Inside the Team Paid to Break into Top-Secret Bases
A team paid to break into top-secret bases might sound like a scene from a Hollywood movie, but Red Teams are real and are hired by companies to test the tightest security systems. Unlike White Hat Hacking, which focuses on digital security, Red Teaming involves breaching physical security and requires a specific set of skills.
How Red Teaming Works
Leonardo, a major defense company, offers Red Team services to test security for government, critical infrastructure, and defense clients. The Red Team leader, Greg, who served in the engineering and intelligence branches of the British Army, explains that the first step of an operation is passive reconnaissance. The team builds a picture of the target using anonymous devices and aims to remain undetected.
Skills Required for Red Team Operations
Another team member, Charlie, also a former military intelligence officer, uses commercial satellite imagery, scans job ads, and observes employee behavior to understand the target. This phase is called hostile reconnaissance. The goal is to gather information without raising suspicion. The team blends in by avoiding recognizable patterns that security personnel might notice.
Emma, a former member of the RAF with a background in psychology, contributes by analyzing human behavior. She listens to employee conversations in nearby cafes and looks for dissatisfaction or other weaknesses that can be exploited. An unhappy security guard, for example, might be less vigilant and more likely to ignore certain security protocols, making it easier for the team to gain access.
Phases of a Red Team Operation
Once inside the facility, Dan, another member of the Red Team, takes over. He uses lock-picking tools and other gadgets to search for passwords or plug in smart USB devices to gain network access. The final phase of the operation, called the “kill chain,” is executed by Stanley, a cyber security expert. Stanley uses information gathered by the team to penetrate secure systems. He often poses as an administrator to access sensitive files and data.
Even though the team has approval from the customer, breaking into high-security areas can still be nerve-wracking. Dan admits that gaining access to a server room for the first time is intense. However, the process becomes easier with experience. To ensure safety, a contact at the target site always stays in the loop to prevent misunderstandings during the operation.
Red Teaming plays a crucial role in identifying vulnerabilities that might otherwise be missed by traditional security testing. By simulating real-world threats, these teams help organizations understand weaknesses in their physical and digital security, ultimately making their systems more robust and resilient.
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