1) Identity
Account activity + admin actions
Log sign-ins, MFA changes, privilege changes, and risky authentications.
- New admin creation / role changes
- MFA disabled or bypassed
- Impossible travel / risky sign-in
Playbook
Minimum viable logging for small teams
You don’t need a SOC to be prepared. You need the right signals, captured consistently, stored centrally, and tied to clear actions.
- Clarity
- Readiness
- Calm under pressure
- Evidence you can use
At a glance
- Collect high-signal logs
- Centralize + retain properly
- Create a small alert set
- Document response steps
Small scope. High leverage.
The real problem
Most teams don’t fail because they lacked a tool. They fail because they lacked usable evidence.
Logging without an evidence question is just storage. Your baseline should answer: who did what, when, from where, and with what privilege.
After an incident, the first question is always the same: “What happened?” If your logs are scattered, overwritten, or incomplete, you lose time—and confidence—fast.
Minimum viable logging is a tight, realistic baseline that gives you visibility, traceability, and actionable alerts—without building a security department.
What to collect first
Start with the signals that answer “who did what, from where, and what changed.”
2) Endpoint
Security events from devices
Capture high-signal endpoint events consistently—avoid noise.
- Malware detections / quarantine
- Suspicious process execution
- Local admin changes
3) Email
Phishing + mailbox anomalies
Email remains the main entry point for SMB compromise.
- Forwarding rules created
- Suspicious inbox access
- Credential harvesting indicators
4) Critical systems
Changes, access, and failures
Capture authentication, configuration changes, and failure patterns on key systems.
- Repeated failed logins
- Config changes on key apps
- Unexpected access spikes
Centralize it (without pain)
Central storage + retention + access control. That’s the baseline.
We implement centralized log management using a pragmatic stack (collector + central store + dashboards + alerting), and keep it operator-friendly for teams without a dedicated security function.
Where relevant, we align the baseline to recognized guidance (including CISA) and document exactly what’s being collected, where it lives, and who can access it.
- Retention: define what stays and for how long (based on risk and budget).
- Access: restrict and audit who can view/export evidence.
- Integrity: preserve timestamps and reduce opportunities for tampering.
Related insight:
Incident Ownership: Name the IC and Decision Rights
Ownership + decision rights make your logging usable during real incidents.
Ownership + decision rights make your logging usable during real incidents.
Alerts your team can actually run
Small set. High signal. Each alert has an owner and a next step.
- Admin privilege changes → verify actor, review session, roll back if needed.
- Suspicious sign-in → reset credential, enforce MFA, review activity window.
- Forwarding rule created → remove rule, review mailbox access, notify user.
- Malware detection → isolate endpoint, capture triage artifacts, document timeline.
This is where logging becomes readiness: faster response, less confusion, and usable evidence.
Want it implemented end-to-end?
Installation, configuration, training, and a simple runbook—so the baseline survives real life.
Centralized logging baseline (1–2 weeks)
- Implement log sources + central storage + dashboards
- Operationalize alert set + response steps
- Enable team training + a clean handover