Building a Cost-Effective SOC with Open Source Technologies
In today's threat landscape, having a responsive and adaptive Security Operations Center (SOC) is not a luxury — it's a necessity. While many organizations rely on commercial tools, I've taken a different route: designing a cost-effective and scalable SOC using only open source technologies like:
- 🔍 OpenSearch for log analytics and anomaly detection
- 📩 Graylog for log enrichment and alerting
- 🐝 TheHive for incident response and case management
- 📊 Grafana for visual dashboards
- 🔄 FluentBit as a lightweight log shipper
- 📬 Email alerts for urgent events
- 🤖 And even plans to incorporate AI/ML-based detection
Here's a high-level look at the architecture:
Why This Architecture?
This setup allows:
- Log normalization and enrichment using FluentBit + Graylog
- Real-time detection of threats and system anomalies
- Visual dashboards to monitor performance and threats at a glance
- Automated alerting and case creation via TheHive + email
- AI-ready integration using OpenSearch's anomaly detection capabilities
Whether you're working on a budget or looking for full control of your SOC stack, this architecture gives you modularity, flexibility, and complete transparency.
Want to Build This Yourself?
I've shared a complete installation guide, with:
- VM setup recommendations
- Configuration files
- Integration steps (Wazuh, FluentBit, Graylog, OpenSearch, Grafana, TheHive)
- How to link alerting logic to email and case management
- Tips on UEBA and AI anomaly detection tuning
- This is the link to the documentation step by step
- https://soc-documentation.vercel.app
Let's Connect
If you're passionate about cybersecurity, threat detection, or open-source solutions — I'd love to connect. You can find more of my work on:
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/soufianeamimi
- GitHub: https://github.com/Soufiane-coder
- Portfolio: soufianeamimi.vercel.app
Built with the belief that great cybersecurity doesn't have to be expensive — just smart.