Despite the increase in cybersecurity threats, many organizations overlook regular audits, risking costly data breaches and compliance violations. However, auditing network security is no longer just an option—it’s a necessity. These comprehensive reviews provide essential insights into an organization’s security health so they can identify vulnerabilities before they are exploited. 

This guide will help cybersecurity professionals build a solid case for why proactive network security audits are critical for stakeholders to invest in for their safety and resilience.

Why Organizations Need to Audit Network Security

With evolving security threats, measures that were effective in the past may become outdated, making audits essential for maintaining up-to-date defenses. According to a report by Gartner, security and risk management end-user spending for equipment alone is expected to grow by nearly 14% this year.

Regular network security audits protect sensitive data from cyberattacks and unauthorized access that could be exploited by malicious actors.

Additionally, audits enhance incident response by identifying weaknesses in current protocols, discovering rogue access points, and highlighting areas of improvement. 
Failing to create a process for auditing your network security can lead to the following:

• Undetected Vulnerabilities: Unidentified weaknesses within a network that threat actors can exploit to gain unauthorized access, steal data, or cause disruption.
• Increased Risk of Data Breaches: When vulnerabilities are not identified and mitigated, data breach risks increase significantly. Data breaches can lead to sensitive information being exposed, resulting in financial losses, reputational damage, and legal consequences.
• Outdated Security Measures: Relying on outdated security tools and protocols leaves organizations vulnerable to modern attack methods. As potential threats evolve rapidly, organizations must also evolve to reduce risks.

Top Benefits of an Effective Network Security Auditing Process

An effective network security auditing process strengthens an organization’s security posture by identifying weaknesses and areas for improvement. Some of the top benefits include:

Enhance Security Posture

Regular audits keep security protocols up-to-date with evolving threats, reducing the chances of breaches. By continuously refining security policies, organizations can prevent further infiltrations with attack surface management. Together, this creates a proactive approach to identifying and mitigating potential cybersecurity risks.

Boost Threat Detection

Security audits improve an organization’s ability to detect potential exposures before they cause damage. According to ITRC’s 2023 Data Breach Report, 

 data breaches rose 72% from 2021 to 2023. Audits scrutinize the network for unusual activity and malicious software that may go otherwise unnoticed to prevent breaches like these. Enhanced threat detection capabilities mean quicker responses to emerging risks.

Reduce Organizational Risk

By identifying potential security vulnerabilities and addressing them early, the risk of cyberattacks significantly diminishes. Audits also reduce the likelihood of financial losses, reputational harm, and operational disruptions caused by security incidents. According to a recent Forrester report, 22% of organizations experienced six to 10 data breaches. However, with proactive network auditing, organizations can reduce risk and operate more confidently.

Increase Compliance

Effective auditing helps organizations remain compliant with industry regulations. Compliance audits ensure security measures meet the required legal standards, minimizing the risk of non-compliance penalties. 
With enhanced monitoring, organizations can regularly assess network security practices to meet new regulatory changes and promptly integrate them into existing policies. By ensuring compliance in real time, organizations build trust with clients and stakeholders as well as streamline internal reporting processes and documentation for regulatory reviews.

Improve Policy Management

Organizations can assess the effectiveness of existing security policies through security audits. They help identify gaps where policies are outdated or not properly followed. Reviewing and updating policies based on audit findings ensures their security framework remains relevant. This improved policy management leads to better enforcement of rules and security protocols across departments.

Address Unauthorized Devices

Unauthorized devices pose a significant security risk as they can be used for malicious activity. Through audits, organizations can identify these unauthorized devices, assess their impact on the system, and take action to remove or secure these endpoints. This minimizes risk by ensuring only approved and secure devices are connected to the network.

Facilitate Risk-Based Decision Making

Auditing provides data-driven insights that help organizations make informed, risk-based decisions about their attack surface. By identifying and prioritizing high-risk areas, management can allocate resources more efficiently to mitigate the most significant security gaps and optimize their investments.

Build Cyber Resilience

A strong auditing process contributes to an organization’s cyber resilience by ensuring it can withstand and recover from security incidents and data breaches. Cyber resilience is built through constant improvement of security protocols and rapid response. Over time, this builds a security culture that is adaptable, responsive, and highly resistant to emerging Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs).

How to Audit Network Security

A successful audit follows a structured approach. Here are a few steps organizations can follow:

1. Planning and Scoping

The first step involves defining the audit’s objectives, scope, and resources required. During this phase, key stakeholders and departments are consulted to ensure that all critical aspects of the network are covered such as firewalls, access controls, and encryption methods. The organization must also establish clear goals such as identifying security risks, verifying compliance, or testing incident response.

2. Information Gathering

In this step, the auditors collect detailed information and map out all devices, software, and connections within the network’s infrastructure to understand the full scope of the audit. Review documentation such as security policies, access control lists, and previous audit reports are often included. This data helps auditors establish a baseline for the network’s current security posture.

3. Risk Assessment

Based on the information gathered, auditors conduct a risk assessment to identify the most susceptible areas. This involves evaluating the likelihood of various attack scenarios and the potential impact they could have on the organization. High-risk areas such as unpatched systems, weak passwords, unencrypted sensitive data, and emerging malware are prioritized for further evaluation. 

4. Testing and Evaluation

During the testing phase, technology and security teams actively test the network’s defenses to identify potential issues and weaknesses. This may involve tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) such as penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, and reviewing firewall rules. Auditors evaluate the effectiveness of security controls like encryption, authentication, and access permissions.

Often real-world attack scenarios are simulated to determine how well the network can withstand various cyberattacks. These test findings can provide valuable insight into how secure the network is and where improvements are needed.

5. Analysis and Reporting

After testing, the results are compiled and analyzed into a comprehensive report outlining the severity of each risk and the recommended remediation action. Typically detailed explanations of how security flaws could be exploited and what potential damage they could cause should be highlighted as well as their areas of strength.

6. Follow-up

The final step is following up on the recommended actions to ensure they have been implemented correctly. Additional testing may be required to confirm that identified vulnerabilities have been addressed and security measures are functioning correctly. This phase ensures that all issues raised during the audit are resolved and the organization’s security posture has improved. 

Regular follow-ups help maintain continuous security improvement and prepare the organization for future audits and evolving security challenges.

Streamline Your Security Audits with FireMon

For efficient management of security and compliance within their network, organizations can leverage tools like FireMon. In most organizations, minor downtime can lead to significant costs and make them prime targets for cyber attacks.

FireMon empowers organizations to maintain compliance, mitigate the risk of cyber-attacks, speed up response times, and avoid operational disruptions—across cloud and hybrid environments.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is a Network Security Audit?

A network security audit is a comprehensive evaluation of an organization’s network to identify vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and areas of non-compliance to improve security and mitigate risks.

How Often Should I Be Auditing Network Security?

Auditing security in your network should be done regularly, typically at least once a year. The frequency of audits should align with the company’s risk level, compliance requirements, and technology changes. Organizations, such as healthcare or finance, may need more frequent audits—quarterly or even monthly—to comply with strict standards like HIPAA or PCI DSS. 

Additional audits should be conducted when there are network changes including adding new systems or software, or new CVEs emerge. 

How Can Automation Enhance Network Security Auditing?

Automation can enhance your auditing process, making it faster, more accurate, and consistent. Automated tools can continuously monitor network traffic, configurations, and vulnerabilities with real-time alerts. 

It can also generate detailed reports quickly, allowing organizations to respond to security issues and maintain a proactive approach to cybersecurity.

What Should I Look For When Evaluating Network Auditing Tools

When evaluating network auditing tools, organizations should consider the following features: comprehensive vulnerability detection, real-time monitoring and alerts, scalability, compatibility with their current infrastructure, user-friendly UI, compliance features, and the ability to efficiently run reports.

*** This is a Security Bloggers Network syndicated blog from www.firemon.com authored by FireMon. Read the original post at: https://www.firemon.com/blog/network-security-audits/