Welcome dear NetworkSecLearners to this new Cybersecurity tutorial in which we are going to introduce one of the most popular frameworks used by Cybersecurity Professionals today which is the MITRE ATT&CK Framework. 😊
I am sure that you have probably come across the term “MITRE ATT&CK” at some point and I think that you may have seen it mentioned in Threat Intelligence reports, SOC Analyst job descriptions, Security blogs or even during your Cybersecurity studies. You will not believe it but even if it is popular, many beginners in Cybersecurity are still unsure about what MITRE ATT&CK Framework actually is and why many Cybersecurity Professionals use it.
I would like to give you assurance that despite its intimidating name, the MITRE ATT&CK Framework is actually quite easy to understand once we learn its basic concepts. Do you believe me ? Indeed, MITRE ATT&CK is one of the most useful resources available today for understanding how Attackers operate during a Cyber Attack.
If your goal is to become a SOC Analyst, Security Engineer, Threat Hunter or just simply to improve your Cybersecurity knowledge, understanding MITRE ATT&CK can help you better understand attacker behavior and the different techniques used during real-world Attacks.
In today’s article, we will explore the MITRE ATT&CK Framework, understand how it works and discover why it has become such an important resource within the Cybersecurity Community.
So grab your coffee, get ready and let’s get started. 😉
1. MITRE ATT&CK Framework Overview
MITRE ATT&CK is a publicly available framework that documents the Tactics and Techniques used by real-world attackers during Cyberattacks. Let’s start first by defining this “weird” term. Well, This word ATT&CK stands for Adversarial Tactics, Techniques and Common Knowledge.😊
If you find this complicated, you should not because the concept behind this is very simple. Indeed, you can see MITRE ATT&CK as a library containing information about how attackers compromise systems Cybersecurity. Instead of focusing on vulnerabilities or security products, the framework focuses on Attackers behavior.
The framework was created by MITRE which non-profit organization that works on various research projects including Cybersecurity. Indeed, over the years, MITRE collected information about real attacks observed around the world and organized this information into a structured framework. Today, MITRE ATT&CK is widely used by Security teams, government agencies and private organizations. If you are in the Automotive industry, you might use while performing the Threat Analysis and Risk Assessment. What I also like about MITRE ATT&CK is that some mitigations strategies are proposed in order to counter each Technique or Tactic.
Before moving to the next section, I would like to remind you that MITRE ATT&CK is not a Security tool and therefore will not protect your Network or Systems. Instead, it serves as a reference that helps Cybersecurity professionals understand how attackers operate to carry out Cybersecurity Attacks.
2. Understanding Tactics and Techniques
To understand the MITRE ATT&CK Framework, we first need to understand two important concepts which are Tactics and Techniques. You can seeTactic as the attacker’s objective or goal at a specific stage of an Attack and a Technique as the method used by the Attacker to achieve that goal. In order to illustrate these two definitions, let’s consider the following example. Imagine that a Cybercriminal wants to gain access to a company’s Network. The attacker’s goal as you might have guessed is therefore to get inside the Network. Indeed, in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, this goal belongs to a Tactic called Initial Access. Once the goal or tactic is defined, the next step is obviously to think about the technique that can be used to achieve this goal. Indeed, one technique is for instance by sending a Phishing Email containing a malicious link. In this case, Phishing is the Technique used to achieve the Initial Access Tactic. In other words :
- Initial Access = Tactic
- Phishing = Technique
You can think of Tactics as the attacker’s destination and techniques as the roads used to reach that destination. MITRE ATT&CK contains many Tactics covering the different stages of a Cyberattack.
Some common Tactics include:
- Initial Access
- Execution
- Persistence
- Privilege Escalation
- Defense Evasion
- Credential Access
- Discovery
- Lateral Movement
- Collection
- Exfiltration
- Impact
3. MITRE ATT&CK Framework Example
Thank you for reaching this section which is maybe the most interesting one because I will present you now a concrete MITRE ATT&CK example that will help you better understand the concept if it is still not the case.
Let’s consider an Attacker who wants to deploy a Ransomware inside a company Systems. As we have seen in the previous section with the Initial Access Tactic, the Attacker use the same Technique using Phishing email sent to an employee.The employee will fall in the trap by clicking on a malicious attachment without realizing the danger. Once the malicious file is opened by the employee, this will execute Malware or malicious Software on his computer. This activity belongs to the Execution Tactic and the Attacker then attempts to steal user credentials in order to gain additional access within the network. This activity belongs to the Credential Access Tactic. After obtaining valid credentials, the attacker moves from one system to another inside the Network. This stage is known as Lateral Movement. Finally, the Attacker encrypts files and disrupts business operations. This action falls under the Impact Tactic.
I hope this example was clear for you and that you now understand the importance of MITRE ATT&CK which supports Security Professionals identify Cyberattack paths and the Techniques used at each step. This approach makes it handy to understand Attackers behavior and help improve defensive strategies.
4. Applications of the MITRE ATT&CK Framework
Welcome to the last part of this tutorial on the Applications of MITRE ATT&CK. One common application is Threat Detection. Indeed, Cybersecurity teams can compare their detection capabilities against ATT&CK techniques to determine whether they are capable of identifying specific attacker activities.
The framework is also used for Threat Hunting so that instead of waiting for alerts, Threat Hunters actively search for suspicious activities that may indicate the presence of an Attacker. MITRE ATT&CK helps them identify what behaviors they should be looking for.
Another important application is Incident Response. During a security Incident, analysts can use ATT&CK to understand what the attacker has done, what techniques were used and what actions should be investigated next.
Many organizations also use the framework during Cybersecurity Assessments.Indeed, by mapping security Controls against ATT&CK Techniques, they can identify Weaknesses and areas where additional protection may be needed.
Red Teams and Penetration Testers also use MITRE ATT&CK. The framework helps them simulate realistic Attack scenarios based on Techniques observed in real-world Attacks.
Personally, one thing I like about MITRE ATT&CK is that it provides a common language for Cybersecurity professionals. SOC Analysts, Cybersecurity Engineers, Threat Hunters or Incident Responders and everybody can use the same framework to discuss Attacker behavior.
Conclusion
Thank you for reading this article till here. 😊
As we have seen throughout this article, the MITRE ATT&CK Framework is more than a simple list of Cyberattacks. It is a valuable resource that helps Cybersecurity professionals understand how attackers operate and the Techniques they use to achieve their objectives.
Although the framework appears complex at first because of the large number of Tactics and Techniques it contains, the concept is rather simple. It is just about understanding Attacker behavior and using that knowledge to improve Cybersecurity defenses.
My personal advice is not to try to memorize every Tactic and Technique but focus on understanding the overall structure of the framework and become familiar with the most common Attack Techniques. As your Cybersecurity knowledge grows, your understanding of MITRE ATT&CK will grow as well.
I hope this introduction helped you better understand the MITRE ATT&CK Framework and why it has become such an important resource in the Cybersecurity community. As always dear NetworkSecLearners, keep learning, stay curious and stay secure and don’t forget to share this article or comment if you have any questions! 😊