The Human IOC: Why Security Professionals Struggle With Social Vetting

Summary

The author argues that security teams should vet negative information about people and organizations as rigorously as security intelligence, and suggests asking questions, requesting evidence, contacting the target, and assessing the source's history.

Key points

• The author warns that acting on unvetted information can lead to false positives, wasted effort, unnecessary downtime, and damaged trust.
• The article recommends asking clarifying questions and requesting evidence before accepting negative claims.
• It suggests giving the person or organization being discussed a chance to respond directly.
• The author advises considering whether the source has a history of unsupported claims or being proven wrong.
• Reviewing the target's past reliability may help assess whether a negative claim warrants further scrutiny.