Cloudflare Introduces Threat Intel Team and Commits to Making Precise and Timely Global Threat Research Accessible For Anyone

Rhea-AI Summary

Cloudflare (NYSE: NET) has announced that its threat intelligence team, Cloudforce One, will make its research public for the first time. This initiative aims to democratize access to critical threat insights, leveraging Cloudflare's global network which blocks 158 billion threats daily. The company is launching a Threat Intelligence Portal to provide a centralized view of the threat landscape.

Cloudforce One has already published insights on:

• A South Asia-focused threat actor named 'SloppyLemming' targeting governments, defense sectors, and critical infrastructure
• Increased attacks on the global supply chain, with a rise in freight fraud since January 2024

This move comes as cybercrime is projected to reach $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. Cloudflare's goal is to help build a more secure Internet by providing defenders with timely information on malicious tactics and trends.

Positive

• Cloudflare is making its threat intelligence research public, potentially enhancing cybersecurity for many organizations
• The company's global network blocks 158 billion threats daily, providing extensive data for threat analysis
• Launch of a Threat Intelligence Portal offering a centralized view of the threat landscape
• Cloudforce One team provides expert insights to identify and respond to emerging threats

Negative

• Cybercrime is projected to reach $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, indicating a growing threat landscape
• Data breaches have increased by 72% over the past few years, highlighting the escalating cybersecurity challenges

Insights

Cybersecurity Analyst

Cloudflare's announcement of making their threat intelligence public is a significant move in the cybersecurity landscape. This initiative, led by Cloudforce One, leverages Cloudflare's vast network to provide real-time insights into global threats. The decision to share this data could be a game-changer for many organizations, especially those lacking resources for comprehensive threat intelligence.

The focus on specific threats like "SloppyLemming" targeting South Asian governments and the rise in freight fraud demonstrates the depth and specificity of the intelligence being offered. This level of detail can be important for organizations in these sectors to enhance their defensive strategies.

However, while this move is generally positive, it's important to note that making such intelligence public could potentially alert threat actors, leading them to adapt their tactics. The long-term impact on Cloudflare's competitive edge in the cybersecurity market remains to be seen.

Financial Analyst

This strategic move by Cloudflare has several potential financial implications. By democratizing access to threat intelligence, Cloudflare is positioning itself as a leader in the cybersecurity space, which could enhance its brand value and market position. This could lead to increased customer trust and potentially drive new business, especially from organizations that previously couldn't afford high-level threat intelligence services.

The initiative aligns with the growing cybersecurity market, projected to reach $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. By offering valuable insights for free, Cloudflare might be able to upsell premium services to users who engage with their threat intelligence platform. However, investors should monitor how this strategy impacts Cloudflare's revenue model and whether it translates to tangible financial growth in the coming quarters.

While the immediate financial impact may be , this move could strengthen Cloudflare's long-term competitive position in the rapidly evolving cybersecurity market.

Cloudforce One exposes threat actors targeting governments, defense sectors, and critical infrastructure – while giving organizations insights needed to execute offensive and defensive security strategies

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE: NET), the leading connectivity cloud company, today announced its threat intelligence team, Cloudforce One, will make its research public for the first time ever as part of a commitment to democratize access to critical threat insights. Combining the expertise of the Cloudforce One team with the power of the company’s global network — one of the largest in the world — security teams can now access timely information on the malicious tactics and trends that underpin the 158 billion threats Cloudflare’s network blocks daily.

Threat actors are mission driven. Motivated by efficiency and profit, they continuously shift tactics to uncover novel ways to pull off sophisticated and successful exploits. The result is a constantly evolving, complex, and overwhelming threat landscape, reflected by the projection of cybercrime to hit an annual $10.5 trillion in 2025. As security teams work to juggle and combat the risks that have led to a 72% increase in data breaches over the past few years, access to threat intelligence has never been more critical. It provides clarity around the causes of these breaches and proactive measures to prevent them, so security leaders can make more informed decisions that move the needle towards resilience.

“We believe in helping build a more secure, reliable Internet. But that can't exist unless we disrupt and drain the resources of the hackers who abuse its power for personal or political gain,” said Matthew Prince, CEO and cofounder at Cloudflare. "Today, Cloudflare is giving defenders a leg up in the race, by committing to continuously share nuanced threat intelligence that no other company has access to, with the industry at-large.”

Cloudflare’s Threat Intelligence Portal provides a centralized view across the entire threat landscape. Through Cloudforce One, Cloudflare now offers its own experts to help identify and respond to emerging threats, while also providing real-time reconnaissance. Today, the Cloudforce One team published deep insight on:

• A South Asia-focused threat actor targeting governments, defense sectors, and critical infrastructure: Deemed “SloppyLemming,” this threat actor has been carrying out attacks predominantly targeting Pakistan. SloppyLemming primarily leverages credential harvesting techniques—e.g., tactics that involve stealing personal or financial data from users—to exploit its targets.
• Increased attacks on the global supply chain – freight fraud is on the rise: Since January 2024, the organizations that connect shippers with goods have seen a sizable uptick in fraudulent attacks. One Fortune 500 food and beverage customer has experienced about 10 of these incidents consistently every month since the start of the year. The most widely used technique to execute attacks on these organizations is “double-brokering,” a man in the middle method where a threat actor impersonates a transport company to capture payment for deals.

“Threat intelligence is a non-negotiable when it comes to tipping the scale back in favor of defenders. And with Cloudflare's global network as our foundation, Cloudforce One identifies and defends against attacks with an arsenal that is unmatched,” said Blake Darché, Head of Cloudforce One at Cloudflare. “In this new era of threat intelligence, Cloudforce One is perfectly positioned to detect and degrade today’s threat actors who erode trust and wreak havoc.”

To keep up with ongoing threat intelligence released by the Cloudforce One team, subscribe to updates on the Cloudforce One Threat Intelligence website. Existing Cloudflare customers will have access to new Cloudforce One intelligence through their Cloudflare security dashboard.

Cloudflare’s mission is to help build a better Internet. And a better Internet can only exist with forces of good that detect, disrupt and degrade threat actors who seek to erode trust and bend the Internet for personal or political gain. Enter Cloudforce One – Cloudflare’s dedicated team of world-renowned threat researchers, tasked with publishing threat intelligence to arm security teams with the necessary context to make fast, confident decisions. We identify and defend against attacks with unique insight that no one else has. The foundation of our visibility is Cloudflare’s global network – one of the largest in the world – which encompasses about 20% of the Internet. Our services are adopted by millions of users across every corner of the Internet, giving us unparalleled visibility into global events – including nefarious activities. This vantage point allows Cloudforce One to execute real-time reconnaissance, disrupt attacks from the point of launch, and turn intelligence into tactical success. You can follow Cloudforce One at: Blog | X

About Cloudflare

Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE: NET) is the leading connectivity cloud company on a mission to help build a better Internet. It empowers organizations to make their employees, applications and networks faster and more secure everywhere, while reducing complexity and cost. Cloudflare’s connectivity cloud delivers the most full-featured, unified platform of cloud-native products and developer tools, so any organization can gain the control they need to work, develop, and accelerate their business.

Powered by one of the world’s largest and most interconnected networks, Cloudflare blocks billions of threats online for its customers every day. It is trusted by millions of organizations – from the largest brands to entrepreneurs and small businesses to nonprofits, humanitarian groups, and governments across the globe.

Learn more about Cloudflare’s connectivity cloud at cloudflare.com/connectivity-cloud. Learn more about the latest Internet trends and insights at https://radar.cloudflare.com.

Follow us: Blog | X | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “explore,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “could,” “intend,” “target,” “project,” “contemplate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” or “continue,” or the negative of these words, or other similar terms or expressions that concern Cloudflare’s expectations, strategy, plans, or intentions. However, not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements expressed or implied in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the capabilities and effectiveness of Cloudforce One and Cloudflare’s other products and technology, potential benefits to Cloudflare’s customers from using Cloudforce One and Cloudflare’s other products and technology, potential benefits and features from Cloudforce One or any of Cloudflare’s other products and technology, Cloudflare’s technological development, future operations, growth, initiatives, or strategies, and comments made by Cloudflare’s CEO and others. Actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to, risks detailed in Cloudflare’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including Cloudflare’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 1, 2024, as well as other filings that Cloudflare may make from time to time with the SEC.

The forward-looking statements made in this press release relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. Cloudflare undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law. Cloudflare may not actually achieve the plans, intentions, or expectations disclosed in Cloudflare’s forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on Cloudflare’s forward-looking statements.

©2024 Cloudflare, Inc. All rights reserved. Cloudflare, the Cloudflare logo, and other Cloudflare marks are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Cloudflare, Inc. in the U.S. and other jurisdictions. All other marks and names referenced herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240924793509/en/

Cloudflare, Inc.

Daniella Vallurupalli

Vice President, Head of Global Communications

press@cloudflare.com

Source: Cloudflare, Inc.

FAQ

What is Cloudforce One and what does it offer?

Cloudforce One is Cloudflare's threat intelligence team. It offers public access to threat research, insights on malicious tactics and trends, and expert analysis to help organizations identify and respond to emerging threats.

How many threats does Cloudflare's network block daily?

Cloudflare's network blocks 158 billion threats daily, providing extensive data for threat analysis and intelligence.

What specific threat actor did Cloudforce One recently identify?

Cloudforce One identified a South Asia-focused threat actor named 'SloppyLemming' that targets governments, defense sectors, and critical infrastructure, primarily using credential harvesting techniques.

What recent trend in cybercrime has Cloudflare (NET) observed?

Cloudflare has observed an increase in attacks on the global supply chain, with a rise in freight fraud since January 2024. This includes 'double-brokering' attacks on organizations connecting shippers with goods.