In cybersecurity, 8-K Intelligence refers to the strategic gathering, analysis, and utilization of information disclosed by publicly traded companies in their Form 8-K filings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These filings are required for disclosing material events, including cybersecurity incidents.

Key Aspects of 8-K Intelligence:

• Form 8-K and Cybersecurity: As per SEC regulations, companies must disclose material cybersecurity incidents within four business days of determining their materiality. This disclosure includes details about the incident's nature, scope, timing, and potential impact.

• Intelligence Gathering: Cybersecurity professionals and researchers can leverage this publicly available information to gain insights into emerging cyber threats, attack vectors, vulnerabilities, and the overall cybersecurity landscape.

• Analysis and Threat Modeling: By analyzing 8-K disclosures, security teams can identify patterns, trends, and standard attack methods. This analysis can enhance threat models, improve risk assessments, and strengthen security controls.

• Vulnerability Identification: 8-K reports may reveal specific vulnerabilities exploited in cyberattacks. This information enables organizations to patch or mitigate those vulnerabilities in their systems proactively.

• Incident Response: Learning from the experiences of other companies through their 8-K disclosures can help organizations improve their incident response plans and capabilities.

• Competitive Advantage: 8-K Intelligence can also provide a competitive advantage by helping organizations understand the cybersecurity posture of their competitors and identify potential risks in their supply chain.

Benefits of 8-K Intelligence:

• Proactive Security: Organizations can proactively protect their systems and data by staying informed about the latest cyber threats and vulnerabilities.

• Improved Risk Management: 8-K Intelligence helps organizations make more informed risk management decisions based on real-world data and trends.

• Enhanced Incident Response: Learning from the experiences of others can improve incident response planning and execution.

• Competitive Advantage: Understanding the cybersecurity landscape can provide a competitive edge in the market.

Challenges of 8-K Intelligence:

• Time Sensitivity: 8-K filings have a short reporting window, requiring rapid analysis and action.

• Information Overload: The volume of 8-K filings can be overwhelming, making it challenging to identify relevant information.

• Data Interpretation: Analyzing and interpreting the information in 8-K filings requires expertise and contextual understanding.

8-K Intelligence is a valuable resource for cybersecurity professionals. By leveraging the information in these filings, organizations can gain critical insights into the evolving threat landscape, improve their security posture, and enhance their incident response capabilities.

ThreatNG is a comprehensive cybersecurity platform that provides a holistic view of an organization's external attack surface and digital risk posture. Let's explain how its features and capabilities address your outlined areas.

How ThreatNG Helps

ThreatNG employs a multi-faceted approach to cybersecurity, leveraging various intelligence sources and analysis techniques to provide a comprehensive risk assessment. Here's how it addresses the specific areas:

• Web Application Hijack Susceptibility: ThreatNG's Domain Intelligence module is crucial here. Analyzing DNS records, subdomains, and exposed entry points identifies potential weaknesses attackers could exploit to hijack a web application.

• Subdomain Takeover Susceptibility: Similarly, ThreatNG assesses the risk of subdomain takeover by examining DNS records, SSL certificates, and other factors that might indicate a vulnerable subdomain.

• BEC & Phishing Susceptibility: ThreatNG combines Sentiment and Financials findings (including 8-K filings), Domain Intelligence, and Dark Web Presence to gauge the likelihood of an organization falling victim to Business Email Compromise (BEC) or phishing attacks. This involves analyzing financial health, negative news, and potential exposure of sensitive information that could be used for social engineering.

• Brand Damage Susceptibility: ThreatNG takes a broad approach to assess brand damage risk by considering attack surface intelligence, digital risk intelligence, ESG factors, sentiment analysis, financial health (including 8-K filings), and domain intelligence. This comprehensive analysis helps identify potential threats to an organization's reputation.

• Data Leak Susceptibility: By analyzing Cloud and SaaS Exposure, Dark Web Presence, Domain Intelligence, and Sentiment and Financials (including 8-K filings), ThreatNG identifies potential data leakage points. This includes assessing the security of cloud services, monitoring for compromised credentials on the dark web, and analyzing financial disclosures for any indications of data breaches.

• Cyber Risk Exposure: ThreatNG combines Domain Intelligence, Code Secret Exposure, and Cloud and SaaS Exposure to evaluate an organization's overall cyber risk. This includes identifying vulnerabilities, exposed sensitive ports, compromised credentials, and weaknesses in cloud configurations.

• ESG Exposure: ThreatNG analyzes Sentiment and Financials findings to assess an organization's exposure to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks. This includes analyzing media sentiment, financial performance, and public disclosures related to ESG issues.

• Supply Chain & Third-Party Exposure: ThreatNG leverages Domain Intelligence, Technology Stack analysis, and Cloud and SaaS Exposure to evaluate the security posture of an organization's supply chain and third-party vendors. This helps identify potential risks associated with external dependencies.

• Breach & Ransomware Susceptibility: ThreatNG combines Domain Intelligence, Dark Web Presence, and Sentiment and Financials (including 8-K filings) to assess the likelihood of a breach or ransomware attack. This involves analyzing exposed vulnerabilities, monitoring for compromised credentials and ransomware activity on the dark web, and reviewing financial disclosures for any indications of previous security incidents.

Complementary Solutions and Examples

While ThreatNG offers a comprehensive suite of tools, it can be further enhanced by integrating with complementary solutions. Here are a few examples:

• Security Information and Event Management (SIEM): Integrating ThreatNG with an SIEM solution can provide real-time monitoring and correlation of security events, allowing for faster incident response and threat mitigation.

• Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIPs): Combining ThreatNG's external attack surface management capabilities with threat intelligence feeds from TIPs can provide a more comprehensive view of the threat landscape and enable proactive threat hunting.

• Vulnerability Scanners: Integrating ThreatNG with vulnerability scanners can help prioritize remediation efforts by correlating identified vulnerabilities with the organization's external attack surface and digital risk profile.

Investigation Modules and Intelligence Repositories

ThreatNG's investigation modules and intelligence repositories provide valuable context and insights for security assessments. Let's look at how they work together, particularly with the SEC Form 8-Ks:

• Domain Intelligence: This module provides detailed information about an organization's domain, including DNS records, subdomains, certificates, and exposed vulnerabilities. This information can be correlated with 8-K filings to identify potential security weaknesses that may have been exploited in past incidents.

• Sentiment and Financials: By analyzing 8-K filings, this module can identify any disclosures related to cybersecurity incidents, data breaches, or other security-related events. This information can be used to assess the organization's overall security posture and identify areas for improvement.

• Dark Web Presence: This module monitors the dark web for any mentions of the organization, its employees, or its assets. This information can be correlated with 8-K filings to identify potential data leaks or compromised credentials that may have been exploited in past incidents.

Example:

Let's say an organization's 8-K filing discloses a data breach resulting from a web application vulnerability. ThreatNG can use its Domain Intelligence module to analyze the organization's web applications, identify any known vulnerabilities, and assess the risk of similar incidents occurring in the future. By correlating this information with the 8-K filing, ThreatNG can provide valuable insights into the organization's security posture and help prioritize remediation efforts.

Key Takeaways:

• ThreatNG offers a comprehensive approach to external attack surface management and digital risk protection.

• Its various modules and intelligence repositories provide a holistic view of an organization's security posture.

• Integrating ThreatNG with complementary solutions can further enhance its capabilities.

• By leveraging 8-K intelligence and other data sources, ThreatNG can help organizations proactively identify and mitigate security risks.