Patch Management in Cybersecurity – Benefits & Best Practices

The process of finding, testing, deploying, and installing software patches (or updates) on computers is known as patch management. A software patch is a piece of code created to add new features, improve security, or correct faults or vulnerabilities in the software that are currently present.

In general, the software patch management process entails checking the network for missing patches, testing the fixes on a test set of computers, and either manually delivering the patches or automating their deployment using patch management tools. It is essential to audit and produce reports once the software patches have been installed and delivered to the network to guarantee high patch compliance.

Why Do You Need Patch Management? Understand Its Important

Patch management is very important for the following reasons:

• Security: Patch management closes security flaws in your apps and software that could be exploited by hackers, reducing the risk to your business’s security.
• System uptime is supported by patch management, which makes sure your programs are up-to-date and working properly.
• Compliance: Regulatory authorities usually demand that businesses maintain a particular level of compliance due to the continual rise in cyberattacks. Patch management is an essential part of adhering to compliance regulations.
• Patch management goes beyond merely correcting software issues; it can also involve feature/functionality improvements. For you to have access to a product’s most recent and best features, patches may be necessary.

How Does Patch Management Work?

It would be a bad idea to install new upgrades for all of the assets in your organization’s inventory as soon as they are made available without considering the repercussions. An intelligent approach should be taken instead. Patch management should be carried out utilizing a comprehensive organizational strategy that prioritizes security as well as efficiency.

The patch management method’s essential steps are as follows:

1. Create a current inventory of all of your production systems: This is the only way to accurately track which assets are present in your ecosystem, whether it be on a quarterly or monthly basis. Through rigorous asset management, you will have a knowledgeable perspective on the operating systems, version types, and IP addresses that are in use, as well as their geographic locations and organizational “owners”. In general, you’ll be more knowledgeable if you update your asset inventory more frequently.
2. Build a strategy for bringing all systems and operating systems under a single version type: Standardizing your asset collection makes patching quicker and more effective, despite being challenging to do. To speed up your remediation process as new patches are published, you should standardize your assets down to a manageable number. The shorter remediation time will be advantageous to both the technical teams and you.
3. Make a list of all the security measures in place at your company: Monitor your firewalls, antivirus software, and vulnerability management software. Where these are, what they are protecting against, and what assets are linked to them should all be known to you.
4. Compare your inventory against reported vulnerabilities: Understanding your organization’s security risk requires using your vulnerability management solution to determine which vulnerabilities exist for which assets in your ecosystem.
5. Sort the risks: You may easily manage the assets you believe to be crucial to your firm using vulnerability management solutions, and you can then prioritize what needs to be remedied in accordance with that priority.
6. TEST! Apply the patches to a sample of the lab’s assets that represents the entire collection. Test the systems under stress to make sure the changes won’t cause problems in your production environment.
7. Apply the patches: Start patching to truly lower the risk in your environment once you’ve prioritized what needs to be remedied first. Additionally, customers have the option to automate the time-consuming procedures in the patching process thanks to more advanced vulnerability management technology. Even though you tested in your lab environment (you did that, right?) there might still be unexpected outcomes in production if you don’t disseminate the updates to batches of assets. Before jumping right in, dip your toes in to make sure there won’t be any major issues.
8. Follow your development: Verify the success of the patching by reevaluating your assets.

Best Practices for Patch Management

The following suggestions ought to be considered when putting patch management into practice:

• Establish precise expectations and hold teams responsible: Utilizing organizational agreements, such as service-level agreements, helps control teams and guarantee that the task of decreasing risk is being completed.
• Bring together technical teams to ensure a common language: Security teams commonly refer to software issues as “risks,” whereas IT/DevOps teams may use the term “patch.” Everyone must understand the importance of patching and be on the same page in order for a patch management strategy to be effective.
• Make a recovery strategy for emergencies: Always have a backup plan in place in case your patch management process should break down and cause issues.

How a Successful Patch Management Program Benefits Your Organization?

Patch management can benefit your company in a variety of ways, including:

• A safer environment: You can control and reduce the danger in your environment by regularly fixing vulnerabilities. This protects your business from unanticipated security flaws.
• Happy customers: If your business offers a product or service that customers are required to use, you are aware of how important it is that the technology is reliable. By fixing software bugs, the patch management technique keeps your systems functional.
• No arbitrary penalties: If your business is not patching and, consequently, is not abiding by compliance standards, regulating agencies may charge you money. Effective patch management ensures compliance.
• Innovation in products: You can upgrade your technology with patches to provide it with better features and functionality. This can help your company execute your most current software innovations extensively.

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FAQs

Q- What is patch management?

The act of finding, obtaining, testing, and installing software updates or patches to a computer system, network, or piece of software in order to fix vulnerabilities, boost functionality, and strengthen security is known as patch management.

Q- What makes patch management crucial?

It is essential to preserving computer systems’ stability and security. It makes sure that software works properly and helps guard against malware, exploits, and security flaws.

Q- Which kind of patches are usually handled?

Managing security patches, bug fixes, performance enhancements, and feature updates for operating systems, software programs, and hardware firmware are commonly included in patch management.

Q- What is the recommended frequency of patch management?

The kind of software and degree of risk involved can affect how frequently patches are applied. While non-security patches can be scheduled on a regular basis, critical security fixes should be implemented right away.

Q- What dangers come with not doing patch management?

Systems that are not patched can become unstable, infected with malware, and subject to security breaches. Legal repercussions and compliance problems may also result from it.

Q- How can patch testing be done without affecting live systems?

Before applying fixes to a production system, testing them in a controlled setting—like a test or development environment—can assist in finding any compatibility or functionality concerns.

Q- What challenges does patch management present?

Managing complicated and varied IT environments, adhering to regulations, fixing old systems, and managing the possible effects of patches on important applications are just a few of the difficulties.

Q- Is it required to patch every piece of software and hardware?

Prioritizing patches according to risk and commercial impact is crucial. Less important systems and software can have a regular patching schedule, but crucial systems and software should receive quick attention.