The Three Types of Intelligence for Threat Intelligence: A Comprehensive Guide
Threat intelligence is the process of collecting, analyzing and disseminating information about existing or emerging cyber threats that target an organization. Threat intelligence helps security teams to be more proactive, enabling them to prevent, detect and respond to cyber attacks more effectively.
However, not all threat intelligence is created equal. Depending on the source, scope and quality of the information, threat intelligence can vary in its usefulness and applicability. To get the most out of threat intelligence, security teams need to understand the different types of intelligence and how to use them.
In this guide, I will explain the three types of intelligence for threat intelligence: strategic, tactical and operational. I will also provide examples of each type and how they can help security teams to improve their cybersecurity posture.
Strategic Threat Intelligence
Strategic threat intelligence is the type of intelligence that provides a high-level overview of the threat landscape and the trends, patterns and motivations of threat actors. Strategic threat intelligence helps security teams to understand the big picture and align their security strategy with the business goals and risks.
Strategic threat intelligence answers questions such as:
- Who are the threat actors that target our organization or industry?
- What are their objectives, capabilities and TTPs (tactics, techniques and procedures)?
- How do they evolve over time and what are their future plans?
- What are the emerging threats and vulnerabilities that we need to be aware of?
- How do we compare with our peers and competitors in terms of security maturity and performance?
Strategic threat intelligence is typically derived from open-source intelligence (OS-INT), which is information that is publicly available on the internet or other sources, such as media reports, blogs, forums, social media, etc. Strategic threat intelligence can also be obtained from commercial or government sources that provide curated and analyzed threat reports and bulletins.
Strategic threat intelligence is useful for:
- Security leaders and executives who need to make informed decisions about security investments, policies and priorities
- Security analysts who need to monitor the threat landscape and identify emerging threats and opportunities
- Security awareness and education programs that aim to raise the security culture and knowledge of employees
Tactical Threat Intelligence
Tactical threat intelligence is the type of intelligence that provides detailed and actionable information about specific threats and indicators of compromise (IOCs) that affect an organization. Tactical threat intelligence helps security teams to respond quickly and effectively to incidents and mitigate threats.
Tactical threat intelligence answers questions such as:
- What are the specific threats and IOCs that target our organization or industry?
- How do they exploit our vulnerabilities and attack our systems or networks?
- What are the best practices and recommendations to prevent or contain them?
- How can we detect them using our existing tools and processes?
- How can we share them with our peers or partners for collaboration?
Tactical threat intelligence is typically derived from technical sources, such as network logs, malware samples, endpoint data, etc. Tactical threat intelligence can also be obtained from external sources, such as threat feeds, security vendors, industry groups, etc.
Tactical threat intelligence is useful for:
- Security operations center (SOC) analysts who need to triage, analyze and remediate incidents
- Security engineers who need to configure and tune security tools and controls
- Threat hunters who need to proactively search for signs of compromise or malicious activity
- Incident responders who need to contain and eradicate threats
Operational Threat Intelligence
Operational threat intelligence is the type of intelligence that provides granular and contextual information about specific threat actors and their TTPs. Operational threat intelligence helps security teams to anticipate and disrupt threats before they cause damage.
Operational threat intelligence answers questions such as:
- Who are the specific threat actors that target our organization or industry?
- What are their TTPs at each stage of the attack lifecycle?
- How do they communicate, coordinate and collaborate with each other?
- What are their weaknesses, blind spots and limitations?
- How can we deceive, deter or disrupt them?
Operational threat intelligence is typically derived from human sources, such as undercover agents, informants, insiders, etc. Operational threat intelligence can also be obtained from covert sources, such as honeypots, sinkholes, malware analysis, etc.
Operational threat intelligence is useful for:
- Red teamers who need to simulate realistic attacks and test the effectiveness of security defenses
- Blue teamers who need to improve their detection and response capabilities
- Purple teamers who need to facilitate collaboration and communication between red and blue teams
- Threat intel analysts who need to produce actionable intel reports and briefings
How to Use the Three Types of Intelligence for Threat Intelligence
The three types of intelligence for threat intelligence are not mutually exclusive. They complement each other and provide different perspectives and insights on the same threat landscape. Security teams need to use all three types of intelligence to achieve a comprehensive and holistic view of the threats they face and the best ways to counter them.
However, using the three types of intelligence for threat intelligence also requires different skills, resources and processes. Security teams need to:
- Define their intelligence requirements and prioritize their intelligence needs
- Collect and validate threat data from various sources and formats
- Analyze and correlate threat data to produce relevant and reliable threat intelligence
- Disseminate and share threat intelligence with internal and external stakeholders
- Consume and apply threat intelligence to improve security operations and outcomes
- Evaluate and measure the value and impact of threat intelligence
To perform these tasks effectively, security teams need to have a robust threat intelligence platform (TIP) that can automate and streamline the threat intelligence lifecycle. A TIP can help security teams to:
- Collect and ingest threat data from multiple sources and formats
- Enrich and normalize threat data to provide context and relevance
- Analyze and correlate threat data to identify threats and IOCs
- Store and manage threat data in a centralized and secure repository
- Disseminate and share threat intelligence with various tools and platforms
- Consume and apply threat intelligence to enhance security operations
A TIP can also provide various features and capabilities, such as:
- Threat intelligence feeds that provide curated and updated threat data from various sources
- Threat intelligence reports that provide in-depth analysis and insights on specific threats or topics
- Threat intelligence dashboards that provide visual and interactive views of the threat landscape
- Threat intelligence alerts that provide timely notifications of critical threats or incidents
- Threat intelligence APIs that provide easy integration with other tools and platforms
Conclusion
Threat intelligence is a vital component of any cybersecurity strategy. It provides security teams with the information they need to prevent, detect and respond to cyber threats more effectively. However, not all threat intelligence is created equal. Security teams need to understand the different types of intelligence for threat intelligence: strategic, tactical and operational. They also need to use a robust threat intelligence platform (TIP) that can automate and streamline the threat intelligence lifecycle. By doing so, security teams can achieve a comprehensive and holistic view of the threats they face and the best ways to counter them.
