Security Inventory

A security inventory refers to a comprehensive list of all the physical and digital assets within an organization’s environment that need to be protected, including hardware, software, network devices, users, and data. This comprehensive inventory, along with detailed asset telemetry, enables security teams to identify potential vulnerabilities and implement appropriate security measures to mitigate risks across the entire enterprise.

The dynamic nature of modern organizations has led to complicated IT environments that present challenges for security teams. Unlike the typical asset inventory which has traditionally been maintained by IT teams to efficiently manage resources, focusing on assigned users, maintenance schedules, documentation, licensing, costs, and lifecycle stages, a security inventory needs to provide a truly comprehensive view of the attack surface. In addition to the details provided by a typical asset inventory, a security inventory needs to provide the complex relationship data between assets—in addition to unified device details from all of the integrated tools—to better prioritize vulnerabilities and enforce remediation actions.

Security teams cannot rely on manual and point-in-time audits of assets which can lead to outdated and incomplete inventories, leaving security gaps. The dynamic nature of a truly comprehensive inventory enables security teams to address CIS Critical Security Control 1 and monitor the efficacy of vulnerability prioritization and remediation actions as they occur.

A security inventory includes:

• Hardware details like computers, servers, network devices, peripherals
• Software applications and versions
• User accounts, roles, and access levels
• Data types and locations 

With a comprehensive security inventory, organizations can:

• Proactively identify vulnerabilities and limit exposures by having visibility and knowledge of all connected devices which could be entry points for attacks
• Prioritize and enhance security for the most critical assets
• Meet compliance requirements that mandate maintaining a detailed asset inventory
  

Additional Resources

• Comparison Guide: The Criticality of Security Asset Inventory: Moving Beyond IT Asset Management
• Cyber Hygiene and Asset Management: Perception vs. Reality

Related Terms

• Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management (CAASM)
• Asset Inventory
• IT Asset Inventory