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Trustwave's 2024 Retail Report Series Highlights Alarming E-Commerce Threats and Growing Fraud Against Retailers. Learn More
We always emphasize that cybersecurity is a team sport. As millions sit down to watch the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers face off in Super Bowl LVIII on February 11 in Las Vegas, there are numerous parallels that can be drawn between their sport and ours.
A Super Bowl victory isn't solely determined by the team with the greatest number of athletes or the fastest players; rather, success hinges on the team with the most comprehensive strategy, a carefully designed playbook tailored to their opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, and an offense and defense who execute the game plan exceedingly well. In cybersecurity, where our adversaries often outnumber us, it becomes critical for us to prioritize a strategy and playbook that seamlessly integrates both offensive and defensive approaches.
Football is an inherently adversarial sport, and cybersecurity mirrors this dynamic – attackers perpetually take an offensive stance, attempting to infiltrate technology systems to achieve advancing levels of access and ultimately “score" information or control. In response, we must continually practice and play both defense and offense to mitigate risk, safeguard against potential breaches, and then respond accordingly when necessary.
Before game day, every winning team spends time strategizing, designing plays, practicing, and refining. Practice hard and the game is easy, or at least easier. Cybersecurity is no different. At Trustwave, from day one, our Cyber Advisory team guides clients on how to design their plays, building roadmaps to successfully improve their security postures.
Once those playbooks are in place, the Chertoff and Trustwave teams coach our clients. From building response plans, running tabletop exercises to creating specialized use cases, we prioritize proactive measures to address vulnerabilities and ensure our clients are ready with a well-orchestrated response to potential threats.
Just like a football team watches tape to understand the opponent, we rely on our SpiderLabs threat intelligence to analyze the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) employed by adversaries. This intelligence allows us to anticipate and counteract potential attacks effectively.
Before, during, and after every game, team strategists and coaches perform deep analysis of capabilities and skill sets to build the right lineup. Similarly, The Chertoff Group plays a pivotal role in assessing and mapping capabilities.
The Chertoff Group helps organizations develop comprehensive offense-informed defense strategies and team hand-offs that provide direction and repeatability for safeguarding businesses from key cyber-related risks. The Chertoff Group’s approach leverages its expertise combined with the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
In both football and cybersecurity, resiliency is key to success. In the game of football, teams protect their most valuable players, and every Chertoff engagement begins with an understanding of high value assets. The best football teams also work to limit unforced errors, similar to Chertoff's focus on understanding the attack surface and ensuring that defenses are operating as intended. Likewise, just as teams expect their opponents’ tactics to evolve, Chertoff engagements assume that threat actors will continuously adapt their tactics, techniques, and procedures.
With playbooks in hand, it's time for teams to take the field. Football teams deploy their offense and defense during the game, and we implement a range of cybersecurity strategies to proactively protect and defend against threats in real time.
The Chertoff Group and Trustwave cybersecurity teams believe that while cyber risk can’t be eliminated completely, resilience can be achieved. Proactive identification and mitigation of vulnerabilities decreases the likelihood of successful attacks. And while cyberattacks are inevitable, you can minimize the likelihood of success and mitigate potential impact through preparation, rapid detection, and effective response capabilities.
The Super Bowl might only happen once a year, but these teams have been preparing for 12 months or more! It’s the same in cybersecurity. Threat actors operate around the clock – dedicating their time and efforts to overcoming obstacles. In response, it’s imperative that organizations adopt a layered approach that integrates threat-informed offensive and defensive strategies.
It’s time to see which team’s strategic planning, practice, and execution translates into a winning edge.
David London is managing director of Cybersecurity Services at The Chertoff Group. Damian Archer is the vice president of SpiderLabs at Trustwave.
Trustwave is a globally recognized cybersecurity leader that reduces cyber risk and fortifies organizations against disruptive and damaging cyber threats. Our comprehensive offensive and defensive cybersecurity portfolio detects what others cannot, responds with greater speed and effectiveness, optimizes client investment, and improves security resilience. Learn more about us.
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