Risk Management: How to Prioritize Vulnerabilities the Right Way

Periods of crisis are a certainty in the corporate world. With economic fluctuations, technological advancements, and constant changes in market trends, being unprepared for difficult times can be fatal for any organization. Therefore, risk management is a fundamental strategy that allows managers to remain resilient and navigate a crisis without incurring losses.

For companies present on digital platforms, such as social media, marketplaces, or their own websites, risk management focused on cybersecurity is essential to maintain the integrity of their assets and the confidential information of clients who have placed their trust in these entities.

Want to know more about how risk management can help protect your company against the rising tide of cybercrime? Stay with us and enjoy the read!

What is risk management? Risk management is a collaborative action among senior members of a company to identify and anticipate possible crisis scenarios and risks that an organization may face, creating security countermeasures to protect the company from such issues.

Throughout a company’s journey, from its inception, numerous plans and strategies are developed to enhance its market relevance. These include marketing actions, internal training, and the creation of a culture among employees, among other practices.

In the context of risk management, it’s no different. Like any of the aforementioned examples, it is a strategic plan that prepares the company for potential risk scenarios that may disrupt its normal operations or completely halt its services.

Of course, risk management varies from one company to another, as risks differ across sectors. It’s important that those responsible for formulating this strategy have a clear understanding of the company’s reality, its current situation, and the state of each internal structure.

On the other hand, there are standard steps that can generally be used to initiate a risk management strategy, as we will see next:

5 Steps of Risk Management The steps of risk management function as strategic reconnaissance and anticipation operations. Through them, it is possible to identify, categorize, and create a series of methodologies that contribute to intelligent and effective vulnerability management.

Those responsible for the risk management process typically hold executive positions within the company. In the context of cybersecurity risks, the CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) is a prime example.

However, it is recommended that the entire operation be managed by C-level positions, with each one responsible for brainstorming to anticipate and list risks that may be linked to the company’s role in the market.

Once potential risks that the company may face have been analyzed and compiled, it’s time to create guidelines that will serve as a guide for all those involved in combating these potential crises:

1. Risk Identification At this stage, risk managers will consider, based on the company’s current parameters, what risks could arise in their segment, both externally and internally.It is also very important for risk managers to engage with influential employees from all sectors. This opens the door to new perspectives and angles of thought that may not have been considered.It is a collaborative effort that needs to involve all sectors. Of course, it is neither necessary nor recommended that all employees be part of this idea-sharing effort. However, it is crucial that no level of the company is overlooked.
2. Risk Analysis After aligning all ideas, risk managers should estimate the potential impact that the risks brought to the table may have on the company, as well as develop countermeasures to help them combat these hypothetical scenarios.It’s worth remembering that these potential risks can vary widely, ranging from the compromise of an endpoint due to lack of regular updates to the surreptitious creation of a backdoor in the system, leading to a leak of confidential data and future integrity issues for the business.
3. Risk Evaluation and Classification In this stage of management, the countermeasures are lined up alongside their respective risks, forming an action guide for each specific situation.For example, if one of the imagined risks is a situation that could result in the loss of all the company’s files and documents, the immediate countermeasure should be the constant and updated backup of all this material to a secure and reliable device or server.
4. Risk Treatment During risk management, it is important for each of the listed risks to have its own manager. This way, the time for addressing these risks is optimized, ensuring a quicker response time and preventing residual risks from compromising adjacent operations.
5. Risk Monitoring This is the final step in the risk management process, where reports are generated regarding the results obtained through the measures created for each risk. At this point, it is important to determine whether the results were positive, negative, or ineffective.Additionally, if any of the previously developed measures had to undergo adjustments, these "improvisations" should be included in the reports and considered in a subsequent analysis.

Many companies face similar risks during different phases of their risk management processes. Therefore, creating a sort of manual or guidelines for risk management is recommended.

How to Prioritize Vulnerabilities the Right Way Since the risk management process is assigned to high-level executives in a company, it should be natural for risks to be prioritized in a top-down manner, where larger risks are mitigated first.

This should happen because breaking down larger risks can lead to the emergence of residual risks that may compromise the resolution of smaller risks. Since executive roles have a closer relationship with critical assets such as credentials, APIs, and confidential documents, it is essential that these items are secured immediately, as they represent a significant portion of the company's value.

Once the risks threatening C-level operations are addressed, potential dangers that put lower command chains at risk can be identified, tracked, and mitigated without the concern of opening more windows of vulnerability. This is when systems, hardware, and software are updated, employees undergo new training on security best practices, and cybersecurity solutions are adopted.

Bug Bounty as a Cybersecurity Solution There are numerous cybersecurity solutions available in the market. Since investing in information security is a requirement under the LGPD (General Data Protection Law), companies should seek those that best fit the nature of their business.

Bug Bounty is a powerful tool for identifying and combating vulnerabilities and can be a great ally during the risk management process. In this program, thousands of hackers, or security researchers, can generate constant reports and direct risk managers effectively, streamlining the process and ensuring that the measures being taken do not create gaps that could further compromise the company's security.

With an active Bug Bounty program during a risk management period, the adopted security measures will be more accurate, especially for the top-down model, since identifying gaps for leaking valuable information is one of these researchers' specialties.

With the customization capabilities and flexibility offered by Bug Bounty, it is possible to maintain substantial protection against cybercrime in your company. You can define how long it will be active, the intensity of the program, and in which departments efforts should be focused more eagerly.

Curious to learn more about the advantages of Bug Bounty and how it can contribute to your company's security? Click here to schedule a conversation with us.