Automated Security Controls Assessment (ASCA)

In a world where cyber threats evolve faster than you can say “phishing scam,” staying ahead of the curve is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity. Enter Automated Security Controls Assessment (ASCA), tools that are revolutionizing how we protect our digital assets. But what exactly is ASCA, and why should it matter to you? Let’s delve into this transformative technology, unravel its complexities, and uncover why it’s becoming a cornerstone of modern cybersecurity strategy.

So, What’s ASCA Anyway?

Imagine juggling a dozen spinning plates while balancing on a tightrope. That’s the challenge of managing security controls in an organization—complex and demanding. Automated Security Controls Assessment (ASCA) is like having a high-tech assistant who not only helps you keep those plates spinning but also makes sure they’re perfectly aligned, ensuring everything runs smoothly and efficiently.

At its core, ASCA involves using automated platforms to evaluate the effectiveness of your security controls. These controls are the policies, procedures, and technical measures you’ve put in place to protect your information systems. With ASCA, instead of manually checking each control, which can be time-consuming and error-prone, you let the technology do the heavy lifting.

The Problem Spelled Out

For example, the 2023 Resilience Index tells us that over 80% of devices are running Microsoft® Windows® OS, with most sticking to Windows 10. At first glance, this might seem like it should be easy to manage, but it’s actually quite the opposite. IT teams are dealing with the headache of keeping up with fourteen different versions of Windows and over 800 builds and patches. On top of that, there’s the issue of the sheer number of applications on these devices. The same report says the average enterprise device has 67 applications installed, and about 10% of those devices have more than 100 applications.

With this many applications and such a variety of operating system versions, it’s no wonder IT and security teams are having a tough time keeping everything updated and patched. This makes it hard for them to protect against known vulnerabilities. As a result, it takes an average of 149 days for small companies, 151 days for medium and large businesses, and up to 158 days for very large organizations to patch their systems.

How Does ASCA Work?

Here’s a quick peek under the hood. Automated Security Controls Assessment tools typically involve:

• Continuous Monitoring: These tools keep a constant eye on your security controls, ensuring they’re functioning as expected and detecting any deviations or weaknesses.
• Automated Scanning: They perform automated scans of your systems to check for compliance with security policies and standards.
• Risk Assessment: Automated tools analyze data to assess potential risks and vulnerabilities, providing you with actionable insights and recommendations.
• Reporting and Analytics: They generate detailed reports and analytics, highlighting areas of concern and helping you prioritize remediation efforts.

Why Should You Care?

According to Gartner, “Organizations implementing ASCA processes and technologies enhance staff efficiency, minimize the impact of human errors and improve resilience in the face of organizational churn. ASCA reduces security control configuration gaps that unnecessarily expose the organization to otherwise preventable attacks.”

Here’s why ASCA is making waves in a nutshell:

1. Efficiency: Traditional security assessments can be labor-intensive and slow. Automated tools can scan and evaluate your controls in a fraction of the time, giving you quicker insights into your security posture.
2. Consistency: Automated assessments eliminate the human error factor. They ensure that evaluations are performed uniformly every time, providing more reliable and repeatable results.
3. Real-Time Insights: With automated tools, you get near-instantaneous feedback. This means you can identify and address vulnerabilities much faster, reducing the window of opportunity for potential attackers.
4. Scalability: As your organization grows, so does the complexity of your security landscape. Automated tools can scale with you, handling increasing volumes of data and more complex security environments with ease.
5. Cost-Effectiveness: While there’s an initial investment in automated tools, they can save money in the long run by reducing the need for extensive manual assessments and catching issues before they escalate into costly problems.

ASCA in 10 Years

The future of Automated Security Controls Assessment is looking bright. With advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, these tools are becoming even more sophisticated. They’re not simply identifying problems, they’re also predicting potential threats and suggesting proactive measures.

As organizations continue to embrace digital transformation, ASCA will play a crucial role in safeguarding against evolving cyber threats. It’s not just about keeping up; it’s about staying ahead. And with the power of automation on your side, you’re better equipped to navigate the complex cybersecurity landscape.

So, whether you’re a seasoned IT professional or just dipping your toes into the world of cybersecurity, understanding and adopting ASCA could be a game-changer for your organization.

Nagomi Security’s Automated Security Controls Assessment

Over 80% of security breaches occur at organizations with a tool in place that could’ve prevented it. By mapping real threats to customers’ existing security tools and providing prescriptive recommendations, Nagomi finally makes it possible to maximize the ROI of security investments and report progress to executives. 

Nagomi is the only proactive defense platform to offer an out-of-the-box holistic mapping of the attacker perspective, the organizational business context and the available defensive capabilities.

A novel approach to integrate with IT and security tools easily ingests data regarding the covered assets, the business context, the defensive capabilities, and the actual state of the defensive capabilities on an asset level. On top of this integration factory, Nagomi developed an advanced risk model and taxonomy that allows it to provide a continuous, data driven and automated assessment of the security programs effectiveness against the threats that matter to an organization most.

Nagomi was built for the enterprise grade with simple agentless onboarding and built-in flows that support both the security practitioners and the CISO. This allows Nagomi to leverage its tech advantages into a GTM strategy powered by strategic tech alliances and partnerships with MSSPs and MDRs.

With Nagomi Security, organizations can implement a continuous threat exposure management (CTEM) strategy, take a proactive approach to managing their security program, communicate effectively with their board and c-suite, and justify their security investments.