While data is being considered an asset in the IT ecosystem, the role of cybersecurity in maintaining enterprise operations has become more pertinent. Organizations need to be able to protect both customer and employee data from security breaches in order to develop new business relationships and expand rapidly. Achieving the pinnacle of security is a necessity and organizations need to have a deep understanding of cybersecurity vulnerabilities and the methods used by hackers to gain access to their networks.

According to the Fortune Business insights report, the value of the information security market is projected to hit $366.1bn by 2028. The growth is driven by the integration of machine learning, IoT, and a surge in ecommerce platforms.  

Adopting the best practices to manage vulnerabilities not only enhances your security initiatives, but also helps in minimizing the impact of successful attacks. This is one of the major reasons why having an established vulnerability management system is crucial for organizations across industries.

Over 75% of applications have at least one flaw!

Indulge in our blog to know more about what defines a cybersecurity vulnerability, its comparison with a cybersecurity threat, and the most common types of cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

What is a cybersecurity vulnerability?

A cybersecurity vulnerability is a dent in the organization’s infrastructure, information systems, or workflows that can be created by cybercriminals. By breaching certain points of vulnerability in your system, cybercriminals can easily gain access to your system and extract critical data. When it comes to your organization’s entire security posture, monitoring your cybersecurity vulnerabilities is instrumental in detecting the gaps in a network, which could lead to a serious breach.

How is it different from a cybersecurity threat?

Vulnerabilities are quite different from threats in the sense that they aren’t inflicted on a system – rather they are present by default. Cyber vulnerabilities are rarely created by cybercriminals, but caused by flaws in the operating system or network misconfigurations. Cyber threats, on the other hand, are created as a result of an external event such as an employee downloading a virus or a social engineering attack.

What is vulnerability management?

Vulnerability management is the process of discovering, classifying, evaluating, and mitigating system vulnerabilities.

Listed below are 3 best practices in vulnerability management that your organization can implement:

Identifying Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability identification is the process of discovering exploitable gaps in your network operations. This process can be done by leveraging vulnerability scanners, which perform a periodic assessment of network systems misconfigurations, incorrect file system structures, and more. The results from the vulnerability scans are verified with the available security intelligence databases. In order to glean actionable insights, the scanner must be properly configured and updated. We would recommend you to administer a test run during off hours to evaluate the accuracy of the results and make informed decisions.

Evaluating Vulnerabilities

After discovering the vulnerabilities, the next step is to evaluate the level of risk they pose to your organization using a cybersecurity vulnerability assessment. By assigning risk levels to your discovered cyber threats, you can prioritize your remediation efforts accordingly. A robust vulnerability assessment also improves compliance efforts by ensuring that the vulnerabilities are addressed before they can be exploited.

Addressing Vulnerabilities

As soon as the risk level of the vulnerability is determined, it’s inevitable to treat the vulnerability. Here are 3 ways in which you can treat vulnerabilities:

Remediation: This is the most preferred method which involves completely fixing or patching a vulnerability to eliminate risk.

Mitigation: This is a precautionary measure that decreases the likelihood of a vulnerability being exploited. It is also a means to buy time until a proper patch is available.

Acceptance: This measure is taken only when the risk level of a particular vulnerability is low. It’s also a viable option if the cost of addressing the vulnerability is more than the cost of damages.

Top 6 Types of Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities

While building a robust vulnerability management program, your organization must watch out for these 6 key cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

System Misconfigurations

System misconfigurations occur mainly due to vulnerable settings or disparate security controls in network assets. One of the common strategies used by cybercriminals is to probe networks for system misconfigurations and gaps that can be exploited. While the pace of adoption of digital solutions has improved drastically, the odds of network misconfigurations increase. In that case, it becomes crucial to work with experienced professionals while implementing new technologies.

Outdated or Unpatched Software

Unpatched vulnerabilities are a great avenue for cybercriminals to carry out attacks and steal critical data from your organization. Cyber adversaries will also look to probe networks looking for unpatched systems they can compromise. In order to minimize these risks, we recommend you to establish a patch management schedule so that all new system patches are incorporated as and when they release.

According to a survey from Ponemon Institute, 60% of breach victims said they were breached due to an unpatched known vulnerability where the patch was not applied.  

Weak Authentication Credentials

Cybercriminals are well-versed with barging their way into a network by guessing employees’ authentication credentials. Organizations are expected to educate their employees on cybersecurity best practices so that their login credentials are complex enough to stop hackers from gaining access to their network.

Malicious Insider Threats

Irrespective of the intent, employees who have access to critical data and networks can share information that allows cybercriminals to breach a network. As you may know, insider threats are hard to track since employees will seem to be legitimate. To mitigate these threats, you could start with investing in network access control solutions and segment your network based on employee expertise and credibility.

Poor Data Encryption

Networks with poor data encryption allow hackers to interrupt communication between systems, leading to a breach. When a poorly encrypted information is interrupted, cybercriminals find it easier to extract critical information and feed false information onto a server. This could reflect poorly on the organization’s cybersecurity compliance efforts and lead to substantial penalties.

Zero-day Vulnerabilities

These are specific software vulnerabilities that are known only by the hackers and not the organization. Obviously, this means there is no available cure since the vulnerabilities have never been reported to the systems vendor. Zero-day vulnerabilities are extremely dangerous as there is no specific way to prevent them. Organizations are expected to be vigilant and continuously monitor the systems for vulnerabilities in order to minimize the likelihood of a zero-day attack.

Abstract

With the increasing levels of complexity in networks, organizations trying to proactively manage cybersecurity vulnerabilities have become critical to customer success.

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