Threat Modeling

Threat modeling is a proactive security practice that involves systematically analyzing the architecture, design, and data flows of a system to identify potential threats and vulnerabilities before they can be exploited. By performing threat modeling early in the software development lifecycle, organizations can address security concerns at the design stage, which is far more cost-effective than fixing vulnerabilities in production.

Several established methodologies guide the threat modeling process. STRIDE, developed by Microsoft, categorizes threats into six types: Spoofing, Tampering, Repudiation, Information Disclosure, Denial of Service, and Elevation of Privilege. PASTA (Process for Attack Simulation and Threat Analysis) takes a risk-centric approach. The LINDDUN framework focuses specifically on privacy threats. Each methodology provides a structured framework for thinking through potential attack scenarios.

The threat modeling process typically follows four key steps: identifying assets and entry points, creating an architecture overview (often using data flow diagrams), identifying threats using a chosen methodology, and documenting mitigations for each identified threat. Tools like Microsoft Threat Modeling Tool, OWASP Threat Dragon, and IriusRisk can help automate parts of this process.

Threat modeling is most effective when it involves cross-functional collaboration between developers, architects, security engineers, and operations staff. Each perspective helps identify threats that others might miss. Regular threat model reviews should be conducted whenever significant changes are made to the system architecture, new features are added, or the threat landscape evolves.