Welcome to the CTEM Jungle

Continuous ‎Threat‏ ‎Exposure ‎Management ‎(CTEM) ‎is ‎a‏ ‎cybersecurity ‎strategy‏ ‎that‏ ‎focuses ‎on ‎identifying,‏ ‎assessing, ‎and‏ ‎mitigating ‎risks ‎within ‎an‏ ‎organization's‏ ‎digital ‎environment‏ ‎through ‎continuous‏ ‎monitoring ‎and ‎enhancement ‎of ‎security‏ ‎posture.‏ ‎CTEM ‎is‏ ‎not ‎a‏ ‎single ‎tool ‎or ‎technology ‎but‏ ‎a‏ ‎set‏ ‎of ‎processes‏ ‎and ‎capabilities‏ ‎that ‎involve‏ ‎a‏ ‎five-step ‎program‏ ‎or ‎framework, ‎which ‎includes ‎scoping,‏ ‎discovery, ‎prioritization,‏ ‎validation,‏ ‎and ‎mobilization. ‎

CTEM‏ ‎is ‎a‏ ‎proactive ‎and ‎continuous ‎approach‏ ‎that‏ ‎differs ‎from‏ ‎traditional ‎vulnerability‏ ‎management ‎by ‎being ‎proactive ‎rather‏ ‎than‏ ‎reactive, ‎focusing‏ ‎on ‎a‏ ‎wide ‎range ‎of ‎threats, ‎incorporating‏ ‎existing‏ ‎security‏ ‎measures, ‎and‏ ‎utilizing ‎advanced‏ ‎simulation ‎tools‏ ‎for‏ ‎validation

Tools ‎and‏ ‎Technologies

CTEM ‎leverages ‎a ‎variety ‎of‏ ‎tools ‎and‏ ‎technologies‏ ‎to ‎support ‎its‏ ‎implementation ‎and‏ ‎improvement. ‎These ‎tools ‎aid‏ ‎in‏ ‎the ‎discovery,‏ ‎assessment, ‎prioritization,‏ ‎validation, ‎and ‎mobilization ‎stages ‎of‏ ‎the‏ ‎threat ‎management‏ ‎cycle. ‎Key‏ ‎tools ‎and ‎technologies ‎include ‎CAASM‏ ‎(Cyber‏ ‎Asset‏ ‎Attack ‎Surface‏ ‎Management), ‎EASM‏ ‎(External ‎Attack‏ ‎Surface‏ ‎Management), ‎EM‏ ‎(Exposure ‎Management), ‎RSAS ‎(Red ‎Team‏ ‎Automation ‎Systems).

These‏ ‎tools‏ ‎provide ‎visibility ‎into‏ ‎network ‎segments,‏ ‎security ‎controls, ‎threat ‎types,‏ ‎and‏ ‎tactics/techniques, ‎and‏ ‎are ‎crucial‏ ‎for ‎identifying ‎and ‎analyzing ‎an‏ ‎organization's‏ ‎attack ‎surface,‏ ‎which ‎includes‏ ‎external, ‎internal, ‎and ‎cloud ‎environment

Methodology

The‏ ‎five‏ ‎stages‏ ‎of ‎the‏ ‎CTEM ‎program‏ ‎are:

📌 Scoping: ‎Defining‏ ‎the‏ ‎initial ‎exposure‏ ‎scope, ‎considering ‎business-critical ‎assets, ‎and‏ ‎taking ‎an‏ ‎adversarial‏ ‎approach ‎rather ‎than‏ ‎just ‎focusing‏ ‎on ‎known ‎vulnerabilities ‎(CVEs).

📌 Discovery:‏ ‎Actively‏ ‎seeking ‎out‏ ‎and ‎identifying‏ ‎potential ‎vulnerabilities ‎using ‎tools ‎like‏ ‎automated‏ ‎scanners, ‎manual‏ ‎testing, ‎and‏ ‎penetration ‎testing.

📌 Prioritization: ‎Focusing ‎on ‎the‏ ‎most‏ ‎significant‏ ‎threats ‎that‏ ‎could ‎impact‏ ‎the ‎business‏ ‎and‏ ‎prioritizing ‎remediation‏ ‎efforts ‎accordingly.

📌 Validation: Assessing ‎the ‎effectiveness ‎of‏ ‎remediation ‎operations‏ ‎and‏ ‎ensuring ‎that ‎vulnerabilities‏ ‎are ‎properly‏ ‎addressed.

📌 Mobilization: ‎Operationalizing ‎the ‎CTEM‏ ‎findings‏ ‎and ‎defining‏ ‎communication ‎standards‏ ‎and ‎documented ‎cross-team ‎workflows

Best ‎Practices

Best‏ ‎practices‏ ‎for ‎prioritizing‏ ‎threats ‎during‏ ‎CTEM ‎implementation ‎include:

📌 Stakeholder ‎Engagement: Engage ‎with‏ ‎various‏ ‎stakeholders,‏ ‎including ‎IT,‏ ‎legal, ‎compliance,‏ ‎and ‎business‏ ‎units,‏ ‎to ‎understand‏ ‎their ‎specific ‎requirements ‎and ‎concerns

📌 Regular‏ ‎Updates: Establish ‎a‏ ‎regular‏ ‎schedule ‎for ‎updates‏ ‎and ‎patches‏ ‎to ‎strengthen ‎the ‎network‏ ‎against‏ ‎current ‎known‏ ‎threats ‎and‏ ‎preemptively ‎address ‎potential ‎future ‎threats

📌 Incident‏ ‎Response‏ ‎Plan: ‎Design‏ ‎an ‎effective‏ ‎incident ‎response ‎plan ‎to ‎promptly‏ ‎respond‏ ‎to‏ ‎threats. ‎The‏ ‎plan ‎should‏ ‎be ‎kept‏ ‎updated‏ ‎in ‎line‏ ‎with ‎emerging ‎threats

📌 Optimized ‎Risk ‎Mitigation‏ ‎Processes: Ensure ‎all‏ ‎existing‏ ‎risk ‎mitigation ‎processes‏ ‎are ‎optimized‏ ‎and ‎scalable. ‎This ‎will‏ ‎help‏ ‎manage ‎the‏ ‎increased ‎data‏ ‎feed ‎demand ‎between ‎systems ‎after‏ ‎a‏ ‎CTEM ‎program‏ ‎is ‎implemented

📌 Use‏ ‎of ‎AI: Use ‎an ‎AI-based ‎approach‏ ‎to‏ ‎prioritize‏ ‎threats. ‎This‏ ‎can ‎help‏ ‎manage ‎the‏ ‎dynamic‏ ‎nature ‎of‏ ‎threats ‎and ‎ensure ‎resources ‎are‏ ‎channeled ‎where‏ ‎they‏ ‎matter ‎the ‎most

📌 Continuous‏ ‎Improvement: CTEM ‎is‏ ‎a ‎continuous ‎process, ‎and‏ ‎organizations‏ ‎should ‎regularly‏ ‎reevaluate ‎and‏ ‎adjust ‎their ‎threat ‎prioritization ‎strategies‏ ‎as‏ ‎new ‎threats‏ ‎emerge ‎and‏ ‎business ‎objectives ‎evolve