Continuous Attack Path Monitoring
Continuous Attack Path Monitoring is the ongoing and automated process of identifying, analyzing, and tracking the potential sequences of steps (attack paths) that a malicious actor could take to compromise an organization's systems and data.
Here's a breakdown of the key elements:
Ongoing and Automated Process: This is not a one-time assessment but a continuous activity. Automation is crucial to keep up with the dynamic nature of IT environments and the evolving threat landscape.
Identifying and Analyzing: The process involves actively discovering potential attack paths and analyzing their characteristics, such as:
Entry points
Vulnerabilities that could be exploited
Potential for lateral movement
Privilege escalation opportunities
Target assets
Tracking: It's essential to track changes in attack paths over time. This includes:
New vulnerabilities being introduced
System configurations changing
New assets being added to the network
Changes in attacker tactics
Why is it important?
Dynamic Environments: Modern IT environments are constantly changing. Continuous monitoring ensures that attack path analysis remains relevant.
Evolving Threats: Attackers are constantly developing new techniques. Continuous monitoring helps organizations stay ahead of emerging threats.
Proactive Security: It enables organizations to identify and mitigate risks before they can be exploited proactively.
Prioritization: It helps security teams prioritize their efforts by focusing on the most critical and likely attack paths.
Continuous Attack Path Monitoring provides a real-time view of an organization's attack surface and the potential ways it could be compromised.
Here's how ThreatNG supports Continuous Attack Path Monitoring:
ThreatNG's external discovery capabilities provide the initial and ongoing visibility needed for Continuous Attack Path Monitoring. By continuously discovering an organization's external-facing assets, ThreatNG ensures that any changes to the attack surface are detected. This includes:
New Subdomains: ThreatNG's continuous discovery identifies newly created subdomains that might introduce new vulnerabilities or attack vectors.
Cloud Services: It detects changes in cloud service deployments, which can alter potential attack paths.
Open Ports: The discovery of new open ports can indicate new services that might be vulnerable.
ThreatNG's external assessments continuously evaluate the organization's security posture, identifying changes in the vulnerabilities and risks associated with potential attack paths. For example:
Web Application Hijack Susceptibility: Continuous assessment of web applications reveals new vulnerabilities that could make them more susceptible to hijacking.
Subdomain Takeover Susceptibility: Regular checks for subdomain takeover susceptibility identify changes in DNS records or certificate configurations that could create new takeover opportunities.
Code Secret Exposure: Continuous monitoring for exposed code secrets detects newly exposed credentials or API keys that could be used in an attack.
3. Reporting
ThreatNG's reporting capabilities provide alerts and updates on changes in attack paths. This allows security teams to stay informed about new and emerging risks. For instance:
Reports can highlight newly discovered high-risk vulnerabilities that create critical attack paths.
Changes in security ratings can indicate a shift in the overall risk profile.
4. Continuous Monitoring
The description explicitly states that ThreatNG provides "Continuous Monitoring of external attack surface, digital risk, and security ratings of all organizations." This core function ensures that changes in potential attack paths are detected and analyzed promptly.
ThreatNG's investigation modules provide detailed information that helps security teams analyze changes in attack paths and understand their implications:
Domain Intelligence: Provides updated information on domains, DNS records, and subdomains, allowing security teams to track changes that could affect attack paths.
Sensitive Code Exposure: Helps security teams investigate newly discovered code exposures and assess their risk.
Cloud and SaaS Exposure: Provides ongoing visibility into cloud service configurations and potential vulnerabilities.
ThreatNG's intelligence repositories provide up-to-date information on threats and vulnerabilities, which is essential for assessing the likelihood and impact of different attack paths:
Dark Web Presence: Continuous monitoring of the dark web for compromised credentials and discussions of attacks provides early warning of potential threats.
Known Vulnerabilities: ThreatNG's database of known vulnerabilities is constantly updated, ensuring that attack path analysis is based on the latest information.
7. Working with Complementary Solutions
ThreatNG's Continuous Attack Path Monitoring capabilities can be integrated with other security solutions to provide a more comprehensive and automated approach to security management:
SIEM Systems: ThreatNG can feed its attack path information into SIEM systems to correlate external attack surface data with internal security events, providing a more complete picture of an attack.
SOAR Platforms: ThreatNG can trigger automated responses in SOAR platforms when critical changes in attack paths are detected.
ThreatNG's continuous monitoring, discovery, assessment, reporting, investigation modules, and intelligence repositories provide a robust solution for Continuous Attack Path Monitoring. It enables organizations to proactively manage their evolving attack surface and stay ahead of potential threats.
