Nowadays, organizations have more security weaknesses than ever.
Flaws that could potentially be exploited by hackers include weak passwords, cloud misconfigurations, zero-day exploits, and unauthorized access.
Attack surfaces can change in minutes and with it introduce new vulnerabilities. What cybersecurity teams are also dealing with are new hacking methods and emerging weaknesses.
Even if IT teams worked entire days, they simply can’t mitigate all flaws in the system because of their large number, and one that’s continually growing.
Therefore, most utilize the top to bottom approach and start with patching up high-risk weaknesses and work their way to the lower-risk issues.
How can they prioritize the flaws that are likely to escalate in incidents such as data breaches and successful phishing attacks?
To determine this, they use tools that rate vulnerabilities that are likely to put organizations at risk.
Which options are there, and what are the pros and cons of the various, available Vulnerability Prioritization Technology?
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS)
Most IT teams rely on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (also known as CVSS). This scoring offers guidelines and aids professionals in setting up a patching schedule and strengthening security.
Some benefits of using CVSS include:
- Intuitive analytics
- Scoring the threats from less to more severe
A major reason that CVSS is used for determining the schedule of the patching up process is that its analytics are straightforward and easy to understand for any member of the team.
Flaws are rated from one to ten and the higher the number, the more likely the weakness is to be detrimental to the system. Based on these analytics, teams focus on the issues that score at least seven on the scale.
The main shortcomings of CVSS are:
- Lack of context
- The major time gap between creating the patching-up schedule and fixing the flaws in the system
Some of the weaknesses that CVSS scores as severe may not be vulnerabilities that are likely to be exploited by threat actors.
Patching up is scheduled in advance. Longer waiting times can mean that the system is exposed for weeks or even months if CVSS overlooks the threats that might cause major damage to the company.
The aftermath of the attack is more severe if hackers have access to the organization for prolonged periods of time.
Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS)
Breach and Attack Simulation (or BAS) is a tool that aids teams to evaluate security in real-time. As it simulates an attack, it assesses the security itself, and the people who manage and login into the system (all employees).
In a nutshell, BAS lets teams know whether the security and infrastructure would be ready for the cyberattack without waiting for hackers to actually breach and attack the organization.
The pros of using the BAS tool are that it:
- Enables businesses to cost-effectively test their security
- Evaluates the system against the new and emerging threats
- Assesses the security in real-time
- Runs in the background 24/7
- Helps teams think like hackers
Since it’s automated and runs continuously, it costs less than penetration testing or other techniques that require manual testing.
BAS utilizes adversarial techniques to test security. It attacks and targets people by seeking flaws similar to those of criminals. While doing so, it evaluates the system by using common hacking techniques and new methods found and described in the MITRE ATT&CK Framework.
Some disadvantages of BAS when it comes to prioritization of the weaknesses is that it’s a tool for testing that requires IT teams. They adjust it for the specific needs and infrastructure of a company.
Attack-Based Vulnerability Management (ABVM)
Attack-Based Vulnerability Management (or ABVM) is the technology that aids teams to prioritize the weaknesses in the context of the organization.
As you know, every business has a unique attack surface and the context can make a major difference in what are the weak spots of the system.
Some benefits of the ABVM include:
- Contextual analysis of flaws in the security and networks
- Incorporates emulated and simulated attacks
- Comprehensive overview of the entire security
- Requires less time and manpower
ABVM is designed to analyze both emulate and simulated attacks in the context of the network that is being protected by IT teams.
This way, the software removes the chance that a flaw that scored low on one scale is definitely not a possible threat that could let the criminals directly into the system.
Increased visibility of the entire system is important when cybersecurity professionals are prioritizing the tasks that determine what will be patched up first.
As a result, ABVM seeks less time to determine the critical flaws in the system and less manpower that would otherwise have to do so manually.
And its disadvantages?
Well, it’s an emerging tool, and we have yet to see the data as it’s being applied to the system. Regardless, it’s based on previous tools that have been developed to separate high-risk threats that must be dealt with as soon as possible.
Also, it has to be combined with other software that can mitigate the attacks and scan the system for possible breaches. For that reason, it’s often used with BAS that tests the system and CVSS that’s easy to understand for any member of the team.
Final Thoughts on Vulnerability Prioritization Technology
Cybersecurity has always been a work in progress.
New hacking techniques that exploit flaws in security and systems in a way that teams can’t anticipate can leave the organization open to attack.
Any updates or logins of new employees can open up weakness in the systems that can be found and taken advantage of by hackers.
No tool can guarantee that a system will be completely free of any vulnerabilities that could compromise businesses.
The best that organizations can do is to prioritize high risks threats and mitigate them before they turn into incidents.
