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Threat Intelligence Procedure Template (ISO/IEC 27001 A.5.7)

Threat intelligence for A.5.7: strategic, tactical, operational levels, requirements, sources, lifecycle, prioritisation, TLP, actions, log, metrics

СУІБ та ISO/IEC 27001ПовнийISO/IEC 27001:2022 A.5.7 (cited only); ISO/IEC 27002:2022; ISO/IEC 27005:2022threatintelligenceprocedure

Як використовувати: Use it to run a threat intelligence process that changes risks, patches, detections and training. Fill the intelligence requirements and the source register first. The main pitfall is a feed subscription with no analysis, no actions and no log to show the auditor.

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Threat Intelligence Procedure: [Organization name]

Describes how [Organization name] collects, analyses, shares and acts on information about information security threats, so that risk assessments, controls, detection and awareness reflect the threats the organization actually faces. It supports ISO/IEC 27001:2022 + Amd 1:2024 Annex A control A.5.7 (threat intelligence, new in the 2022 edition), with guidance from ISO/IEC 27002:2022, and feeds clauses 6.1.2 and 8.2 (risk assessment). Replace every [bracketed] value and every row marked Example.

Document control

FieldValue
Document IDDOC-ISMS-045
Version[1.0]
Status[Draft / In review / Approved / Superseded]
Owner[@security-lead]
Approvers/reviewers[@isms-manager], [@ciso or cto], [@head-of-it-operations]
Last updatedYYYY-MM-DD
Classification[Internal; intelligence products marked with TLP labels]
Standard and editionISO/IEC 27001:2022 + Amd 1:2024 (A.5.7, 6.1.2, 8.2); ISO/IEC 27002:2022
Next scheduled reviewYYYY-MM-DD (at least every 12 months)
Cadence[Daily triage, weekly summary, quarterly strategic brief]
Related recordsIntelligence log (section 9), risk register DOC-ISMS-016, vulnerability remediation tracker DOC-ISMS-072

Approvals

RoleNameDecisionDate
Procedure owner[@security-lead][Prepared]YYYY-MM-DD
ISMS manager[@isms-manager][Reviewed]YYYY-MM-DD
Top management sponsor[@ciso or cto][Approved]YYYY-MM-DD

Revision history

VersionDateAuthorChange
0.1YYYY-MM-DD[@author]First draft
1.0YYYY-MM-DD[@author]Approved for issue
[x.y]YYYY-MM-DD[@author][Change summary]

Contents

1. Purpose and scope

This procedure sets out how threat information is turned into intelligence that supports decisions at [Organization name]. It covers:

  • information about threats, threat actors, their methods and their targets that is relevant to the organization's sector, technology and geography;
  • information about actively exploited vulnerabilities in technology the organization uses;
  • indicators of compromise (IOCs) and detection content;
  • sharing intelligence with trusted communities.

It applies to all systems, cloud services and locations within the ISMS scope (DOC-ISMS-002). Vulnerability scanning and patching are run under security/vulnerability-management-policy; incident handling under the incident response plan (DOC-ISMS-020). This procedure supplies inputs to both and receives feedback from both.

Objectives:

  1. Know which threats matter most to the organization and keep that view current.
  2. Act on urgent threats (for example a newly exploited vulnerability in an internet-facing product) within the target times in section 6.
  3. Feed risk assessments, control selection, detection rules and awareness with current threat information.
  4. Contribute to and benefit from trusted sharing communities.

2. Levels of threat intelligence

LevelQuestion it answersAudienceTypical productsHorizon
StrategicWhich threat actors and trends affect our business, sector and regions, and how is the risk changing?Top management, steering committee, risk ownersQuarterly threat brief, input to annual risk assessment and management reviewMonths to years
TacticalWhich techniques and tools do relevant actors use, and do our controls cover them?Security architects, control owners, IT operationsTechnique coverage review (for example mapped to MITRE ATT&CK), control improvement proposalsWeeks to months
OperationalWhat specific attack, campaign or exploit is happening now, and what should we do today?Security operations, IT administrators, incident respondersAlerts, IOC lists, emergency patch notices, detection rulesHours to days

3. Intelligence requirements

Req IDIntelligence requirementDriven byLevelConsumer
PIR-001 (Example)Which ransomware groups target our sector, and which initial access methods are they using this quarter?RISK-004 ransomware (risk register)Strategic and tacticalSteering committee, security team
PIR-002 (Example)Is any vulnerability in our internet-facing products being exploited in the wild?Asset inventory, internet-facing systems listOperationalIT operations, platform team
PIR-003 (Example)Are our domains, brands or executives being impersonated in phishing campaigns?RISK-009 credential theftOperationalSecurity team, awareness lead
PIR-004 (Example)Are any of our cloud providers or critical suppliers reporting security incidents?Supplier register DOC-ISMS-066OperationalISMS manager, supplier owners
PIR-005 (Example)Have credentials belonging to our domains appeared in public breach data or criminal markets?RISK-009 credential theftOperationalIdentity team
PIR-006 (Example)What new legal or regulatory reporting expectations follow from major threat campaigns?Legal register DOC-ISMS-014StrategicLegal counsel, ISMS manager

Keep the list short: 5 to 10 requirements is enough for most organizations; a small organization can start with 4 or 5 (section 12).

4. Sources

4.1 Source categories

CategoryExamplesTypical valueCost
National CERTs and CSIRTs, government agenciesNational cybersecurity centre advisories, sector alerts, CISA advisories and the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalogueAuthoritative alerts on exploited vulnerabilities and campaignsFree
Information sharing and analysis centres (ISACs) and sector groupsSector ISAC membership, regional sharing groups (see DOC-ISMS-069)Peer intelligence, sector-specific IOCs, early warningsMembership fee or free
Technology vendorsSecurity advisories and bulletins from vendors of products in the asset inventory, cloud provider security bulletinsPatches, workarounds, product-specific exploitation notesFree with the product
Vulnerability scoring dataNVD and CVE records, FIRST CVSS v4.0 scores, FIRST EPSS probabilitiesPrioritisation data for vulnerabilitiesFree
Open sourcesSecurity research blogs, conference talks, open IOC feeds, MITRE ATT&CK knowledge baseTechnique descriptions, campaign reportsFree
Commercial intelligence servicesThreat intelligence platform subscriptions, brand and credential monitoringCurated, enriched intelligence; dark web monitoringPaid
Internal sourcesSIEM and EDR alerts, incident records (DOC-ISMS-021), phishing reports from staff, honeypotsIntelligence about attacks on the organization itselfInternal effort
Suppliers and customersIncident notifications under contract, shared alertsSupply chain threatsContractual

4.2 Source register

Source IDSourceCategoryRequirements servedDeliveryReliability ratingOwnerLast reviewed
SRC-001 (Example)CISA KEV catalogueGovernment agencyPIR-002JSON feed, daily automated check against the asset inventoryA, reliablePlatform team2026-09-30
SRC-002 (Example)National CERT advisoriesNational CERTPIR-001, PIR-002E-mail and RSSA, reliableSecurity lead2026-09-30
SRC-003 (Example)Sector ISAC portalISACPIR-001, PIR-003Portal and TAXII 2.1 feedB, usually reliableSecurity lead2026-09-30
SRC-004 (Example)Cloud provider security bulletinsVendorPIR-002, PIR-004E-mail and status pageA, reliablePlatform team2026-09-30
SRC-005 (Example)Staff phishing report buttonInternalPIR-003Mailbox and ticketB, usually reliableSecurity operations2026-09-30
SRC-006 (Example)Credential exposure monitoring serviceCommercialPIR-005Alert e-mail and APIB, usually reliableIdentity team2026-09-30

Reliability scale (Example): A reliable, B usually reliable, C fairly reliable, D not usually reliable, E unreliable, F cannot be judged. Rate the information separately from the source when needed (confirmed, probably true, possibly true, doubtful).

5. Intelligence lifecycle

StepWhat happensWhoOutput
1. DirectionSet and review intelligence requirements (section 3)Security lead with ISMS manager and risk ownersPIR list, annual review record
2. CollectionReceive items from the source register, automated where possibleSecurity operations, platform teamRaw items in the intelligence mailbox, platform or ticket queue
3. ProcessingRemove duplicates, normalise formats (for example STIX 2.1), enrich with asset and exposure dataSecurity operationsCandidate items
4. AnalysisDecide relevance, confidence and priority (section 6)Analyst on dutyLog entry with priority
5. DisseminationSend the right product to the right audience with a TLP label (section 7)Analyst, security leadAlert, ticket, weekly summary, quarterly brief
6. ActionOwners act: patch, block, add detection, update risk, brief staff (section 8)Control ownersChange, ticket, risk update
7. FeedbackConsumers rate usefulness; metrics reviewed (section 10)Security leadFeedback record, source changes

6. Analysis and prioritisation

6.1 Relevance test

An item is relevant when at least one answer is yes:

  1. Does it concern a product, version or service listed in the asset inventory (DOC-ISMS-012) or the cloud service register (DOC-ISMS-044)?
  2. Does it concern our sector, a region where we operate, or a supplier in the supplier register?
  3. Does it describe a technique that our current controls or detections do not cover?
  4. Does it mention our domains, brands, staff or customers?

6.2 Priority levels

PriorityCriteriaTarget time to first action (Example)Example action
P1 UrgentActive exploitation of a relevant vulnerability on an internet-facing system (for example listed in CISA KEV or confirmed by a CERT), or an active campaign naming the organization24 hoursEmergency change, temporary block, threat hunt, executive notice
P2 HighExploitation likely (for example high EPSS probability or public exploit code) for a relevant internal system, or a campaign targeting our sector7 daysPlanned patch, detection rule, targeted awareness message
P3 MediumRelevant technique or trend with no immediate exposure30 daysControl review, risk register update
P4 InformationBackground or strategic contextNext quarterly briefInclude in strategic brief

Where intelligence concerns a vulnerability, the priority above sets the deadline in the vulnerability remediation tracker (DOC-ISMS-072) and overrides a lower priority derived from CVSS alone. CISA SSVC decision trees can support this decision if the team already uses them.

6.3 Confidence

Record confidence in the assessment as High, Moderate or Low, based on source reliability, corroboration from a second source and how directly the item applies to the organization. Low-confidence P1 items are still acted on, with a note to re-check.

7. Dissemination and handling

ProductAudienceFrequency (Example)FormatDefault TLP
Urgent alertIT operations, affected system owners, incident managerAs needed (P1)Ticket plus chat messageTLP:AMBER
Weekly threat summarySecurity team, IT leads, ISMS managerWeeklyOne pageTLP:AMBER
IOC and detection packageSOC, detection engineersAs neededMachine-readable (STIX 2.1 or CSV)Per source label
Quarterly strategic briefSteering committee, risk ownersQuarterly2 to 4 pagesTLP:AMBER
Awareness noteAll staffMonthly or as neededIntranet post or e-mailTLP:CLEAR
Sharing contributionISAC or sharing groupAs neededCommunity formatTLP:GREEN or TLP:AMBER

Handling rules:

  1. Respect the TLP label set by the source. TLP:RED information is not forwarded; TLP:AMBER+STRICT stays within the organization.
  2. Remove personal data and customer identifiers before sharing outside the organization, unless a legal basis and an agreement allow it.
  3. Store intelligence according to its classification (DOC-ISMS-042).
  4. Before contributing to a sharing group, the security lead checks that the contribution does not reveal confidential information about ongoing incidents, customers or legal matters.

8. Actions and integration with ISMS processes

ISMS processHow threat intelligence feeds itRecord
Risk assessment (6.1.2, 8.2)Strategic brief updates likelihood ratings and adds new scenarios; P1 and P2 items can trigger an out-of-cycle reassessmentRisk register DOC-ISMS-016, threat catalogue DOC-ISMS-018
Control selection and SoA (6.1.3)Technique coverage gaps lead to new or improved controlsRisk treatment plan DOC-ISMS-013
Vulnerability management (A.8.8)Exploitation data raises priorities and sets deadlinesVulnerability remediation tracker DOC-ISMS-072
Monitoring and detection (A.8.16)IOCs and technique reports become detection rules and huntsDetection rule specification (security/detection-rule-spec), monitoring procedure DOC-ISMS-064
Network and web filtering (A.8.20, A.8.23)Malicious domains and IPs added to block lists with an expiryBlock list change record
Incident management (A.5.24 to A.5.28)Context for triage, attribution and scoping; incidents produce internal intelligenceIncident register DOC-ISMS-021
Awareness (A.6.3)Current phishing lures and scams used in training and simulationsAwareness programme, phishing simulation plan DOC-ISMS-074
Supplier management (A.5.19 to A.5.22)Supplier breach reports trigger supplier reviewsSupplier register DOC-ISMS-066
Management review (9.3)Quarterly brief summarised as an input on changes in external issuesManagement review minutes DOC-ISMS-085

9. Intelligence log

TI IDDate receivedSourceSummaryRequirementPriorityConfidenceAffected assetsAction and recordOwnerClosed
TI-2027-001 (Example)2027-01-08SRC-001 CISA KEVRemote code execution in the VPN appliance model used at two offices, exploited in the wildPIR-002P1HighTwo VPN gatewaysEmergency change CHG-2027-004, patched within 18 hours, hunt found no compromisePlatform team2027-01-09
TI-2027-002 (Example)2027-01-15SRC-003 ISACPhishing campaign against the sector impersonating a payroll providerPIR-003P2ModerateAll staff mailboxesMail filter rule MFR-112, awareness note to all staff, used in February simulationSecurity operations2027-01-17
TI-2027-003 (Example)2027-01-22SRC-002 National CERTRansomware group shifting to abuse of remote management toolsPIR-001P3ModerateEndpoints with remote support toolsDetection rule DET-045, risk RISK-004 likelihood reviewed (unchanged at 3)Security lead2027-02-10
TI-2027-004 (Example)2027-02-03SRC-006 credential monitoring3 staff credentials found in a third-party breach datasetPIR-005P2High3 user accountsPasswords reset, sessions revoked, MFA confirmed, users informedIdentity team2027-02-03
TI-2027-005 (Example)2027-02-11SRC-004 cloud providerProvider reports a service incident in a managed database service in a region not used by the organizationPIR-004P4HighNoneNo action, noted in weekly summaryPlatform team2027-02-11

10. Feedback and metrics

10.1 Feedback

After each P1 action and each quarterly brief, the consumer answers three questions: Was it relevant? Was it timely? Did it lead to an action? The security lead reviews the answers quarterly and adds, tunes or removes sources.

10.2 Metrics

Metric IDMetricTarget (Example)Source
TI-M01Median time from receipt to first action for P1 items24 hours or lessIntelligence log
TI-M02Share of P1 and P2 items with a recorded action and record ID100%Intelligence log
TI-M03Number of risk register updates triggered by intelligence per quarterAt least 1Risk register history
TI-M04Number of detection rules created or tuned from intelligence per quarterAt least 2Detection rule records
TI-M05Share of sources that produced at least one relevant item in 12 months80% or moreSource register
TI-M06Contributions made to sharing groups per yearAt least 2Sharing records

Worked example (Example): in the first quarter of 2027 the team logged 5 relevant items (TI-2027-001 to TI-2027-005): 1 P1, 2 P2, 1 P3 and 1 P4. All 3 P1 and P2 items had a recorded action (TI-M02 = 100%). The single P1 item was actioned in 18 hours (TI-M01 met).

11. Roles and responsibilities

RoleResponsibility
Security lead (procedure owner)Owns this procedure, the requirements and the source register; produces the quarterly brief; manages sharing group membership
Analyst on dutyDaily triage, relevance and priority decisions, log entries, urgent alerts
IT operations and platform teamAct on operational intelligence: patches, blocks, configuration changes
Detection engineers or SOCTurn IOCs and techniques into detections and hunts
Risk ownersUpdate risks when intelligence changes likelihood or impact
ISMS managerEnsures intelligence reaches risk assessment and management review; checks evidence
Awareness leadUses current threats in training and simulations
Legal counselAdvises on sharing personal data and on legal limits of intelligence collection

12. Size tiers

AspectSmall: Quillmere Analytics Ltd (46 staff)Medium: Quillmere Health Systems (320 staff)Large: Quillmere Group (2,400 staff, 6 sites)
StaffingISMS manager (0.5 FTE, Head of Engineering Operations) runs full triage twice a week with an engineer as deputy; the automated daily KEV check alerts the on-call engineer so P1 items still meet the 24-hour targetOne analyst in the 3-person security team owns triage, rotating deputyDedicated intelligence function within the 14-person security office, regional contacts at each site
Sources (Example)CISA KEV automated check, national CERT, cloud provider bulletins, vendor advisories for about 15 key productsAdds health sector ISAC, credential monitoring, EDR vendor intelligenceAdds commercial intelligence platform, OT-specific advisories for plant control systems, ISACs in 4 countries
ToolingShared mailbox, ticket queue, spreadsheet logTicketing integrated with SIEM, IOC import into EDRThreat intelligence platform with STIX and TAXII, automated enrichment, SOC integration
ProductsWeekly summary of half a page, quarterly brief to the CTOWeekly summary, monthly awareness note, quarterly brief to the steering committeeDaily operational digest, weekly regional summaries, quarterly board-level brief, OT bulletins for plants
Requirements4 to 5 PIRs tied to platform and credential risks6 to 8 PIRs including healthcare customer threats10 or more PIRs per business line, including OT and supply chain
SharingReceives only, at firstReceives and contributes to the sector ISACActive member of several ISACs, contributes regularly

13. Records and evidence

RecordProvesOwnerLocationRetention (Example)
Intelligence requirements (PIR list) with review dateDirection is set and reviewedSecurity lead[ISMS document repository]Current plus previous 2 versions
Source registerSources are chosen, rated and reviewedSecurity lead[Repository]Current plus 2 years
Intelligence logItems are analysed, prioritised and acted onAnalyst on duty[Ticket system or log file]3 years
Weekly summaries and quarterly briefsIntelligence is disseminated to the right audiencesSecurity lead[Repository]3 years
Action records (changes, tickets, detection rules, risk updates)Intelligence leads to actionControl owners[Change and ticket systems]Per the owning process
Feedback and metrics reportsThe process is evaluated and improvedSecurity lead[Measurement programme records]3 years
Sharing group memberships and agreementsSharing is authorised and rules are knownSecurity leadDOC-ISMS-069Life of membership plus 1 year

Reference this procedure in the Statement of Applicability (DOC-ISMS-011) against A.5.7 and list the records in isms/control-evidence-matrix.

14. References

ReferenceEdition or version (checked 2026-11-01)Use
ISO/IEC 27001:2022 + Amd 1:2024, https://www.iso.org/standard/82875.html and https://www.iso.org/standard/88435.htmlCurrentA.5.7, clauses 6.1.2 and 8.2
ISO/IEC 27002:2022, https://www.iso.org/standard/75652.htmlCurrentGuidance on strategic, tactical and operational intelligence
ISO/IEC 27005:2022, https://www.iso.org/standard/80585.htmlCurrentUse of threat information in risk assessment
CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalogLive catalogue, CSV and JSONExploited vulnerability source
FIRST CVSS v4.0, https://www.first.org/cvss/Published November 2023Vulnerability severity scoring
FIRST EPSS, https://www.first.org/epss/Daily scores, freeExploitation probability
FIRST Traffic Light Protocol 2.0, https://www.first.org/tlp/August 2022Sharing labels
MITRE ATT&CK, https://attack.mitre.org/v20.0 (October 2026); check for newer versionsTechnique taxonomy for tactical intelligence
OASIS STIX 2.1 and TAXII 2.1OASIS Standards, June 2021Exchange formats
NIST CSF 2.0 (CSWP 29)February 2024ID.RA outcomes on threat intelligence (optional mapping)
Related templatesisms/authority-special-interest-contacts, isms/isms-threat-vulnerability-catalogue, compliance/risk-register, security/vulnerability-management-policy, isms/vulnerability-remediation-tracker, security/detection-rule-spec, security/soc-playbook, isms/security-monitoring-procedure, isms/phishing-simulation-plan, isms/control-evidence-matrix

Standard and licence note

Structure aligned with ISO/IEC 27001:2022 + Amd 1:2024 (Annex A control A.5.7 and clauses 6.1.2 and 8.2), ISO/IEC 27002:2022 and ISO/IEC 27005:2022. Control and clause numbers are cited with original short labels; the procedure text, tables and examples are original, and no text from ISO/IEC standards is reproduced. Obtain the official standards from ISO, IEC or your national standards body. CISA, FIRST, MITRE, OASIS and NIST materials are cited by name and version only. Check the current edition or version of each reference before use.

Template licence: MIT.

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