A Purple Team is a collaborative exercise in which offensive (red team) and defensive (blue team) specialists work together to improve an organization’s ability to detect and respond to attacks.
Rather than red and blue operating in isolation, purple teaming has the attackers share their techniques in real time while defenders check whether their tools actually catch each step. The activity is often mapped to a framework like MITRE ATT&CK so both sides can measure detection coverage honestly. For example, a red operator runs a credential dumping technique, the blue side confirms whether the SIEM raised an alert, and if it did not they build a detection on the spot. Worth remembering: purple teaming is usually a function or a scheduled activity rather than a permanent standing team, and its value collapses if the findings are not documented and turned into lasting detections. A common watch-out is letting purple exercises replace independent red team testing, when they should complement it.
How is purple teaming tested on the CISSP?
Purple teaming falls under Domain 6, Security Assessment and Testing, which is 12% of the exam. Questions may probe how collaborative testing validates controls and closes gaps between offense and defense.