Definition
Threat hunting is a proactive cybersecurity practice where security analysts actively search for advanced threats that may have bypassed existing security defenses. It involves hypothesizing about potential attacker behaviors and then using various tools and techniques to uncover evidence of these activities within an organization's network and systems. This process is crucial for identifying and mitigating sophisticated threats before they cause significant damage or data breaches. For instance, a threat hunter might look for unusual outbound network traffic patterns that could indicate data exfiltration. Unlike routine security monitoring which reacts to alerts, threat hunting initiates investigations based on educated guesses about undetected malicious activity. This concept is frequently tested on certifications like CompTIA Security+ and CySA+.