Security teams need to see the IT infrastructure from the same perspective as attackers to understand where and how they might strike, yet many teams lack the experience and expertise to think like a hacker would. Red team training teaches them how to use the same methods as threat actors except for the opposite reasons: improving cybersecurity and preventing attacks.
An Overview of Red Team Training
What is red team training?
Students learn the skills necessary to participate on red teams, which take an “outside-in” approach to cybersecurity, using the same tactics, techniques, and protocols as attackers to test existing security controls for gaps and weaknesses. Red team training may cover topics like how to identify targets, how to scout for exposures and intelligence, how to compromise various systems, and/or how to bypass myriad cyber defenses. Red team training isn’t necessary for most employees, but it’s invaluable, and increasingly essential, for anyone responsible for cybersecurity.
How does red team training serve cybersecurity?
Red team training helps cybersecurity practitioners make better decisions about their defenses, staff, and budget. By demonstrating how to emulate attackers, teams can discover the most problematic parts of their IT infrastructure and prioritize security accordingly. One result is stronger and smarter security that causes more attacks, both known and unknown, to fail before causing any damage. Another result is smarter security spending directed wherever it can have the biggest impact. In the never-ending game of cybersecurity, red team training is the start of staying one step ahead of the opponent.
What is challenging about red team training?
Many companies do not have the time, resources, or background to conduct their own red team training. Likewise, some training providers make little effort to keep lessons updated or engaging, resulting in instructions that are either irrelevant or forgettable. As with all cybersecurity education and awareness, receiving the actual training matters less than internalizing and applying the information, underscoring the importance of being selective about providers and methods.
Why are More Teams Getting Red Team Training?
Why is red team training becoming more common?
More companies want to incorporate red team testing into their cybersecurity strategy now that the cost and consequences of cyber attacks have grown so significantly. Even minor attacks can result in major financial losses, serious compliance violations, lasting reputational damage, and complex IT issues. Red team exercises use simulated attacks to stress test defenses before the real attacks arrive, thus making successful attacks less likely and less disruptive. Red team training ensures that participants know how to run these exercises to get as much actionable insight and intelligence as possible.
What kinds of companies conduct red team training?
Any individual or team benefits from receiving red team training and gaining the ability to see IT with the same eyes as attackers. The benefits are particularly pronounced at some organizations:
- High-Risk Industries: Finance, healthcare, government, and legal customers will all want to avoid attacks at all costs by being proactive through red teaming.
- Lean Security Teams: Red team training and exercises help lean teams make the most of time, tools, staff, and other resources in limited supply.
- Blue-Team Focus: Any team focused primarily on blue teaming will benefit from learning and incorporating a red team mentality as well.
- Large Compliance Burden: As preserving compliance becomes more important and more onerous, companies should proactively hunt for threats.
- Fast-Growth Companies: Keeping a cyber attack from slowing or sidetracking growth starts by teaching security teams to go on the offensive.
Which elements should red team training include?
All red team training should include a few elements, regardless of subject matter. First is an expert instructor who knows the material at an advanced level, ideally as a recent or active member of a red team, who also has experience teaching the material to others. Next is interactive exercises that use hand-on learning to boost information retention. Last, and arguably most important for a dynamic subject like red teaming, is the ability to ask questions and interact with experts to get detailed answers and explanations.
How often should red team training be conducted?
Realistically, as often as possible. Red team tactics are a big subject with many layers and avenues to pursue. What’s more, red team tactics evolve all the time in ways that security teams need to know about. Efficient, accessible, and affordable options make training easier to align with the existing schedule and budget. Alternatively, red team tools that streamline threat hunting and intelligence collection help red teams do more with less training.
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How Can Flare Help With Red Team Training?
Does Flare offer red team training?
Flare offers red team training based on the experience and expertise of the red team testers on our staff. We took their first-hand, hard-won knowledge and turned it into a series of course for red team training that explains essential concepts, demonstrates tactics and techniques, and leaves any student ready to join the red team. Offered in the form of videos and digital exercises, and backed by a robust community of current and former students, these trainings are designed to be highly accessible and affordable so that the benefits of red team training extend to all.
What does red team training from Flare include?
Each red team training session focuses on a tactic bad actors might use to compromise an organization: OpSec, OSINT, Remote Desktop Protocol Interception, etc. The live training sessions are hosted by cybersecurity specialists, last about 2 hours, and provide the opportunity to ask questions throughout. Past videos are available for viewing at any time. A resource hub hosted on Discord expands on the concepts introduced in the training, where there’s also an active community for discussion, assistance, and networking. Red team training from Flare costs nothing and earns participants one CPE credit towards professional certifications.
Who should seek red team training?
Most red team trainings from Flare have no prerequisite and require nothing more than a desire to learn, making them open to all. Likewise, red team training can be an asset for any team that wants to be more informed, offensive, and preventative about the cyber risks it’s up against. All that being said, red team trainings are ideal for:
- Security Analysts
- SOC Teams
- IT Administrators
- Threat Hunters
What are the benefits of red team training?
Red team training has many direct and indirect benefits, not just for cybersecurity but for overall business strength as well.
- Smarter Security Team: Security teams are more capable and cohesive when they undergo red team training to extend their skills and see security in new ways.
- Efficient Threat Hunting: Defenders can find threats, vulnerabilities, and exposures more quickly, consistently, and effectively after red team training.
- Risk Reduction & Threat Prevention: Red teaming leads to high-impact security upgrades that prevent cyber attacks and stop data breaches before they begin.
- Stronger Security Posture: Combining red and blue team methods and offensive and defensive tactics results in the most robust and compliant security posture possible.
- Larger Security ROI: Red team training takes pressure off security tools and staff, making investments in cybersecurity go farther.
Red Team Training and Flare
Flare Academy Training supplies present and future red team members with highly relevant and highly engaging lessons on subjects like threat intelligence, operational security, investigation techniques, and more. Led by expert instructors, these free trainings combine on-demand video lessons with diverse learning tools. Students can also gain access to the Flare Academy Discord Community where they can ask questions, explore advanced topics, and continue their learning journey wherever it leads.
What red team training does your team need? Find the right option at the Flare Academy: sign up for the next training here.
