When in the market for a vulnerability management system, you will quickly realize that most of the products in the market are similar. This means you can need help choosing the best among them and getting value for your money. Luckily, you have come to the right place. This article takes you through the 5 main tips for choosing a vulnerability management system. Ready? Let’s get started.
Makes risk a priority
Every vulnerability management system has a list of issues it scans for in its database. To make your systems, go for a VMS system that prioritizes risk in its vulnerability database. The idea behind going for a vulnerability management system that prioritizes risk is simple – threats are constantly evolving. For this reason, a system that ranks vulnerabilities based on the risk they present has better odds than one that tries to scan and catch every risk. Risk prioritization is so important that the industry is moving towards this risk management metric.
Applies predictive models
As mentioned above, the risk is continuously evolving, so the vulnerability management system must try and keep up with emerging risks. Logically, relying on a VMS system pegged on human input and capabilities is doomed to fail. Instead, go for a system that uses predictive algorithms to determine risks before they materialize.
Predictive algorithms scan network traffic in real time to anticipate and prevent cyber attacks by detecting anomalies that may indicate the presence of an exploit. This proactive approach reduces the risk associated with new and emerging threats, helping organizations remain safe and secure even as adversaries become more adept at avoiding traditional security measures.
Using such a system ensures you always stay ahead of the curve against major vulnerabilities that can harm your systems. Besides the reduced risk, using a predictive approach to catching potential vulnerabilities means the cost of managing them is significantly lower.
System that offers risk scoring
Before using a vulnerability management system, ensure that each risk has a score for prioritization in management. The system scans all your company assets and checks out the ones most at risk. This way, you can assign teams to such assets to help protect them better from risks.
The most significant advantage of using a vulnerability management system that scores risks is that it cuts the overall costs of dealing with risks. At the same time, risks can be dealt with much more quicker by aggressively assigning teams to the most at-risk assets.
Allows for centralized handling of risks
Decentralization has become a big buzzword lately, largely due to blockchain technology. While it has enormous benefits in vulnerability management, a centralized approach gives faster results, reducing the risk of harm from threats.
That’s because it becomes easier to identify and act on risks with a single decision. Centralized vulnerability systems allow organizations to easily identify vulnerabilities, create updates, and push them out across the entire system in a single, coordinated effort. This ensures that all areas connected to the system are updated as soon as possible and have minimal disruption, making it far easier for organizations to maintain high levels of security without negatively impacting their workflow. This can help protect not just networks but also customer data and reputation, further increasing their value significantly.
Cloud-based
One of the most significant issues that in-built vulnerability management systems face is scalability. To avoid this issue, go for a cloud-based vulnerability management system. Doing this means you don’t have to deal with new tools whenever a new vulnerability arises. You can always deal with it by using a simple software update. This reduced cost and increased speed of execution can make all the difference in dealing with vulnerabilities within an organization.
Besides, as a company grows, new tools can be quickly deployed to adjust to the changing landscape. In addition, these systems also increase availability since all services are available on demand without any additional provisioning or installation. This makes it easier than ever to manage security strategically, ensuring that your business is able to adapt as needed for maximum effectiveness.
Recap
Vulnerability management is essential to protect a company’s assets from the many risks that are always coming up in the digital world. However, with so many vulnerability management systems in the market, it can be challenging to choose one that is right for your needs. To determine the best one, consider risk prioritization, risk forecasting, ease-of-update, and how easy it is to make decisions.
