Heads up! To view this whole video, sign in with your Courses account or enroll in your free 7-day trial. Sign In Enroll
Preview
Start a free Courses trial
to watch this video
Learn to create and apply a defensive framework used by security professionals in many industries. This video will explain how it's really just an extension of behaviors you already do.
New Terms:
- Threat Model -- A conceptual framework to identify assets and risks, possible mitigations, and optimizations.
- Actors -- The people, agencies, or devices involved in the threat model.
- Risks -- The vulnerabilities related to exposure or loss of assets.
- Assets -- The people, resources, or possessions you wish to protect.
- Mitigations -- The possible strategies for prevention or minimization of risk
- Breach -- An event where assets were lost or exposed, through failure of mitigations or other protections.
Further Reading:
Related Discussions
Have questions about this video? Start a discussion with the community and Treehouse staff.
Sign upRelated Discussions
Have questions about this video? Start a discussion with the community and Treehouse staff.
Sign up
Now that we've explored how common
traffic flows through the Internet and
0:00
the kinds of information
attached to that traffic,
0:03
we can make some informed decisions
about our online activity.
0:06
One way to establish some secure practices
is to create what's called a threat model.
0:10
This is a defensive framework used by
security professionals in many industries.
0:15
But don't let that intimidate you.
0:20
It's really just thinking
through behaviors and
0:21
attitudes that you already
do on a daily basis.
0:24
First, let's establish
some threat model basics.
0:27
Creating a thought model is asking
yourself a set of questions.
0:31
Who would be most likely to target me?
0:34
A repressive government, organized crime,
corporations, my ex, my coworkers.
0:36
How much money, time, and
0:43
skill do they have to dedicate to target
me, an important aspect of this activity.
0:45
What would they most likely want from me?
0:49
Money, incriminating information,
access to trusted contacts.
0:52
How much effort am I willing
to put into protecting it?
0:57
Is this worth the effort?
1:00
What would happen to me
if they were successful?
1:01
It's all about being prepared.
1:05
Number 1 is about identifying
the actors in the model.
1:07
Number 2 is about identifying
the risks in the model.
1:11
Number 3 is about identifying
the assets in the model.
1:15
Number 4 is about prioritizing
your concerns with mitigations.
1:18
Number 5 is about planning for breach.
1:22
As I mentioned earlier,
most of these really are questions you've
1:25
already asked yourself in some form or
another.
1:28
This process is just collecting
them together for risk analysis.
1:31
Consider when you leave your home in
the morning to go to work or school.
1:36
Do you lock your door?
1:39
You've likely decided that the effort to
lock the door is worth protecting the risk
1:41
for a burglary through the door.
1:46
You've identified the actors as burglar,
but the front door provides
1:47
a vulnerability or risk that your
valuable possessions are the assets.
1:52
You've established the lock as
a risk mitigation strategy.
1:57
And you'll likely have an understanding
that you can call the police
2:01
should you find out that you've been
breached and had your things stolen.
2:04
An important aspect of this is
to point out that there is no
2:09
one mitigation strategy that
can protect against all risks.
2:12
You choose the ones
that fit the task best.
2:16
For example, that lock on the door
may keep out a casual burglar, but
2:19
not a dedicated one that
chooses to break a window.
2:24
So now you add some bars on your windows.
2:27
Well locks and bars do nothing to protect
those same assets against a fire.
2:30
Of course, the most convenient thing would
be to not have to lock your door at all.
2:35
But as always, it's a trade off
between security and convenience.
2:40
Your online security can gain a lot
from the same threat model treatment.
2:45
And, in fact,
you're already doing this as well.
2:49
The fact that you use a password to
protect an account is a mitigation itself.
2:51
It's also pretty analogous
to the door lock.
2:56
If you use the same key for
your door as your dead bolt and
2:59
back door, you'll have to change
every lock even if you lose one key.
3:02
By viewing your own online activity
through the lens of a threat model,
3:07
you can really identify
your own threats and
3:11
prioritize the effort you want to
make to help protect yourself.
3:13
In the next stages, we'll dive deep
into other actors and risks and
3:18
offer some solid mitigations so
you're prepared.
3:21
You need to sign up for Treehouse in order to download course files.
Sign upYou need to sign up for Treehouse in order to set up Workspace
Sign up