Network Security Monitoring & Traffic Analysis
Most attacks that cause serious damage move laterally inside the network: between systems your firewall never inspects and on protocols your endpoint tools do not monitor. Our managed network detection and response service watches east-west traffic, DNS queries, and encrypted sessions around the clock. When something moves that should not be moving, your UK SOC team knows within minutes.
See What Firewalls and EDR Cannot.
Firewalls inspect perimeter traffic. EDR monitors endpoints. Neither sees what moves between internal systems: lateral movement via SMB, data exfiltration via DNS, or C2 beaconing over encrypted sessions. Network detection and response closes the gap.
Our managed NDR service deploys passive sensors, baselines your network behaviour, and alerts on deviations your existing stack will never surface. 24/7 coverage by CREST-accredited, UK-based SOC analysts.
Book a Scoping CallWhat Network Monitoring Would Have Caught
Your red team exercise concluded last month. The finding you cannot stop thinking about: the attacker moved laterally for 11 days before any alert fired. They used only living-off-the-land techniques. No custom malware. No signatures. They also exfiltrated a sample dataset via DNS tunneling. Your IDS missed all of it. The board wants to know what you are doing about the network visibility gap before the next quarterly review.
Network-layer monitoring detects the behaviours that endpoint tools miss: LDAP reconnaissance, SMB lateral movement, DNS tunneling with entropy-scored subdomain analysis, and C2 beaconing intervals. Every technique the red team used generates network traffic. That traffic leaves a pattern. NTA finds the pattern.
Your cyber insurer sends the renewal questionnaire. One question reads: “Do you have continuous monitoring and anomaly detection across your internal network?” You mark No. The premium increases by 40%. Your broker tells you that without network-layer monitoring, a breach claim could be partially or fully declined. You do not have the staff to build this in-house, and you cannot hire three SOC analysts on an SME budget.
Managed network monitoring handles the entire capability: sensors deployed by Precursor engineers, 24/7 monitoring by UK-based analysts, and full incident response included from £900/month. No internal SOC team required. Most clients are monitoring-live within three weeks of contract signature.
How Network Security
Monitoring Works
Every internal network hosts traffic that firewalls and endpoint tools do not inspect. Our sensors monitor east-west flows, DNS queries, and TLS session metadata to detect the specific techniques attackers use once they are inside: lateral movement, C2 beaconing, and data exfiltration via covert channels.
East-West Traffic Visibility
Traditional firewalls only inspect north-south traffic (in and out of the network). Our network security monitoring captures east-west traffic between internal systems to detect lateral movement, privilege escalation, and internal reconnaissance that perimeter tools never see.
Encrypted Traffic Analysis
We analyse TLS/SSL metadata (certificate details, JA3 fingerprints, SNI) to detect malicious encrypted traffic without breaking encryption. Identifies C2 beacons hidden in HTTPS and TLS sessions behaving outside normal patterns.
DNS Security Monitoring
DNS is the backbone of most attacks. Our DNS security monitoring applies entropy scoring to subdomain strings to detect tunneling, flags lookups to newly registered domains, and identifies DGA patterns and connections to known malicious infrastructure.
Network Anomaly Detection
Machine learning baselines normal network behaviour then alerts on deviations: unusual data volumes, connections to rare geographic locations, protocol misuse (HTTP over non-standard ports), and internal systems connecting to large numbers of hosts in short windows.
Data Exfiltration Detection
Identifies large outbound transfers, use of cloud storage APIs during off-hours, and covert channels (ICMP tunneling, DNS exfiltration). Our data exfiltration detection catches theft that endpoint tools miss by monitoring network-layer behaviour rather than endpoint activity.
MITRE ATT&CK Technique Coverage
Network detection rules mapped to specific MITRE ATT&CK techniques. This is what our sensors and SOC analysts are actively monitoring for on your network.
| Technique | Description | ATT&CK Phase | Network Detection Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1071 | Application Layer Protocol (C2) | Command & Control | JA3 fingerprinting, beaconing interval analysis, SNI anomaly detection |
| T1021 | Remote Services (Lateral Movement) | Lateral Movement | SMB/RPC/WinRM connection mapping, new host-pair detection, protocol anomaly scoring |
| T1048 | Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol | Exfiltration | DNS tunneling entropy analysis, ICMP payload inspection, protocol misuse detection |
| T1018 | Remote System Discovery | Discovery | LDAP enumeration detection, port sweep identification, ARP scan patterns |
| T1570 | Lateral Tool Transfer | Lateral Movement | Internal SMB file transfer volume anomalies, PsExec/WMI remote execution patterns |
| T1583.001 | Acquire Infrastructure: Domains | Resource Development | DNS lookups to newly registered domains (under 30 days), DGA pattern detection |
| T1572 | Protocol Tunneling | Command & Control | HTTP/HTTPS over non-standard ports, DNS query size anomalies, encapsulated protocol detection |
| T1041 | Exfiltration Over C2 Channel | Exfiltration | Outbound data volume anomalies, off-hours cloud API usage, session duration outliers |
From Sensor Deployment to 24/7 Monitoring
Our managed network detection and response service deploys passive sensors at segment boundaries via SPAN/mirror ports and delivers full 24/7 network security monitoring within three weeks. No inline deployment. No network performance impact. No disruption to your operations.
Continuous network monitoring is now a baseline requirement for cyber insurance coverage and regulatory compliance, but hiring and retaining SOC analysts is not realistic for most organisations. Our managed NDR service delivers enterprise-grade network visibility from £900/month.
From contract sign-off to live 24/7 network security monitoring. Sensor deployment, traffic baseline, tuning, and SOC onboarding completed within three working weeks. Emergency post-breach deployments within 5-7 days.
Passive sensor deployment via SPAN/mirror ports or TAPs. Sensors capture a copy of traffic metadata without sitting inline. Zero latency added to your network. Zero bandwidth consumed from production traffic.
Full managed network detection and response from £900/month. Includes sensor hardware, 24/7 UK SOC monitoring, threat hunting, and incident response. Fixed monthly pricing. No per-incident fees.
Engagement Workflow
Structured to minimise operational friction and maximise the value of the testing window.
Network Sensor Deployment
We deploy network sensors at key points: perimeter firewalls, core switches, and between network segments. Sensors use SPAN/mirror ports or inline TAPs to capture traffic metadata without full packet payloads. Zero impact on network performance. Your IT team provides port mirroring access once; we handle everything else.
Baseline and Tuning
We establish a baseline of normal traffic patterns over 2-4 weeks: mapping internal services, identifying business-critical flows, and suppressing known-good alerts. Exclusions are created for approved traffic patterns to eliminate false positives. Most clients reach live monitoring status within three weeks of sensor deployment.
24/7 SOC Monitoring and Hunting
Continuous network security monitoring begins from our UK Security Operations Centre. SOC analysts review alerts in real-time, investigating suspicious connections, unusual protocols, and anomalous traffic volumes. Proactive threat hunting queries network logs against MITRE ATT&CK techniques weekly.
Incident Response and Forensics
Confirmed threats trigger immediate containment: firewall blocks, session termination, and designated contact notification within your agreed SLA. Forensic analysis uses retained network metadata to map the full attack chain. Network metadata is retained for 90 days by default, providing a forensic record for incident investigations and regulatory reporting.
Procurement Requirements
Fixed monthly pricing with no per-incident fees. No hardware procurement required (sensors provided). No multi-year lock-in. All monitoring, triage, and incident response is performed by CREST-certified, UK-based analysts in our Newcastle SOC. Network metadata never leaves the UK.
Build a Complete
Security Programme.
Network monitoring works best when paired with endpoint detection, identity monitoring, and offensive security validation. Our penetration testers use SOC threat intelligence to test your network defences against live attack patterns your NTA should detect.
Explore Full MDR PlatformFull Services Catalogue
Comprehensive penetration testing services tailored to your environment.
Internal Testing
Post-perimeter assessments targeting Active Directory, lateral movement, privilege escalation, and segmentation validation from inside your network.
Ready to see what is moving
inside your network?
Book a free scoping call. We review your network architecture, confirm sensor placement requirements, and provide a fixed monthly quote within 48 hours. No obligation. No sales pressure.
Network Monitoring: Common Questions
Pricing, deployment, detection methods, and how NTA compares to firewalls and EDR.
Network traffic analysis pricing typically ranges from £900 to £6,000+ per month depending on network size and sensor deployment. Small-to-medium networks (single site, 1-3 sensors) average £900-£2,500/month including sensor deployment, 24/7 monitoring, and incident response. Mid-sized environments (multiple sites, 4-8 sensors) typically cost £3,500-£5,000/month. Large enterprises (10+ sensors, multi-site deployment) typically cost £5,000-£6,000+/month. Pricing includes sensor hardware or virtual appliances, 24/7 UK SOC monitoring, threat hunting, and full incident response. We provide fixed monthly quotes after reviewing your network architecture.
Network Detection and Response (NDR) is a security capability that continuously monitors network traffic to detect, investigate, and respond to threats. Unlike firewalls (which block known-bad traffic) or EDR (which monitors endpoints), NDR analyses network flows, DNS queries, and TLS session metadata to detect threats that operate between systems: lateral movement, covert C2 channels, and data exfiltration. Managed NDR services like Precursor's network traffic analysis deliver this capability without requiring an in-house security operations team.
Network anomaly detection establishes a baseline of normal traffic behaviour: typical connection patterns, data volumes, protocol usage, and timing. It then generates alerts when observed traffic deviates from that baseline. For example, a server that normally transfers 50MB per hour suddenly sending 4GB to an external IP at 3am, or an internal system connecting to 200 other internal hosts within a 10-minute window (reconnaissance). Anomaly-based detection catches novel threats and living-off-the-land techniques that signature-based tools miss.
Yes. DNS is the most commonly abused covert channel because most organisations allow DNS traffic outbound without analysis. Our DNS security monitoring applies entropy scoring to subdomain strings (high entropy indicates encoded data), flags lookups to newly registered domains (under 30 days old), detects unusually high query volumes to a single domain, and identifies DNS query and response size anomalies characteristic of tunneling. This catches exfiltration campaigns that IDS and firewall logging entirely miss.
Most cyber insurance policies and questionnaires now require evidence of continuous network monitoring and anomaly detection as a condition of coverage. A managed NTA/NDR service provides documented evidence that network-layer monitoring is in place, who is responsible for it (a CREST-accredited provider), and what the response SLA is. We can provide a service description document suitable for submission to your insurer or broker on request.
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) monitors activity on individual devices: processes, file writes, registry changes. Network Detection and Response (NDR) monitors traffic flowing between devices: connection patterns, protocol behaviour, data volumes. EDR sees what happens on a machine; NDR sees what moves across the network. They cover different attack phases and complement each other. An attacker who avoids triggering EDR alerts by living off the land still generates network traffic that NDR detects. See our Endpoint Protection and Response service for EDR coverage alongside network monitoring.
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) is a security capability that monitors network communications to detect malicious activity such as lateral movement, command-and-control (C2) beaconing, data exfiltration, and protocol abuse. NTA works by analysing metadata from network flows, DNS queries, and TLS/SSL sessions without decrypting traffic.
Firewalls and EDR have significant blind spots that NTA addresses: (1) Firewalls only inspect north-south (perimeter) traffic and do not see lateral movement between internal systems, (2) EDR only sees endpoint activity and misses network-layer attacks, encrypted C2, and traffic from unmanaged devices, (3) Advanced attackers specifically evade endpoint detection by living off the land and using legitimate protocols, (4) Data exfiltration via DNS tunneling or cloud storage APIs bypasses both firewall and EDR detection, (5) NTA detects impossible-to-fake network behaviours such as beaconing intervals, JA3 fingerprints, and traffic volumes, (6) Attackers cannot hide from the network: every action generates traffic. Most mature security programmes layer NTA with EDR for comprehensive visibility.
Firewalls block known-bad traffic at the perimeter. Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) look for specific attack signatures. NTA monitors all network traffic (including internal east-west flows) and uses behavioural analysis to detect anomalies and novel attacks that do not match known signatures.
No. We analyse TLS/SSL metadata (cipher suites, certificate details, JA3 fingerprints) without breaking encryption. This allows us to detect C2 beaconing and suspicious encrypted connections while preserving privacy and avoiding the security risks of TLS interception.
No. NTA sensors operate passively using SPAN/mirror ports or network TAPs. They capture a copy of traffic metadata without sitting inline, so there is zero impact on network performance or latency.
For active network-based attacks (C2 beaconing, lateral movement), NTA typically detects and alerts within minutes. Our UK-based SOC triages the alert and escalates confirmed threats to your team promptly, with phone notification for high-severity incidents.