Threat Exposure Search
Threat Exposure Search is a focused capability within cybersecurity tools that enables security professionals to actively investigate and locate specific instances where an organization is vulnerable to or affected by potential threats. It's a targeted search to pinpoint weaknesses, risks, or compromises across the digital environment.
Here's a breakdown of what Threat Exposure Search involves:
Scope: Threat Exposure Search covers various digital assets and data sources, including:
External-facing systems (websites, applications)
Internal networks and endpoints
Cloud environments
Data repositories
Code repositories
Communication channels (email, social media)
Search Criteria: Security professionals use specific criteria to conduct Threat Exposure Searches, such as:
Specific vulnerabilities (e.g., CVE IDs)
Indicators of Compromise (IOCs) (e.g., IP addresses, file hashes)
Keywords related to threat actors or campaigns
Data patterns indicative of data exfiltration
Anomalous behavior patterns
Specific types of exposed data (e.g., credentials, API keys)
Objectives: The primary objectives of Threat Exposure Search are to:
Proactively identify potential threats before they are exploited
Quickly locate systems or data affected by an ongoing attack
Assess the extent of damage from a security incident
Identify the root cause of a security breach
Support threat hunting activities
Outcomes: The results of a Threat Exposure Search can inform various security actions, such as:
Vulnerability remediation
Incident response and containment
Threat mitigation and prevention
Security configuration changes
Enhanced monitoring and detection
Threat Exposure Search is a proactive and reactive method that empowers security teams to actively seek out and address potential and active threats within their digital environment.
Here’s how ThreatNG can help with Threat Exposure Search:
ThreatNG's capabilities strongly align with Threat Exposure Search, enabling security professionals to seek out and identify potential threats actively.
ThreatNG's external discovery establishes the scope for Threat Exposure Searches by identifying all external-facing assets where threats might exist.
ThreatNG's "purely external unauthenticated discovery" identifies all external assets that could be exposed to threats. This comprehensive view is essential for thorough Threat Exposure Searches.
Example: ThreatNG discovers all subdomains, web applications, cloud services, and exposed systems, providing a complete inventory for searching potential threat exposures.
Complementary Solutions:
Attack Surface Management (ASM) Tools: These tools can complement ThreatNG by providing more detailed discovery of specific asset types, enhancing the scope of Threat Exposure Searches.
Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM): CSPM tools can provide deeper visibility into cloud configurations, which can be crucial for identifying cloud-specific threat exposures.
ThreatNG's external assessments provide detailed data that can be used to search for specific threat exposures.
ThreatNG's assessments reveal vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and other security weaknesses that represent potential threat exposures. This data allows for targeted searches.
Examples:
The "Web Application Hijack Susceptibility" assessment allows you to search for web applications with specific vulnerabilities that could lead to hijacking.
The "Code Secret Exposure" assessment enables searching for exposed code repositories containing specific credentials or API keys, representing a significant threat exposure.
Complementary Solutions:
Vulnerability Scanners: These tools provide detailed vulnerability information (e.g., CVEs) that can be used to refine Threat Exposure Searches.
Configuration Assessment Tools: These tools can provide detailed configuration data, enabling searches for assets with specific misconfigurations that increase threat exposure.
3. Reporting
ThreatNG's reporting features present data on potential threat exposures in a way that facilitates searching and identification.
ThreatNG's reports contain detailed information about vulnerabilities, risks, and exposed data, which can be used to locate specific threat exposures.
Example: ThreatNG's "Mobile App Exposure" reports and "Sensitive Code Exposure" provide information on exposed credentials and sensitive data, enabling searches for these specific threat exposures.
Complementary Solutions:
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Systems: SIEM systems can ingest ThreatNG's data and provide powerful search and correlation capabilities to identify threat exposures across a broader range of security data.
Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIPs): TIPs can enrich ThreatNG's data with threat intelligence, enabling searches for threat exposures related to specific threat actors or campaigns.
ThreatNG's continuous monitoring ensures that Threat Exposure Searches are conducted with the most current information.
ThreatNG's "Continuous Monitoring of external attack surface" ensures that any Threat Exposure Search reflects the latest state of the organization's security posture.
Example: If ThreatNG's continuous monitoring detects a new vulnerability or a change in a cloud service configuration, this updated information will be available for subsequent Threat Exposure Searches.
Complementary Solutions:
Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) Platforms: SOAR platforms can automate Threat Exposure Searches based on ThreatNG's monitoring data and threat intelligence feeds.
Real-time Threat Detection Systems: These systems can provide real-time alerts about potential threat activity, which can trigger targeted Threat Exposure Searches.
ThreatNG's investigation modules provide detailed search and analysis capabilities to pinpoint specific threat exposures.
The "Advanced Search" feature facilitates detailed discovery and assessment results investigations. Users can use search parameters and filters to quickly find specific data, extract intelligence, and identify risks on their external attack surface.
Examples:
The "Domain Intelligence" module enables searching for threat exposures related to domains, subdomains, DNS records, and email configurations. For example, it includes Domain Overview (Digital Presence Word Cloud, Microsoft Entra Identification and Domain Enumeration, Bug Bounty Programs, and related SwaggerHub instances, which include API documentation and specifications, enabling users to understand and possibly test the API's functionality and structure) and DNS Intelligence (Domain Record Analysis (IP Identification, Vendors and Technology Identification), Domain Name Permutations (Taken and Available), and Web3 Domains (Taken and Available)
The "Sensitive Code Exposure" module allows searching for specific types of exposed data in code repositories, such as API keys, credentials, or configuration files.
Complementary Solutions:
Threat Hunting Platforms: These platforms provide advanced search and query capabilities to locate threat exposures proactively based on various indicators and patterns.
Log Analysis Tools: These tools can provide detailed log data correlated with ThreatNG's findings to identify threat activity and its impact.
ThreatNG's intelligence repositories provide valuable context and threat intelligence to enhance Threat Exposure Searches.
These repositories ("DarCache") provide continuously updated information on vulnerabilities, threats, and threat actors.
Examples:
The "DarCache Vulnerability" repository provides information on known vulnerabilities (NVD, EPSS, KEV) and exploits, enabling searches for systems exposed to specific vulnerabilities.
The "DarCache Dark Web" repository provides intelligence on dark web activity, which can help identify threat exposures related to data leaks or compromised credentials.
Complementary Solutions:
Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIPs): Integrating with TIPs can provide a broader and more diverse set of threat intelligence, enriching Threat Exposure Searches with a broader perspective on potential threats.
Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) Tools: OSINT tools can provide additional information from publicly available sources to enhance Threat Exposure Searches.
ThreatNG offers a robust platform for Threat Exposure Search, with capabilities that include external discovery, assessment, reporting, continuous monitoring, investigation modules, and threat intelligence. Its potential to work with complementary solutions can significantly enhance an organization's ability to identify and mitigate threat exposures proactively.
