| name | evaluating-threat-intelligence-platforms |
| description | Evaluates and selects Threat Intelligence Platform (TIP) products based on organizational requirements including feed integration capability, STIX/TAXII support, workflow automation, analyst interface, and total cost of ownership. Use when conducting a TIP procurement, migrating between TIP solutions, or assessing whether the current TIP meets program maturity requirements. Activates for requests involving ThreatConnect, MISP, OpenCTI, Anomali, EclecticIQ, or TIP procurement decisions.
|
| domain | cybersecurity |
| subdomain | threat-intelligence |
| tags | ["TIP","ThreatConnect","MISP","OpenCTI","Anomali","EclecticIQ","STIX-TAXII","CTI-program","procurement"] |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| author | team-cybersecurity |
| license | Apache-2.0 |
Evaluating Threat Intelligence Platforms
When to Use
Use this skill when:
- Conducting a formal RFP or vendor evaluation for a TIP solution
- Assessing whether the current TIP (e.g., MISP) needs to be replaced or augmented as the CTI program scales
- Establishing evaluation criteria aligned to organizational maturity and budget
Do not use this skill for evaluating feed quality independently of the TIP — feed evaluation is a separate workflow focused on data quality rather than platform capabilities.
Prerequisites
- Documented CTI program requirements: team size, feed sources, integration targets, use cases
- Budget range and procurement timeline
- Technical staff who will administer the platform (Python/API experience for open-source TIPs)
- List of current and planned integrations (SIEM, SOAR, EDR, firewalls)
Workflow
Step 1: Define Evaluation Criteria
Structure requirements into mandatory (M) and desired (D) categories:
Core TIP Functions:
- M: STIX 2.1 import/export with TAXII 2.1 server
- M: REST API for automated IOC ingestion and export
- M: Indicator deduplication and TTL management
- M: TLP classification enforcement
- D: Built-in MITRE ATT&CK integration and technique tagging
- D: Graph visualization of indicator relationships
- D: Workflow automation for analyst triage
Integrations:
- M: SIEM integration (Splunk, Sentinel, QRadar) via syslog, API, or native connector
- M: EDR integration for IOC push (CrowdStrike, Defender, SentinelOne)
- D: SOAR integration (XSOAR, Splunk SOAR) for playbook triggers
- D: Ticketing system (ServiceNow, Jira) for intelligence task tracking
Operational:
- M: Role-based access control with TLP-aware data segregation
- M: Audit logging for all analyst actions
- D: Multi-tenancy for MSSP use cases
Step 2: Evaluate Major TIP Options
MISP (Open Source):
- Cost: Free (self-hosted infrastructure cost only)
- Strengths: Largest community, 250+ modules, extensive ISAC usage, STIX 2.0 native
- Weaknesses: Requires dedicated admin, limited visualization, UI dated
- Best for: Budget-constrained teams with technical staff; government/ISAC sharing programs
OpenCTI (Open Source):
