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Threat hunting is a cybersecurity practice of identifying threats that may evade traditional security measures. It's vital in Incident Response as it significantly enhances an organisation's ability to identify, contain, and mitigate security risks.
Incorporating threat hunting into the incident response cycle allows security teams to detect and respond to emerging threats more effectively. By acting as the "first line of detection," threat hunting supports IR in identifying threats that could otherwise go unnoticed and improving the organisation’s preparedness for future incidents.
In IR, proactive and reactive threat hunting approaches are two different ways of identifying, managing, and mitigating cyber threats.
Proactive Threat Hunting
Proactive threat hunting is a forward-looking approach focused on detecting threats before they spread and cause harm. It involves continuous analysis of systems and networks for potential threats, even when there are no signs of an active attack. It prioritizes unusual behaviours or patterns that deviate from the norm rather than relying solely on the Indicator of Compromise (IOC).
Proactive Threat Hunting involves hypothesis-based investigations, where threat hunters look for patterns of behaviour that indicate malicious intent. It employs intelligence-driven methods, such as threat intelligence feeds, to stay ahead of attackers, and relies heavily on behavioural analysis, statistical baselining, and anomaly detection.
It aims to identify known and unknown threats, APTs and hidden indicators of compromise (IOCs).
Reactive Threat Hunting
Reactive threat hunting is a response-based approach that focuses on investigating threats after suspicious activity has been detected. It often involves responding to alerts or other indicators of an ongoing or past incident. It's typically alert-driven, triggered by specific indicators like suspicious network traffic, anomalous behaviour, or detection by security tools.
Reactive threat hunting involves rapid response and investigation to assess the scope, impact, and root cause of a detected incident. It requires forensic analysis to understand and mitigate any damage caused by the attack.
It aims to contain and remediate an identified threat quickly, preventing further spread or damage within the organisation.
Both approaches are essential in a robust incident response strategy, as proactive hunting helps reduce potential threats, while reactive hunting ensures rapid response to ongoing attacks. Combining both improves an organisation’s security posture by covering potential and active threat vectors.
Red Piranha's Threat Detection, Investigation and Response (TDIR) offers a powerful defence framework with up to 10x increased threat visibility, empowering organisations to gain in-depth insights into network operations and identify Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) and previously unseen attacks through sophisticated network behavioural analytics.
Known malware families and Command-and-Control (CnC) call-outs like Cobalt Strike are promptly detected, ensuring robust protection against evolving threats. With fully operationalised threat intelligence, Red Piranha enables organisations to efficiently deploy contextualised insights and receive automated, actionable intelligence, allowing them to protect, detect, and respond proactively. Human-machine teaming further enhances response capabilities by improving alert prioritisation and fostering effective collaboration.
Proactive threat hunting capabilities allow early detection of embedded APTs, minimising dwell time and potential damage. A multi-tenanted sensor deployment strengthens detection across East-West traffic, while integrated PCAP analysis uncovers deeper threats. Additionally, on-demand SOC services with digital forensics expedite incident response, and advanced heuristics with machine learning anomaly detection enhance alert confidence, enabling a precise and informed security posture.
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