Technology giants Microsoft and CrowdStrike have announced a collaborative effort to develop uniform threat actor taxonomies in an unprecedented attempt to expedite cybersecurity information exchange.
This collaboration addresses a critical challenge in today’s rapidly evolving cyberthreat landscape, where inconsistent naming conventions across security platforms often create delays in threat response that can prove costly for organizations facing sophisticated cyberattacks.
The cybersecurity industry has long struggled with a fundamental problem: the same threat actor group can be known by multiple names across different security vendors and platforms.
Microsoft’s Midnight Blizzard, for example, is simultaneously referred to as Cozy Bear, APT29, or UNC2452 by other organizations.
This naming inconsistency creates significant operational challenges for security professionals who must correlate threat intelligence from multiple sources during active incidents.
According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s guidance on threat sharing (SP 800-150), these discrepancies in threat actor identification can reduce confidence in threat assessments, complicate analysis workflows, and critically delay response times.
In an environment where ransomware attacks can encrypt entire networks within minutes, even small delays in threat actor attribution can mean the difference between successful defense and catastrophic breach.
The problem is further compounded by inaccurate or incomplete data that flows through various threat intelligence platforms, creating a fragmented view of the threat landscape that security teams struggle to navigate effectively.
Threat Actor Mapping
The Microsoft-CrowdStrike collaboration introduces a comprehensive reference guide designed to bridge these knowledge gaps.
The first version of their joint threat actor mapping includes a detailed list of common threat actors tracked by both organizations, with corresponding aliases mapped across their respective taxonomies.
This reference framework leverages Microsoft’s extensive threat intelligence capabilities, which process 84 trillion threat signals daily, combined with CrowdStrike’s deep expertise in threat actor tracking and attribution.
The collaborative mapping serves as a translation layer between naming systems, enabling security professionals to work more efficiently in environments where insights from multiple vendors are essential.
The initiative focuses on improving confidence in threat actor identification, streamlining correlation across platforms and reports, and accelerating defender response capabilities during active cyberthreat incidents.
Rather than attempting to create a universal naming standard, the approach recognizes the value of existing taxonomies while providing clear cross-references that enhance operational effectiveness.
Future Implications
This initial collaboration represents just the beginning of a broader industry movement toward standardized threat intelligence sharing.
Google/Mandiant and Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 have committed to contributing to this effort, with updates from those partnerships expected in the near future.
According to Report, the expansion demonstrates growing recognition that cybersecurity requires community-wide coordination to develop effective defensive measures against increasingly sophisticated threat actors.
The implications extend beyond simple naming conventions to fundamental improvements in how the cybersecurity community shares and acts upon threat intelligence.
By providing clearer pathways for cross-platform correlation, security teams can respond more rapidly to emerging threats and maintain better situational awareness across complex technology environments.
This collaborative approach reflects the industry’s evolution toward shared responsibility models, where collective defense capabilities strengthen individual organizational security postures and contribute to broader cybersecurity resilience across critical infrastructure sectors.
Find this Story Interesting! Follow us on LinkedIn and X to Get More Instant Updates.
