Hacking For Dummies, 6th Edition

Chapter 18

Plugging Your Security Holes

IN THIS CHAPTER

Determining which vulnerabilities to address first

Patching your systems

Looking at security in a new light

After you complete your tests, you want to head down the road to greater security. But you found some security vulnerabilities — things that need to be addressed (I hope not too many serious ones, though!). Plugging these security holes before someone exploits them is going to require a little elbow grease. You need to come up with your game plan and decide which security vulnerabilities to address first. A few patches may be in order, possibly even some system hardening. You may need to purchase some new security technologies and may want to reevaluate your network design and security infrastructure as well. I touch on some of these critical areas in this chapter.

Turning Your Reports into Action

It may seem that the security vulnerability to address first would be obvious, but the answer may not be clear. When reviewing the vulnerabilities that you find, consider the following variables:

• How critical the vulnerable system is
• What sensitive information or business processes are at stake
• Whether the vulnerability ...