What is Threat Intelligence?

Threat intelligence refers to evidence-based knowledge about existing or emerging asset threats and hazards, including context, mechanisms, indicators, implications, and actionable advice. This information informs decisions regarding an organization’s response to that threat.

In cybersecurity, threat intelligence allows organizations to understand the risks of the most common and severe external threats, such as zero-day threats, advanced persistent threats (APTs), and exploits. It typically includes analytical insight into adversaries’ motivations, intentions, and capabilities.

Cyber threat intelligence helps organizations stay ahead of cyber threats by providing them with the information they need to quickly identify and respond to threats. By analyzing threat intelligence data, organizations can identify patterns and trends in cyber attacks, which can help them develop more effective security strategies. Threat intelligence can also help organizations identify vulnerabilities in their systems and applications, which can be used to improve their security posture.

What are the Cyber Threat Intelligence Types?

Strategic Threat Intelligence

Strategic threat intelligence is high-level information that helps organizations understand the threat landscape and decide where to allocate resources. Security vendors, threat intelligence platforms, and consulting firms typically collect this type of intelligence. Organizations need to have access to this type of intelligence so they can stay informed about the latest threats and trends.

• Nature: It is high-level and focuses on broader trends in the cyber threat landscape.
• Contents: Analyzes the motivations, intentions, and capabilities of threat actors. This may include geopolitical events that influence the cyber realm, emerging threats, and evolving adversary goals.
• Usage: Used by executives and decision-makers to shape an organization’s cybersecurity strategy and risk management. It helps in understanding the “why” behind cyber threats.
• Lifespan: Longer lifespan since it deals with overarching trends and strategic shifts.

How Can You Use Strategical Threat Intelligence To Protect Your Organization?

Strategic threat intelligence offers a high-level perspective contextualizing threats, emphasizing non-technical details suitable for presentations to board directors. For instance, consider the risk analysis examining how a business decision could expose an organization to cyber threats. This intelligence supports informed decisions on resource distribution and security policies by offering a panoramic view of the threat environment. Its primary advantage is enabling organizations to foresee potential threats, setting the stage for proactive measures.

• Risk Management: Strategic threat intelligence aids in identifying and addressing risks. By grasping the looming threats, organizations can craft strategies to curb these risks, minimizing the chance of a successful breach.
• Resource Allocation: With insights from strategic threat intelligence, organizations can distribute resources more efficiently. Recognizing the predominant threats allows for prioritizing security tasks and directing resources to areas of utmost importance.
• Security Policies: Knowledge derived from strategic threat intelligence facilitates the creation of potent security policies. When the nature and specifics of threats are clear, policies can be fashioned to counter those specific threats effectively.
• Compliance: Strategic threat intelligence proves invaluable in regulatory compliance. Organizations can strategize to meet regulatory standards and safeguard sensitive information by acknowledging potential threats.

Tactical Threat Intelligence

Tactical threat intelligence is actionable information that can be used to thwart specific attacks. This type of intelligence is typically collected by security incident response teams, malware analysts, and threat hunters. Organizations need access to this type of intelligence to respond to threats and prevent or mitigate damage quickly.

• Nature: This is often technical.
• Contents: It includes indicators of compromise (IoCs) like IP addresses, domain names, URLs, file hashes, and malware signatures.
• Usage: It’s used by frontline defenders such as security operations center (SOC) analysts to detect and respond to threats in real-time.
• Lifespan: Typically, it has a shorter lifespan as threat actors can quickly change their tools and infrastructure.

How Can You Use Tactical Threat Intelligence To Protect Your Organization?

Tactical threat intelligence can be used to protect your organization by providing valuable information about how attackers are likely to target your organization and what types of attacks they are likely to use.

• Identify vulnerabilities: With tactical threat intelligence, you can pinpoint potential weak points within your systems and software that adversaries may exploit. Being aware of these potential points of entry allows you to bolster defenses, diminishing the likelihood of a successful breach.
• Improve incident response: Armed with insights from tactical threat intelligence, your response to security incidents can be more swift and adept. When you’re familiar with the specific tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) attackers deploy, it becomes feasible to craft superior response strategies, bolstering your organization’s capability to counteract malicious activities.
• Enhance threat hunting: Threat hunting involves the proactive pursuit of potential threats that might bypass conventional security measures. Tactical threat intelligence shines a light on these emerging threats, assisting you in refining and enhancing your threat-seeking methodologies.
• Improve security awareness: By leveraging tactical threat intelligence, you can better inform and prepare your employees about the evolving tactics of attackers. With regular updates on the latest attack strategies, your staff can better discern potential threats and adopt practices to sidestep them.

Operational Threat Intelligence

Operational threat intelligence is information that is used to support daily security operations. Security analysts, intrusion detection systems, and SIEM platforms typically collect this type of intelligence. Organizations need access to this type of intelligence to identify and address potential threats promptly.

• Nature: Provides insights into adversaries’ tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
• Contents: Information on ongoing attack campaigns, specific malware functionalities, and targeted vulnerabilities.
• Usage: Helps organizations anticipate how a threat actor might attempt to compromise their systems and informs mid-level security personnel about ongoing threats.
• Lifespan: It has a medium lifespan, being relevant as long as a specific campaign or attack technique is active.

Why is Cyber Threat Intelligence Important?

Cyber threat intelligence is a rapidly evolving field, and new types of threat intelligence are constantly emerging. Organizations must stay abreast of the latest developments as the threat landscape changes and adapt their CTI strategies accordingly.

Threat intelligence can support various security activities, from threat detection and incident response to vulnerability management and risk assessment. Organizations can make more informed decisions about protecting their networks and data by understanding the different types of threat intelligence and how they can be used.

Cyber threat intelligence (CTI) plays a crucial role in the cybersecurity landscape for a variety of reasons:

1. Informed Decision Making: CTI provides organizations with insights into potential attackers’ tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). With this knowledge, organizations can make informed decisions about where to allocate resources, which security measures to prioritize, and how to protect their assets best.
2. Proactive Defense: Rather than reacting to threats as they arise, CTI allows organizations to be proactive by identifying potential threats and vulnerabilities ahead of time. This anticipatory approach can reduce the risk of breaches and minimize potential damage.
3. Enhanced Incident Response: CTI provides detailed information about current threat actors and their methods. This knowledge can drastically improve an organization’s incident response time and effectiveness when a breach occurs.
4. Strategic Planning: On a higher level, CTI informs an organization’s strategic planning, helping to align security strategies with business objectives and ensuring long-term protection.
5. Staying Ahead of Threat Actors: The cyber threat landscape is continuously evolving. CTI ensures that organizations remain updated on the latest threats, vulnerabilities, and exploitative techniques, keeping them one step ahead of potential attackers.
6. Risk Management: By understanding the current threat environment, organizations can assess and prioritize risks more effectively. This helps in tailoring security measures to the most pertinent threats.
7. Strengthening Security Posture: With knowledge of potential threats, organizations can bolster their defenses in targeted ways, ensuring that security measures are as strong and effective as possible.
8. Regulatory Compliance: Many industries have regulations that mandate certain levels of cybersecurity. CTI can help organizations understand their threats and comply with relevant regulations.
9. Employee Training and Awareness: CTI can educate employees about the latest threats and attack methods, helping reduce the risk of successful phishing attempts and other user-targeted attacks.
10. Business Reputation: A proactive and informed approach to cybersecurity can bolster an organization’s reputation, showing customers and partners that the organization takes security seriously and is well-prepared to handle threats.

Brandefense Cyber Threat Intelligence Services

Brandefense’s digital risk protection services proactively identify potential threats across the digital landscape, providing real-time alerts that enable swift response and damage minimization.

• Proactive Threat Intelligence: Brandefense scours the digital landscape for potential threats, providing real-time intelligence to prevent attacks before they can affect your operations.
• Real-Time Alerts: With Brandefense, you’re immediately notified about potential threats. This real-time alert system enables your team to respond swiftly and minimize damage.
• Advanced Analytics and Reporting: Brandefense equips you with detailed insights, reports, and actionable recommendations made possible by our advanced analytics tools. This empowers you to enhance your overall security posture.
• 24/7 Monitoring: Brandefense offers round-the-clock surveillance of the digital landscape. This means threats can be identified and neutralized anytime, providing peace of mind outside business hours.

These proactive measures enhance users’ trust, demonstrating your organization’s commitment to cybersecurity and leading to increased customer loyalty. Proactively managing digital risks also saves significant costs by preventing expensive cyber incidents. With 24/7 surveillance and scalable services that can grow your business, these services provide continuous, flexible protection.