Understanding The Red Team, Blue Team and Purple Team in Cybersecurity

By Adam Couch, Red Team

In today's dynamic cyber landscape, defending against attackers requires more than just hardening policies and patching. Organisations need a set of defensive measures as well as strategies to stay ahead of threats. Investing in technology, well thought out procedures as well as people are all ever increasingly important areas. Cybersecurity professionals use a variety of simulated attack and defence techniques, often categorised into Red Teams, Blue Teams and Purple Teams, each playing a critical role in strengthening an organisation’s security posture.

The Problem Red Teaming Solves

Red Teaming focuses on exposing and addressing gaps in security systems that might go unnoticed during regular audits or vulnerability scans. The core problem Red Teaming addresses is the false sense of security many organisations develop after implementing standard defences like firewalls or antivirus software etc. These are still valid forms of defence and need to be implemented and tested however, these measures are often insufficient against real world adversaries, which can exploit weaknesses that aren’t immediately apparent in technology as well as people.

Red Teams operate by simulating real-world attacks to test the resilience of an organisation’s defences. This service addresses several key challenges:

The Role of the Blue Team

In contrast, the Blue Team represents the organisation’s internal cybersecurity defences. Their main objective is to detect, respond to, and mitigate threats in real-time. While the Red Team plays the role of the attacker, the Blue Team acts as the defender, focusing on:

The problem the Blue Team solves is that while preventative measures are important, detection and rapid response are critical to stopping breaches before they cause significant harm. Following up on an alert via a process is crucial. Without a capable Blue Team, an organisation could fail to identify breaches until it's too late, resulting in costly data loss or system compromises.

Purple Team: Bridging the Gap Between Red and Blue

Purple Teams combine the efforts of both Red and Blue Teams to enhance the overall security effectiveness. Traditionally, Red and Blue Teams worked separately, with Red Teams exposing weaknesses and Blue Teams defending against them. However, the insights gathered from Red Team attacks don't always translate into actionable improvements if the two teams operate in isolation.

Purple Teams solve this problem by fostering collaboration between offensive (Red) and defensive (Blue) efforts. Their focus is on:

This combined effort ensures a more resilient and adaptive security environment, helping organisations defend against real-world attackers more effectively.

Benefits of Each Team’s Approach

Each team in this ecosystem plays a vital role in fortifying an organisation’s defences. Here’s a quick look at the benefits they bring:

Red Team

Blue Team

Purple Team

Conclusion

In the complex world of cybersecurity, adopting a holistic approach that includes Red, Blue and Purple teams is an important strategy for organisations to safeguard against modern threats. While each team offers a unique perspective, whether offensive, defensive, or collaborative, they collectively contribute to a more resilient and adaptive security posture. Organisations that leverage these practices can better anticipate, detect, and defend against cyber threats, ensuring business continuity and protecting critical assets.

For more information on how a Red Team exercise can support your cyber security goals, speak to one of our experts.