CTEM (continuous threat exposure management) is the ongoing process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating security threats in real time. Its goal is to allow your organization’s assets to remain protected from lingering past, current, and emerging threats. CTEM gives you all the requisites you need to constantly monitor and reduce your exposure to cyber risks, solidifying your cybersecurity defenses against ransomware, data breaches, or any cyberattacks.
CTEM Defined
CTEM is a proactive security approach devised to address all types of threat exposure—vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, malicious activities, inadequate access controls, and more—continuously across the entire organization’s IT infrastructure.
Unlike traditional security measures that mostly do periodic assessments and focus on patching, CTEM operates in real time, striving to detect and mitigate threats before they cause damage. It combines mitigation, threat intelligence, continuous monitoring, and automated response to minimize exposure across all stages of an attack lifecycle.
CTEM aims to create a complete, here-and-now view of potential threats, allowing for prompt action that turns your security posture into a resilient rampart, capable of withstanding exploitation attempts by both external and internal threat actors.
How Does CTEM Work?
CTEM typically involves several key components working together to help you manage your organization’s threat exposure on an ongoing basis. The components in question are the following:
- Continuous Threat Monitoring: CTEM starts with continued scanning of all endpoints, networks, and systems for any unusual or suspicious activity. This process includes using advanced threat detection technologies like intrusion detection systems (IDS), security information and event management (SIEM) solutions, and endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools.
- Risk Assessment: After threats are identified, they are assessed for severity and impact. This step prioritizes risks based on the likelihood of exploitation and the possible operational consequences, helping security teams and SOCs focus on the most critical threats with the highest actual impact.
- Threat Mitigation Strategy: Based on the severity of the threat, mitigation techniques are applied. Examples are isolating affected systems, applying virtual patches, reconfiguring firewalls, or adjusting network access controls. The aim is to limit exposure without disrupting ongoing operations.
However, keep in mind that a new revolutionary “mitigate first, manage later” approach is leading the way toward mitigation being the first step in CTEM, through specialized technologies, techniques, and mechanisms, such as runtime protection, lockdown mode, autonomous application control, and just-in-time access powered by AI agents and based on zero-trust principles.
- Automated Response: CTEM includes automation to increase response time and help organizations block threats promptly. Automated response lowers the interval between detection and action, limiting the potential damage of cyberattacks.
- Continuous Improvement: As its name suggests, CTEM is not a “one-and-done” program but an ongoing process. Continued monitoring and constant reviews allow security teams to update and refine their threat exposure management practices. As new threats emerge or systems change, CTEM measures are recalibrated to stay ahead of the curve.
CTEM vs. Other Security Measures
CTEM may be one of the most revolutionary recent shifts in cybersecurity, but it’s not the only legitimate way to approach your organization’s security.
- CTEM vs. Vulnerability Management: Vulnerability management focuses on known vulnerabilities, CVEs, in your environment. CTEM, on the other hand, addresses a broad scope of threats, like misconfigurations, identity issues, and software supply chain risks, as well as CVE vulnerabilities. It’s a holistic approach that is concerned with the entire attack surface.
- CTEM vs. Incident Response: Incident response is a reactive process that deals with security breaches after they occur. In contrast, CTEM’s primary goal is prevention, that is, minimizing threat exposure before it escalates. However, keep in mind that they are both necessary and complement each other. This is because absolute prevention is difficult to imagine, considering the high complexity of real-world conditions.
Examples of CTEM in Use
Two plausible scenarios in which CTEM can save the day are the following:
- Real-Time Threat Detection: A financial institution implements CTEM to monitor and analyze transaction activities across its network. When a suspicious pattern is detected, such as a large sum being transferred to an offshore account, the system triggers an automated response to block the transaction and alert security personnel for further investigation.
- Automated Risk Remediation: A healthcare organization uses CTEM to manage the patient data stored in its systems. If a vulnerability is detected in a medical device, CTEM automates the application of virtual patches to prevent exploitation until a permanent fix can be applied.
CTEM: Proactive Security for a Better Tomorrow
CTEM allows you to:
- Identify and mitigate cyber threats continuously and in real time.
- Close the gap between threat remediation and management, as well as threat detection and response.
Its proactive, automated approach to threat exposures enables you to minimize the attack surface, decrease the impact of security incidents, and improve your overall cybersecurity resilience.