Threat intelligence

Threat Intelligence (TI), also known as cyber threat intelligence, is the practice of collecting, analyzing, and disseminating information gathered from both internal and external sources about potential risks posed to networks and digital assets. TI enables organizations to quickly detect and respond to potential threats by enabling knowledgeable decision makers to proactively reduce risks associated with malicious activity.

At its core, TI involves gathering and processing information related to past, present, and potential future threats – both at an organizational and global level. Typically, this involves leveraging a wide range of data sources, ranging from email and network traffic to public reports and social media posts, to determine the existence and context of potential security risks. In addition, organizations can leverage such intel to identify indicators of compromise affecting their particular environment, as well as develop strategies to protect against possible future attacks.

TI solutions generally leverage a combination of manual and automated processes to derive actionable insights from the gathered intel, and are often integrated with other security solutions such as SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) and endpoint protection. Ultimately, TI enables organizations to better anticipate, detect, and respond to threats, as well as pinpoint previously undetected attacks, helping them stay ahead of the adversary.

By understanding the type and scope of external and internal threats, as well as adversary tactics and techniques, TI can help organizations build better defenses and gain an advantage over adversaries. This, in turn, can help organizations reduce the overall cost of damage associated with malicious activity, as well as mitigate their security risks.