Advanced Threat Hunting
Threat hunting is the proactive searching for indications of threat activity within an organization’s networks. The goal of threat hunting is to find malicious activity that has gone undetected by security tools.
Threats
Advanced Threat Hunting Methodology
The process of advanced threat hunting is systematic and structured.
Here’s an overview of the typical methodology used by our threat hunters:
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Data Collection
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Data Analysis
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Investigation and Validation
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Response and Mitigation
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Reporting and Documentation
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Continuous Monitoring and Improvement
PROCESS
Why is Advanced Threat Hunting Important?
Detection of Unknown Threats: Traditional security tools often fail to detect sophisticated attacks.
Advanced threat hunting identifies hidden, stealthy threats before they cause significant harm.
Reduced Dwell Time: Attackers often remain undetected within networks for long periods.
Threat hunting significantly reduces this “dwell time,” minimizing potential damage.
Improved Incident Response: By identifying threats early, organizations can respond to and contain incidents before they escalate.
Strengthened Cyber Resilience: Advanced threat hunting continuously enhances an organization’s overall security posture, making it more resilient to evolving cyber threats.
What is Advanced Threat Hunting?
Advanced Threat Hunting is a proactive cybersecurity technique used to detect and eliminate hidden threats that bypass traditional security measures. It involves actively searching for advanced threats such as malware, insider attacks, and sophisticated cyber threats that may have gone undetected by automated tools like firewalls and antivirus software.
What types of threats can Advanced Threat Hunting identify?
Advanced Threat Hunting can uncover sophisticated threats that evade conventional defenses, including:
- Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs): Long-term, targeted attacks.
- Zero-day exploits: Vulnerabilities that are unknown to security vendors.
- Insider threats: Malicious activities from within the organization.
- Stealthy malware: Malware designed to evade detection systems.
How often should Advanced Threat Hunting be performed?
Advanced Threat Hunting should be conducted regularly to keep up with evolving threats. Best practices suggest performing it:
- Continuously: Using automated tools augmented by human expertise.
- Quarterly or Annually: Depending on your organization's risk profile.
- After major incidents: Following a breach or security event to detect any remaining threats.
How does Advanced Threat Hunting differ from traditional threat detection?
Traditional threat detection relies on automated systems and alerts triggered by known threat signatures or behaviors. In contrast, advanced threat hunting involves manual, proactive investigations led by cybersecurity experts who actively search for anomalies, unknown threats, and indicators of compromise (IOCs), even before a security alert is raised.
