Security Patch Management

Although the patch management process is neither exceedingly technical nor extremely complicated, it is still perceived as a complex issue that’s often left to the last minute or resolved with products that automate the task. Effective patch management is not about technology; it’s about having a formal process in place that can deploy patches to vulnerable systems quickly. Helping you figure out exactly what to patch and which patches to use, Security Patch Management provides detailed guidance through the process of creating and implementing an effective and efficient patch management process. It uses a format that is easy-to-understand and applicable regardless of the operating system, network device, or patch deployment tool. The author illustrates the proper implementation of patches on devices and systems within various infrastructures to provide the insight required to: Design your own patch release process and keep it action ready Test the effectiveness of your patches Keep up with the latest patch releases Prioritize the vulnerabilities that need to be addressed Apply patches quickly and without draining essential network resources This book supplies the tools and guidelines you need to stay one step ahead of the exploits on the horizon. It will help you establish a patch management process that not only protects your organization against zero-day attacks, but also helps you become more proactive when it comes to this critical facet of information security.

Although the patch management process is neither exceedingly technical nor extremely complicated, it is still perceived as a complex issue that's often left to the last minute or resolved with products that automate the task. Effective patch management is not about technology; it's about having a formal process in place that can deploy patches to v

A comprehensive security patch management process is one of the fundamental security requirements for any IT-dependent organization. Fully defining this process ensures that patches are deployed in an organized, staged manner, resulting in little or no slowdowns or downtime to network infrastructure. Until now, there were no technical books for com

A comprehensive security patch management process is one of the fundamental security requirements for any IT-dependent organization. Fully defining this process ensures that patches are deployed in an organized, staged manner, resulting in little or no slowdowns or downtime to network infrastructure. Until now, there were no technical books for companies to use as a starting point for deploying the process. Curing the Patch Management Headache responds to this demand by tying together all aspects of the subject into one easy-to-understand format that is applicable regardless of the operating system, network device, or patch deployment tool. This volume provides CISOs, CIROs, and IT directors and managers with the support and guidance that they need to integrate an effective patch management process into their environments. It emphasizes the importance of patch management and explains why having organizational support for the process drives successful implementation. The book details how patches should be implemented on devices and systems within an infrastructure, and how to distribute them in a timely manner.

Patch and vulnerability management is a security practice designed to proactively prevent the exploitation of IT vulnerabilities that exist within an organization. The expected result is to reduce the time and money spent dealing with vulnerabilities and exploitation of those vulnerabilities. Proactively managing vulnerabilities of systems will reduce or eliminate the potential for exploitation and involve considerably less time and effort than responding after an exploitation has occurred. Patches are additional pieces of code developed to address problems (commonly called "bugs") in software. Patches enable additional functionality or address security flaws within a program. Vulnerabilities are flaws that can be exploited by a malicious entity to gain greater access or privileges than it is authorized to have on a computer system. Not all vulnerabilities have related patches; thus, system administrators must not only be aware of applicable vulnerabilities and available patches, but also other methods of remediation (e.g., device or network configuration changes, employee training) that limit the exposure of systems to vulnerabilities. This document provides guidance on creating a security patch and vulnerability management program and testing the effectiveness of that program. The primary audience is security managers who are responsible for designing and implementing the program. However, this document also contains information useful to system administrators and operations personnel who are responsible for applying patches and deploying solutions (i.e., information related to testing patches and enterprise patching software). Timely patching of security issues is generally recognized as critical to maintaining the operational availability, confidentiality, and integrity of information technology (IT) systems. However, failure to keep operating system and application software patched is one of the most common issues identified by security and IT professionals. New patches are released daily, and it is often difficult for even experienced system administrators to keep abreast of all the new patches and ensure proper deployment in a timely manner. Most major attacks in the past few years have targeted known vulnerabilities for which patches existed before the outbreaks. Indeed, the moment a patch is released, attackers make a concerted effort to reverse engineer the patch swiftly (measured in days or even hours), identify the vulnerability, and develop and release exploit code. Thus, the time immediately after the release of a patch is ironically a particularly vulnerable moment for most organizations due to the time lag in obtaining, testing, and deploying a patch. To help address this growing problem, it is recommended that all organizations have a systematic, accountable, and documented process for managing exposure to vulnerabilities through the timely deployment of patches. This document describes the principles and methodologies organizations can use to accomplish this. Organizations should be aware that applying patches and mitigating vulnerabilities is not a straightforward process, even in organizations that utilize a formal patch and vulnerability management process. To help with the operational issues related to patch application, this document covers areas such as prioritizing, obtaining, testing, and applying patches. It also discusses testing the effectiveness of the patching program and suggests a variety of metrics for that purpose. NIST recommends that Federal agencies implement the following recommendations to assist in patch and vulnerability management. Personnel responsible for these duties should read the corresponding sections of the document to ensure they have an adequate understanding of important related issues.

Considered the gold-standard reference on information security, the Information Security Management Handbook provides an authoritative compilation of the fundamental knowledge, skills, techniques, and tools required of today's IT security professional. Now in its sixth edition, this 3200 page, 4 volume stand-alone reference is organized under the CISSP Common Body of Knowledge domains and has been updated yearly. Each annual update, the latest is Volume 6, reflects the changes to the CBK in response to new laws and evolving technology.

This document provides guidance on creating a security patch and vulnerability management program and testing the effectiveness of that program. The primary audience is security managers who are responsible for designing and implementing the program. However, this document also contains information useful to system administrators and operations personnel who are responsible for applying patches and deploying solutions (i.e., information related to testing patches and enterprise patching software).