Threat Hunting Maturity Model Overview

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Questions and Answers

What does the Threat Hunting Maturity Model (HMM) primarily assess?

The quantity and quality of information collected for investigation (correct)

The complexity of threat intelligence sources

The number of security breaches prevented

The cost-effectiveness of threat hunting tools

Which level of the Threat Hunting Maturity Model is characterized by the creation of custom data analysis procedures?

Level 0: Initial

Level 3: Innovative (correct)

Level 1: Minimal

Level 2: Procedural

What is the purpose of intelligence fusion in cyber threat management?

To automate the response to threats

To integrate various cybersecurity intelligence sources (correct)

To enhance communication within security teams

To evaluate the efficacy of threat hunting tools

Which type of threat intelligence focuses on high-level information about changing risks?

Strategic Signup and view all the answers

What is a common characteristic of threat feeds?

They offer real-time information collected from current attacks. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of the Threat Hunting Maturity Model, what does Level 4: Leading refer to?

Automating existing data analysis procedures Signup and view all the answers

Which group primarily consumes tactical threat intelligence?

IT Service and SOC Managers Signup and view all the answers

Which level of the Threat Hunting Maturity Model has low data collection and relies mainly on automated alerts?

Level 0: Initial Signup and view all the answers

What is a defining characteristic of prescient hunting in threat hunting?

Identifying imminent threats before alerts are generated Signup and view all the answers

Which step is NOT part of the threat hunting process?

Perform a vulnerability scan Signup and view all the answers

What is one key benefit of penetration testing?

It identifies potential security weaknesses Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following typically does NOT contribute to effective vulnerability assessment?

Outdated software tools Signup and view all the answers

In ethical hacking, what is the primary objective of conducting a penetration test?

To identify and remediate security vulnerabilities Signup and view all the answers

Which aspect of configuration management is most important for maintaining security?

Using best practices for documentation and controls Signup and view all the answers

What role does hypothesis play in threat hunting?

It guides the investigation and data analysis Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes the 'following traces' step in threat hunting?

Analyzing compromised systems for attacker footprints Signup and view all the answers

What role does AI play in threat hunting?

AI enhances the identification and response to threats across networks. Signup and view all the answers

Which platform is primarily used for sharing and correlating Indicators of Compromise (IoCs)?

MISP-Open Source Threat Intelligence Platform Signup and view all the answers

What is one of the benefits of using AI-backed predictive analysis in cybersecurity?

It helps security teams to take proactive measures against potential threats. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes the MISP threat intelligence platform’s main function?

It shares, stores, and correlates Indicators of Compromise. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of ethical hacking, what is the primary focus of penetration testing?

Finding and exploiting vulnerabilities in a system or network. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following types of assessments is primarily concerned with identifying security flaws in systems?

Vulnerability Assessments Signup and view all the answers

What is a common misconception about the use of AI in cybersecurity?

AI can fully replace human security professionals. Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'attack surface' refer to in cybersecurity?

The various points where an unauthorized user can try to enter or extract data. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Threat Hunting Maturity Model (HMM)

The HMM describes the amount and quality of information collected from a network for investigation.
Level 0: Initial
- Primarily relies on automated monitoring systems and alerts
- Low data collection
Level 1: Minimal
- Follows the latest threat reports
- Moderate to high-level routine data collection
Level 2: Procedural
- Adopts data analysis procedures created by others.
- High to very-high-level routine data collection
Level 3: Innovative
- Creates custom data analysis procedures
- High to very-high-level routine data collection
Level 4: Leading
- Automates existing data analysis procedures
- High to very-high-level routine data collection

Threat Hunting Considerations

Intelligence fusion is an approach to integrate security with threat intelligence and other cyber intelligence sources.
Threat feeds are real-time feeds collected from real-time attacks. These feeds include Indicators of Compromise (IoCs), Indicators of Attack (IoAs), potential threats, vulnerabilities, and existing risks.
Advisories and bulletins are informative blogs or websites that provide information about the latest security threats and attacks.
Maneuver is a technique used in cyber warfare based on knowledge of some recent attacks and the nature of those attacks.

Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI)

Is the collection and analysis of information about threats and adversaries, used to make decisions for preparedness, prevention, and response to cyberattacks.
Helps organizations identify and mitigate business risks by converting unknown threats into known threats and implementing advanced and proactive defense strategies.

Types of Threat Intelligence

Strategic: High-level information on changing risks. Consumed by High-Level Executives and Management.
Tactical: Information on attacker’s tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). Consumed by IT Service and SOC Managers, Administrators.
Operational: Information on specific incoming attack. Consumed by Security Managers, Network Defenders.
Technical: Information on specific indicators of compromise. Consumed by SOC Staff, IR Teams.

Module Objectives

Understanding Threat Hunting Concepts
Understanding Cyber Threat Intelligence and Various Feeds and Sources of Threat Intelligence
Understanding Vulnerability Assessment and Various Types of Vulnerability Assessment
Understanding Ethical Hacking Concepts
Understanding Penetration Testing and its Benefits
Understanding the Importance of Asset Management and Configuration Management

Module Flow

Discuss Threat Hunting
Discuss Various Threat Intelligence Feeds and Sources
Discuss Vulnerability Assessment
Discuss Ethical Hacking Concepts
Understand Fundamentals of Penetration Testing and its Benefits
Understand the Fundamentals of Configuration Management and Asset Management

Threat Hunting

A proactive and iterative approach of searching networks, devices, endpoints, and datasets to identify and isolate cyber threats that have evaded current security systems.

Threat Hunting Steps

Collect and process: Collect and analyze data using threat intelligence
Hypothesis: Make assumptions using TTPs
Trigger: Based on the hypothesis, threat-detection tools trigger an anomaly.
Investigation: Investigate malicious files/activities to eliminate the identified threats
Response: Generate a report for future detection

Characteristics of Threat Hunting

Prescient hunting: Identifies all imminent threats, instead of simply relying on alerts generated by security monitoring tools.
Trusting the hypothesis: Analyzes all data, conducts an investigation based on the hypothesis, and creates a new rule based on their findings.
Following traces: Analyzes compromised systems and traces left by attackers in a network.
Creating new methods: Stays ahead of attackers by creating new rules.
ExoneraTor: https://metrics.torproject.org
- Freenet: https://freenetproject.org
- GNUnet: https://gnunet.org
- I2P: https://geti2p.net
- OneSwarm: http://www.oneswarm.org

AI and Predictive Analysis for Threat Hunting

Attackers use diverse and distributed mechanisms to evade existing security boundaries.
AI-based correction of cyber threat intelligence, security intelligence, and predictive analysis can help organizations identify threats across every attack surface within their network.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

AI/ML enhances opportunities to respond to security incidents quickly.
Using AI and ML for threat hunting can reduce the time required for hunting, analyzing, and responding to threats

AI-backed Predictive Analysis

By performing predictive analysis through AI-backed intelligence, reactive measures can be taken in advance, enabling security teams to be ahead of attackers.

Threat Intelligence Frameworks

MISP-Open Source Threat Intelligence Platform: Used for sharing, storing and correlating Indicators of Compromise (IoCs) of targeted attacks, threat intelligence, financial fraud information, vulnerability information etc.
OSINT - Cisco IOS CVE-2018-0171 attack:
- Event ID: 10683
- Uuid: Sac8cee2-2a78-4237-8830-d0b802de0b81
- Org: CIRCL
- Owner org: CIRCL
- Contributors: [email protected]
- Email:
- Tags: tipawhite x Circliosint-feed x estimative-language:likelihood-probability="roughly-even-chance" x estimative-language:confidence-in-analytic-judgment="moderate" x cyber-threat-framework:Effect/Consequence="destroy-hardware-software-or-data" 3
- Date: 2018-04-07
- Threat Level: Medium
- Analysis: Completed
- Distribution: All communities
- Info: OSINT Cisco IOS CVE-2018-0171 attack
- Published: Yes
- Attributes: 14
- Last change:
- Extends: 2018/04/17 05:16:30
- Extended by: Event (10701): Constituency affected with CVE-2018-0171
- Sightings: 0 (0)
- Activity: Currently in atomic view.

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Description

This quiz explores the Threat Hunting Maturity Model (HMM), detailing its five levels from Initial to Leading. Each level emphasizes the increasing sophistication and data collection capabilities in threat hunting. Understand the importance of threat intelligence and data analysis in enhancing cybersecurity measures.