What is Attack Surface Management?

Cybersecurity has risen to the forefront of concerns for businesses and organizations of all sizes. As the digitization of data and critical systems continues to expand, so does the magnitude of potential risks posed by cyber threats. Managing exposed assets and associated vulnerabilities can help you stay one step ahead of malicious actors. This is precisely where Attack Surface Management (ASM) can help, identifying exposures and attack paths to expose those assets at the highest risk.

In this blog, we will explore attack surface management, what it is and why it matters, and how organizations can implement effective ASM strategies to safeguard their assets.

Understanding Attack Surface

Attack surface refers to the sum of all entry points through which an attacker could infiltrate an organization’s systems, applications, or networks. This includes external points like web applications and network infrastructure and internal assets such as databases and employee endpoints. The attack surface is dynamic which is driven by factors like system updates, new software deployments, and changes in network configurations.

What is Attack Surface Management?

Attack Surface Management (ASM) is a comprehensive cybersecurity approach that focuses on identifying and managing an organization’s attack surface. This attack surface includes all the external and internal assets that can be targeted by cyber threats. A robust ASM strategy involves meticulously identifying exposed assets and associated vulnerabilities across various domains, both internal and external.

Internal Assets

1. Workstations: ASM covers the assessment of vulnerabilities on employee workstations, ensuring that they are protected against potential threat
2. Servers: Server vulnerabilities are analyzed and addressed to prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.
3. Endpoints: All endpoints, including those of remote employees, are evaluated for vulnerabilities to maintain a secure network.
4. Internal APIs: Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) used within the organization are scrutinized for potential weaknesses.

External Assets

1. Web Applications: ASM assesses the security of web applications, which are often targeted by hackers seeking to exploit vulnerabilities.
2. Cloud Services: The vulnerabilities of cloud-based services are identified to safeguard data stored in the cloud.
3. Domain Names and DNS: Domain names and Domain Name System (DNS) configurations are examined for weaknesses that could lead to unauthorized domain hijacking.
4. Shadow IT: ASM also considers Shadow IT, which includes unauthorized or unmanaged software and hardware within the organization.
5. Dark Web: It extends its reach to the Dark Web, where data and information about an organization is stolen.

Once these assets and associated vulnerabilities are identified, ASM categorizes them based on the highest organizational risk. This process allows organizations to clearly understand their attack surface and take proactive measures to mitigate risks.

Why Does Your Organization Need ASM?

Attack Surface Management is for organizations looking to protect their IT systems and assets, maintain compliance, and stay resilient in the face of cyber threats. It provides the foundational knowledge needed to secure IT environments effectively and is essential for the overall cybersecurity posture of any organization. Here are several compelling reasons why your organization needs ASM:

• Complexity of Modern IT Environments: Organizations operate within intricate IT ecosystems that encompass a wide range of assets, including hardware, software, networks, cloud services, and third-party integrations. ASM helps them gain visibility into these assets and their complexity and to expose potential attacker entry points.
• Mitigating Emerging Threats: Cyber threats are always getting improvised, with attackers continuously developing new techniques and exploiting novel vulnerabilities. ASM allows organizations to stay one step ahead by actively identifying known and unknown threats through the asset discovery phase.
• Compliance and Regulatory Requirements: Many industries and regulatory bodies mandate that organizations maintain a secure attack surface as part of their cybersecurity compliance like HIPAA, PCI DSS, GDPR, and other important regulations. ASM helps organizations meet these requirements to avoid failing an audit and suffering potential financial consequences.
• Supply Chain Security: Cyberattacks like the SolarWinds breach highlight the importance of securing the supply chain. ASM helps organizations assess any exposed assets and associated vulnerabilities within the technology infrastructure associated with third-party vendors and supply chain partners that you may be using.
• Cost-Effective Cybersecurity: By identifying and addressing exposed assets and their vulnerabilities before they are exploited, ASM can prevent costly data breaches. It is a proactive investment that can save organizations significant financial resources overall.
• Efficient Resource Allocation: With limited cybersecurity resources, organizations need to prioritize where they allocate their efforts. ASM enables them to focus on the most critical vulnerabilities, optimizing their security investments.
• Rapid Incident Response: In the unfortunate event of a security incident, an organization with an effective ASM program can better identify exposed assets, the vulnerability and attack path, to close all security gaps and to respond swiftly, limiting damage and minimizing downtime.

How Can Your Organization implement ASM effectively?

Implementing effective Attack Surface Management (ASM) within a business involves a well-structured approach that starts with setting clear objectives tailored to the organization’s needs. Identifying key stakeholders is essential for collaboration and alignment with overall goals. The foundational step in ASM is creating a comprehensive IT asset inventory, including hardware, software, cloud services, databases, and web applications. Any exposed assets and associated vulnerabilities are then categorized based on their criticality and potential impact. Regular vulnerability assessments, utilizing tools such as vulnerability scanning and penetration testing, help identify weaknesses in security controls to harden your security defenses.

Visualizing the attack surface through a dashboard where real-time results include vulnerability mapping and criticality is crucial in understanding asset connections and potential attack paths. Continuous monitoring mechanisms are essential for tracking changes within the attack surface and configuration management. Prioritizing vulnerabilities based on severity and impact facilitates a focused remediation strategy, which may involve patching, reconfiguration, or asset retirement.

ASM streamlines asset discovery, vulnerability identification, and threat intelligence integration to address the dynamic nature of the attack surface and provides a starting point for effective communication channels across your security operations organization.

BreachLock Attack Surface Management

BreachLock is a global leader in Penetration Testing as a Service (PTaaS) and penetration testing services and also offers Attack Surface Management. BreachLock offers automated, AI-powered, and human-delivered solutions in one integrated platform based on a standardized built-in framework that enables consistent and regular benchmarks of attack techniques, security controls, and processes. By creating a standardized framework, BreachLock can deliver enhanced predictability, consistency, and accurate results in real time, every time.

Schedule a discovery call with one of our experts to discover how BreachLock ASM can help to increase your organization’s cybersecurity resilience.