Top 6 Tips in Continuous Threat Exposure Management

Threat exposure management means identifying and responding to potential threats that pose a risk to an organization's security.

Here are the top 6 tip in threat exposure management.

Just so you know, this post might seem like an ad for our professional package. But actually, we created our professional package to help organizations handle critical exposure management processes. In this article, we explain what these processes are all about.

These steps mainly focus on assets that are accessible over the internet, but they're pretty similar for internal assets.

1. Know What You Have

It seems easy. But it's not.

Inventory management is a very tough job.

It's not just knowing what you have but also where it is, who has access to it, and how critical it is to your organization.

This information is crucial in understanding potential threats and their potential impact on your organization.

We solved this problem with our automated asset discovery checks. We check for any IP, email, domain, subdomain, hidden paths app, etc.

But not only assets like domain or IP address, you need to know and manage tech stack use such as web server versions, 3rd party libraries, plugins you installed, etc.

For now, we find all this information by using our scans; in the near future, we plan to map your tech stack with your assets.

2. Monitor Changes Regularly

Organization IT infrastructures are living organisms. They change, they grow, they get ill, and sometimes unfortunately, they die.

You have to monitor changes as much as you can.

New open ports, DNS changes, SSL certificates, URLs, files, leaked emails, and so on...

That is the only way to know your weaknesses and defend yourself against attack.

We solve this problem with our scan scheduling algorithms. It's the most changed and optimized project on our backend. With your professional package, your asset will be scanned automatically and continuously to detect any changes.

3. Use a Vulnerability Scanner and Use it Continuously

Simple, effective, cheap.

Use a vulnerability scanning service to know your application and system weaknesses.

In our professional plan, you can do it with just one click. And all scans start and run as scheduled forever.

If you do not want to use our online services, you can manually run a vulnerability scanners such as openvas or Wapiti. But you have to install and set up yourself and start a scan manually.

4. Be Aware of Newly Published Vulnerabilities

Do you remember the first advice about managing threat exposure, "Know What You Have"?

What if a new vulnerability is published tonight related to any asset in your inventory when you sleep?

Can you check every newly published vulnerability about your tech stack every day?

It's almost an impossible task to do it manually.

In a professional package, we scan all of our members' inventories for newly published vulnerabilities. It's an automated task. Whenever our engineers add a scan to our system, it runs for all professional package users' assets.

5. Get Security Reports From Our Users

Do not underestimate the power of security reports that come from your users who have cyber security knowledge.

You can always create a vulnerability management process for them quickly.

1. Create a security.txt file with policy and vulnerability report form links for your assets.
2. Use a Hall of Fame page to thank the security researchers you approve.
3. Apply a process to deny or reject security reports from researchers.

We all do it for our professional package users. In our app, a hall of fame and a form page for security reports are created automatically. And you can either approve or reject security reports as you wish. You can always use our scanners to proof the report.

6. Security Awareness Training

Human error can often lead to security vulnerabilities. Regular training can raise awareness about common cyber threats and teach employees how to avoid them.

We use quizzes and security bulletins for that for free. But you can always find more educational content from other blogs, videos, and newsletters. Use them to keep yourself up to date.

You can significantly enhance your organization's security posture by implementing these six key aspects into your threat exposure management strategy.

Once again, we'd like to mention that it might come across as advertising, but the truth is, we create what we genuinely believe in.