To enable smooth connection with services that are not hosted on their local network, more enterprises are relocating and reorganising their technological ecosystems. The online ecosystem of an organisation includes any publicly accessible resources that clients and staff have access to when interacting with it online, regardless of who owns and controls those resources—a firm or a third party. This is a representation of your organization’s external attack surface.
Organizations that prioritise cyber vulnerability and attack surface visibility recognise the need of managing both the internal and external attack surfaces. A good cyber security posture requires external attack surface management, which is becoming a standard practise in the business.
Building Blocks of Your External Attack Surface
The external attack surface of your organization is made up of many different components. In order to reduce the risk of a breach, it is important to understand what these components are and how they work together.
Internet-connected applications are often a requirement for organizations when they want to be able to interact with customers and partners. They might also be necessary for employees who work remotely. Some examples of this type of application are remote desktops and virtual private networks.
There are many different types of applications that can be considered “internet-facing.” Some examples include web applications, APIs, SSH servers, VPN gateways, cloud services, Internet-facing firewalls, or other remote access capabilities that are intentionally or accidentally placed on servers that are accessible from the internet. Internet-connected assets can be on-premises, in the cloud, or on any combination of hosted, managed, or virtualized infrastructure.
External Attack Surface Management Introduction
The methods, technology, and professional services used to identify these externally facing organisational assets and systems that may be vulnerable to cyber-attacks are together referred to as external attack surface management (EASM).
The automated detection of all downstream services to which your company is exposed is often accomplished using EASM solutions. These are frequently third-party partners. They can present major and actual hazards to your organisation since they could be attacked.
All types of cyber vulnerabilities are covered by MITER ATT&CK, which also includes programmes that are publicly accessible exploits. In line with MITER ATT&CK Johan offers a number of defences, including as continuous software patching, exploit avoidance, and vulnerability detection. Finding the best technique to safeguard your network and stop data misuse is the aim of external attack surface management. You cannot successfully map your attack surface unless you are aware of your external attack surface and the data they can access. You cannot accurately manage risk and safeguard your company without this understanding.
Best Practices for External Attack Surface Management
Organizations have influence over their cybersecurity posture by protecting their external attack surface. You can adhere to the following best practises to stop hostile actors from taking advantage of network vulnerabilities:
- Check your system services and applications that interact with the outside world often for security flaws. Security personnel will be able to review real-time information and instantly resolve any security vulnerabilities that are found thanks to automated EASM technologies.
- By implementing the least privilege concept for service accounts, you can reduce the level of access an attacker has to a compromised application. Although it is simple to establish services and APIs, developers must be responsible for configuring them securely.
- Maintain the most recent versions of your machine’s software and programmes to thwart hackers. Developers frequently have access to security updates and patches for libraries and development environments. A trustworthy company will constantly make sure that its plugins and tools are current. The company, its partners, and clients could all be in danger if this is not done.
- Your online identity is dynamic and always evolving. Organizations have no way of anticipating when partners and suppliers will change servers or update links. These external links can be routinely investigated by using an automated solution. The outward attack surfaces of you and your allies will overlap. You may greatly improve your organization’s security by using online technologies.
Conclusion
Many firms are integrating EASM into their enterprise risk management initiatives due to the potential harm that a cyberattack could inflict. As a result, security teams are managing known and undiscovered risks, vulnerabilities, and exposed assets strategically rather than just reacting to problems as they arise.g
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