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The Risks of Neglecting TTP-Level Cyber Threat Susceptibility Assessments: Why it's Like Skipping Vulnerability Scanning

 The world of cybersecurity is an ever-evolving landscape, with new threats emerging on a daily basis. To stay ahead of these threats, organizations need to implement effective security measures that cover all aspects of their IT infrastructure. One of the key steps in any effective security program is vulnerability assessment, where a system is scanned for potential weaknesses that can be exploited by attackers. However, vulnerability assessments alone are not enough to provide complete protection against cyber threats. In addition to vulnerability assessments, organizations need to conduct TTP (Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures) level cyber threat susceptibility assessments across their enterprise IT assets.

TTP level cyber threat susceptibility assessments involve analyzing potential attack paths to an organization's critical assets by identifying the tactics, techniques, and procedures that attackers might use to gain access. This analysis is done by building a Digital Cyber Twin that models the enterprise IT assets, maps the attack surface, and runs TTPs to identify the most probable attack paths to the organization's crown jewels. The use of Digital Cyber Twins with machine reasoning allows for a continuously evolving approach to holistic cyber risk management, enabling organizations to collect and analyze data from both the attack surface and the threat landscape and update risk management strategies in real-time.


Not doing TTP level cyber threat susceptibility assessments across enterprise IT assets is like not scanning for vulnerabilities during a vulnerability assessment.

Just as vulnerability assessments help organizations identify potential weaknesses in their systems, TTP level assessments help identify the misconfigurations and missing/weak security controls used in the attack paths that could be exploited by cyber attackers in addition to the CVEs found by vulnerability scanners. Without TTP level assessments, an organization may have a false sense of security, thinking that they are protected because they have implemented the latest security technologies and processes. However, these technologies and processes may not be effective against the TTPs that attackers are using, leaving the organization vulnerable to attack.

TTP level assessments allow organizations to identify the specific tactics, techniques, and procedures that attackers are using to gain access to their systems. This information can then be used to implement targeted security measures that are effective against these TTPs. Without TTP level assessments, organizations may be implementing security measures that are not effective against the actual tactics and techniques being used by attackers that the organization is susceptible to.

In addition, TTP level assessments allow organizations to prioritize their security efforts based on the highest-risk attack paths. By understanding the most likely attack paths, organizations can focus their security efforts on those areas that are most vulnerable, rather than taking a scattergun approach to security that may be ineffective against specific TTPs.

In conclusion, not doing TTP level cyber threat susceptibility assessments across enterprise IT assets is like not scanning for vulnerabilities during a vulnerability assessment. Both types of assessments are critical to effective cybersecurity, and organizations that neglect TTP level assessments are leaving themselves open to attack. By conducting TTP level assessments, organizations can identify the specific tactics, techniques, and procedures being used by attackers and prioritize their security efforts accordingly, leading to a more effective and targeted approach to cybersecurity.

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Location: Las Vegas, NV, USA

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