What does SOC stand for in security operations?

• A. Security Operations Center
• B. Security Orchestration Console
• C. System Operations Center
• D. Security Oversight Committee

Answer: (A)

The concept being tested is the centralized hub responsible for monitoring and defending an environment. A Security Operations Center is a centralized facility or team where security analysts continuously monitor networks, systems, and applications, correlate alerts from tools like SIEMs and threat intel, and coordinate containment and remediation actions. It covers ongoing detection, incident response, and continuous improvement of defenses, often operating 24/7 and using playbooks and runbooks to standardize how incidents are handled.

Why the others don’t fit: Security Orchestration Console implies a single interface for automating responses, which sits within broader SOAR capabilities but isn’t the full, ongoing operations hub. System Operations Center sounds like a general IT operations center rather than security-specific monitoring and response. Security Oversight Committee is a governance body, not a hands-on operations center.