Purple teaming: improving cybersecurity through collaboration

Red teams attack and blue teams defend. When they operate in separate silos, detection gaps often remain unnoticed. Purple teaming brings them together and turns an attack into an immediate learning experience. The objective is not to decide who wins, but to maximise what the organisation learns.

Explanation

During purple teaming, the offensive red team and defensive blue team work together rather than against each other. The attacker executes techniques and immediately explains each action, while defenders verify in real time whether detection and response controls work. Every attack step is therefore tested and linked directly to whether existing monitoring generates a useful signal.

Risk

When red and blue teams operate separately, a test may produce a final report while teaching the defence very little. Detection rules remain untested, blind spots persist and the same weaknesses return during the next assessment. The opportunity for improvement stays in a report instead of becoming part of daily detection operations.

Points to check

• Collaboration and knowledge sharing between offensive and defensive teams.
• A shared reference model such as MITRE ATT&CK.
• Measurable improvement in detection and response.
• Documented improvements that remain repeatable.
• An iterative approach rather than a one-off exercise.

Approach

During a DeepBlue purple team engagement, specialists execute realistic techniques mapped to MITRE ATT&CK while the defensive team observes and adjusts controls. Detection gaps become visible immediately and are improved on the spot, after which the attack is repeated. Each iteration builds on the previous one, sharpening detection rules and demonstrably raising detection maturity.

Conclusion

Purple teaming combines the strengths of attack and defence and converts testing into direct, measurable improvement. It is one of the most effective ways to strengthen detection and response capability. It also improves mutual understanding between teams, creating value beyond the engagement itself.

Contact

Want to understand the impact in your own environment? Contact DeepBlue Security & Intelligence at info@deepbluesecurity.nl or +31 (0) 70 290 6 290.