SOC Analyst Prep Labs - Cover6 Solutions

About Course

For years, the #1 question in entry-level cybersecurity has been: “How do I get hands-on experience without a job?”

We used to answer that question with a setup guide. Now we answer it with infrastructure.

Cover6 SOC Analyst Prep Labs is a live-environment course. The moment you enroll, you have access to a production Splunk instance, a Security Onion deployment, a public server generating real attack traffic every day, and BOTS v2.0 — the industry-standard investigation dataset used by hiring managers to assess analyst skills.

You don’t configure anything. You don’t pay for cloud resources. You don’t wait for a VM to finish downloading. You open a browser, log in, and start investigating.

The only thing standing between you and SOC analyst experience is the decision to start.

11 topics. 49 lessons. 11 hands-on labs. The C6 IR Challenge. A timed, dynamic capstone where you investigate a live incident nobody has seen before. When you pass, your Chrysalus profile updates — and employers see a verified, live-infrastructure score. Not a self-reported cert. Not a practice quiz. Proof.

The excuse is officially gone.

Course Content

Topic 1 — SOC Fundamentals
First day on the job. You are reviewing the alert queue. The team briefs you: three major incidents last semester. They hired you because of them.

Lesson 1.1 — 100 SOC Analyst Terms
Lesson 1.2 — What Is a SOC?
Lesson 1.3 — The SOC Analyst Role
Lesson 1.4 — Alert Triage Fundamentals
Lesson 1.5 — You vs. The AI
Lab 1 — Alert Triage in Splunk
Quiz 1 — SOC Fundamentals

Topic 2 — Threat Intelligence and The Landscape
You pull threat intel on groups that targeted universities last year. Two campaigns match TTPs you are seeing in your own logs.

Topic 3 — SIEM Architecture and Splunk Foundations
The Splunk instance was set up six months ago. Nobody has built proper dashboards yet. That is your first project.

Topic 4 — Log Analysis
You find evidence of a brute force campaign that hit the admin network two weeks ago. The previous analyst missed it. You are reconstructing the timeline.

Topic 5 — Network Traffic Analysis
The research network is showing unusual outbound traffic. Dr. Osei's team says nothing has changed. You pull the PCAP.

Topic 6 — Incident Detection
Three alerts fire in the same 20-minute window. You have to triage all three, determine what is real, and brief Dana before the noon meeting.

Topic 7 — Incident Response
One of those three alerts was real. You are writing the IR report. Marcus wants a brief for the Board by Friday.

Topic 8 — Endpoint Detection and Response
A workstation in the Health Center is behaving strangely. Possible malware. Student health records are at risk. The clock is running.

Topic 9 — Vulnerability Management
You run the first formal vulnerability scan of the public web server. What you find is worse than expected.

Topic 10 — Security Frameworks and Compliance
Dana asks you to map the current security posture to NIST CSF. The gaps you find will drive next year's budget request.

Topic 11 — Capstone: The C6 IR Challenge
Someone hit Odapeeka State. The attack is ongoing. You have the SIEM, the traffic capture, and the clock. Prove what you have learned.

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About Course

Course Content

Topic 1 — SOC Fundamentals First day on the job. You are reviewing the alert queue. The team briefs you: three major incidents last semester. They hired you because of them.

Lesson 1.1 — 100 SOC Analyst Terms

Lesson 1.2 — What Is a SOC?

Lesson 1.3 — The SOC Analyst Role

Lesson 1.4 — Alert Triage Fundamentals

Lesson 1.5 — You vs. The AI

Lab 1 — Alert Triage in Splunk

Quiz 1 — SOC Fundamentals

Topic 2 — Threat Intelligence and The Landscape You pull threat intel on groups that targeted universities last year. Two campaigns match TTPs you are seeing in your own logs.

Lesson 2.1 — 100 Ransomware and Malware Terms

Lesson 2.2 — Threat Intelligence: What It Is and What It Is Not

Lesson 2.3 — MITRE ATT&CK Framework

Lesson 2.4 — Common Attack Vectors: Phishing, Credential Theft and Initial Access

Lesson 2.5 — Ransomware Anatomy

Lab 2 — Threat Intel Mapping

Quiz 2 — Threat Intelligence

Topic 3 — SIEM Architecture and Splunk Foundations The Splunk instance was set up six months ago. Nobody has built proper dashboards yet. That is your first project.

Lesson 3.1 — 100 SOC Analyst Terms

Lesson 3.2 — How a SIEM Works

Lesson 3.3 — SPL: The Language of the SOC

Lesson 3.4 — Indexes, Sources, and Sourcetypes

Lesson 3.5 — Building SOC Dashboards

Lab 3 — Build the Odapeeka State Dashboard

Quiz 3 — SIEM and Splunk

Topic 4 — Log Analysis You find evidence of a brute force campaign that hit the admin network two weeks ago. The previous analyst missed it. You are reconstructing the timeline.

Lesson 4.1 — 100 Incident Response Terms

Lesson 4.2 — Linux Logs: What They Tell You

Lesson 4.3 — Windows Logs: Event IDs That Matter

Lesson 4.4 — Timeline Reconstruction

Lesson 4.5 — Log Gaps and Evidence Gaps

Lab 4 — Brute Force Reconstruction

Quiz 4 — Log Analysis

Topic 5 — Network Traffic Analysis The research network is showing unusual outbound traffic. Dr. Osei's team says nothing has changed. You pull the PCAP.

Lesson 5.1 — 100 Penetration Testing Terms

Lesson 5.2 — Network Traffic Fundamentals

Lesson 5.3 — Reading PCAPs with Wireshark

Lesson 5.4 — Network Traffic in Splunk

Lesson 5.5 — The Odapeeka State PCAP Challenge

Lab 5 — Research Network Investigation

Quiz 5 — Network Traffic Analysis

Topic 6 — Incident Detection Three alerts fire in the same 20-minute window. You have to triage all three, determine what is real, and brief Dana before the noon meeting.

Lesson 6.1 — 100 Incident Response Terms

Lesson 6.2 — Detection Engineering Fundamentals

Lesson 6.3 — Splunk Alerts and Correlation Rules

Lesson 6.4 — Multi-Alert Triage

Lab 6 — Three-Alert Triage

Quiz 6 — Incident Detection

Topic 7 — Incident Response One of those three alerts was real. You are writing the IR report. Marcus wants a brief for the Board by Friday.

Lesson 7.1 — 100 Incident Response Terms

Lesson 7.2 — The IR Lifecycle

Lesson 7.3 — Containment Strategy

Lesson 7.4 — Writing the IR Report

Lesson 7.5 — Chain of Custody and Evidence Handling

Lab 7 — Write the Odapeeka State IR Report

Quiz 7 — Incident Response

Topic 8 — Endpoint Detection and Response A workstation in the Health Center is behaving strangely. Possible malware. Student health records are at risk. The clock is running.

Lesson 8.1 — 100 Ransomware and Malware Terms

Lesson 8.2 — EDR Fundamentals

Lesson 8.3 — Process Analysis and Malware Behavior

Lesson 8.4 — Persistence Mechanisms

Lesson 8.5 — Containment and Remediation Decisions

Lab 8 — Health Center Malware Investigation

Quiz 8 — Endpoint Detection and Response

Topic 9 — Vulnerability Management You run the first formal vulnerability scan of the public web server. What you find is worse than expected.

Lesson 9.1 — 100 Penetration Testing Terms

Lesson 9.2 — Vulnerability Management Fundamentals

Lesson 9.3 — Scanning with Nessus

Lesson 9.4 — CVE Research and Prioritization

Lesson 9.5 — Scanning the Live Target

Lab 9 — Vulnerability Scan and Prioritization Report

Quiz 9 — Vulnerability Management

Topic 10 — Security Frameworks and Compliance Dana asks you to map the current security posture to NIST CSF. The gaps you find will drive next year's budget request.

Lesson 10.1 — 100 Zero Trust Terms

Lesson 10.2 — NIST CSF 2.0

Lesson 10.3 — NIST SP 800-171 and CMMC

Lesson 10.4 — Compliance vs. Security

Lesson 10.5 — Writing the Security Assessment Report

Lab 10 — NIST CSF Gap Assessment