NIST-compliant threat hunting, covering NIST 2.0, NIST 800-53, CMMC, and FedRAMP 
Threat Hunting Aligned with NIST 2.0 (CSF 2.0)
NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0 offers a comprehensive guide for managing cyber risks. Threat hunting naturally fits within the "Detect" and "Respond" functions of this framework. CSF 2.0 is designed to be applicable to organizations regardless of their size, sector, or maturity, making it a flexible foundation for threat hunting programs.
Key Alignment Points:
- Detect Function (DE): Threat hunting actively searches for threats that existing security controls might have missed or that are not yet known, thereby strengthening this function. Categories like "DE.AT" (Anomaly and Deviation Detection) and "DE.CM" (Continuous Monitoring) within CSF 2.0 highlight the proactive monitoring and anomaly detection capabilities that threat hunting provides.
- Respond Function (RS): By helping to identify a potential attack or breach in its early stages, threat hunting accelerates incident response processes. Discovered threats directly relate to subcategories such as "RS.MA" (Mitigation) and "RS.OC" (Incident Communication) in CSF 2.0. Information gained from hunting is used to enhance future response plans and strategies.
- Govern Function (GV): The newly added "Govern" function in CSF 2.0 ensures that the threat hunting program aligns with the organization's overall risk management and cybersecurity strategy. It's important that investments in threat hunting are prioritized in line with the organization's risk tolerance and business objectives.
NIST 2.0-compliant threat hunting starts with a hypothesis-driven approach, analyzes vast amounts of data (network logs, endpoint activities, threat intelligence), and embraces the principle of continuous improvement. This ensures that hunting activities are not just a one-off effort but an ongoing and evolving process.
Threat Hunting Aligned with NIST 800-53
NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-53 is an extensive catalog that defines security and privacy controls for federal information systems. Threat hunting complements and strengthens many of these controls.
Relevant Control Families:
- AU (Audit and Accountability): Threat hunting relies on in-depth examination of system logs and audit records to detect anomalous or malicious activities under AU controls. Hunters can also uncover gaps or manipulations in these records.
- CA (Assessment, Authorization, and Monitoring): Continuous monitoring (CA-7) and assessing the effectiveness of security controls (CA-2) are closely related to threat hunting. Threat hunting demonstrates how effective current controls are and identifies areas for improvement.
- IR (Incident Response): Threat hunting is a proactive component of incident response. Controls like IR-4 (Incident Monitoring) and IR-5 (Incident Reporting) ensure that threats discovered during hunting are properly documented and addressed. NIST SP 800-53 itself recognizes threat hunting as a cybersecurity discipline.
- RA (Risk Assessment): Threat hunting provides input for risk assessments (RA-1) by uncovering potential vulnerabilities and unknown threats. This allows organizations to better understand their risk tolerance and optimize security investments.
NIST 800-53 compliant threat hunting must be executed in an integrated manner with security policies, procedures, and technical implementations, adhering to this detailed control set.
Threat Hunting Aligned with CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification)
CMMC is a cybersecurity maturity model designed for contractors working with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Threat hunting is a significant requirement, especially at higher maturity levels (Level 2 and above) of CMMC.
CMMC and Threat Hunting Relationship:
CMMC Level 2 (Intermediate): This level includes more specific requirements for threat hunting. For instance, RA.L2-3.11.2e states, "Conduct cyber threat hunting activities on an on-going aperiodic basis or when indications warrant, to search for indicators of compromise in organizational systems and detect, track, and disrupt threats that evade existing controls
1 ." This mandates organizations to perform cyber threat hunting continually and irregularly, or when warranted, to find indicators of compromise and address threats that bypass current controls.Use of Threat Intelligence: CMMC mandates that threat hunting be informed by threat intelligence. Organizations must use threat intelligence from external sources (e.g., the DoD's Defense Industrial Base Collaborative Information Sharing Environment - DCISE) to develop their hunting hypotheses.
Continuous Monitoring and Improvement: CMMC emphasizes that threat hunting activities should be a continuous process, with findings used to improve the security posture. This includes regularly reviewing and updating hunting strategies.
CMMC-compliant threat hunting isn't limited to using technological tools; it also demands the ability of skilled analysts to think proactively, interpret data, and understand complex attack scenarios.
Threat Hunting Aligned with FedRAMP
FedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program) provides a standardized approach for the security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring of cloud services for the federal government. FedRAMP is based on NIST SP 800-53 controls.
FedRAMP and Threat Hunting Relationship:
- NIST SP 800-53 Foundation: Since FedRAMP is built upon NIST SP 800-53 security controls, threat hunting is critical for FedRAMP compliance. Specifically, FedRAMP's "moderate" and "high" impact levels necessitate comprehensive security controls and proactive defense capabilities.
- Continuous Monitoring: A core component of FedRAMP, continuous monitoring, strongly overlaps with threat hunting. Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) are required to proactively detect security vulnerabilities and threats within their systems. Threat hunting is considered part of these monitoring activities.
- Incident Response: CSPs with FedRAMP authorization must have the capability to respond to security incidents quickly and effectively. Threat hunting supports and accelerates incident response processes by identifying potential incidents in their early stages.
- Security Architecture and Controls: FedRAMP demands stringent security architecture and control implementations. Threat hunting is used to continuously test the effectiveness of these controls and identify areas for improvement.
FedRAMP-compliant threat hunting can present additional challenges due to the complexity of cloud environments. CSPs must maximize their visibility into their infrastructure and adopt a proactive security posture to protect sensitive federal data.
Conclusion
Threat hunting aligned with NIST 2.0, NIST 800-53, CMMC, and FedRAMP frameworks represents a proactive, data-driven, and continuously evolving cybersecurity approach. These alignments ensure that organizations don't just react to known threats but actively investigate and neutralize unseen or emerging attacks. This is key for enhancing cyber resilience and meeting compliance obligations, especially for organizations handling sensitive data or operating in high-risk sectors.