For decades, the cybersecurity field has been in a state of tug-of-war between secured networks and skilled attackers trying to breach them. Both sides strive to outdo each other by developing new layers of defense and devising methods to breach them. Red vs blue team exercises have since emerged as a crucial element of cyber resilience and security.
Many businesses keep dedicated red and blue teams to ensure they're ready for potential breaches. In red vs blue team exercises, one team takes on the attacker’s role while the other monitors and defends the network. The goal is to simulate various live-fire attacks to assess an organization’s security measures and ability to defend the network and respond to the attacks.
Since the red team uses real attack techniques, they could potentially disrupt an organization’s live systems and shut down operations—just like a real breach. As a result, most red teaming activities are performed in safe environments, such as test networks or a cyber range.
This article will explain the key aspects of red team vs blue team exercises and how they can help an organization better defend against future cyberattacks.
What is a red team?
Red teams simulate hostile attacks and attempt to find vulnerabilities in the network or system defended by the blue team. Similar to penetration testing (which is less invasive) the goal is to identify vulnerabilities by carefully probing each cyber defense layer.
Red teaming is important for several reasons. Just as a writer might overlook a typo after staring at the same page all day, system administrators and software developers can miss vulnerabilities or make configuration errors despite focusing on cyber resilience in other areas. Unlike developers and system owners, red teams don't have the same biases so they can identify vulnerabilities more effectively.
A red team's work is both experimental and methodical. They systematically explore a wide range of cyberattack strategies, including phishing and port scanning, as well as strategies not yet adopted. Specialists on these teams need to think outside the box, putting their skills and qualifications to work as they probe for vulnerabilities.
Essential skills for red teams
Given the complexity of their roles, red team specialists are highly trained in cybersecurity with experience across various cybersecurity domains.
First and foremost, red team members are knowledgeable in software development. While they may not be familiar with the intricacies of all existing software, understanding the fundamentals of operating systems and software construction is key to deciphering the structure of nearly any system.
Red team specialists also have extensive training and experience in reverse engineering, penetration testing, offensive security, advanced coding, and problem-solving. Furthermore, red teams stay up-to-date on cybersecurity developments and techniques to understand emerging threats.
In-house red teams are typically found in large organizations with major cyber risks (think those in defense, finance, and critical infrastructure). Smaller organizations, on the other hand, might hire external read teams from third-party firms because the cost of a dedicated red team is too high.
What do red teams do?
In order to think and act like the hackers their organization would defend against, red teams use real-world strategies. While most breach attempts are conducted remotely using computers or other devices, red teams may even try to physically break in to gain access to the network.
Some red team cyberattacks are performed campaign-style, running a series of breach attempts over several months to test various scenarios. In other instances, red teams leverage employees' public identity information to determine email addresses and conduct social engineering.
Red teams use a wide range of attack tactics such as:
- Account manipulation
- Application layer exploitation
- Card cloning
- Intercepting communication
- Jailbreaking
- Network service exploitation
- Penetration testing
- Phishing attacks
- Physical facility exploitation
- Port scans
- Social engineering
What are the benefits of red teaming?
Red teams play a vital role in enhancing an organization's cyber readiness as they bring an external attacker's perspective without jeopardizing operations or actual data.
Finding vulnerabilities as they are exploited by hackers in real-time doesn’t cut it, particularly for systems with personal information or financial access.
Engaging red teams helps build more proactive cybersecurity measures, significantly limiting vulnerabilities and reducing the likelihood of a breach.
What is a blue team?
The distinction between the blue team and an organization’s overall security team can vary depending on the size of the organization. Some larger enterprises have a blue team (apart from their dedicated security team) to focus specifically on defensive measures and incident response.
Typically, the terms “blue team” and “security team” are interchangeable and just refer to those who maintain the organization’s security.
While red team activities are offline and act as an advisory service, the blue team is always online protecting the network from attacks. Blue teams constantly analyze the network for vulnerabilities and other security threats, while also analyzing monitoring data to detect malicious activity.
Representing the perspective of the attacker, the red team is an important advisor to the blue team. The red team assists the blue team in finding and closing vulnerabilities and developing new ways to identify malicious activity in monitoring data.
Essential skills for blue teams
Blue team specialists typically have comprehensive training and experience in cybersecurity and software protocols. After identifying risks, blue teams collaborate to fortify the network and enhance cyber resilience without introducing new vulnerabilities.
Blue team specialists may have certifications or training in system security, system auditing, risk assessment, threat intelligence, incident handling, and various detection systems. They likely have a comprehensive background in hardening techniques, such as data encryption and patching, to seamlessly and rapidly resolve vulnerabilities.
What do blue teams do?
Blue teams carry out a wide range of exercises to thoroughly assess cyber readiness. Due to the complexities of cybersecurity and the advancing skills of attackers, their work goes beyond monitoring or relying solely on test reports from the red team.
Practices performed by blue teams may include:
- Installing anti-malware software or firewalls
- Conducting digital footprint analyses
- Performing Domain Name System (DNS) audits
- Configuring endpoint security
- Establishing security baselines
- Isolating infected assets
- Utilizing least-privilege access
- Implementing micro-segmentation
- Monitoring and logging network activity
- Conducting regular system scans
What are the benefits of blue teaming?
Blue teams are typically the security teams that actively defend the network. While the red team plays an advisory role by identifying vulnerabilities, the blue team analyzes and defends the network elements that contribute to those vulnerabilities. They then work with the network owner to close these gaps and provide guidance on the next steps.
What’s more, being on the hosting end of this tug-of-war, blue teams can spot vulnerabilities before the red team can identify them. This includes identifying and patching out-of-date systems, or identifying factors that could become issues as hacking technologies advance.
Overall, blue teams maintain a proactive approach to cybersecurity by resolving problems before they result in a breach. They also assist organizations in identifying and deterring active threats, such as unauthorized network access.
Using Cyber Range for red vs blue teaming
Red vs blue team exercises are an effective and proactive way to boost cyber resilience. However, this strategy becomes even more powerful when combined with a cyber range platform.
Running live attacks on the production network is too risky. Using a dedicated platform, like Field Effect Cyber Range creates a safe environment where the production network can be simulated and real attack techniques can be safely carried out.
Cybersecurity constantly evolves, so enhancing your network's preparedness for attacks and breaches is essential. By integrating red teams, blue teams, and Cyber Range into your cybersecurity system, you can ensure that your organization is ready for existing and emerging cyberattacks.
