{"id":2099,"date":"2020-12-29T16:46:28","date_gmt":"2020-12-29T16:46:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sectigostore.com\/blog\/?p=2099"},"modified":"2020-12-29T16:46:29","modified_gmt":"2020-12-29T16:46:29","slug":"red-team-vs-blue-team-in-cybersecurity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sectigostore.com\/blog\/red-team-vs-blue-team-in-cybersecurity\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Team vs Blue Team: Who Are They in Cybersecurity?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Red teaming and blue teaming \u2014 what\u2019s the difference? We\u2019ll dive into what each team does, how they help your organization\u2019s IT and cybersecurity, and why the \u201cred team vs blue team\u201d format gets the best results<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Red team vs. blue team\u2026 No, this isn\u2019t high-school gym class. Red team\/blue team is a way to assess your organization\u2019s IT and cybersecurity defenses. And when you\u2019re talking about IT security, you\u2019re talking big money. The FBI\u2019s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reports<\/a> that more than $3.5 billion was lost to cybercrimes in 2019. With stats like that, it is easy to see why Gartner projects<\/a> that companies will invest up to nearly $4 trillion into IT by the end of 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s a lot of money. And keep in mind that we aren\u2019t even factoring in the long-term effects of reputation damage and loss of trust when your company goes through a public cybersecurity issue\u2026 When the stakes are this high, you want to ensure you are covering all your bases. This is where knowing the difference between red team vs blue team \u2014 and how they help \u2014 becomes so important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we\u2019ll take a look at the red team vs blue team simulation process. We\u2019ll explore what each team is all about and what running a red team\/blue team exercise helps your organization accomplish in terms of cybersecurity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ultimate Goal of Red Team vs Blue Team<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"A
A shot of two soccer teams (football for those of you non-U.S. readers) that illustrates the concept of red team vs blue team. The red team is trying to score against the blue team while the blue team tries to defend their net.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The primary goal of pitting red team vs blue team is to improve and strengthen your organization\u2019s overall cybersecurity capabilities through a simulated multi-layered attack. If you were to put it into sports terms, the red team is the offense while the blue team is your defense. The former looks for weaknesses to attack and keeps you on your toes while the latter is there to keep the other team at bay and prevent them from scoring any goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite being on separate \u201cteams,\u201d this very much an iron-sharpens-iron type of situation. The red team ensures they are educated on the latest malware, social engineering, and penetration methods. The blue team must stay up to date on the latest prevention methods, cybersecurity defense tools, and general attack techniques to ensure the network (and other IT systems) remains secure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With both of these teams working at full capacity, your organization\u2019s defense will be prepared for any IT security situation. But as for what each of these teams actually<\/em> does to accomplish this, let\u2019s break it down!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is a Red Team?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A red team is a group of IT security professionals (also called \u201cethical hackers<\/a>\u201d) who either are hired as a group vendor, independent contractors, or they\u2019re internally assembled by your organization. Their job is to test the strength and effectiveness of your cybersecurity defenses by trying to identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses that exist within your technology, physical defenses, and \u201chuman firewall\u201d (i.e., your employees\u2019 cybersecurity awareness and knowledge).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if this sounds like a red team is a hired group of hackers<\/a> that simulate or execute cyber attacks on the organization that hired them, then you\u2019re correct \u2014 this is basically what a red team does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as you can see, red teaming is done for a good purpose and not for malicious intentions. These attacks are one of the most effective ways to find weaknesses that could cause your organization to lose money, people to lose their jobs, and many others to be negatively affected as well. By finding these weaknesses, the red team and your organization can create a stronger defense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Does a Red Team Function?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Like any successful criminal, the red team spends much of their time studying and planning. A home burglar will watch a home and its occupants to learn the \u201cins and outs\u201d of it \u2014 i.e., who lives there, when they are at home or work, if and where they have cameras, which alarm system they use (if any), etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to organizational security, red teams take the same approach to their job. Their planning may consist of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n