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Integrating Vulnerability Management into the Risk Management Strategy

R. Eric Kiser

Your organization has identified vulnerability management as a crucial issue to address. While many auditors conduct vulnerability scans, these scans may not accurately reflect the actual risk posed by a particular vulnerability. Many auditors use the common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVE) score. This can be a great baseline, and bring attention to the issue. However, a critical vulnerability may be mitigated by multiple layers of defense, but still be detected as critical, while a moderate vulnerability on a web server could potentially result in data leakage. In addition, organizations will often ignore the blue informational misconfigurations that can lead to data breaches.

To prioritize remediation efforts and allocate resources effectively, it is important to assess the actual risk posed by each vulnerability, taking into account the specific context and potential impact. While it is possible to assign a team member to manually reassess the importance of each vulnerability, this can be a resource-intensive process that may not be feasible for all organizations. Therefore, it is important to consider using information security management metrics to help prioritize vulnerabilities and make informed decisions about risk mitigation.

To streamline and automate the vulnerability management process, many organizations use third-party tools such as Invicti, CrowdStrike Falcon, Tenable.io, and Rapid 7. These tools can be integrated into your pipeline to help prioritize and mitigate vulnerabilities efficiently. Alternatively, you can build your own vulnerability management tool using free software such as OpenVas. For organizations with a larger budget, a Security Operations Center (SOC) as a Service solution may be a viable option. It is important to carefully evaluate how these tools integrate with your existing systems and processes. Can the scans be integrated into your patch management system using an API? Can vulnerabilities be automatically mitigated? How does the system alert the appropriate team member(s)? Can the solution be integrated with your Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system? Can data from multiple sources be combined and analyzed to generate the necessary metrics for decision-making?

When selecting a solution for vulnerability management, it is important to consider how the data generated by the solution will be used by stakeholders and enterprise risk management teams. Clearly define the expectations for the deliverables and how they will be presented. If you are unsure of the expectations, don’t hesitate to ask for clarification. You can also propose various options for metrics that can be included in the deliverables, which can lead to a more productive conversation about the needs and goals of the organization. Some common metrics that may be useful include:

  • The scope and assets examined

Integrating vulnerability management into the risk management strategy will help organizations make informed decisions about risk. By thoroughly understanding the potential impact of vulnerabilities on assets, organizations can prioritize efforts and resources to effectively reduce the overall risk profile. By integrating vulnerability management into risk the management strategy, organizations can improve their decision-making processes and better protect themselves from potential threats.

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