Blind spots are areas of your ignorance. These are the areas of your security posture that you are not aware of. While visibility is a critical component of security, you cannot protect what you cannot see, nor can you protect what you are not aware of. Your detection capabilities or abilities to detect all threats and malicious activities can only be enhanced when your blindspots are reduced to the barest minimum.

Blind spots are difficult to detect, and until they are revealed, it’s almost as if they do not exist. Most times, you need someone else to reveal your blind spots. Security assessments are required to identify those gaps, so you also need to do frequent security assessments to reveal your security blindspots. Assessments should include dependent and independent security assessments.

Organizational-dependent assessments are done within your organization, while independent assessments require you to hire an external professional to do them. Dependent or in-house assessments also need to be done by independent teams, such as in-house red teams, to ensure they are unbiased.

Independent assessments are done by hired professionals to provide an unbiased and real-life view of the blind spots that are detected by the internal red teams.

Gone are the days where you assumed your infrastructure was secure just because you had firewalls and security controls. You also need to always validate those controls and develop detection capabilities to know your residual risks and blind spots.

Many organisations assume they are secure because they have made significant investments in security controls without a means of validating their efficacy. Instead of having an assumed security mindset, you should have an assumed breach mindset, just like a threat hunter. Threat hunting is a proactive exercise to look for indicators of compromise and any related presence of the adversary in your network or infrastructure. While independent assessments are essential, they are not as frequent as assessments done by internal teams. Independent tests can be used periodically to validate the work of internal teams. Therefore, internal teams need to be equipped with the right skills to give a valid and continuous assessment.

TIPS TO INCREASE VISIBILITY TO AID INTERNAL SECURITY TEAMS

1. Conduct a Thorough Security Assessment:

• Identify Assets: Catalog all your assets, including hardware, software, networks, and data.
• Assess Vulnerabilities: Using Vulnerability tools, assess vulnerabilities
• Evaluate Threat Landscape: Understand the specific threats targeting your industry and organization.
• Review Security Policies: Ensure your policies are up-to-date, comprehensive, and enforced.

2. Enhance Visibility and Monitoring:

• Implement Network Monitoring: Monitor network traffic for anomalies and potential threats.
• Deploy Security Information and Event Management (SIEM): Centralize and analyze security logs to detect incidents.
• Utilize Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR): Monitor endpoints for malicious activity and respond quickly.
• Embrace Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM): Assess and manage cloud security risks.

3. Strengthen Access Controls:

• Implement Strong Password Policies: Enforce complex passwords and multi-factor authentication (MFA).
• Limit User Privileges: Grant users only the necessary permissions to perform their tasks.
• Regularly Review and Revoke Access: Remove access for terminated employees or those who no longer need it.

4. Prioritize Patch Management:

• Stay Updated: Regularly apply security patches to software and operating systems.
• Automate Patching: Use automated tools to streamline the process.
• Test Patches: Test patches in a controlled environment before deploying them widely.

5. Train and Educate Employees:

• Security Awareness Training: Educate employees about security best practices, phishing attacks, and social engineering tactics.
• Regular Phishing Simulations: Test employees' awareness and response to phishing emails.
• Encourage Reporting: Create a culture where employees feel comfortable reporting suspicious activity.

6. Consider Advanced Security Technologies:

• Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR): Automate incident response and streamline workflows.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML): Utilize AI/ML for threat detection and analysis.
• Behavioral Analytics: Monitor user behavior for anomalies that may indicate security breach.

7. Continuous Improvement:

• Regularly Review and Update Security Policies: Adapt to evolving threats and technologies.
• Conduct Security Audits: Assess your security posture periodically.
• Stay Informed: Keep up to date with the latest security trends and best practices.