A Comprehensive Guide to Threat Intelligence Tools

There are so many external factors that could impact a business’s ability to deliver its products and services. Factors like extreme weather, pandemics, floods, wildfires, strikes, social unrest, government decisions, inflation, interest rates, regulatory amendments, and a wealth of IT related threats like cyber-attacks, data breaches, and system outages could impact operations at any time. Getting visibility of these potential threats ahead of time gives a business more time to plan their response – rather than acting reactively once they have already been impacted.

That’s why many organisations are turning to effective threat intelligence tools to get foresight of events, natural disasters, and cyber threats ahead of time – giving them an opportunity to safeguard their assets and ensure continuity before disaster strikes.  Threat intelligence tools play a critical role in this process, providing organisations with real-time data on potential risks, enabling them to anticipate, detect, and respond effectively – automating threat detection, monitoring, and response.

What are threat intelligence tools?

Threat intelligence tools are essentially software integrations that can be used as a bolt-on to your business continuity & resilience platform to pull in live updates of upcoming threats from various sources that could impact your business. When notification of a relevant threat is received, these threat intelligence services send an automated alert the relevant teams so they can take action.

These tools collate threat intelligence data related to emerging and existing threats, including cyber risks, natural disasters, economic fluctuations, regulatory changes, and social unrest. The technical intelligence data is sourced from various sharing formats including a variety of commercial and community driven channels such as open-source intelligence (OSINT), news sites, social media, government and regulatory bodies, and other online activity. These diverse operational intelligence data sources are culminated by Commercial threat intelligence providers, such as OnSolve Risk Intelligence and are offered as a subscription model to provide organisations with a real-time view of the threat landscape, allowing them to make informed decisions regarding risk management and preparedness and process, correlate, and act upon threat data.

Firms can filter feeds based on geographies, threat types, and severity levels to focus on the events and threat actors that are relevant to their organisation to generate strategic intelligence and conduct threat analysis. Firms can view a live threat map with a distance radius to understand which risks could impact their various sites and suppliers. Once a threat notification or indicator of compromise is received, the relevant staff are alerted via automated workflows based on the severity and threat type. The system can also automate the threat response by creating new incidents or sending mass notifications to deal with the threat promptly. Firms can build structured response plans based on a variety of threat types so they can easily be deployed in an emergency. The system facilitates full case management workflows until the threat is fully addressed and all remediating actions are documented.

Key Features & Capabilities of Threat Intelligence Tools

Modern threat intelligence tools offer a suite of capabilities and key features designed to enhance an organisation’s resilience efforts and threat intelligence strategy. These tools proactively monitor global threats, including cyber risks, extreme weather events, supply chain disruptions, economic instability, regulatory amendments, labour strikes, and geopolitical developments. One of the primary advantages of operational threat intelligence platforms is their ability to provide a real-time view of global threats, aggregating data from key sources such as government agencies, regulators, news sites, financial institutions, and social media. By subscribing to these live, AI-driven threat feeds, organisations gain actionable insights into new and emerging threats that could impact their operations ahead of time. These platforms use advanced machine learning algorithms to analyse vast amounts of threat data, identifying anomalies and emerging trends in real time.

Another essential capability is operational threat monitoring and threat hunting. Advanced threat intelligence platforms continuously track risks and different types of threat intelligence such as inflationary pressures, interest rate changes, political instability, and pandemics. The system empowers organisations to stay ahead of these disruptions by receiving real-time alerts on relevant developments, allowing them to deploy timely response measures. These platforms enable businesses to automate their incident response, minimising the impact of external threats and reducing manual intervention in crisis management efforts.

What is the live threat map offered by threat intelligence tools?

In addition to monitoring threats, modern intelligence tools provide live threat maps that help organisations visualise and assess potential risks based on geography, severity, and impact. These maps use distance radius calculations to determine whether threats in specific regions could affect business operations, providing risk teams with the necessary context to respond effectively. By utilising threat intelligence capabilities and integrating real-time intelligence with location-based analysis, businesses can proactively protect their infrastructure and personnel from emerging threats.

How can cyber threat intelligence tools improve cybersecurity?

Threat intelligence tools can also be used by security teams to pre-empt likely cybersecurity issues like malware attacks, system vulnerabilities, the dark web, phishing domains, fraud attempts, and changes to data privacy regulations. Firms simply subscribe to the threat intelligence updates and tailor notifications based on their systems and locations – providing actionable intelligence. Cyber threat intelligence tools support security professionals to implement a zero-trust security posture to safeguard digital assets against modern cyberattacks such as ransomware, open-source threats, and other threat-actors individuals, groups, or entities that pose a security risk. These systems provide actionable insights for organisations looking to enhance their cybersecurity strategy and generate threat intelligence in cybersecurity with robust, data-driven threat intelligence.

Cyber threat intelligence tools integrate with an organisations SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) systems, firewalls, and other cybersecurity risk management platforms to further automate the response to the threat. Once a relevant threat notification is received, automated rules decide if an ‘incident’ should be created, or a ‘risk’ should be added to the ‘cyber risk register’ to address the threat. Automated workflows notify staff of any new risks or incidents.

When a cyber risk is added to the risk register as a result of regulatory intelligence, automated workflows alert teams so they can implement the necessary controls, policies, procedures, or training to reduce the risk. Firms should maintain a control library of all cyber controls and carry out regular control testing and checks to ensure controls are effective. Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) should be established and monitored to understand the risk level, and regular cyber risk assessments should be conducted internally to understand the extent and possible impact of the risk. The results of all risk assessments and control checks & testing, and any rising KRIs are captured centrally in the platform – providing complete visibility of cyber risk exposure to protect their network.

In other cases, some threat intelligence feed notifications may require a cyber incident to be created instantly. Threat intelligence feeds should integrate with your organisations incident management platform or cyber ticketing system to enable incidents to be created instantly. Once the incident is created, it will be automatically escalated to the relevant teams based on its type and severity. From there, a case management workflow will enable stake holders to manage a series of remediating tasks and actions to resolve the incident. This ensures that incident remediation is fully documented and that teams can learn from how past incidents were resolved to speed up the resolution of future incidents – ensuring continuous improvement.

Automating Threat Response Using Threat Intelligence Tools

Threat intelligence tools are not just about detecting threats, they are also integral to automating the response to potential threats. Subscribing to threat intelligence feeds isn’t sufficient to build resilience, firms also need to automate the relevant response to reduce the time required to address potential disruptions.

As relevant threat notifications are received from the intelligence subscription, automated workflows trigger alerts to the relevant teams, enabling them to take immediate action and mitigate emerging risks before they escalate. Organisations can set up predefined rules for threat escalation and response, ensuring that incidents are managed efficiently and in accordance with established risk protocols and company procedures.

Once a threat has been categorised, rated and escalated by the platform, firms can carry out a business impact assessment using analysis frameworks to understand the likely impact, and case management workflows enable teams to fully document all the tasks and actions that were completed to mitigate the risk. This documented evidence provides assurance to management teams that emerging threats are being monitored and addressed effectively.

A top threat intelligence platform will offer dashboards & reports to enable leaders to understand the status of each threat and the steps being taken to mitigate it. Reports can be generated to understand likely impact and severity to support leaders to decide where to allocate budget and resources to reduce the most critical risks. 

Supporting a Comprehensive Risk Management Framework

Threat intelligence tools play a vital role in supporting a holistic risk management framework, ensuring organisations remain prepared for a wide range of disruptions. By continuously monitoring economic, environmental, geopolitical, cyber, and operational risks, businesses can enforce stricter preparedness measures and prevent unnecessary disruptions. Threat intelligence feeds provide real-time insights into evolving risks, enabling organisations to add new risks to the risk register and implement effective controls before crises unfold. As global risks become more interconnected, integrating threat intelligence into your enterprise risk management framework and managing then in an integrated risk management tool strengthens overall resilience and heightens an organisation’s ability to adapt swiftly to new threats that require organisational change.

Overcoming Limitations of Threat Intelligence Tools

While threat intelligence platforms offer significant advantages, they do have some limitations. One challenge organisations face is the overwhelming volume of threat data, which can lead to alert fatigue and information overload among risk management teams. To mitigate this issue, businesses should implement intelligent filtering mechanisms that prioritise high-impact threats and reduce false positives. Additionally, organisations must ensure that their threat intelligence solutions are integrated with other risk management tools, such as business continuity planning (BCP) systems, cyber risk platforms, supply chain systems, and third-party risk monitoring platforms, to enable a cohesive risk strategy.

Another limitation of threat intelligence tools is their reliance on historical threat data, which may not always accurately predict emerging risks. To address this, organisations should leverage systems that provide a combination of AI-driven trend analysis and human expertise, ensuring that strategic threat intelligence is contextualised, current, and actionable. By continuously refining their intelligence feeds with the relevant filters, businesses can enhance their ability to detect and respond to evolving risks effectively.

Best Practices for Implementing Threat Intelligence Tools

To maximise the effectiveness of tactical threat intelligence tools, organisations should adopt best practice operational risk management processes that align with their long-term objectives to effectively manage the emerging risks detected. Once businesses have established a centralised threat intelligence program that integrates feeds from multiple sources, firms should implement a best practice ERM program to effectively deal with these new risks.

Any new risks that are deemed worthy should be added to the risk register. Key Risk Indicators should be established to monitor the level of the risk on an ongoing basis, and regular risk assessments should be conducted to assess the risk level regularly over time. The historical results of risk assessments should also be analysed to identify trends and emerging threats. Controls should be implemented to ensure the risk level doesn’t escalate to intolerable levels. Controls might be a regular check, they might be a new policy or procedure, or they might be a new piece of equipment or software. What ever the control is, it should be regularly tested and checked to ensure it is effective at keeping the associated risk within the organisations risk appetite.

Using Threat Intelligence Tools to Build Tailored Response Plans

Another best practice is to build automated response plans tailored to different threat types. By building out workflows and notification templates upfront before risk levels rise, organisations can ensure that the right personnel are alerted promptly and know what to do when a threat is detected. Additionally, businesses should invest in continuous training for risk management teams, keeping them informed of the latest intelligence methodologies, emerging technologies, and risk mitigation techniques to ensure their processes are current and that they are able to proactively mitigate threats.

Strengthening Business Resilience with Threat Intelligence

As threats to business operations continue to evolve, organisations must adopt proactive risk & resilience measures to safeguard their assets and ensure continuity. Threat intelligence tools provide businesses with real-time visibility into the threat landscape, enabling them to detect and respond to potential disruptions effectively. By leveraging AI-driven analytics, automated threat response, and collaborative intelligence sharing, organisations can enhance their resilience and mitigate the impact of unexpected incidents, cyber threats, regulatory changes, economic shifts, and environmental disasters.

Incorporating threat intelligence into your risk management framework is an essential step towards proactive resilience and generating a holistic view of your threat landscape. With the right tools and response strategies in place, businesses can stay ahead of emerging threats, protect their critical operations, and maintain a stable operating model in an increasingly unpredictable world. By subscribing to threat intelligence – and receiving feeds from commercial platforms, open-source intelligence, or AI-driven threat detection – organisations can build a strong and adaptive risk posture and boost overall resilience.

To discover how integrating threat intelligence tools from Camms into your BCM program can bolster your resilience visit our website or request a demo.