How do you verify and validate the remediation actions taken to address the vulnerabilities?

Steps to the process of vulnerability management: >Remediation efforts should be received from stakeholders for validation. >Tools for automated scanning will be used to validate the remediation efforts success. >Validation should also be done through penetration testing to assess remediation effectiveness. >Configuration items being aligned to best practice systems and policies. All changes have to be documented, and configuration settings have to be correct. >Exercise simulated attacks to test the effectiveness of remediated measures. >Mandate continuous monitoring to track issues and vulnerabilities. >Post-mortem analysis to be used with lessons learned toward future enhancement of the VM process.

1. Define Objectives:Clear Goals,Metrics and KPIs 2. Develop a Detailed Plan:Scope of Validation,Resources and Tools,Timeline. 3. Execute Verification Activities:Automated Scanning,Manual Testing,Regression Testing. 4. Validate Remediation Effectiveness:Review Fixes,Functional Testing,Compliance Checks. 5. Document Findings and Results:Detailed Reporting,Issue Tracking 6. Communicate with Stakeholders:Regular Updates,Final Report. 7. Continuous Improvement:Lessons Learned,Process Enhancements. Example Workflow 1. Preparation Phase,2.Verification Phase,3. Validation Phase,4. Reporting Phase,5. Post-Process Phase.

Rescan the device with Vulnerability management tool and wait for result. If the vulnerability is not reflecting in rescan means devices is updated or patched

You can start with a few assets first and scale as you progress. So you may want to start with assets that are exposed to the internet, following by the most critical and sensitive servers to maintain the continuity of your business. You may also consider including a few workstations too (not all, perhaps VIP users and IT/system administrators). This way, you can even same some budget and team effort; If you are able to remediate at least critical and high severity vulnerabilities within the first 12 months, just ask the vendor to add more IPs into your subscription; or just wait for the renewal

Most CVE remediations are simple: update the firmware and reboot. We've monitored almost 10k high risk CVE's on client networks this year. Nearly all of them simply require the firewall, VoIP phone, or Windows 10 workstation to update its firmware and reboot. There is no magic science to scare you off from this task. You can totally do this. Set a calendar reminder, get a checklist, and start updating 💪🆙

1. Preparation:Define Objectives,Clear Goals,Gather Resources,Tools,Personnel,Plan the Process,Scope,Timeline. 2. Execute Verification Activities:Automated Scanning,Re-scan the System,Tools Examples,Penetration Testing,Focus Areas,Check for New Issues. 3. Validate Remediation Effectiveness:Review Remediation Actions,Examine Changes,Documentation,Functional Testing,System Testing, User Acceptance Testing (UAT),Compliance Checks,Policy Compliance,Regulatory Compliance. 4. Document Findings and Results:Detailed Reporting,Create Reports,Highlight Issues,Issue Tracking,Log Findings,Track Progress, 5. Communicate with Stakeholders:Regular Updates,Status Reports,Stakeholder Meetings,Final Report,Comprehensive Summary,Recommendations.

You may want to consider weekly scans on your critical environment utilizing a default set of ports. Most vulnerability scanners have preset a list of ports which most vulnerabilities are identifiable, and one full scan to be performed monthly. As you have a routine in place, you can compare results and start noticing progress on the remediation activities sharing the good news and keep your team motivated. A few metrics that helps to visualize progress: - Aging vulnerabilities (below 30 days, between 31 an 60 days, etc.) - New, recurrent and mitigated comparison - Number of critical and high severity

The process of verifying and validating remediation actions to address vulnerabilities is crucial for improving an organization's security posture. This involves checking if the steps have been implemented as planned, reviewing documentation, comparing system configurations, and conducting interviews with the affected teams. Validation involves testing the effectiveness of the remediation, such as penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, and reviewing incident logs. Continuous monitoring is essential to address new vulnerabilities promptly, including automated scanning and security audits. Documentation and reporting of these efforts are also essential, including test results and follow-up actions if necessary.

1. Preparation:Clear Goals,Success Criteria,Gather Resources,Tools,Team. 2. Execute Verification Activities:Automated Scanning,Re-Scan Systems,Tools Examples,Compare Results,Manual Testing,Penetration Testing, Check for New Issues,Automated and Manual. 3. Validate Remediation Effectiveness:Review Remediation Actions,Change Review,System Functionality,User Acceptance Testing (UAT). Compliance Checks,Policy Compliance,Regulatory Compliance. 4. Document Findings and Results:Report Findings,Issue Tracking,Log Results,Track Remediation Progress. 5. Communicate with Stakeholders:Progress Reports,Stakeholder Meetings,Comprehensive Summary,Recommendations. 6. Continuous Improvement:Post-Mortem Analysis,Feedback Loop,Process.

Usually this process can be associated with your change window, where you can setup scans right after a change window is closed, although it may affect performance as you would need to trigger a full scan every week. Another option is to have a re-scan as part of the change validation, this way the VA team can add evidences that the problem was solved. Most VA solutions are capable of running a re-validation scan which performs that only on the affected server and testing that specific vulnerability. This is very lightweight scan and do not affect your network performance.

Verification and Validation Report 1. Introduction Objective of the report Scope of the validation activities 2. Summary of Vulnerabilities List of vulnerabilities identified Description of remediation actions taken 3. Verification Activities Automated Scanning Results Tools used Scan results before and after remediation Manual Testing Penetration testing methodology Findings and results 4. Validation Activities Review of Remediation Actions Changes reviewed Root cause analysis Functional Testing Results Tests conducted Outcomes Compliance Checks Policies and standards checked Compliance status 5. Findings and Conclusions Summary of results Issues remaining Overall effectiveness of remediation actions 6. Recommendations

Keeping tabs on what devices you update and when is not only good practice to monitor your performance but also so you can show your clients that you are keeping them safe 🛡 If you're an #MSP, your clients rely on you to defend them from cyber crime. One of the 3 pillars of the #BoringBasics is to keep your devices up to date. If you are going to do the effort to update their endpoints, write it down so you can show them 📃 That way they get that warm and fuzzy feeling knowing you got their back 💪

You may want to have a set of executive reports to demonstrate the progress of your program, comparing with previous months. As you have your program mature enough, then you shall add these KPIs into your policies and procedures as a way to test efficiency of your ISMS. I always recommend to not add those within the policies if you did not test and validate it based on the SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound)

1. Verification and Validation Verify Completion: Confirm that all identified vulnerabilities have been remediated. Validation of Fixes: Validate that the remediation actions effectively address the root causes of vulnerabilities. Documentation: Detailed Reports: Document the verification and validation results, including the actions taken and the outcomes. Issue Tracking: Update the issue tracking system to reflect the status of each vulnerability and its remediation. 2. Communication,Stakeholder Updates Regular Updates: Provide regular updates to stakeholders Progress Reports: Share detailed progress reports highlighting the vulnerabilities. Final Report:Comprehensive Summary: Deliver a final report summarizing the verification

Always keep the remediation owners engaged with a very friendly channel. Celebrate and recognize every single vulnerability remediated (even if you have 6,000 open), so teams can feel motivated and excited to continue this exercise. Don't forget to recognize the team to your executive committee and let them know the team work and efforts for the continued work by securing the environment. Teams always feel motivated when good words comes from the top executives

Compare results and see if you can see improvements flowing. One of the ways to do that is to compare vulnerabilities that are new and recurrent against mitigated ones; your team should always keep a number of mitigation higher than the number of new vulnerabilities coming in, otherwise you won't move anywhere. A few metrics that helps to visualize progress: - Aging vulnerabilities (below 30 days, between 31 an 60 days, etc.) - New, recurrent and mitigated comparison - Number of critical and high severity

As an #MSP, patching endpoints is the ground & pound of your week. It's not flashy, it doesn't get fanfare, and often clients will complain about the necessary downtime. Turn the tables of that messaging. Show them the boost in their security each time you patch something. Put a number to it 💯 Communicate that little endorphin rush and instead of being a chore it will become your value add 💪

At times an individual team member or tester of the software application cannot recreate a Vulnerability issue that was reported. It is important to impart the training to the teams so that they can recreate issues successfully before verifying/validating the remediation.

such plug-and-play solution that mitigate all your risks and solve your problems. If you install a solution and get 0 alerts, it may indicate that you have detective gaps due to false-negatives. So, prior to purchase a solution/tool follow these quick tips: - Proof of Concept before purchasing, testing all your requirements - Commitments, assumptions and deliverables clearly stated in the contract (so avoid intentional misinterpretation from your vendor) - Implement the solution that adapts to your organization (not other way around) - KPIs, test and continuously evaluate and improve any of your security solutions