Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) is a strategic framework that helps organizations continuously assess and manage cyber risk. It breaks down the complex task of managing security threats into five distinct stages: Scoping, Discovery, Prioritization, Validation, and Mobilization. Each of these stages plays a crucial role in identifying, addressing, and mitigating vulnerabilities - before they can be exploited by attackers.
On paper, CTEM sounds great. But where the rubber meets the road – especially for CTEM neophytes - implementing CTEM can seem overwhelming. The process of putting CTEM principles into practice can look prohibitively complex at first. However, with the right tools and a clear understanding of each stage, CTEM can be an effective method for strengthening your organization's security posture.
That's why I've put together a step-by-step guide on which tools to use for which stage. Want to learn more? Read on…
Stage 1: Scoping
When you're defining critical assets during scoping, you're taking the first essential step toward understanding your organization's most valuable processes and resources. Your goal here is to identify the assets that are vital to your operations, and this often involves input from a variety of stakeholders - not just your security operations (SecOps) team. Scoping isn't just a technical task, it's a people task - it's about truly understanding your business's context and processes.
A helpful way to approach this is through business-critical asset workshops. These sessions bring together decision-makers, including senior leadership, to align your business processes with the technology supporting them. Then, to support your scoping efforts, you can use tools like good old-fashioned spreadsheets, more advanced systems like Configuration Management Databases (CMDBs), or specialized solutions such as Software Asset Management (SAM) and Hardware Asset Management (HAM). Additionally, Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) tools provide valuable insights by analyzing assets and prioritizing those that need the most protection. (Read more about Scoping here.)
Stage 2: Discovery
Discovery focuses on identifying assets and vulnerabilities across your organization's ecosystem – using various tools and methods to compile a comprehensive view of your technological landscape and enable your security teams to assess potential risks.
Vulnerability scanning tools are commonly used to discover assets and identify potential weaknesses. These tools scan for known vulnerabilities (CVEs) within your systems and networks, then deliver detailed reports on which areas need attention. Additionally, Active Directory (AD) plays a crucial role in discovery, especially in environments where identity issues are prevalent.
For cloud environments, Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) tools are used to identify misconfigurations and vulnerabilities in platforms like AWS, Azure, and GCP. These tools also handle identity management issues specific to cloud environments. (Read more about Discovery here.)
Stage 3: Prioritization
Effective prioritization is crucial because it ensures that your security teams concentrate on the most impactful threats - ultimately reducing the overall risk to your organization.
You may already be using traditional vulnerability management solutions that prioritize based on CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) scores. However, keep in mind that these scores often fail to incorporate the business context, making it difficult for both technical and non-technical stakeholders to grasp the urgency of specific threats. In contrast, prioritizing within the context of your business-critical assets makes the process more understandable for business leaders. This alignment enables your security teams to communicate the potential impact of vulnerabilities more effectively across the organization.
Attack path mapping and attack path management are increasingly recognized as essential components of prioritization. These tools analyze how attackers can move laterally within your network, helping you identify choke points where an attack could inflict the most damage. Solutions that incorporate attack path mapping provide you with a fuller picture of exposure risks, allowing for a more strategic approach to prioritization.
Finally, external threat intelligence platforms are key in this stage. These tools provide you with real-time data on actively exploited vulnerabilities, adding critical context beyond CVSS scores. Additionally, AI-based technologies can scale threat detection and streamline prioritization, but it's important to implement them carefully to avoid introducing errors into your process. (Read more about Prioritization here.)
Stage 4: Validation
The validation stage of CTEM verifies that identified vulnerabilities can indeed be exploited - assessing their potential real-world impact. This stage ensures that you're not just addressing theoretical risks but prioritizing genuine threats that could lead to significant breaches if left unaddressed.
One of the most effective methods for validation is penetration testing. Pen testers simulate real-world attacks, attempting to exploit vulnerabilities and testing how far they can move through your network. This directly validates whether the security controls you have in place are effective or if certain vulnerabilities can be weaponized. It offers a practical perspective - beyond theoretical risk scores.
In addition to manual pen testing, security control validation tools like Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS) play a crucial role. These tools simulate attacks within a controlled environment, allowing you to verify whether specific vulnerabilities could bypass your existing defenses. Tools using a digital twin model enable you to validate attack paths without impacting production systems - a major advantage over traditional testing methods that can disrupt operations. (Read more about Validation here.)
Stage 5: Mobilization
The mobilization stage leverages various tools and processes that enhance the collaboration between your security and IT operations teams. Enabling SecOps to communicate specific vulnerabilities and exposures that require attention bridges the knowledge gap, helping IT Ops understand exactly what needs to be fixed and how to do it.
Additionally, integrating ticketing systems like Jira or Freshworks can streamline the remediation process. These tools allow you to track vulnerabilities and assign tasks, ensuring that issues are prioritized based on their potential impact on critical assets.
Email notifications can also be valuable for communicating urgent issues and updates to stakeholders, while Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solutions can centralize data from various sources, helping your teams quickly identify and respond to threats.
Finally, creating clear playbooks that outline remediation steps for common vulnerabilities is important. (Read more about Mobilization here.)
Making CTEM Achievable with XM Cyber
Now that you've read the laundry list of tools you'll need to make CTEM a reality, are you feeling more ready to get started?
As transformational as CTEM is, many teams see the list above and understandably back off, feeling it's too complex and nuanced of an undertaking. Since the inception of CTEM, some teams have chosen to forgo the benefits, because even with a roadmap, it seems just too cumbersome of a lift for them.
The most productive way to make CTEM a very attainable reality is with a unified approach to CTEM that simplifies implementation by integrating all the multiple stages of CTEM into one cohesive platform. This minimizes the complexity often associated with deploying disparate tools and processes. With XM Cyber, you can:
- Map critical business processes to underlying IT assets to prioritize exposures based on risk to the business.
- Discover all CVEs and non-CVEs (misconfigurations, identity risks, over-permissions) across on-prem and cloud environments and across internal and external attack surfaces.
- Get faster, accurate prioritization based on proprietary Attack Graph Analysis™ that leverages threat intelligence, the complexity of the attack path, the number of critical assets which are compromised, and whether it's on a Choke Points to multiple attack paths.-
- Validate whether issues are exploitable in a specific environment and if security controls are configured to block them.
- Improve remediation, owing to a focus on context-based evidence, remediation guidance and alternatives. It also integrates with ticketing, SIEM, and SOAR tools to track remediation progress.
CTEM – This is the Way
XM Cyber's unified approach to CTEM simplifies implementation by integrating multiple stages into one cohesive platform. This minimizes the complexity associated with deploying disparate tools and processes. With XM Cyber, you get real-time visibility into your exposures, enabling you to prioritize remediation efforts based on actual risk rather than theoretical assessments.
The platform facilitates seamless communication between SecOps and IT Ops, ensuring that everyone is on the same page regarding vulnerabilities and remediation. This collaboration fosters a more efficient and responsive security posture, allowing your organization to address potential threats quickly and effectively. (To learn more about why XM Cyber is the most complete answer to CTEM, grab a copy of our CTEM Buyer's Guide here.)
Ultimately, XM Cyber not only enhances your team's ability to manage exposures but also empowers you to adapt continuously to an evolving threat landscape.
Note: This article was expertly written and contributed by Karsten Chearis, Team Lead of US Security Sales Engineering at XM Cyber.
