In most of the IT security discussions, one term that is often mentioned but not understood well is what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary. According to Bruce Schneier, “In all of the years I’ve been involved in IT security, no weakness has ever been exploited on a network of computers. There are many cases where a weakness has been found, but it was found before the system was put up for anyone to use.” However, as the coordinator for CA Security Solutions, we strongly disagree. Our company has a much more stringent definition of what is a vulnerability and what is a weakness.
When considering what is a vulnerability and what is a weakness, the standard of review for a vulnerability assessment is not very high. Commonly used tests for vulnerability assessment include: code injections, application vulnerabilities, and registry vulnerabilities. Unfortunately, there are many cases where vulnerabilities can exist without these types of test results. For instance, a web server vulnerability may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary commands in the background, or a database vulnerability allows a hacker to access data that should only be accessible by the owner. A perfect storm of potential vulnerabilities can make standard testing methodologies inappropriate in the real world.
The reality of the situation is that any vulnerability – real or perceived – can be a potential vulnerability if exploited properly. Therefore, in our opinion, any vulnerability assessment should include penetration testing. Penetration testing examines the penetability of an application or system. It begins with an assessment of what types of attacks an attacker might want to attempt on the system and compares this to what the system’s defenses would provide against such attacks. Based on the results of the penetration test, the defender can develop a strategy to defend against the attack and determine if the system is, in fact, vulnerable.
Penetration testing should not be used to evaluate the security of websites alone. While it is certainly wise to regularly perform vulnerability assessment scans on your website to detect vulnerabilities, you should also look for what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary. If you identify a weakness, you should not hesitate to develop a plan to defend against that weakness.
What Is Defined As A Weakness That Can Be Exploited By An Adversary?
The first step to identifying what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary is to understand the nature of the attack. Is it a denial of service (DDoS) attack? A spoofed email attack? A physical intrusion? A security vulnerability? If you know the answer to one question, you should be able to define what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary.
Once you understand the nature of the attack, you will have a good idea what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary. However, the knowledge of what is a weakness does not always mean that an adversary cannot use that weakness against you. This is because an attacker may not necessarily have knowledge of any weakness at all! The attacker may only have gained access to your website through an innocent third party.
Therefore, when considering what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary, you should also consider what it would take for you to gain access to the information that may have been exploited by that party. For example, if the information has been obtained in an attack on your server, then you may not be able to take advantage of it even if you are aware of the weakness. However, if the data was obtained through hacking a laptop, then you would definitely be able to use the data against you! However, if both the attacks were executed remotely, then there is a good possibility that both attacks can be executed together.
There are many more types of weaknesses that can be exploited by an adversary. When determining what is defined as a weakness that can be exploited by an adversary, you should consider the type of attack that was executed against you. If an attack was executed from within your server or network, then you have a distinct advantage. However, if an attacker exploited a weakness that was not accessible via network or server, then you have little to fear. You may only have a slight disadvantage in comparison to the attacker if he or she has exploited another weakness that was not previously known.
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