For businesses to remain potent today, many companies rely on diverse software applications and solutions, especially those developed by IT system service providers. Presently, businesses need to outsource their IT needs so that they can focus on boosting their productivity. But, while the alternatives mentioned above can effectively boost customer and employee experiences, they can be open to vulnerabilities making businesses vulnerable to cyberattacks.
Many businesses employ the traditional vulnerability management program. That may be good, but it isn’t good enough. The world is evolving. Now, business owners are advised to employ a continuous/ongoing vulnerability management program. The traditional vulnerability management program only manually remediates and scans for vulnerabilities at regular intervals or periodically, while an ongoing vulnerability management program offers regular (24/7) vulnerability checks.
Generally, vulnerability management programs are created to help businesses reduce cyberattacks, but employing the traditional program can still leave loopholes wide enough for cybercriminals to use against a business. According to vulnerability statistics by Statista, over 22.5 thousand IT exposures and vulnerabilities were discovered in 2022. Therefore, as a business owner, executing a successful ongoing vulnerability management program is a practical step to help combat cyber threats.
However, if you aren’t convinced enough to implement an ongoing vulnerability management program as a business owner, read on to learn why it is worth it.
Reasons to Implement an Ongoing Vulnerability Management Program
Below are some of the reasons you need to consider implementing an ongoing vulnerability management program:
1. It helps in efficient prioritization management
A business owner should employ an ongoing vulnerability management program to manage prioritization effectively. Today’s vulnerabilities are too many to be solved instantly across all endpoints and systems. To guarantee that you are monitoring the vulnerabilities revealing your business’s environment, ensure a priority setting is implemented or frequently reviewed if it has been established already.
2. It will improve control and security
Conducting periodic scans provides you with a point-in-time assessment of vulnerabilities. As a result, it’ll be challenging to track the development of vulnerability remediation, and at any given moment, your evaluation of your online security position will probably be outdated.
What if weaknesses are discovered between scans? How extensively do you think it will take for them to be found, addressed, and fixed? More than a month? It is impossible to be free from vulnerabilities through applications and websites which could be open to cyberattacks unless an ongoing vulnerability management program is in place.
Also, remember that all an attacker needs to compromise security is just a point of entry. Continuous vulnerability management provides an up-to-date assessment of your business’s security state.
3. It quickly addresses threats
Cybercriminals don’t rest or take vacations. Every day, vulnerabilities are discovered when we don’t expect them. Businesses can evolve from a reactionary response to a constructive one with the aid of a continuous vulnerability management program
Setting up an ongoing vulnerability management program guarantees that major vulnerabilities are quickly identified, prioritized, and fixed. Doing so creates the foundation for an immediate and efficient response to risks as they arise.
4. It provides long-time solutions and repeatable results
The most time-consuming step in any automated process is setting up the tools, and web vulnerability assessment is no exception. Every web application framework has difficulties that require a certain degree of customization to guarantee adequate coverage and valuable outcomes. That is another instance where choosing a committed, long-term solution pays off.
Most importantly, conducting a vulnerability scan is no more a completely distinct effort requiring a team of IT experts and perhaps even consulting firms. All thanks to the creation of an integrated and ongoing vulnerability management program. Therefore, vulnerability scanning has become a constant and automated aspect of creating and testing online applications, with significant advantages for operational and security effectiveness.
5. It’s cost-effective
Cost-effectiveness is unquestionably the major advantage for every business, and an ongoing vulnerability management program offers numerous cost-saving benefits.
Assisting the business in focusing on and prioritizing tasks around assets that pose the greatest risk of being exploited also helps decrease technical debt.
6. It helps build trust with your clients
The increase in supply chain and ransomware attacks have driven businesses to audit third-party service providers and made stakeholders more conscious of the risks associated with unsecured systems. Clients and stakeholders now have access to executive-level information and key metrics that show the program’s status.
That is a crucial aspect of modern business activity, in which a wide range of stakeholders is increasingly assessing the risk of business transactions on the security posture of a business.
The likelihood of doing business increases when it has the information and tools necessary to report on its status. Setting that up will be smart if you haven’t already started developing an ongoing vulnerability management program.
Are You Considering Outsourcing Your Vulnerability Management Program? Let AhelioTech Help!
Outsourcing should be considered for excellent reasons, regardless of the urge to handle things internally. To ensure 24/7 convergence and free up your internal IT to concentrate on other technology projects, a managed IT provider will give the essential continuous process the help it needs. AhelioTech could be that IT provider.
Contact us today if you need any help.