Every day, the digital threat landscape morphs as threat actors come up with new ways to infiltrate and succeed against your organization. To take proactive measures against cyber threats, organizations need threat detection strategies.
Of the three forms of threat intelligence (strategic, operational, and tactical), tactical threat intelligence is the most directly actionable. This form of threat intelligence is meant for direct consumption by security practitioners or automated systems, and usually consists of threat data such as indicators or heuristics. It has two primary purposes. First, it enables the detection of attempted cyberattacks in an organization when applied to real-time monitoring systems. This in turn enables defenders to respond to attacks quickly and prevent or contain loss.
Tactical threat intelligence also enables defenders to engage in threat hunting or root cause analysis activities when examining historical (attempted) intrusions. This is useful in detecting breaches that may have occurred, understanding the cause of a previous breach, and understanding whether a particular adversary or TTP is being attempted against your organization.
The effective use of tactical threat intelligence is a critical piece of any cybersecurity program. Without tactical threat intelligence, defenders cannot effectively monitor and protect the large digital footprints most modern organizations have today.
Understanding Tactical Threat Intelligence
Tactical threat intelligence plays a critical role in proactive cybersecurity measures because it enables organizations to identify and mitigate threats in real-time if applied correctly. By providing known indicators of malicious activity, tactical threat intelligence helps security teams respond quickly to incidents, thereby minimizing potential damage and reducing threat actors’ operating time within a network.
How Is Tactical Threat Intelligence Different from Strategic & Operational Intelligence?
All three forms of threat intelligence are tightly connected to one another. The primary difference between the three is the intended audience.
Strategic Threat Intelligence looks at the overall threats of cybersecurity and involves analysis of long-term trends. Strategic threat intelligence tends to focus less on the technical details, and more on the underlying meaning behind technical threat intelligence data. The outcome should be to make clear which decisions face strategic decision makers and provide any relevant details to inform their decision.
Operational Threat Intelligence takes tactical threat intelligence and adds context. This includes TTPs and outside factors such as underlying motivations and the timing of threats. This helps defenders understand the broader picture of a threat against the organization. Operational threat intelligence is also the practice of taking the requirements of strategic decision makers and translating them into actions for tactical personnel to pursue.
Tactical threat intelligence helps in real-time threat identification and response through providing current information on specific threats that can be acted upon quickly. Enabling security tools and systems to detect and block threats based on known signatures and patterns allow for quick actions. By supporting the foundation of alerts and automated responses that enhance speed and efficiency of response efforts, tactical threat intelligence helps identify and respond to cyber threats in real-time.
Why Tactics, Techniques, & Procedures Are Important in Threat Intelligence
TTPs are described with Operational Threat Intelligence since context and the bigger picture are required, but Tactical Threat Intelligence is used, via indicators, to detect when a TTP is used. This makes TTPs vital components of threat intelligence as they help:
- Provide insights into the capabilities and sophistication of threat actors.
- Enable the development of defensive strategies and countermeasures that are effective against known TTPs.
- Facilitate the sharing of threat intelligence across organizations and sectors, enhancing collective defense capabilities against cyber threats.
Tactical Threat Intelligence Sources
Tactical threat intelligence comes from multiple sources that can be both internal and external.
Threat databases like MITRE ATT&CK are globally accessible database. MITRE ATT&CK provides information about digital threat actors and their TTPs based on actual cyberattacks. The database is freely available and serves as a resource for understanding how threat actors operate and what methods they employ in cyberattacks.
Open-source intelligence (public) includes news reports, academic papers, government agency reports, social media, and other public forms of reporting. However, organizations should be aware that this source of communication can get outdated quickly.
Internal sources can come from an organization’s log management tool or security information and event management (SIEM). This source should always be included as it’s information already in possession.
Implementing Cyber Threat Intelligence
Threat intelligence empowers security teams to disrupt threat actors by providing vital insights, preventing fraud, and strengthening security controls.
Collaborating and sharing information with other organizations can significantly enhance the quality and effectiveness of cyber threat intelligence.
Putting collected intelligence into action within security operations boosts overall protection. Without it, your cybersecurity posture is at a serious disadvantage.
Top Strategies for Effective Threat Detection
So, what are the vital steps for building an effective threat detection? Network monitoring, endpoint detection, and response (EDR), and user behavior analytics are a few of the important indicators for threat detection.
Strengthen Your Organization with Threat Intelligence
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Gain a better understanding of threats attacking your brand by exposing full attack cycles, capturing infrastructure intelligence, and uncovering threat actor operations. Continue to monitor the threat landscape, benchmark threat exposure against peers, and keep stakeholders informed with detailed reports.
