What is Vulnerability Management?

Prioritization is not the end of the process. Once prioritized, vulnerabilities need to be addressed and remediated. Remediation strategies may involve:

• Applying security patches from vendors (for software vulnerabilities).
• Updating configurations or hardening controls to mitigate the risk.
• In some cases, isolating or removing vulnerable assets if patching is not feasible.

• Automation: Security teams can leverage automation tools to streamline vulnerability management workflows. Automation can be used for tasks like vulnerability scanning, prioritization, and even patch deployment.
• Integration with Cloud Platforms: Many cloud providers offer native vulnerability management features or integrate with third-party vulnerability scanning tools, simplifying the process within your cloud environment.

Network vulnerabilities are present within the infrastructure that allows communication between devices and data flow. These vulnerabilities are primarily exploited by attackers to get unauthorized access to a network, intercept sensitive data, or disrupt network operations. Some of the common network vulnerabilities include:

• Misconfigured firewalls or security protocols: Improper firewall rules or weak encryption standards can create openings for attackers to bypass security controls.
• Denial of Service (DoS) attacks: These types of attacks overwhelm a network with unknown traffic and make the network unavailable to legitimate users.
• Unpatched network devices: Outdated firmware or software on network devices (routers, switches) can contain known vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit.

The operating system vulnerabilities are kind of weaknesses that reside within the core software that manages a computer system. These vulnerabilities once exploited, allow attackers to take control of a device, steal data, or install malware. Below are some examples of OS vulnerabilities:

• Unpatched operating systems: Outdated operating systems often contain known vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit.
• Privilege escalation bugs: These vulnerabilities allow attackers to gain higher privileges within a system, giving them broader access and control.
• Buffer overflow attacks: Using buffer overflow, attackers can inject malicious code into a system and gain control. These attacks often take advantage of flaws in how data is handled by software.

These are the weaknesses that reside within software applications used on computers or mobile devices. Application vulnerabilities can be exploited by attackers to steal data, install malware, or compromise user accounts. Here are some common examples:

• SQL injection attacks: These attacks exploit vulnerabilities based on how applications interact with databases, and allow attackers to steal sensitive data.
• Cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks: These attacks inject malicious code into web applications that are then used to steal user data or redirect users to malicious websites.
• Insecure coding practices: When codes are written without considering security practices or without taking help from security experts, it can create vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit.

Process or procedural vulnerabilities are primarily caused due to inadequate security policies, procedures, or human errors. Not necessarily needs to be technical but they can just be as critical for attackers to exploit. Some of the common examples include:

• Week password policies: Easy-to-guess passwords or lack of multi-factor authentication make it easier for attackers to gain unauthorized access. Using password managers, MFA tokens like YubiKeys can help.
• Lack of employee training: Lack of training and awareness about security best practices can be easy gate openers for attackers. Employees can be tricked into clicking on phishing links or opening malicious attachments.
• Physical security lapses: When physical security measures like missing access control or unattended devices are inadequate, attackers can gain physical access to systems using such gateways.

Consider this as the most common vulnerability. Cloud environments offer huge options for configurations, and the slightest of misconfigurations can lead to significant security consequences. Examples include;

• Improperly configured IAM roles: Excessive permissions to unauthorized roles can create unintended access points for attackers. Use Identity and Access Management tools like ours to implement strict access control.
• Unsecured storage buckets: Leaving your storage buckets public and accessible can expose sensitive data to anyone on the internet.
• Open security group: Security groups act as firewalls in the cloud, and misconfigured rules can allow unauthorized access to resources

In multi-tenant or shared cloud environments, multiple organizations share underlying infrastructure. This creates potential vulnerabilities, even if one organization experiences a security breach it can spill all over to other organizations. Below are some examples of shared tenancy vulnerabilities:

• Side channel attacks: An attacker in one virtual machine can exploit vulnerabilities to gain access to resources of other virtual machines that are lying on the same shared infrastructure.
• Multi-tenancy bugs: Exploitable vulnerabilities within the underlying infrastructure itself are enough to potentially impact the organizations sharing the cloud environment.

You may know that cloud platforms rely on various software components such as the cloud platform itself, operating systems, applications, etc. A single vulnerability in any of these components can open doors for attackers and can pose a significant risk. A few examples could be:

• Zero-day vulnerabilities: Previously known vulnerabilities in widely used software are easy to exploit by attackers before a security patch is available. This can also impact cloud deployments.
• Malicious software updates: Same as insecure coding practices explained earlier, Attackers can compromise software repositories and inject malicious code into updates, potentially impacting cloud deployments that rely on those updates.

Cloud environments are complex and dynamic, which makes it a challenging job to gain and maintain complete visibility into all assets, activities, and configurations. This weakness makes it difficult to detect and respond to security threats on time. Below are some examples:

• Unmonitored resources: Cloud resources that are not actively monitored become more susceptible to unauthorized access or malicious activities.
• Log aggregation challenges: With the vast amount of log data generated across cloud environments, effectively collecting, analyzing, and acting upon security-related logs can be difficult.