Protecting your healthcare organization’s ePHI from cybersecurity threats can seem daunting. However, without investing the time and personnel into threat management, your team could be leaving sensitive information vulnerable to cybercriminals. As a result, many healthcare organizations will opt for a VTM program to lower their risk.
This guide will outline the basics of a VTM program and the essential components that you should consider when choosing one.
What to Know About Vulnerability Threat Management
What Is Vulnerability Threat Management?
The key to limiting cybersecurity attacks is to stay ahead of the attackers through visibility into your network. Organizations need to spot potential vulnerabilities before cybercriminals quickly and efficiently remediate them. Taking these steps also ensures compliance with regulatory requirements. VTM programs orchestrate this monitoring, discovery, and patching process in a streamlined manner.
Within this type of threat intelligence service, organizations will scan the network, identify vulnerabilities, patch the risk areas, and monitor all of this in a tracking and inventory system. This process will assess systems including computers, IoT devices, mobile devices, medical devices, and any other technology connected to the network. The results may point out vulnerabilities including:
- Operating system and software vulnerabilities
- Outdated versions of software and operating systems
- Open ports and services
- Vulnerable script paths
- Etc.
A robust VTM program helps healthcare organizations maintain a cycle of identification, management, and reporting, improving system security. While these services are ongoing, organizations with the proper solutions can employ a scan at any time to detect current vulnerabilities.
When Should You Perform a Scan?
While a vulnerability threat management program is continuous, there are several instances when a healthcare organization might perform a scan. Most organizations will benefit from a consistent scanning schedule, such as monthly or quarterly. However, events like moving facilities, installing new equipment, installing new software, and recovering from a cyber incident might warrant a scan outside the set schedule. Healthcare organizations must also consider requirements from regulations and providers of cyber insurance increasing requirements.
What Components Are Essential to VTM?
When building a successful vulnerability threat management program, there are several components that organizations should keep in mind. As with most threat assessment services, VTM should be curated to meet your organization’s specific needs. These elements are among the most foundational when considering VTM:
Asset Inventory:
This is also called asset discovery, a key starting point for any VTM program. Your IT team needs to know what technology you’re managing before you launch the scan, and some organizations don’t have an inventory of all connected devices. To start, scan the network and create a log of all the connected technology. You might find that entire branches of your organization are invisible, which is a serious security threat.
Vulnerability Scans:
Once your team has a log of all the devices on the network, you will need to perform a vulnerability scan. This step will expose any weak points in your network security so that you can patch and apply changes to them. Scanning technology can perform both authenticated and unauthenticated scans. An unauthenticated scan simulates how a hacker might view the network without credentials. For thoroughness, Fortified recommends all scanning be performed in an authenticated manner under a VTM program.
Risk Management:
Once you identify vulnerabilities, you will need to take steps to address them, starting with risk management. A cyber security consulting firm can help you establish a risk management system to employ after every scan. The goal is to address vulnerabilities quickly, so these areas are no longer a cyber risk. Organizations will also need to manage existing risks while waiting for a software patch and log all vulnerabilities accordingly.
Penetration Testing:
Penetration testing is an essential threat assessment service to protect organizations from cyber-attacks. Organizations should run penetration tests in addition to vulnerability scans these closely mimic attacks in real-time. Penetration tests simulate an actual cyber-attack to expose vulnerabilities, demonstrate the impact or likelihood of successful exploitation, and involve various real-world hacking techniques.
Tracking Systems:
A reliable tracking and reporting system integrates the above elements for a complete vulnerability threat management program. Organizations need to track the results of scans and keep an ongoing log of all actions. Keeping meticulous track of VTM metrics can help your IT department spot trends, track patches, and prevent persistent errors. These records will also be important in a HIPAA audit or other regulatory assessment.
In addition to meticulously tracking the results of vulnerability scans, organizations should also report results to the appropriate parties. This could mean reporting results to security managers within the organization. However, remember that some organizations will need to report per regulatory requirements. This reporting may occur later during a HIPAA audit, for example.
Remember: While there are several components that every vulnerability threat management program should include, a cybersecurity consulting firm can create a trusted VTM program based on your specific needs. Threat intelligence is an essential part of a cybersecurity framework, and a team of specialists can ensure that your VTM programs run smoothly and deliver accurate results. A quality set of threat assessment and intelligence services can protect your healthcare organization from a costly breach in the future.
Reporting Systems:
In addition to meticulously tracking the results of vulnerability scans, organizations should also report results to the appropriate parties. This could mean reporting results to security managers within the organization. However, remember that some organizations will need to report per regulatory requirements. This reporting may occur later during a HIPAA audit, for example.
Remember: While there are several components that every vulnerability threat management program should include, a cybersecurity consulting firm can create a trusted VTM program based on your specific needs. Threat intelligence is an essential part of a cybersecurity framework, and a team of specialists can ensure that your VTM programs run smoothly and deliver accurate results. A quality set of threat assessment and intelligence services can protect your healthcare organization from a costly breach in the future.
The Fortified Difference
The cybersecurity experts at Fortified Health Security are proud to offer vulnerability threat management services to healthcare organizations of all sizes. Our program helps organizations identify and document threats to protect ePHI. This service is ongoing, so we will work with you to make ongoing improvements in your organization that can improve your overall cybersecurity landscape.
One of the central features of our VTM services is our vulnerability management dashboard. Your team will have access to scan results past and present 24/7, so you can address threats more quickly while reliably tracking data.
The team at Fortified Health Security offers a number of other threat intelligence services, as well as advisory services and a healthcare security operations center to support your organization’s needs. Located in Franklin, TN, we’re committed to keeping healthcare organizations secure and compliant. Contact us today to learn more about our services or book a consultation.