methodology

Threat Emulation

Threat emulation is a cybersecurity practice that involves simulating real-world cyberattacks in a controlled environment to test and improve an organization's security defenses. It uses tools and techniques to mimic the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) of actual adversaries, such as malware, phishing, or exploitation attempts. This helps identify vulnerabilities, assess detection capabilities, and validate incident response processes without causing real harm.

Also known as: Attack Simulation, Adversary Emulation, Red Teaming, Threat Simulation, TTP Emulation
🧊Why learn Threat Emulation?

Developers should learn threat emulation to build more secure applications by understanding how attackers operate and proactively testing their code and systems against realistic threats. It is crucial in roles involving security engineering, penetration testing, or DevSecOps, especially for organizations in high-risk industries like finance or healthcare, to comply with regulations and reduce breach risks. Use cases include red team exercises, security validation in CI/CD pipelines, and training security teams.

Compare Threat Emulation

Threat Emulation vs Threat Hunting→Threat Emulation vs Vulnerability Scanning→Threat Emulation vs Security Auditing→

Learning Resources

📄
MITRE ATT&CK Framework
docs
→
🎓
SANS SEC564: Red Team Operations and Threat Emulation
course
→
📝
Atomic Red Team - Threat Emulation Tool
tutorial
→
🎬
Introduction to Threat Emulation on YouTube
video
→
📚
The Red Team Field Manual
book
→

Related Tools

Penetration TestingIncident ResponseSecurity MonitoringVulnerability AssessmentMalware Analysis

Alternatives to Threat Emulation

Threat HuntingVulnerability ScanningSecurity Auditing