Cybersecurity is a war of information for reasons other than cyber criminals looking to infiltrate them. One of the greatest weapons in this war of information is threat intelligence.
What is threat intelligence?
Threat intelligence, as told by Gartner, is “evidence-based knowledge, including context, mechanisms, indicators, implications and actionable advice, about an existing or emerging menace or hazard to assets that can be used to inform decisions regarding the subject’s response to that menace or hazard.”
It involves any information that allows an organization to prevent or mitigate cyberattacks. Such information may present itself in the form of plain web chatter or knowledge about a targeted attack on an organization.
A company’s cybersecurity strategy requires good threat intelligence. As per the Ponemon Institute, threat intelligence sharing is a quintessential mitigating factor in the overall cost of a data breach. According to SANS, “consuming and analyzing accurate and timely threat intelligence should be a key input for optimizing security processes, updating playbooks, and making security resource decisions.”
However, it is not always easy to differentiate between good intelligence and signal noise, especially when manual maneuvering is involved. Threat intelligence can come from incongruent sources, thereby making relevant threat intelligence challenging to identify.
Benefits of automated threat intelligence
Automated threat intelligence is an essential part of a good security strategy. The following are five reasons why you should consider it too.
1. Leaves repetitive and time-consuming tasks to the machines
Automated threat intelligence means taking the time-consuming and repetitive tasks out of the reach of humans and handing them over to the machines. Machines are configured to work with data and thus are excellent at finding patterns and trends. Human minds, on the other hand, are best suited to handle creative and adaptive tasks. Automating the time-taking aspects of threat intelligence helps save time which may be utilized for other tasks.
2. Boosts the accuracy of your threat intelligence
Automating threat intelligence collection guarantees a reduction in the number of mistakes in your threat intelligence collection.
3. Helps you find your own vulnerabilities
When it comes to cybersecurity, the primary focus always lies with external threats. Internal problems, however, are just as damaging. Automated threat intelligence can check for any susceptibilities and warn the relevant party about them, thereby helping you enhance your infrastructure to prevent future attacks.
4. Works faster than human analysts
Machines are faster than humans; there is no doubt about it. Automated threat intelligence processes are faster and ensure that information is dispatched to the relevant party as soon as possible.
5. Ensures a more consistent response to threats
Automated threat intelligence provides security-related data to all members of a company at the same time and ensures that the security strategy and processes are consistent across the board. This is particularly important in the case of attacks, and you are required to coordinate with other team members to mitigate or repel a breach in the system.
