Archive for the ‘Vulnerability Tracking’ Category
Vulnerability Metrics, Simplified
In its most basic form, vulnerability metrics is a set of values assigned to networks and applications. However, in order to use it to prevent an IT disaster, you need to know how to use those metrics effectively. Vulnerability metrics are best used when applied to determine how at risk a business is from a network threat as well as how great of an impact that threat will be.
Imagine the following scenario:
You suspect theft from within your company. What kind of measures would you take to catch the thief, prevent it from happening again, and regain whatever it is that has been affected? What actvities can be set aside while you focus on this task, and what simply cannot be sacrificed at this time?
Vulnerability metrics is basically the network of professionals behind the hero in an action-packed thriller movie. While the hero is responsible for going out there and getting things done, he can’t do it without someone he trusts processing his information, warning him of risks, and providing a sounding board for making the right decisions.
In the same way, without the metrics allowing you to compare and identify your most important threats, you not only leave your network exposed and defenseless, but it will be difficult to recuperate from the threat and you would not know how to prevent it from happening again. After all, you have to keep that hero alive and working.
There is a weakness to every organization, it is finding it and controlling it that is the true task. Once you are aware of your company’s weakness, you can understand the affects of it and learn how to prevent it.
Though it is easy to obtain vulnerability metrics, implementing them is a harder task if you are not properly trained. A well-qualified employee or an IT consultant has been trained to use the metrics system specifically for your business and your bottom line. With the correct training, vulnerability metrics can be an essential service in protection your business.
Streamlining IT Solutions
Whether they realize it or not, most of today’s companies take a “patchwork quilt” approach to information and Internet security. This means that instead of relying on a unified program to oversee and track vulnerabilities, a company can have as many types of protection software as they do types of hardware and networks.
This sort of approach makes sense; after all, your company is growing and expanding, and the infrastructure you had in place two years ago might not be sufficient to meet current needs. The automatic response is to add new programs and hardware as your business grows, and to add the latest in information security to the new infrastructure at the same time.
While this can work as a short-term solution, information security is about a lot more than simply having any old barrier up in place. In order to really get the most out of your vulnerability protection, you have to take a more proactive and comprehensive approach. This means throwing out that old patchwork quilt and replacing it with a solid blanket of protection designed to grow with your company.
There are a number of benefits to this kind of capacity planning and vulnerability management:
- When your system is overseen by a single vulnerability protection plan, you get tracking data that is consistent and usable for the entire system.
- You can install vulnerability protection programs that allow for growth while still taking advantage of existing information security measures, saving you both time and money in the long-term.
- You reduce the possibility of patchwork “holes” that sometimes occur when an information security system is simply pieced together over time.
No matter what your current infrastructure looks like, your business can benefit from a vulnerability assessment and consultation. Not only might you find vulnerability holes you didn’t know existed, but you can streamline the way you run your vulnerability management program – and that can save you time, money, and the trouble of a system weakened by viruses or other outside threats.
Have You Looked Into the National Vulnerability Database?
You have programs in place that are tracking your vulnerabilities. You’re reviewing the data, implementing it, and feeling pretty secure. But what if you had more information at your disposal? If there were a national database of known weaknesses in applications and infrastructure that you could access, wouldn’t you look into it?
Lucky for you, this database exists. The National Vulnerability Database is a government operation that records vulnerability data from systems across the nation. By compiling data, they can help you find the vulnerabilities in your own system that are the most likely to be exploited. Think of your security like a class final. You can study your notes alone, or you can study with a group of overachievers who are all interested in earning the A. Which scenario is the most likely to help you pass?
You can also contribute to the National Vulnerability Database to help others. Your scans and vulnerability tracking data can be added to the database. You get the good feeling of helping others while not having to worry about compromising any proprietary data. It’s a win-win situation when you use the database and share what you find on your own end.
So how about it? Is it time to take your vulnerability tracking to the next level? With viruses and attackers looking for ways to get inside, you need every advantage you can get. The National Vulnerability Database could be a tremendous asset to your company, and every step you take to protect your data protects your business.
How Well Are You Tracking Your Vulnerabilities?
Every network has them—the little weaknesses that an attacker could exploit to get in. Every business has to search for patches and implement basic security to fill the holes as they find them. Day after day, you find new holes, you fill new holes. But what if you could not only track the vulnerabilities you’ve found, but have access to a list of other known vulnerabilities? You could be proactive, and it would sure beat the regular grind of hunting and patching.
By working with an IT consultant, you can access a list of vulnerabilities from a wide range of businesses and networks. With this data at your fingertips, you can start hunting for vulnerabilities you didn’t know existed, and strengthen them before anyone can exploit them. Without vulnerability tracking it’s like trying to put a jigsaw puzzle together without the picture on the box. Sure, you can do it, but you waste a ton of time and resources along the way.
Vulnerability tracking data helps you know what the pieces look like when they are all put together. You can preemptively find and close security gaps when you know where to look, and that’s just good sense. Why spend time hunting when you can fairly and legitimately get the answers and put them to use? The data you compile can in turn help other companies find their own security holes. By sharing the vulnerabilities you’ve found, you can give the picture on the box so much more detail, and since your weaknesses have already been taken care of, there’s no risk to you. With all of these benefits, why not use the full picture to solve your security puzzle?