Foiling cyber attacks

Abstract

The article attempts to analyse at a conceptual and practical level whether it is possible to foresee and foil cyber attacks. It argues that cyber threat intelligence is a sensitive and novel approach to doing so in that it departs from the traditional more reactive options used until now. The article posits that threat intelligence falls between strategic and practical approaches, between deterrence and technical solutions. Furthermore, the article suggests that cyber threat intelligence faces difficulties that differ from those traditionally dealt with by intelligence services. Its greatest challenge lies in the collection of precise and actionable intelligence. By contrast, the evaluation and dissemination phases of the intelligence cycle usually account for security apparatuses failing to foil upcoming plots.