Today, those who understand the relationships between an organization's dynamic, complex, and unique internet presence and the global threat landscape are the ones who win. Next-gen security intelligence fueled by internet relationships is how.
The global internet attack surface has transformed dramatically into a dynamic, all-encompassing, completely entwined ecosystem that we're all a part of—your organization, my organization, good guys, bad guys, and every online entity in-between. If you have an internet presence, you interconnect with everyone else, including those that want to do you harm.
Traditionally, security intelligence helped us keep an eye on our networks, traffic, and endpoints to take action when and where necessary. However, as recent security events have forced us to reassess core concepts and long-held perspectives on cybersecurity itself, it's also time to revisit the impact of security intelligence to protect the enterprise.
The new cyberthreat landscape has made static security intelligence dangerously myopic. Whether it be a hack of a digital partner upstream, a forgotten website, or vulnerability in a code library or remote access program, organizations can be susceptible in ways we rarely thought about before.
Internal logs and third-party feeds alone don't provide enough information about the attackers most likely to target your organization, nor the vulnerabilities and security gaps they're most likely to exploit. Extending security and IT protection for the extended enterprise requires mapping the billions of relationships between the internet components belonging to every organization, business, and threat actor on Earth. Security intelligence built from these relationships—the connective tissue between websites, IP addresses, components, frameworks, and code——brings the near-infinite global attack surface into scope, giving security teams real-time situational awareness.
Relevant, actionable threat intelligence gives security teams line-of-sight to attackers and threat systems and infrastructure. Modern, dynamic security intelligence should have five critical elements fully loaded and operationalized. Recently, RiskIQ released a white paper reviewing these five fundamental tenets of a next-gen security intelligence program that give your organization a distinct advantage over its cyber assailants.
Over the past several months, RiskIQ has led a cyberthreat workshop program that covers each of these tenets. These five sessions have helped hundreds of cybersecurity pros define their organizations’ digital attack surface, risks and dependencies, and those targeting them to stay ahead of adversaries. Below, get the rundown on each of these five tenets and watch the workshops on demand.
Watch: Five Key Tenets of a Next-gen Security Intelligence Program On-Demand
In today's cyberthreat landscape, those who understand these infrastructure relationships best, good guy or bad guy, are the ones who win. This white paper will detail the importance of modern, dynamic security intelligence focused on these digital connections. In addition, it shares five critical elements all security teams must have fully loaded and operationalized to stay ahead of their adversaries and win the cybersecurity battle:
1. Know Yourself: Attack Surface Intelligence - Awareness of your digital attack surface, its composition, and unique placement amid the global attack surface. Having complete visibility into each asset and connection across your digital footprint is vital.
2. Know Your Allies: Third-Party Intelligence - Your attack surface is full of dependencies. Understanding the risks across your digital supply chain allows you to gain early visibility of threats that could compromise your partners and, through them, impact your organization.
3. Know Your Enemies: Cyber Threat Intelligence - Like your attack surface, your adversary's digital footprint is continuously evolving. With access to real-world observations, insights into digital relationships, and internet connections to threat systems and threat actors, you gain the intelligence necessary to scale your defenses.
4. Know Your Ever-Changing Surroundings: Security Operations Intelligence - Enriching core security solutions with extended enterprise intelligence improves investigation and response.
5. Know Your Weaknesses: Vulnerability Intelligence - New common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVEs) are announced daily. Identify which vulnerabilities matter, how critical they are, and how to align the teams in your organization to work together toward a common goal.
A Rapidly Shifting Threat Landscape, a Growing Battlefield
The rapid growth of internet-exposed assets has dramatically broadened the spectrum of threats and vulnerabilities affecting the average organization. Sophisticated APTs and petty cybercriminals alike threaten businesses' safety, targeting their data, brand, intellectual property, systems, and people. Today, 375 new threats emerge each minute.
However, unlike years past, most cyberattacks originate miles away from the network—external-facing web applications comprised the vector category most commonly exploited in hacking-related breaches.
The sheer scale of these now-commonplace security issues makes them just as much of a big data problem as a cybersecurity problem. They've made us rethink the value of security intelligence to the organization and what security teams and the rest of the enterprise need to operate safely in the age of global-scale threats.
Security intelligence must shrink the global attack surfaces down to size, showing security teams what matters most and how best to act quickly and decisively in the face of each new threat.
Welcome to the age of next-gen security intelligence. Welcome to the age of relationships. Get started with RiskIQ Illuminate to see first-hand how this powerful intelligence can help your organization stand up to a new generation of cyberthreats.
