What is threat intelligence?

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threat intelligence data provides companies with relevant and timely insights they need to understand, predict, detect and respond to cybersecurity threats . Threat intelligence solutions collect, filter and analyze large volumes of raw data related to existing or emerging sources of threats. The result is threat intelligence feeds and management reports. Data scientists and security teams use these feeds and reports to develop a targeted incident response program for specific attacks .

Everyone from fraud prevention to security operations to risk analysis benefits from threat intelligence . Threat intelligence software provides interactive, real-time views of threat and vulnerability data.

The advantage offered to security analysts and experts is obvious and serves to easily and quickly identify threat actor patterns . Understanding the source and target of attacks helps business leaders put in place effective defenses to mitigate risks and protect themselves from activities that could negatively impact the business.

cyber threat intelligence can be classified as strategic, tactical or operational. Strategic concerns the capabilities and general intent of cyber attacks . Consequently also the development of informed strategies associated with the fight against long-term threats. That Tactic is about the techniques and procedures that attackers might use in day-to-day operations. Finally, threat intelligence Operational provides highly technical forensic information regarding a specific attack campaign.

The threat intelligence cycle

Threat Intelligence Solutions collect raw data on actors and threats from various sources. This data is then analyzed and filtered to produce feed and management reports that contain information that can be used in automated security control solutions . The main purpose of this type of security is to keep organizations informed about the risks of advanced persistent threats, zero- day and exploits, and how to protect yourself from them.

The Cyber Threat Intelligence Cycle consists of the following stages.

Planning: The data requirements must first be defined.

Collection: Collect large amounts of raw data from internal and external threat intelligence sources.

Processing: Raw data is filtered, categorized and organized.

Analytics: This process transforms raw data into streams of threat intelligence using structured analytics techniques in real time and helps analysts identify Indicators of Compromise (IOC). < / p>

Dissemination: Analysis results are immediately shared with cybersecurity professionals and threat intelligence analysts.

Feedback: If all questions are answered, the cycle is over. If there are new requirements, the cycle starts over from the planning phase.

Common indicators of impairment

Enterprises are under increasing pressure to manage security vulnerabilities, and the threat landscape is ever-changing. threat intelligence feeds can help with this process identifying common indicators of compromise (IOC) . Not only that, they can also recommend the necessary steps to prevent attacks and infections. Some of the more common indicators of compromise include:

IP addresses, URLs and domain names: An example would be malware targeting an internal host that is communicating with a known threat actor.

Email addresses, email subject, links and attachments: An example would be a phishing attempt which relies on an unsuspecting user clicking on a link or attachment and initiating a malicious command.

Registry keys, file names and hashes of files and DLLs: An example would be an attack from an external host that has already been reported for nefarious behavior or is already infected.

Which tools for threat intelligence

The growing increase in malware and cyber threats has led to an abundance of threat intelligence tools that provide valuable information to protect businesses.

These tools come in the form of both open source and proprietary platforms. These provide a variety of cyber threat defense capabilities, such as automated risk analysis , private data collection , threat intelligence quick search tools, reporting and sharing this information among multiple users, curated alerts, vulnerability risk analysis, dark web monitoring, automated risk mitigation, threat hunting and much more.

We talked about one of these tools in a other article : the Miter Att & amp; ck . This is a very useful tool for learning about hacker attack techniques and behaviors. This is thanks to the information gathered by threat intelligence and the consequent sharing. A framework like this is very efficient for creating defensive mechanisms that make it possible to secure corporate infrastructures.

Artificial intelligence and threat intelligence

As we saw earlier, gathering information from various sources is just one of the steps. These must then be analyzed and subsequently processed into control protocols, to be really useful for security.

For this type of work of analysis, definition of baseline behaviors and data control, we are increasingly relying on artificial intelligence and deep learning. A Next Generation SIEM , flanked by a UEBA solution are perfect for this type of protection.

The control of the behavior of entities within the perimeter carried out by the UEBA is able to identify any suspicious behavior, based on the information collected and analyzed by the SIEM.

Conclusions

The defenses we have named are the primary value of a corporate security plan. Adopting specific solutions, implementing threat intelligence and therefore an active search for threat indicators, offers a strategic advantage. The company can take a step ahead of criminals, who can only leverage the surprise effect against their victims. Precisely for this general situation, every company should be in a position not to be caught by the off guard. Implementing proactive solutions is now necessary.

The threat intelligence is therefore a defense weapon behind which to protect the most important resources in order to work in peace.

If you want to know how we can help you with our security services, do not hesitate to contact us, we will be happy to answer any questions.

Link utili:

Useful links:

Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) – greater effectiveness for IT security

SOAR: coordination for cyber security