What is vulnerability management?
Vulnerability management is the ongoing process of identifying, assessing, prioritizing, and remediating security vulnerabilities within software and IT infrastructure.
A comprehensive vulnerability management program helps organizations minimize software security risks, maintain compliance, and protect against cyber threats by ensuring that known vulnerabilities are addressed before they can be exploited.
Modern vulnerability management goes beyond simple patching. It involves proactive measures such as vulnerability assessment, continuous monitoring, and automated remediation strategies to keep systems secure.
The vulnerability management lifecycle
Effective vulnerability management follows a structured approach known as the vulnerability management lifecycle, which includes six key phases.
1. Identification
Organizations must continuously scan and monitor software applications, dependencies, and infrastructure to identify security vulnerabilities. This process includes automated scanning tools, penetration testing, and threat intelligence to uncover weaknesses that could be exploited by attackers.
2. Assessment
Once vulnerabilities are identified, they must be evaluated for severity, potential impact, and likelihood of exploitation. This vulnerability assessment helps security teams determine which threats require immediate attention and which can be addressed later.
3. Prioritization
Not all vulnerabilities pose the same risk. Prioritization involves ranking vulnerabilities based on criticality, exploitability, and business impact. Many organizations use frameworks such as the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) to help determine the most pressing issues.
4. Remediation
To fix vulnerabilities, organizations must apply patches, update configurations, or remove risky components. In some cases, compensating controls such as network segmentation or application whitelisting may be necessary when patches are unavailable.
5. Verification
After remediation, security teams must verify that vulnerabilities have been successfully mitigated. This includes retesting systems, analyzing logs, and ensuring that fixes do not introduce new security issues.
6. Continuous monitoring
Vulnerability management is not a one-time effort — it requires continuous monitoring to detect new security threats and vulnerabilities. Automated scanning tools, security information and event management (SIEM) systems, and proactive threat intelligence are essential for ongoing security.
Common vulnerability management challenges
While vulnerability management is essential, organizations often face several challenges in implementing an effective process.
Incomplete hardware and software asset inventories
Without an up-to-date inventory of all assets, security teams may overlook vulnerabilities in unmanaged or unknown systems.
Lack of integration with existing systems
Vulnerability management tools must integrate with other security and IT systems to streamline detection, remediation, and reporting.
Resource constraints
Organizations often lack the time, personnel, or budget to keep up with security patches and vulnerability remediation efforts.
An evolving threat landscape
New vulnerabilities are discovered daily, and cyber threats continue to evolve, making it challenging to stay ahead of attackers.
Vulnerability management best practices
To build an effective vulnerability management strategy, organizations should consider the following best practices.
Maintain a comprehensive hardware and software asset inventory
Regularly update asset inventories to ensure all hardware, software, and dependencies are tracked and monitored for vulnerabilities.
Conduct continuous vulnerability assessments
Frequent vulnerability assessments help identify new threats before they can be exploited. Automated scanning tools and penetration testing should be standard practice.
Shift left: Integrate vulnerability management into development processes
By integrating security into development workflows — often referred to as “shift left” — organizations can detect and fix vulnerabilities earlier in the software development life cycle (SDLC).
Automate with vulnerability management software
Automation helps reduce manual effort and speeds up the vulnerability management process by identifying and remediating vulnerabilities more efficiently.
Monitor and manage third-party vendor and open source software risks
Third-party and open source software dependencies can introduce vulnerabilities. Organizations should continuously evaluate and monitor the security of external software components.
Educate and train staff
Security awareness training ensures that developers, IT teams, and employees understand security best practices and their role in mitigating risks.
Essential vulnerability management software
To streamline vulnerability management, organizations can leverage various software solutions, such as the following.
Software bill of materials (SBOM)
A software bill of materials (SBOM) provides a detailed inventory of software components, helping organizations track vulnerabilities in dependencies and software supply chain risks. SBOMs offer visibility into all software components within an application, ensuring that organizations can quickly identify and mitigate risks associated with vulnerable libraries or outdated packages.
Sonatype's VP of Product Innovation, Stephen Magill explains what a an SBOM is and the role they play in using open source securely in the video below.
Sonatype SBOM Manager takes SBOM management to the next level by automating the ingestion, analysis, and monitoring of software components. It helps organizations maintain compliance with evolving regulations, improve security posture, and ensure transparency across the SDLC.
Software composition analysis (SCA)
Software composition analysis (SCA) tools analyze software components, libraries, and dependencies to detect security vulnerabilities and license compliance issues. Effective SCA practices help organizations identify and address open source risks before they impact applications.
Sonatype Lifecycle enhances SCA by providing automated policy enforcement, real-time vulnerability detection, and actionable remediation insights. It enables development teams to make informed decisions by integrating security directly into their workflows, ensuring that applications remain compliant and free of known security vulnerabilities.
Dependency management
Managing software dependencies ensures that applications are built with secure, up-to-date components, reducing the risk of vulnerabilities. Without effective dependency management, organizations can unknowingly introduce outdated or vulnerable components into their applications.
Sonatype Lifecycle simplifies dependency management by giving developers clear insights into the security and compliance status of their software components directly within the Developer Dashboard. This enables teams to quickly identify and replace risky dependencies before they create security issues.
Repository Firewall
Sonatype Repository Firewall helps organizations prevent risky open source components from entering their software supply chain by blocking vulnerable and non-compliant dependencies.
The Sonatype Platform provides comprehensive security at every stage of the SDLC by identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities before they become threats. With industry-leading data intelligence, Sonatype detects more vulnerabilities and malware than leading competitors, ensuring that security teams stay ahead of evolving risks.
By implementing a structured vulnerability management program and leveraging automation tools for SBOMs and SCA, organizations can stay ahead of security threats and protect their software from exploitation.
