​7​ Customizing STIX™

There are two primary means to customize STIX: Custom Properties, and Custom Objects. Custom Properties provides a mechanism and requirements for adding properties not defined by this specification to existing STIX Objects. Custom Objects, on the other hand, provides a mechanism and requirements to create custom STIX Objects (objects not defined by this specification).

A consumer that receives a STIX document containing Custom Properties or Objects it does not understand MAY refuse to process the document or MAY ignore those properties or objects and continue processing the document.

Producers of STIX documents that contain Custom Properties or Objects should recognize that consumers may not understand them and may ignore them. Producers should define any Custom Properties and Objects they use, along with any rules for processing them, and make these definitions and rules accessible to any potential consumers. This specification does not specify a process for doing this.