What is threat modeling?
The term threat modeling, at first, may sound like something very complex and tedious to perform. However, once understood, it is indeed a simple task. We will try to simplify the concept of threat modeling with appropriate illustrations throughout this chapter.
Let's try to break down the two words, threat and model. The following are the dictionary meanings of both the words:
- Threat: A person or thing likely to cause damage or danger
- Model: A system or thing used as an example to follow or imitate
Now, combining both the words again, what do they mean collectively? Threat modeling is nothing but a formal way to identify potential security issues.
Let's take a very simple example to understand this.
The following diagram depicts a fort:
The fort is the place where the king resides and requires stringent security against his enemies. So, while the architects would design the structure of the fort, they would also need to consider various threats that may compromise the...