What is External Vulnerability Scanning?

Is the sensitive information of your business properly protected? Cyber attacks present an increasing risk for organizations, with recent data showing that 2021 was plagued with 50% more cyber attacks per week compared to the prior year.  

Whether your organization has already been the victim of a cyber attack, or you are taking proactive measures, it’s important to find the right ways to protect your business.  

Understanding the basics, the benefits, and how you can leverage external vulnerability scanning gives you the opportunity to properly protect your business from outside attacks.  

What is an External Vulnerability Scan?  

The external vulnerability scan definition is the process of testing your network system to identify inefficiencies and weaknesses. Uncovering the weaknesses in your system allows you to increase security or fix the problems before a cyber attack occurs.  

For example, if you are in the financial services industry and store customer credit cards and bank account numbers, you may complete an external vulnerability scan on access to that information. This might include checking to make sure firewalls are working properly or that the internal security controls in your organization are being followed.  

What are the Three Main Types of Vulnerability Scans?  

There are three main types of vulnerability scans: discovery, full, and compliance. Each of these types presents different benefits for your organization. Let’s go into the details of each.  

1. Discovery Scans – This type of external vulnerability scanning looks to get an overall picture of your devices and where vulnerabilities might be found. Discovery scanning is what you will use to create an action plan.
   
2. Full Scans – A full scan analyzes every possible weakness in your system. This type of scan is not as quiet as a discovery scan and can draw attention from your employees.
3. Compliance Scan – These scans are run to test your compliance with your company and external rules and processes.  

Using a combination of each of these types of vulnerability scans allows you to detect, fix, and protect the information in your business from outside risks.

What are the Benefits of a Vulnerability Network Scanner?  

The benefits of regular vulnerability scans go beyond just avoiding a potential lawsuit from leaked customer information. In fact, vulnerability network scans can help you efficiently manage and allocate resources. When you know which areas present the greatest security risks, you can efficiently allocate resources to that component.  

In addition, outside investors, lenders, and customers will place more trust in your business when they see you are taking the initiative to enhance security. If you’re trying to grow your business or receive additional funding, it’s important that you prioritize external vulnerability scanning to show third parties that you prioritize protecting the sensitive information in your company.   

Next Steps 

Do you already run regular external vulnerability scans? If so, great! Protecting the information of your business reduces the risk of liability lawsuits, leads to efficiency in resource allocation, and sets the foundation for steady business growth.  

However, if you’re like most business owners, you may have no clue where to start when it comes to external vulnerability scans. The good news is that this can easily be fixed by working with our team at Charles IT. For more information on what a vulnerability network scanner means for your organization, schedule a call today!