Summary of 1.1 Introduction to MITRE ATT&CK - MAD20 ATT&CK Fundamentals

Summary of "1.1 Introduction to MITRE ATT&CK - MAD20 ATT&CK Fundamentals"

This video serves as an introductory lesson to the MITRE ATT&CK framework, focusing on its fundamental concepts, structure, and practical applications for cybersecurity defenders.

Main Ideas and Concepts

• Purpose of the Course:
  • To introduce the MITRE ATT&CK framework as a foundational tool for understanding adversary behaviors.
  • To help defenders improve their cybersecurity defenses by adopting an attacker/threat-informed mindset.
  • Designed for anyone interested in or involved with threat modeling and cybersecurity defense operations.
• What is MITRE ATT&CK?
  • A knowledge base of adversary behaviors derived from real-world observations.
  • It is based on publicly available cyber threat intelligence describing campaigns, actions, and behaviors of threat actors.
  • ATT&CK is free, open, globally accessible, and community-driven, allowing contributions to expand and improve the model.
• Importance of Understanding Adversary Behavior:
  • Defenders must ask critical questions about how adversaries target systems and what they do post-compromise.
  • ATT&CK helps answer these questions by documenting tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
• David Bianco’s Pyramid of Pain:
  • A conceptual model illustrating the hierarchy of indicators of compromise (IOCs) and their impact on adversaries.
  • Lower levels (e.g., IP addresses, hashes) are easier for adversaries to change and thus less impactful.
  • Higher levels (e.g., TTPs) cause more "pain" to adversaries because they represent deeper behavioral patterns.
  • ATT&CK focuses primarily on TTPs, capturing detailed adversary behaviors.
• Structure of ATT&CK:
  • Organized into matrices covering different platforms and environments.
  • Key components include:
    • Tactics: The adversary’s goals or reasons for performing an action.
    • Techniques and Sub-techniques: Specific behaviors or methods used to achieve tactics.
    • Metadata: Includes mitigations, data sources, and detection methods relevant to techniques.
    • Relationships: Links between techniques, threat groups, and malware/software used by adversaries.
  • ATT&CK evolves over time as new threat intelligence is integrated.
• Application and Use Cases:
  • ATT&CK can be used to model real-world attack scenarios (e.g., credential access via Mimikatz, dumping LSASS memory).
  • Helps defenders recognize and respond to adversary behaviors more effectively.
• Knowledge Check:
  • ATT&CK is primarily informed by what has been observed in operational use by the broader cybersecurity community.

Methodology / Instructional Outline

• Course Structure:
  • Divided into three modules:
    1. Understanding ATT&CK fundamentals.
    2. Benefits of using ATT&CK.
    3. Operationalizing ATT&CK knowledge.
  • Module 1 contains eight lessons focusing on ATT&CK’s structure, data inputs, and growth.
• Key Learning Steps in Module 1:
  • Explore the background and motivation behind ATT&CK.
  • Identify the types of information captured in ATT&CK.
  • Understand the structure of ATT&CK (matrices, tactics, techniques, sub-techniques).
  • Learn about metadata associated with techniques (mitigations, detections, data sources).
  • Examine relationships between adversary groups, software, and techniques.
  • Observe how ATT&CK evolves with new threat intelligence.
  • Apply knowledge to real-world scenarios and threat modeling.

Speakers / Sources Featured

• Jamie Williams – Host and instructor of the course.

This summary encapsulates the introductory concepts, structure, and practical significance of the MITRE ATT&CK framework as presented in the video lesson.

Category

Educational

Video