Asset Systems Vulnerability Scanning Importance

For all of us whose work is closely connected to the Internet, security plays a major role to our success.

Whether we thrive as website owners expanding our number of customers or we struggle to keep everything running can be a simple matter of how dedicated we are to keeping our network assets (from our database servers, web servers, mail servers to all the major important systems) in check and fully protected.

Though we usually know and follow basic security measures, installing and managing our websites, we are still left to struggle with the vulnerabilities often found in different systems.

The problem of security becomes even more alarming knowing all the attacks that have been going on in the past few years.

With so many hackers probing the Internet-facing servers nowadays, our data, that is our resources, seem to be only a step away from being stolen, altered or forever lost.

Every day, we hear news of cyber attacks against high profile companies, the ones that have a great amount of network assets, but are still on a cheap side when it comes to securing them.

The reason for this often lies in a tight IT budget, which needs to be spent on all aspects: software, hardware and security, but is often limited to the first two, leaving the security aspect something of an afterthought.

Another reason why cyber crime is on the rise is all the plugins and upgrades that most users overlook to download.

Misconfigurations and missing updates are often the main reason how hackers, taking advantage of the vulnerability of the system, can get to your assets.

What you can do to be protected?

Is an asset vulnerability scanning system in the cloud or is it available on premises? It is important to choose the vulnerability scanner based on the company’s profile.
If they run their apps locally, they can go with the asset vulnerability scanner that is used on premises.
If on the other hand they manage their system from the cloud, then they should go with the asset vulnerability scanned system in the cloud.
Is it possible for several users to scan vulnerability at the same time? For bigger companies this is a must, as a vulnerability scanner with this option allows scanning on many different servers without interference.
How well a vulnerability scanner integrates with the security systems that are already in place? Syncing an asset vulnerability scanner with other security tools is a must so that it can connect using an API or that the scan results get exported as an XML file.
Are scans done automatically and regularly? A great vulnerability scanner should allow the user to configure scans from a certain place, start the scanning, stop it and even repeat it all the time.
This way vulnerabilities in the system are identified throughout all of the asset groups.
Is it able to detect all types of vulnerabilities? It is important to incorporate a vulnerability scanner that detects not only the more common website attacks coming from web traffic, but also to find the network-based threats, searching for vulnerabilities, such as a misconfigured firewall or weak password.
Can a vulnerability scanner be used for pre-production environment? In order to lessen the possibility of glitches, or vulnerabilities, it is important to scan for them during pre-production process as well.
That’s why it is very important to find an asset vulnerability scanner which is able to scan throughout different stages of a certain environment.
Can an asset vulnerability scanning system be used for shielded devices? Shielded devices, including firewalls and intrusion prevention systems, are in control of who can see them and often restrict the surface of discoverable attack.
Hence why it is important to have a scanner that has the ability to monitor this limited attack surface as well.