Threat Intelligence Insights

🛡️SHIELDS-UP: In the wake of yesterday’s U.S. military action against Iranian nuclear targets, U.S. critical infrastructure owners & operators should be vigilant for malicious cyber activity. While it’s unclear whether its cyber capabilities were at all impacted by recent Israeli strikes, Iran has a track record of retaliatory cyber operations targeting civilian infrastructure, including: water systems; financial institutions; energy pipelines; government networks; and more. (https://lnkd.in/eaiK7mUC) U.S. critical infrastructure owners and operators—both at home & abroad—should be #ShieldsUp and prepared for malicious cyber activity, including: ⚠️ Credential theft & phishing campaigns ⚠️ Wipers disguised as ransomware ⚠️ Hacktivist fronts and false-flag ops ⚠️ Targeting of ICS/OT systems The playbook is known. So is the response, and it’s not rocket science: ✅ Enforce MFA across all cloud, IT, and OT systems ✅ Patch every Internet-facing asset ✅ Segment networks & elevate detection on OT traffic ✅ Conduct tabletop cybersecurity drills, in particular with ICS scenarios ✅ Subscribe to ISAC alerts for real-time intelligence (ICYMI: Recent statement from IT-ISAC & Ag-ISAC: https://lnkd.in/ePZdWPzr) ✅ Report suspicious activity immediately to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency or the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) In cyberspace, proximity doesn’t matter—intent, capability, and access do. And Iran checks all three boxes.🚨Stay Vigilant.

As a SOC Analyst, it's tempting to rely on VirusTotal as the Ultimate Solution for spotting threats, but attackers know how to stay ahead. Here's a real-world example that demonstrates why behavioral detection matters more than static signatures: When analyzing binaries like Mimikatz, you might spot a string like "mimikatz_doLocal" being flagged as Malicious. However, attackers can easily evade this detection by tweaking the source code: 1- Changing strings: Replace "mimikatz_doLocal" with "anythingkatz_doLocal". 2- Renaming commands: Instead of "sekurlsa::logonpasswords," attackers use "securelsa::loginpasswordz." 3- Renaming prompts and executables: Change "mimikatz.exe" to "mimidogz.exe" and alter the application's interface to say "mimidogz." After recompiling, these small changes can bypass the AV and VirusTotal checks. Even if one part of the binary is flagged (like an error string), attackers will iterate until it’s clean. What Should SOC Analysts Do? - Focus on Behaviors: Tools like Mimikatz perform specific malicious actions (e.g., dumping LSASS memory). Behavioral detection makes it harder for attackers to evade. - Use Advanced Tools: Rely on EDR/XDR solutions that analyze patterns like process injection, suspicious memory reads, or credential dumping. - Contextualize Threats: Don't stop at VirusTotal scores. Investigate anomalies in logs, traffic patterns, and system behaviors. - Proactive Threat Hunting: Regularly hunt for renamed binaries, odd command usage, and unusual process trees in your environment. - Train Your Mindset: Always ask, "What is this file trying to achieve?" rather than, "What is its VirusTotal score?" Remember, attackers evolve their tactics to exploit over-reliance on static detections. To truly defend your organization, think like an attacker and hunt for what they do, not just the tools they use. #SOCAnalyst #ThreatHunting #DetectionTips #CyberSecurity

The Crystal Ball Meets Cybersecurity In today’s high-stakes digital world, reacting to cyber threats just isn’t good enough anymore. By the time you detect a breach, the damage may already be done—data stolen, systems compromised, reputations shattered. That’s why predictive cybersecurity is gaining momentum in 2025, shifting organizations from defense to foresight. Imagine giving your cybersecurity team a crystal ball—not mystical, but powered by artificial intelligence and real-time data. This is no longer a futuristic fantasy; it’s a strategic necessity. At the core of predictive cybersecurity is the ability to analyze vast streams of data—from user behavior and network activity to global threat intelligence—and identify danger before it strikes. It’s a proactive model that learns from past incidents, monitors for subtle behavioral anomalies, and connects dots across the cyber threat landscape. This approach helps organizations stay one step ahead of cybercriminals who move faster and more strategically than ever before. What makes this shift even more powerful is the convergence of AI-driven threat modeling, behavioral baselining, threat intelligence fusion, and automated response. Together, they form a real-time feedback loop that not only forecasts attacks but also enables systems to take immediate, decisive action. The result? Faster threat detection, smarter defenses, and a dramatically reduced window of vulnerabilityThe Crystal Ball Meets Cybersecurity In today’s high-stakes digital world, reacting to cyber threats just isn’t good enough anymore. By the time you detect a breach, the damage may already be done—data stolen, systems compromised, reputations shattered. That’s why predictive cybersecurity is gaining momentum in 2025, shifting organizations from defense to foresight. Imagine giving your cybersecurity team a crystal ball—not mystical, but powered by artificial intelligence and real-time data. This is no longer a futuristic fantasy; it’s a strategic necessity. At the core of predictive cybersecurity is the ability to analyze vast streams of data—from user behavior and network activity to global threat intelligence—and identify danger before it strikes. It’s a proactive model that learns from past incidents, monitors for subtle behavioral anomalies, and connects dots across the cyber threat landscape. This approach helps organizations stay one step ahead of cybercriminals who move faster and more strategically than ever before. What makes this shift even more powerful is the convergence of AI-driven threat modeling, behavioral baselining, threat intelligence fusion, and automated response. Together, they form a real-time feedback loop that not only forecasts attacks but also enables systems to take immediate, decisive action. The result? Faster threat detection, smarter defenses, and a dramatically reduced window of vulnerability. #CyberSecurity #AI #ML #ThreatIntelligence #BehavioralAnalytics

Cyber Performance Goals (CPGs): What are they? Why should we care? 🤷♂️ Every organisation, regardless of industry or location, faces unique cyber threats. Traditional frameworks like #CIS, #ISO, and #NIST are a good starting point for security guidance, but they often lack clear connections between real threats, adversary attack techniques, and the associated mitigations. This is where Cyber Performance Goals come in. CPGs bridge that gap through traceability and practical application by starting with a good security outcome, linking this to a valid risk or TTP, and providing the recommended action to address the key risk(s). In CISA's words, “The CPGs are voluntary practices with high-impact security actions that outline the highest-priority baseline that measures businesses and critical infrastructure owners of all sizes can take to protect themselves against cyber threats.” ⚡ Enhanced Cyber Performance Goals (eCPGs). CPGs alone are an excellent resource for understanding how to achieve secure outcomes, but using them in isolation won’t do much without the necessary business context. Here are my insights when working with CPGs in real-world engagements: 💡 Use Threat Events (as defined in NIST 800-31r1) - Sector-Specific Scenarios: Identify realistic threats and attack vectors relevant to your industry/organisation. - E.g. Threat = "Steal valid customer account information/online banking credentials". (Financial Services) - Threat Modeling: Identify and map potential attack paths and initial access vectors within your high-value assets and hosting environments. - Risk Prioritisation: Focus on high-impact, high-likelihood scenarios first. 💡 Vulnerability and Weakness Mapping (CVEs / CWEs) Before an attack can be successful, there must be a vulnerability or weakness. This part is crucial for validating any downstream attack TTPs and mitigating controls. - Example: Threat = "Steal valid customer account information/online banking credentials". ➡️ Weakness = "CWE-306: Missing Authentication for Critical Function", “CWE-308: Use of Single-factor Authentication". 💡 Link To Cyber Performance Goals (CPGs) - Leverage existing CPGs as adequate mitigating controls. - MITRE ATT&CK Alignment: CPGs already map ATT&CK TTPs to recommendations for threat-informed risk mitigation. - NIST CSF Compliance: Helps ensure control standards alignment for organisations that use NIST. 💡 Bringing it all together This might seem like a lot of effort, but in practice, it’s very straightforward once you understand the threats and weaknesses facing a target organisation. Using these CPGs with this approach gives your impact assessments and control recommendations a lot more credibility when they come from reputable and threat-informed sources, not just you. Check out the complete list of CPGs here: https://lnkd.in/gdTQ_n_W #cybersecurity #performance #goals #cpgs #threatintelligence #CISA #NIST #mitreattack

OpenAI has released a threat intelligence report detailing their disruption of five covert influence operation (IO) campaigns. These campaigns aimed to utilize OpenAI's models for deceptive activity online. The report and accompanying blog outline the threat actors disrupted, newly identified attacker trends, and important defensive strategies. It also highlights that AI safety systems frequently thwarted threat actors from creating their intended content. Blog: https://lnkd.in/e3EEtwW5 PDF: https://lnkd.in/euzdDTBz #OpenAI #ChatGPT #InfluenceOperations #cyber #CTI #threatintelligence #cybercrime #IO #intelligence #infosec #security #LLM #GPT

Boosting Your Network Security: Top Wireshark Filters for Threat Detection Are you a cybersecurity professional or network administrator looking to sharpen your threat detection skills? 🚀 I've compiled a comprehensive guide to over 30 essential Wireshark filters that can help you identify and mitigate a wide range of network attacks, from HTTP floods to DNS tunneling and brute force attempts. Understanding how to effectively use Wireshark for threat detection is crucial in today's evolving threat landscape. This resource provides: ⏩ Clear explanations of how each threat works. ⏩Specific Wireshark display filters to pinpoint suspicious activity. ⏩Actionable detection methods to validate potential threats. Check out the full list and empower your network defense strategy! #Cybersecurity #NetworkSecurity #Wireshark #ThreatDetection #InfoSec

New research published today from Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 dives deep into North Korean threat activity, providing new evidence and insight to the ongoing efforts by North Korean threat actors against US businesses and individuals. We found two unique campaigns with the goal of espionage, cryptocurrency theft and simply earning cash: -North Korean actors are seeking employment with US based orgs, representing an opportunity to embed insiders in targeted companies. We discovered a stockpile of data including resumes with identities impersonating individuals from various nations, job interview Q&As and scripts, downloaded job postings from US companies, and a scanned fake ID. -North Korean threat actors are manipulating job seekers to install malware. They pose as employers, post fictitious jobs, set up interviews with software developers and deliver malware during the interview process. According to our research, this campaign is still active. If these efforts by North Korean threat actors are successful, there is a critical impact on both job seekers (who may be using devices from their current employers throughout the interview process) and the organizations they’re applying to. Now more than ever, it’s critical organizations proactively prioritize cybersecurity in the face of sophisticated campaigns like this. Check out the full research and insights from Unit 42 here: https://lnkd.in/gtwWZHSs Link in comments to Reuters coverage of this important research by Michael Sikorski & the Unit 42 Threat Intelligence team. 

🚨Incoming: Key Insights from CISA's FY23 Risk and Vulnerability Assessment: Strengthening Critical Infrastructure Security🚨 As America's Cyber Defense Agency, CISA's FY23 Risk and Vulnerability Assessment (RVA) report, based on over 100 RVAs, provides essential insights into the cyber threats facing federal agencies and critical infrastructure. 🔑 Key Attack Vectors: 🔹Phishing & Default Credentials: "Assessors completed their most successful attacks via common methods, such as phishing, valid accounts, and default credentials," demonstrating the ongoing risk of fundamental cyber hygiene failures. 🔹Valid Accounts: "The number of valid accounts used in privilege escalation and lateral movement increased significantly," highlighting how attackers exploit identity mismanagement to gain deeper network access. 🔹Misconfigurations: "CISA assessment personnel used common vulnerabilities facilitated by shortcomings in secure-by-design and default principles and other misconfigurations to compromise systems." 🔐 Entities should implement mitigations-centered intrusion prevention, such as: 🔹Deploying a centralized cyber threat intelligence platform to monitor and log critical data and use the platform to detect and remediate abnormal behavior promptly. 🔹Implementing a secure network security architecture with multiple layers of protection—using next-generation firewalls, granular access controls, network segmentation, SIEM/SOAR, robust encryption, and secure communication. 🔹Enhanced protection mechanisms alongside strong credential policies, such as phishing-resistant MFA, to safeguard sensitive accounts. 📊 This report, based on over 100 assessments, closely aligns with NIST SP 800-207 on Zero Trust Architecture and CISA’s Zero Trust Maturity Model. The insights emphasize the importance of identity-centric security, segmentation, and least-privilege access—vital information for any cyber defender seeking to safeguard their environment against sophisticated threats. #cybersecurity #criticalInfrastructure #zerotrust #CISA #RiskManagement