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What is a Software Vulnerability?
The simplest explanation of the term “software vulnerability” is: “A security flaw, glitch, or weakness found in software code that could be exploited by an attacker (threat source).” Vulnerabilities may stem from coding mistakes, design gaps, outdated software, or unforeseen interactions between system components, all of which can cause software vulnerabilities. Generally speaking, a software vulnerability is a weak structural design element that can be weaponized by threat actors, allowing them to insert malicious code, change or escalate permissions, disrupt business operations, steal sensitive data, or otherwise compromise the system’s functionality to further malicious objectives.
If your organization builds software (whether for commercial sale or internal purposes only), developers and security teams are likely to be aware of the software risk caused by software vulnerabilities introduced during software development. However, AppSec and DevOps teams’ lack of time, resources, advanced tools, ability to understand vulnerability severity, and reliable prioritization will cause vulnerabilities to either be missed or unaddressed. It’s therefore vital to practice astute application vulnerability management in this context.
The Impact of Vulnerabilities
Software vulnerabilities have long been exploited by attackers to compromise digital ecosystems at scale. They’ll use persistent and known vulnerabilities to gain control of systems, insert malicious code or binaries, and steal valuable data, causing a plethora of problems for anyone using that compromised software.
Reputational damage is only the tip of the iceberg
Allowing vulnerabilities to arise or persist in software your organization develops, either for sale or internal use, can result in reputational damage; loss of data, revenue, or customers; and even regulatory repercussions. All of this can be bad news for any organization on an individual basis, but when we’re talking about the supply chain and heavily distributed software or applications, the downstream impacts of vulnerable software are multiplied and amplified.
The impact of exploited software weaknesses can be catastrophic; the 2017 WannaCry attack, for example, caused all kinds of chaos for the UK’s National Health Service, delaying operations, diagnoses, and other medical procedures for an entire country. It’s worth noting, however, that Microsoft had published a patch for the vulnerability a full 12 months before the attack, and organizations that hadn’t patched were the most likely cyber attack victims.
Companies, therefore, must implement a thorough AppSec program that includes defined processes and advanced tools that can help them identify, understand, prioritize, and remediate software vulnerabilities — as early in the software’s lifecycle as possible. Doing so is a combination of application security-centric processes, continuous monitoring, and contextualized vulnerability analysis throughout the entire software lifecycle, from design through runtime.
The simplest explanation of the term “software vulnerability” is: “A security flaw, glitch, or weakness found in software code that could be exploited by an attacker (threat source).” Vulnerabilities may stem from coding mistakes, design gaps, outdated software, or unforeseen interactions between system components, all of which can cause software vulnerabilities. Generally speaking, a software vulnerability is a weak structural design element that can be weaponized by threat actors, allowing them to insert malicious code, change or escalate permissions, disrupt business operations, steal sensitive data, or otherwise compromise the system’s functionality to further malicious objectives.
If your organization builds software (whether for commercial sale or internal purposes only), developers and security teams are likely to be aware of the software risk caused by software vulnerabilities introduced during software development. However, AppSec and DevOps teams’ lack of time, resources, advanced tools, ability to understand vulnerability severity, and reliable prioritization will cause vulnerabilities to either be missed or unaddressed. It’s therefore vital to practice astute application vulnerability management in this context.
The Impact of Vulnerabilities
Software vulnerabilities have long been exploited by attackers to compromise digital ecosystems at scale. They’ll use persistent and known vulnerabilities to gain control of systems, insert malicious code or binaries, and steal valuable data, causing a plethora of problems for anyone using that compromised software.
Reputational damage is only the tip of the iceberg
Allowing vulnerabilities to arise or persist in software your organization develops, either for sale or internal use, can result in reputational damage; loss of data, revenue, or customers; and even regulatory repercussions. All of this can be bad news for any organization on an individual basis, but when we’re talking about the supply chain and heavily distributed software or applications, the downstream impacts of vulnerable software are multiplied and amplified.
The impact of exploited software weaknesses can be catastrophic; the 2017 WannaCry attack, for example, caused all kinds of chaos for the UK’s National Health Service, delaying operations, diagnoses, and other medical procedures for an entire country. It’s worth noting, however, that Microsoft had published a patch for the vulnerability a full 12 months before the attack, and organizations that hadn’t patched were the most likely cyber attack victims.
Companies, therefore, must implement a thorough AppSec program that includes defined processes and advanced tools that can help them identify, understand, prioritize, and remediate software vulnerabilities — as early in the software’s lifecycle as possible. Doing so is a combination of application security-centric processes, continuous monitoring, and contextualized vulnerability analysis throughout the entire software lifecycle, from design through runtime.