T1591 Gather Victim Org Information

---
name: "T1591_gather-victim-org-information"
description: "Adversaries may gather information about the victim's organization that can be used during targeting."
category: "information-gathering"
version: "18.1"
author: "cyberstrike-official"
tags:
  - mitre-attack
  - enterprise
  - t1591
  - reconnaissance
  - pre
technique_id: "T1591"
tactic: "reconnaissance"
all_tactics:
  - reconnaissance
platforms:
  - PRE
mitre_url: "https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1591"
tech_stack:
  - pre
cwe_ids:
  - CWE-200
chains_with:
  - T1591.001
  - T1591.002
  - T1591.003
  - T1591.004
prerequisites: []
severity_boost:
  T1591.001: "Chain with T1591.001 for deeper attack path"
  T1591.002: "Chain with T1591.002 for deeper attack path"
  T1591.003: "Chain with T1591.003 for deeper attack path"
---

# T1591 Gather Victim Org Information

## High-Level Description

Adversaries may gather information about the victim's organization that can be used during targeting. Information about an organization may include a variety of details, including the names of divisions/departments, specifics of business operations, as well as the roles and responsibilities of key employees.

Adversaries may gather this information in various ways, such as direct elicitation via Phishing for Information. Information about an organization may also be exposed to adversaries via online or other accessible data sets (ex: Social Media or Search Victim-Owned Websites). Gathering this information may reveal opportunities for other forms of reconnaissance (ex: Phishing for Information or Search Open Websites/Domains), establishing operational resources (ex: Establish Accounts or Compromise Accounts), and/or initial access (ex: Phishing or Trusted Relationship).

## Kill Chain Phase

- Reconnaissance (TA0043)

**Platforms:** PRE

## What to Check

- [ ] Identify if Gather Victim Org Information technique is applicable to target environment
- [ ] Check PRE systems for indicators of Gather Victim Org Information
- [ ] Verify mitigations are bypassed or absent (1 known mitigations)
- [ ] Assess detection coverage (1 detection strategies)

## How to Test

### Manual Testing

1. **Identify Attack Surface**: Determine if the target environment is susceptible to Gather Victim Org Information by examining the target platforms (PRE).

2. **Assess Existing Defenses**: Review whether mitigations for T1591 are in place. If defenses are absent or misconfigured, this technique may be exploitable.

3. **Execute Test**: Use tools and methods described in the MITRE ATT&CK page and external references below.

> **Note**: No Atomic Red Team tests available for this technique. See [Atomic Red Team GitHub](https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team) for updates.

## Remediation Guide

### M1056 Pre-compromise

This technique cannot be easily mitigated with preventive controls since it is based on behaviors performed outside of the scope of enterprise defenses and controls. Efforts should focus on minimizing the amount and sensitivity of data available to external parties.

## Detection

### Detection of Gather Victim Org Information

## Risk Assessment

| Finding                                            | Severity | Impact         |
| -------------------------------------------------- | -------- | -------------- |
| Gather Victim Org Information technique applicable | High     | Reconnaissance |

## CWE Categories

| CWE ID  | Title                             |
| ------- | --------------------------------- |
| CWE-200 | Exposure of Sensitive Information |

## References

- [ThreatPost Broadvoice Leak](https://threatpost.com/broadvoice-leaks-350m-records-voicemail-transcripts/160158/)
- [SEC EDGAR Search](https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search/)
- [Atomic Red Team - T1591](https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/tree/master/atomics/T1591)
- [MITRE ATT&CK - T1591](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1591)