Tribe of Hackers Blue Team

47Michael Tanji

“A blue team is responsible for what's going on over the wire and on endpoints now.”

Twitter: @mtanji • Website: www.linkedin.com/in/mtanji

Michael has spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of roles in the computer security and intelligence fields. He has held front-line, managerial, and executive roles in the military, government, and commercial markets. Michael has cofounded, held C-level roles, or played a significant role in the formation and operation of multiple security startups, and he has been exceedingly lucky in that he's won more than he's lost.

How do you define a blue team?

Real-time defensive operations, secure coding, security engineering, policy…all that's great and important, but in each of those spaces they have the benefit of time, or at least the benefit of some time. A blue team doesn't have that luxury. A blue team is responsible for what's going on over the wire and on endpoints now. There is no pause button; there is no asking for an extension of a deadline.

What are two core capabilities that a blue team should have?

Awareness and curiosity. You have to know what you're trying to defend and protect. Everything else starts with that. What's the point of investing in security technology or services if you don't know what it's supposed to be focused on?

Curiosity is something that the people on the team need to have. It is an essential ...