Flare, the leader in identity-first cyber threat intelligence (CTI), today announced the public launch of Darkroom by Flare Academy, a free, interactive training experience that gives security practitioners, analysts, and students hands-on exposure to the underground ecosystems they defend against.
Most defenders learn about the dark web through reports, redacted screenshots, and post-incident analysis. Darkroom instead places learners inside a purpose-built virtual environment where they can investigate forum conversations, browse stealer log archives, analyze breach data, and trace compromised identities.
The four-hour, self-paced experience draws on the environments and criminal tradecraft that Flare researchers navigate every day. Participants explore dark web forums, initial access broker listings, ransomware-as-a-service operations, infostealer malware, stolen credential distribution, cryptocurrency tracing, threat-actor attribution, and pre-breach intelligence.
“Cyber threat intelligence is most valuable when defenders understand how attackers actually operate and how seemingly disconnected exposures come together before a breach,” said Eric Clay, Head of Research at Flare. “Darkroom gives the security community a practical way to build that understanding through an experience grounded in real-world tradecraft.”
Darkroom also features AI-powered threat-actor personas that respond to participants’ decisions, allowing the experience to adapt beyond a traditional scripted exercise. Learners who pass the assessment can earn a Flare Academy certification, continuing professional education credits, and a digital badge.
Flare will also bring Darkroom to DEF CON 34 for a live event on August 6 in Las Vegas from 5 – 9 p.m. PT. The experience will combine guided instruction with an interactive capture-the-flag competition featuring realistic underground forums, breach data and AI-powered threat actors. Participants should bring their own laptops.
Darkroom is available for free through the Flare Discord community. To access Darkroom, visit flare.io/darkroom.
Flare, the leader in identity-first cyber threat intelligence (CTI), today announced the public launch of Darkroom by Flare Academy, a free, interactive training experience that gives security practitioners, analysts, and students hands-on exposure to the underground ecosystems they defend against.
Most defenders learn about the dark web through reports, redacted screenshots, and post-incident analysis. Darkroom instead places learners inside a purpose-built virtual environment where they can investigate forum conversations, browse stealer log archives, analyze breach data, and trace compromised identities.
The four-hour, self-paced experience draws on the environments and criminal tradecraft that Flare researchers navigate every day. Participants explore dark web forums, initial access broker listings, ransomware-as-a-service operations, infostealer malware, stolen credential distribution, cryptocurrency tracing, threat-actor attribution, and pre-breach intelligence.
“Cyber threat intelligence is most valuable when defenders understand how attackers actually operate and how seemingly disconnected exposures come together before a breach,” said Eric Clay, Head of Research at Flare. “Darkroom gives the security community a practical way to build that understanding through an experience grounded in real-world tradecraft.”
Darkroom also features AI-powered threat-actor personas that respond to participants’ decisions, allowing the experience to adapt beyond a traditional scripted exercise. Learners who pass the assessment can earn a Flare Academy certification, continuing professional education credits, and a digital badge.
Flare will also bring Darkroom to DEF CON 34 for a live event on August 6 in Las Vegas from 5 – 9 p.m. PT. The experience will combine guided instruction with an interactive capture-the-flag competition featuring realistic underground forums, breach data and AI-powered threat actors. Participants should bring their own laptops.
Darkroom is available for free through the Flare Discord community. To access Darkroom, visit flare.io/darkroom.
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