Why Cybersecurity Asset Management is Crucial for Cyber Hygiene

The concept of managing IT assets for security purposes has been around since the earliest days of computer networks in business. However, the term “Cybersecurity Asset Management (CAM)” itself is relatively new, however, Teneo have been opening minds to CAM for some time now, here is a summary of what it is and why it’s so important as part of maintaining good Cyber Hygiene. 

Fundamentally, effective cybersecurity hinges on understanding and managing all devices within your organization’s scope. In the early days, this was simpler: a firewall, a network scan to locate devices, and antivirus software seemed sufficient. 

Today’s reality is vastly different as we attempt to secure Remote Workforces, Distributed Teams and Cloud Adoption, to mention just a few. These factors make it incredibly challenging for IT and security teams to manually identify and track all cyber assets. 

Cybersecurity Asset Management as the Foundation of Cyber Hygiene 

A robust cyber hygiene program requires a multi-layered approach, with Cybersecurity Asset Management serving as its cornerstone. 

• Comprehensive Asset Discovery: Modern Cyber Asset Management solutions leverage APIs to connect to core cloud and cybersecurity control systems. This enables them to automatically identify all devices, applications, and cloud services within the organization’s IT environment. 

• Continuous Monitoring: These solutions continuously monitor the IT environment, adapting to changes in real-time. This ensures that the asset inventory remains accurate and up to date. 

• Risk Assessment: By analyzing asset data, organizations can identify and prioritize high-risk assets. This allows them to focus their security efforts on the most critical areas. 

To achieve this, Teneo have partnered with ThreatAware to provide best in class Cyber Asset Management. 

Additional Components of Teneo’s Cyber Hygiene Model 

• Automated Patch Management: Timely and accurate patching of operating systems, applications, and firmware is crucial to mitigating vulnerabilities. Automation is essential to ensure timely and consistent patch deployment across the entire environment. 

• Automated Cybersecurity Validation Allows organizations to continuously test and verify their security measures in real-time, ensuring they are effective against the latest threats.  

The Benefits of a Robust Cyber Hygiene Program 

By integrating Cybersecurity Asset Management with automated patching and continuous validation within a comprehensive cyber hygiene program, organizations can: 

• Reduce their attack surface: By identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities across the entire IT environment. 

• Improve their security posture: Enhance overall security by ensuring the effective implementation and maintenance of security controls. 

• Minimize the impact of cyberattacks: Proactively mitigate threats and minimize the impact of potential breaches. 

• Improve operational efficiency: Streamline security operations and reduce the burden on IT and security teams. 

Conclusion 

Teneo understand that Cybersecurity Asset Management is no longer an option but a necessity to get the best ROI from your cyber investments and protect your mission critical assets. By establishing a strong foundation of asset management and integrating it with other key cyber hygiene practices, organizations can significantly enhance their security posture and protect their critical assets. 

If you would like to learn more about how Teneo can help manage your cybersecurity assets, contact us.

Author:

Brett Ayers, VP of Product, Teneo