have now.
I have also more questions...
- Do you guys think going into this position is a good step towards career in IT security?
- What are the possible transitions?
- What is the future of this kind of job, isn't that will be taken by A.I in the future?
I googled most of this questions, however it is always best to get answer from first hand...Thanks in advance for answers.
Security is a pretty big field and your title could mean many different things. Too hard to tell exactly what your position best transitions into.
Yes, AI will take our jobs. And everyone else's job as well.
To answer your questions:
- The SOC monkey role is the starting point for many in security. What kills it for me is the $20k reduction. That would never fly in my book. However, if you can take the hit and don't want to wait for something better, then go for it.
- Transitions? World is your oyster. Hopefully you use your SOC time to understand security better and try to see where you wan to go next.
- AI? I would be more worried about machines taking over McDonald's job.
AI really hasn't lived up to it's hype in my opinion. despite all the advancements in hardware, there still no true AI yet, even 20 years after the Deep Blue won it’s chess match against Garry Kasparov. Yes, computers are good at crunching huge amount of data, spotting patterns, etc. But it's all algorithm based, there's no independent thought.