In this fast-moving world where businesses operate completely through IT infrastructure, waiting for a threat to happen and finding a solution isn’t enough. There should be a proactive approach, where you spot and remove a threat even before it touches your systems.
It’s like staying a step ahead by using data to:
Predict Detect, and Prevent attacks
In this blog, we will explore proactive threat intelligence and 5 powerful use cases that show how it can enhance detection, speed up response, and support stronger, smarter security decisions.
What is Proactive Threat Intelligence?
Proactive threat intelligence implies spotting and preventing cyber threats before they intrude, instead of responding once they happen.
Look at the four main types of threat intelligence to understand how they work:
Type of IntelligenceFocusPurpose
Strategic IntelligenceBig-picture view of long-term risks, trends, and external factors (e.g. geopolitics, regulations)Helps leaders make informed security decisionsTactical IntelligenceCurrent attacker methods (tools, techniques, procedures) Helps security teams adjust defenses quickly Operational IntelligenceSpecific threat campaigns or incidentsHelps understand targeting, methods, and how to respond effectivelyTechnical IntelligenceConcrete data (e.g. malware signatures, malicious IPs, file hashes)Supports threat hunting and fast detection of known threats
Together, these intelligence types form the foundation for a proactive approach to cybersecurity.
As businesses rely more heavily on digital tools, cloud services, and remote work, proactive threat hunting is more important than ever. It helps organizations to:
Spot danger early Act faster Stay resilient
Now let’s check the use cases of proactive threat intelligence.
Discover how advanced threat intelligence powers proactive defense.
Smarter protection with sensors, agents, and sandboxing
Real-time, layered intelligence to stop threats early
Automated detection and faster response
Top 5 Use Cases of Proactive Threat Intelligence
Use Case #1: Incident Enrichment for Faster Response
The Challenge:
Security teams get a lot of alerts, but many don’t have enough information to be useful. They can get alerts about suspicious IPs or domains but without any context. This leads analysts to have to look into each one, one by one, to understand the issue. This takes a lot of time and puts even more workload on teams.
The Approach:
Adding threat intelligence to security tools helps teams get clearer, more useful alerts. The extra information can include things like malware behavior, attacker tactics, and the history of suspicious IPs or domains.
Solutions like threat intelligence management platforms help automate this process—pulling from trusted intelligence sources to give each alert more clarity and relevance.
The Benefits:
Stay informed: Keep the entire organization aware of potential security risks
Spend wisely: Guide security investments based on actual vulnerabilities and strengths
Plan ahead: Use threat trends to shape long-term strategy and decision-making
A Real-World Example:
Imagine your system flags a suspicious domain. On its own, it’s just a name. But when enriched with threat intelligence, you learn it’s tied to a known malware campaign, has a bad reputation score, and has been involved in phishing attacks. With this information, your team can take confident, immediate action—without second-guessing or delay.
Use Case #2: Proactive Blocking of Malicious Indicators
The Challenge:
In many companies, there is a time delay between threat detection and updating their security tools to block it. Security analysts often gather indicators like bad IPs or file hashes from multiple sources, but pushing data to SIEMs, firewalls, or other tools often takes time. During that delay, attackers can already be at work.
The Approach:
To solve this, organizations are using a proactive strategy—feeding their security tools with both atomic indicators (like known bad IP addresses or domains) and behavioral indicators (such as suspicious activity patterns) in real–time. This allows systems to recognize and block emerging threats as soon as they’re detected, even before an attack fully takes shape.
How It Works:
Ingest Indicators – Threat data is pulled in from trusted intelligence sources, including internal research and external feeds.
Score and Prioritize – The indicators are analyzed, scored based on risk, and filtered to reduce noise and false alarms.
Block Automatically – Based on that analysis, the indicators are pushed to detection tools (like SIEMs and firewalls) which then take automatic actions—such as blocking domains or isolating endpoints.
A Real-World Example:
Fidelis Endpoint® uses constantly updated feeds—even when the device isn’t connected to the internet—to compare threat data against ongoing activity. Combined with cyber threat intelligence platform integrations and playbooks, organizations can build automated workflows that identify, score, and block dangerous indicators right away. This prevents threats from slipping through the cracks and reduces the time attackers have to cause damage.
Use Case #3: External Threat Landscape Modeling
The Challenge:
To defend effectively, organizations need to know who might come after them, why, and how. External threat landscape modeling helps security teams understand the tactics and tools that threat actors are using—and whether those methods could impact their organization.
The Approach:
This use case is all about building a detailed picture of your threat environment. It involves:
ActionDescription
Profiling likely attackersBased on your industry, location, and digital assets, identify which cybercriminal groups or nation-state actors might target you.Mapping their methodsBy analyzing the techniques, tools, and procedures used by attackers, security teams can better predict how an attack might unfold.Sharing with stakeholdersShare insights with leadership, compliance, and other departments to help them understand risks and adjust strategies.
Tools That Help:
One of the most valuable resources for this work is the MITRE ATT&CK framework. It provides a structured way to match real-world threats to known attacker behaviors. This allows teams to simulate potential attacks, spot coverage gaps, and fine-tune defenses accordingly.
The Result:
With a holistic and in-depth view of the external threat landscape, leaders can make the right decisions around their defenses. They will also be able to carry out realistic risk assessments, enhance current detection methods, and prepare for the advanced attacks they might face in the future.
Use Case #4: Threat Hunting and Behavior-Based Detection
The Challenge:
Many security systems still rely heavily on signatures to catch threats. But modern attacks—especially fileless malware or advanced persistent threats—often don’t leave behind traditional indicators. This makes them hard to detect using signature-based tools alone.
The Solution:
Instead of waiting for known threats to appear, security teams are taking a proactive approach by tracking behavior patterns. This means looking for signs of suspicious activity, not just known bad files.
With behavior-based detection, tools monitor how users, applications, and systems behave over time. If something deviates from the norm—like an unusual script running or unexpected access to sensitive data—it gets flagged for investigation.
How It Works:
Fidelis Insight™ (the robust threat intelligence platform that delivers curated, real-time intelligence) provides a set of behavior rules that watch for suspicious activity in real time. These rules are often tied to techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
By combining endpoint telemetry (such as what users are doing on their machines) with network data (like unexpected traffic patterns), analysts can get a complete picture of what’s really going on.
This kind of correlation is powerful—it helps surface stealthy threats that might otherwise go unnoticed.
The Benefit:
Behavior-based threat hunting allows teams to detect attacks that don’t follow traditional patterns. Whether it’s a brand-new exploit or an insider doing something suspicious, these techniques can help spot trouble early—before real damage is done.
Use Case #5: Strategic Decision Making & Threat Reporting
The Challenge:
Threat intelligence can be overwhelming, especially for companies and leadership teams who need clear, actionable insights. Without a well-organized process to access and interpret the data, it can be shared in fragmented formats, making it hard for decision-makers to get the full picture.
The Solution:
To solve this, organizations need a more efficient way to centralize threat intelligence and automate reporting. This involves:
Centralize threat data – Create centralized repositories where all threat data is stored and easily accessible.
Automate updates – Use workflows to quickly create and share threat reports.
Make data clear – Ensure analysts and leaders work together to turn intelligence into actionable insights.
The Benefits:
Keeps everyone informed and aligned on security risks
Helps leaders focus investments where they’re needed most
Offers a clear view of threat trends to guide planning and decision-making
Bonus Integration: Using MITRE ATT&CK as a Cross-Functional Framework
Why Integrate MITRE ATT&CK?
To make proactive threat intelligence more effective, using frameworks like MITRE ATT&CK offers a clear and practical way to detect and respond to threats.
MITRE ATT&CK provides a common framework that helps:
Security professionals across departments collaborate more effectively Teams like detection, incident response, and red teaming use a shared language Organizations discuss and address cyber threats clearly and consistently
Benefits of Integrating MITRE ATT&CK:
Better communication – Teams can easily understand each other when talking about cyber threats.
Improved security posture – Helps with finding hidden threats, testing defenses, and investigating attacks.
How to Use MITRE ATT&CK in Practice:
Use CaseDescription
Understand alerts fasterMap alerts to specific tactics and techniques to quickly identify the attack and respond effectively.Find security gapsSpot weak or missing defenses so teams can improve protection.Support trainingUse ATT&CK to train staff, helping both new and experienced team members recognize common attacks.
Fidelis Elevate®: A Powerful Tool for Proactive Threat Intelligence
Fidelis Elevate® is a comprehensive Extended Detection and Response (XDR) platform designed to integrate critical elements, including:
Endpoint Detection and Response Network Detection and Response Deception DLP (Data Loss Prevention) Active Directory Protection
It provides deep, actionable insights into adversaries’ activities, offering a proactive approach that goes beyond traditional security tools.
Why Choose Fidelis Elevate® for Threat Intelligence?
Gain real-time monitoring of network, endpoint, and cloud risks
Stop threats early with AI analysis and MITRE ATT&CK mapping before they grow into serious attacks
Get strong protection by combining endpoint, network, and deception tools for full security coverage
Uses real-time decoys to confuse and trap even advanced attackers
Stays ahead of attackers by anticipating their tactics and strategies In a nutshell, Fidelis helps teams find, stop, and respond to cyber threats early, strengthening security and building resilience.
Conclusion
Responding to an attack once it occurs is not an effective remedy for resilience in the current IT landscape of businesses. A proactive approach to block threats before they enter the systems is necessary. Tools like Fidelis XDR help companies leverage threat intelligence, stay two steps ahead of attackers, improve the productivity of the security team, and more!
Frequently Ask Questions
What is proactive threat intelligence?
Proactive threat intelligence involves identifying and preventing cyber threats before they affect your system. It uses data to predict, detect, and prevent attacks in real time.
How does incident enrichment improve response times?
By integrating threat intelligence into security alerts, incident enrichment provides more context, such as attacker tactics and malware behavior. This helps security teams respond faster and more effectively.
What is the role of behavior-based detection in cyber threat hunting?
How can MITRE ATT&CK framework help in proactive defense?
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