Thread Intelligence

Key Components of Email Threat Intelligence

Spam Traps

  • Definition:   Spam traps are email addresses specifically created or repurposed to identify and capture spam emails.

  • Types:   Created solely to attract spam; never used for legitimate email communication. Old, abandoned email addresses that have been repurposed as spam traps.

  • Function:   These traps catch unsolicited emails, helping identify spam sources and compromised systems.

  • Impact:   Emails sent to spam traps can damage the sender’s reputation and lead to blacklisting.

Old/Expired Domains

  • Definition:   Domains that were once active but are now expired or abandoned can be used to gather threat intelligence.

  • Reclamation:   Threat actors can register expired domains to exploit their previous reputation and history.

  • Monitoring:  Security teams can monitor old domains to detect any malicious activity or phishing attempts.

Email Honey Pots

  • Definition:  Specially configured systems designed to attract and analyze malicious email activity.

  • Purpose:  Collects data on phishing attempts, malware, and other email-based threats.

Phishing Kits and Campaigns

  • Analysis:  Studying phishing kits and campaigns helps understand the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by attackers.

  • Indicators of Compromise (IoCs): Identifying IoCs related to phishing campaigns aids in detecting and blocking malicious emails.

Benefits of Email Threat Intelligence

  • Enhanced Security Posture:   By analyzing threat intelligence, organizations can proactively identify and mitigate email threats.

  • Improved Email Filtering:  Incorporating threat intelligence into email filtering systems helps block spam, phishing, and malicious emails more effectively.

  • Reputation Management:  Monitoring spam traps and old domains helps maintain a positive sender reputation and avoid blacklisting.

  • Incident Response:  Threat intelligence provides valuable insights for responding to and recovering from email-based incidents.

Practical Applications

  • Blacklist Management:  Threat intelligence helps organizations identify if their IP addresses or domains are blacklisted due to spam trap hits or other malicious activities.

  • Email Authentication:  Implementing DMARC, SPF, and DKIM in conjunction with threat intelligence helps authenticate legitimate emails and block fraudulent ones.

  • Phishing Detection:  Using intelligence on known phishing campaigns and tactics to develop robust detection mechanisms.

  • Security Awareness Training:  Educating employees about the latest email threats and how to recognize phishing attempts based on real-time threat intelligence.

Implementing Email Threat Intelligence

  • Analysis and Correlation:  Use EmailConsul to correlate data from various sources and identify patterns or trends. Employ machine learning and AI to enhance threat detection and analysis.

  • Integration with EmailConsul:  Integrate threat intelligence into email gateways, security information and event management (SIEM) systems, and other security tools via EmailConsul API. Ensure real-time updating and sharing of threat intelligence across the organization.

  • Continuous Monitoring and Updating:  Regularly update threat intelligence data to keep up with evolving email threats. Monitor the effectiveness of threat intelligence integrations and make necessary adjustments.