In most cases, businesses begin to establish in-house specialised teams when they start to take security seriously. Deploying security appliances, such as firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, endpoint security solutions, and so forth, is typically the first step in this process.

Those dedicated teams are typically blue teams, who handle security appliances and gain significant threat intelligence from them as it relates to their organisations. Most modern organisations have a security operations centre where all warnings from all security controls are correlated, aggregated, and analysed for decision-making purposes.

Blue teams are the defenders responsible for establishing and administering security procedures. They include security engineers, security analysts, firewall specialists, SOC analysts, and so on. Blue teaming is critical to an organisation’s security.

However, with the ever-increasing threat landscape, having blue teams alone would not be considered a proactive approach. Just defending without real-time threat intelligence and validation would create a false sense of security.

To bridge this gap, most businesses begin by hiring red team consultancy services, which are not regular and can only be provided on a quarterly or annual basis. Red teaming refers to the offensive side of security, where skilled professionals simulate real-world attacks to identify vulnerabilities within an organisation. This proactive strategy allows companies to better understand their security posture and prepare for potential threats. By regularly engaging with red team experts, businesses can develop a more resilient security framework that evolves in response to emerging risks and tactics used by cyber adversaries.

This adversarial approach not only highlights weaknesses but also enhances the capabilities of blue teams by providing them with valuable insights and strategies to improve their overall security posture. This can also be characterised by certain drawbacks, such as lack of collaboration and silo operations even when you have dedicated read teams.

However, there is a need for a more collaborative approach where both teams work in tandem, sharing knowledge and techniques to fortify defenses. Such collaboration fosters a culture of continuous improvement and adaptation, ensuring that organisations remain vigilant against the ever-changing landscape of cyber threats. By embracing this synergy, organisations can create a more resilient security framework that not only addresses current vulnerabilities but also anticipates future challenges. Ultimately, the partnership between red and blue teams can lead to a more robust defence mechanism, empowering entities to respond proactively to potential breaches.

This collaborative approach ensures that organisations have in-house red teams and blue teams that work together. It is referred to as purple teaming. Purple teaming brings a comprehensive strategy to cybersecurity, fostering a culture of continuous improvement. By leveraging the insights gained from both offensive and defensive perspectives, organisations can enhance their threat detection capabilities and refine their incident response protocols.

The following are the benefits of purple teams against having those teams work in silos:

1. Improved communication and collaboration between teams, leading to a more unified approach to security challenges.

2. Enhanced knowledge sharing, where red teams can provide valuable insights into potential vulnerabilities, while blue teams can offer feedback on defensive strategies, ultimately creating a more resilient security posture.

3. A more comprehensive understanding of the threat landscape, as purple teams facilitate joint exercises that simulate real-world attacks, allowing both offensive and defensive players to adapt and learn from each encounter. This synergy not only strengthens individual skill sets but also fosters a culture of continuous improvement within the organisation.

Purple teaming bridges the gap between offensive and defensive security and enables security teams to carry out real-time adversary simulations that ensure that security controls are proactively tuned to protect against the latest security threats.