Organizing Your Protections with the MITRE ATT&CK Framework
A practical guide to understanding and applying the MITRE ATT&CK Framework, a living knowledge base of adversary tactics and techniques.
Organizing Your Protections with the MITRE ATT\&CK Framework
Information security isn’t just about policies, standards, or procedures—it’s also about understanding how attackers operate in the real world. While governance lays the foundation, true defense requires anticipating adversary actions and designing both protective and detective controls.
Even after putting in firewalls, endpoint security, monitoring, and access controls, the question remains:
How do you ensure that your assets are protected and that you can detect any attempts to compromise them?
The best way is to think like an attacker. By studying what attackers are likely to do, you can build defenses that both block attacks and reveal intrusions in progress.
Several frameworks exist for this purpose, such as the Lockheed Martin Cyber Kill Chain and the FireEye Mandiant Attack Lifecycle. However, for a deeper, more technical, and constantly updated view of adversary tactics, nothing comes close to the MITRE ATT\&CK Framework.
What is the MITRE ATT\&CK Framework?
The MITRE Corporation introduced ATT\&CK (Adversarial Tactics, Techniques, and Common Knowledge) in 2013. Unlike traditional frameworks, ATT\&CK dives into the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by attackers in real-world incidents.
MITRE’s idea was simple:
- Collect attacker behaviors (TTPs).
- Categorize them.
- Continuously update the framework as new methods emerge.
This approach transformed ATT\&CK into a living knowledge base of adversary behavior—one that defenders can map against their own environment to identify gaps in protection, detection, and response.
While some attackers (like hacktivists) may only aim to make noise or cause disruption, the real danger lies with Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs). These groups infiltrate networks, stay hidden, and operate over long periods—sometimes years at a time.
There are known cases where attackers remained inside organizations for 7–10 years, extracting value quietly while avoiding detection. This is exactly the type of threat MITRE ATT\&CK helps defend against.
The Stages of the ATT\&CK Framework
The ATT\&CK Matrix is broken down into stages, or “tactics,” that represent an attacker’s objectives. Each stage includes multiple techniques, and attackers may move back and forth between them depending on their goals.
Here’s a walkthrough of the stages:
1. Reconnaissance
The attacker gathers intelligence about the target:
- Searching public and private sources.
- Performing scanning activities.
- Using phishing techniques to trick users into revealing sensitive data.
Goal: Understand the environment before launching the attack.
2. Resource Development
Before striking, attackers build the infrastructure they need:
- Registering malicious domains.
- Creating fake accounts.
- Compromising systems to use as attack platforms.
- Acquiring or renting tools from underground markets.
Goal: Prepare the tools and resources for launching operations.
3. Initial Access
The attacker gains a foothold:
- Exploiting public-facing applications.
- Delivering malware through phishing.
- Using stolen credentials.
Goal: Get the first step inside the target’s environment.
4. Execution
Once inside, attackers need to run code:
- Scheduled tasks.
- Interprocess communication.
- Abuse of Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI).
- Exploiting system services.
Goal: Run their malicious payload without direct user interaction.
5. Persistence
Attackers don’t want to lose access after a reboot or logout:
- Installing malicious services.
- Modifying registry keys or startup files.
- Leveraging scheduled tasks or cron jobs.
Goal: Maintain long-term access to compromised systems.
6. Privilege Escalation
With persistence established, attackers often want more power:
- Exploiting system vulnerabilities.
- Injecting into privileged processes.
- Running services at boot time.
Goal: Gain administrative or system-level control.
7. Defense Evasion
To stay hidden, attackers use stealth techniques:
- Rootkits to hide presence.
- Obfuscating or encrypting payloads.
- Deleting logs.
This stage has the largest number of techniques, since evading detection is essential for survival.
8. Credential Access
Stolen credentials are valuable for deeper access:
- Phishing users for usernames and passwords.
- Dumping credentials from memory or apps.
- Trick servers into handing over authentication data.
Goal: Expand access and impersonate legitimate users.
9. Discovery
Once inside, attackers map the environment:
- Enumerating systems and applications.
- Identifying what resources the victim has access to.
Goal: Learn where to move next.
10. Lateral Movement
Attackers spread deeper into the environment:
- Reusing stolen credentials.
- Exploiting vulnerabilities in other systems.
- Sending malicious emails from compromised accounts.
Goal: Compromise as many systems as possible.
11. Collection
Attackers gather the information they came for:
- Internal documents.
- Databases.
- Credentials and sensitive records.
This stage often leaves visible artifacts, such as oddly named files or large archives being staged.
12. Command and Control (C2)
Attackers establish remote control to maintain presence:
- Using HTTP, DNS, or ICMP for covert communication.
- Embedding commands between infected systems and their C2 servers.
Goal: Remotely manage compromised machines.
13. Exfiltration
The stolen data must leave the environment:
- Over commonly used protocols to blend in.
- By hiding data in DNS queries or HTTP traffic.
Even here, attackers risk detection—unusually large DNS messages, for example, can expose exfiltration attempts.
14. Impact
Finally, some attackers may choose to destroy or disrupt:
- Ransomware (encrypting data).
- Disk wiping.
- Denial-of-service attacks.
Goal: Cause maximum damage, either as retaliation or part of their objective.
Why MITRE ATT\&CK Matters
The power of MITRE ATT\&CK lies in its practical detail. Each TTP in the matrix comes with:
- Descriptions of attacker behavior
- Examples from real-world incidents
- Mitigation strategies
- Detection ideas
This makes ATT\&CK invaluable for:
- Blue Teams: Strengthening monitoring and defenses.
- Red Teams: Designing realistic attack simulations.
- Threat Intelligence Teams: Mapping adversary campaigns.
It bridges the gap between high-level strategy and hands-on security operations.
Final Thoughts
Cybersecurity is a constant battle of move and counter-move. The MITRE ATT\&CK Framework gives defenders a structured way to anticipate, detect, and respond to the tactics that attackers actually use.
Whether you’re building a SOC, running red team exercises, or simply strengthening your detection capabilities, ATT\&CK is a framework worth mastering.
🔗 Explore the official MITRE ATT\&CK Matrix here: https://attack.mitre.org/matrices/enterprise/
By organizing your defenses with MITRE ATT\&CK, you’re not just reacting to threats—you’re proactively preparing for them.