Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) is the process of gathering, analysing, and utilising information about potential and actual cyber threats to enhance an organisation’s cyber security posture. CTI helps to anticipate, detect, and respond to attacks by providing actionable insights on adversarial tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). By understanding the nature of these threats, organisations can better defend their networks and systems.

 

CTI is categorised into three main types: strategic, operational, and tactical intelligence.

 

• Strategic intelligence focuses on high-level insights that inform policy-making and decision-making at an organisational level. It may include analysis of the motivations behind threat actors, long-term trends in cyber threats, and potential future risks. For example, understanding that a nation-state is likely to target critical infrastructure for geopolitical reasons allows government agencies to bolster defences in those sectors.

 

• Operational intelligence deals with specific, real-time information on attacks that are currently unfolding or expected soon. It is crucial for incident response teams who need to know the specifics of an attack, such as the infrastructure being used by adversaries. For instance, an operational CTI report might reveal the IP addresses or domains associated with a phishing campaign targeting financial institutions.

 

 

• Tactical intelligence focuses on the technical details of an attack, such as the malware signatures or the specific vulnerabilities being exploited. This type of intelligence is used to inform the technical defences within an organisation, like configuring firewalls or updating antivirus databases. An example would be receiving a CTI feed that includes hashes of newly discovered ransomware, enabling a security team to configure defences against it.

 

Examples of CTI in practice:

 

1. Phishing detection and prevention: CTI can provide details of phishing campaigns, including email subjects, sender domains, and attachments used. Security teams can use this intelligence to block such emails and train employees to recognise them.

 

1. Vulnerability management: CTI helps organisations identify which vulnerabilities are being actively exploited by threat actors. For instance, if CTI reports that a critical vulnerability in a popular software is being targeted by hackers, organisations can prioritise patching that vulnerability to prevent attacks.

 

 

1. Incident response: During an ongoing attack, CTI can help incident response teams understand the threat actor’s methods. For example, CTI might reveal that the attackers are using a particular remote access tool, allowing defenders to detect and remove the tool from their network.

 

CTI is a vital aspect of modern cyber security, enabling organisations to proactively defend against and respond to ever-evolving cyber threats.