What is threat analysis?

Threat assessment includes protocols, processes, and procedures to detect and mitigate cyber threats. Analysts must consider accidental and intentional threats, how to monitor network assets, and policies regarding network access, data protection, and incident responses.

Why is threat analysis important?

Threat analysis is important because it provides essential information about an organization's security posture and threat landscape.

Security teams can develop an understanding of threats to network infrastructure, applications, and data. They can use this information to secure the attack surface with appropriate measures and mitigate vulnerabilities such as software exploits or weak access controls.

Without threat analysis, companies must take a reactive approach to security. Security teams must hope they have the right resources to neutralize threats before data breaches or other attacks occur.

Threat analysis offers a proactive alternative that counters high-probability threats. It also equips security officers with the knowledge needed to protect security perimeters, making incident responses smoother and more efficient.

Types of threat analysis

Threat analysis tends to divide into three categories. A robust threat management strategy considers all three threat sources, identifies threats, assesses risks, and implements mitigation measures.

Intentional threats

Intentional threats are deliberate cyber-attacks carried out by external threat actors. Examples include phishing campaigns that steal login credentials and compromise network assets, or ransomware attacks designed to extract ransom payments.

Threat intelligence is crucial when addressing intentional threats. Intelligence platforms track active attack groups and malware agents. They provide contextual information to assess risks and counter the most probable attacks.

For example, threat analysts can use intelligence feeds to monitor new exploit risks and update relevant applications or operating systems.

Accidental threats

Accidental threats are actions by network users or third-party vendors that do not have malicious intent but create security vulnerabilities. Accidental mistakes create vulnerabilities and extend the attack surface for potential attackers.

Examples include firewall misconfigurations that accidentally permit malicious traffic to breach network security perimeters. Network users could inadvertently expose sensitive data by using company devices in public or relying on weak passwords.

Threat analysis scans for network vulnerabilities and gaps in security policies. Assessments feed into training, helping security teams cut the risk posed by human error and lack of cybersecurity awareness.

Insider or internal threats

Insider threats emerge from inside organizations. They tend to involve trusted users, making them hard to predict and mitigate. Insiders may abuse their privileges to extract valuable data, damage system assets, or assist external attackers.

Threat models must assess insider risks. Threat analysts can employ user monitoring tools to detect unusual behavior and police permissions to minimize lateral movement within the network.

Components of a threat analysis strategy

When countering the threats above, analysts follow a series of steps, from gathering intelligence to modeling attacks. Elements of an effective threat analysis strategy include:

• Gathering intelligence - Analysts gather threat intelligence to determine core threats to their network, applications, and data. This stage benefits from global intelligence databases that monitor exploits, ransomware, and identity theft trends.
• Evaluation - The second stage in threat analysis assesses threats and assigns a risk score. Risk analysis considers the severity of the risk (for example, the amount of damage malware can cause), and the likelihood of the threat occurring. Risk analysis ratings make allocating resources easier and focus on the most urgent threats.
• Contextual assessment - Threat analysis goes beyond risk scoring to determine how threats relate to the company's operations and digital presence. For instance, legal firms are vulnerable to insiders stealing client data for personal gain. Fashion retailers may be more concerned with blocking the theft of customer credentials.
• Modeling and prediction - Advanced threat analysis models historical attacks, drawing on threat intelligence data to understand how attacks unfold. Predictive analytics supplement risk ratings and contextual data by deploying models and threat simulations to determine the right mitigation actions.

Why companies should adopt threat analysis

Threat analysis is more than the ability to monitor threats as they occur. Analytics threat models enable security teams to understand adversaries and threats to critical assets. Companies remain one step ahead of cyber criminals in a constantly evolving threat landscape.

Beyond those over-arching advantages, the benefits of adopting a threat analysis strategy include:

Shrinking and controlling the attack surface

A healthy security posture assesses the attack surface and blocks entry points for cyber-attackers. Threat analysis contributes to this goal by providing comprehensive awareness of relevant attack types and adversaries.

Proactive threat analysis keeps pace with new ransomware, phishing, data theft, and distributed denial-of-service techniques. Threat assessment teams analyze emerging threats against their network assets. Their findings determine how to minimize the attack surface and counter the latest attack methods.

Maintaining dynamic awareness of the threat landscape

Without threat analysis, companies can lose sight of the most dangerous cyber threats and allow their security posture to become stale.

Threat analysis takes a proactive approach to risk by assessing attack types and tactics. Security teams can identify areas of improvement (such as strengthening training to identify AI phishing techniques). They can also use threat awareness to build incident response strategies for critical threats.

Probe for hidden threats that conventional models miss

Threat analysis considers threats in forensic detail to understand how they work and how they may target network assets. This process enables dynamic threat hunting to root out persistent threats or previously unknown code exploits.

Threat analysis also equips security teams with the knowledge needed to identify the early symptoms of cyberattacks. This knowledge enables interventions at an early stage of the attack cycle - before intruders can access data or spread malware infections.

How to conduct threat analysis effectively

Threat analysis can mitigate vulnerabilities, detect intrusion attempts, and guard against insider threats. However, companies will only experience these benefits if they use threat analysis effectively.

Analysis is a complex, time-consuming task. Security teams can waste resources with inefficient analysis or, even worse, leave unaddressed security issues. Here are some recommendations to enhance threat analysis and focus efforts on the most urgent security issues:

Clarify the scope of the threat assessment

Effective threat analysis starts with a scoping exercise. Define assets that fall under the threat analysis model, the resources required to assess threats, and how to measure success. The result should be a roadmap that explains what requires assessment, assessment methods, and how to determine when threat analysis is complete.

Create streamlined threat analysis procedures

After generating a threat analysis roadmap, assess threats systematically according to clear threat assessment processes.

Before beginning the assessment, define core data sets and feeds and assign a timescale to each separate threat analysis. Create a template for each threat that guides security professionals and generates consistent outputs.

Compare and prioritize threats effectively

Remember that a core part of threat analysis is prioritizing threats that pose a critical threat to business assets. Consistent risk scoring is the best way to establish a threat hierarchy.

Assess risks based on severity and probability, determine suitable mitigation measures, and compile the results in a risk register. Make the register available to key stakeholders, using language that clearly communicates your threat mitigation strategy.

When assessing risks, bear in mind that threat analysis is a continual process. Create a tool that is easy to revisit, audit, and update as new threats and risks emerge.

Use modeling tools to enhance threat analysis processes

Streamline threat analysis by using up-to-date analytical solutions. For example, modeling tools help you visualize threats and trace attack paths between network endpoints and data containers.

Automated tools handle risk scoring, saving time for strategic planning. Simulation platforms model real-world attacks and identify unaddressed vulnerabilities, while threat intelligence platforms track global incidents and the latest threat actors.

Use threat analysis to secure critical resources

Cyber-attackers never stand still. Phishers are using AI to emulate trusted contacts. Ransomware is becoming harder to detect, and criminals are employing stronger encryption. DDoS attacks are also more powerful than ever, putting network operations at risk.

Threat analysis gives you the tools to identify, prioritize, and mitigate relevant threats. Moreover, analysis is proactive, seeking to outpace threat actors. Analysts exploit intelligence to anticipate attacks and expose persistent or hidden threats before they result in costly data breaches.