In the context of alert triaging within a Security Operations Center (SOC), the priority of alerts is typically determined based on the potential impact and urgency of the threat they represent.
* Firewall blocking traffic alerts indicate that the firewall is effectively doing its job by blocking unwanted traffic. While it's important to review these alerts to ensure legitimate traffic isn't being blocked, they generally represent a lower priority because the immediate threat has been mitigated by the firewall.
* SQL injection attempt alerts are of high priority because they indicate an active attempt to exploit a security vulnerability in order to manipulate or steal data.
* Data deletion attempt alerts also carry high priority as they could signify an attempt to remove or corrupt critical data, which could have significant impact on the availability and integrity of data.
* Brute-force attempt alerts are important as they may indicate an ongoing attempt to gain unauthorized access to systems. However, if the attempts are being blocked, these alerts may be of a slightly lower priority compared to an active exploit attempt like SQL injection.
Given these considerations, the alert for the firewall blocking traffic would generally be given the least priority, as it indicates a threat that has already been contained.
References: The EC-Council's Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) program covers the fundamentals of SOC operations, including the management of alerts and the triaging process. The program emphasizes the importance of prioritizing alerts based on the severity and potential impact of the threat12. For more detailed information, the EC-Council's official CSA study guides and courses should be consulted. These resources provide in-depth knowledge on how to effectively manage and prioritize alerts in a SOC environment.