May 7, 2024 at 04:54PM
The Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) list, introduced by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in 2021, aims to accelerate remediation times for high-risk threats. Congressman Jim Langevin’s legislation created the list to prioritize vulnerabilities for remediation. Data shows an increase in remediation timelines, but ransomware vulnerabilities receive the highest priority. Federal agencies outpace other sectors in meeting CISA deadlines. The KEV list aids in understanding the threat landscape, and is recommended for discussion at the board level to address both cyber and business risk.
Key Takeaways from the Meeting Notes
1. The Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) list introduced by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has been effective in speeding up remediation times for government agencies and enterprises, but there is still room for improvement.
2. Former Congressman Jim Langevin was responsible for the CISA Binding Operational Directive legislation 22-01 that created the KEV list, with the aim of providing enterprises with information on the most critical vulnerabilities for prioritized remediation.
3. To be added to the KEV list, a vulnerability must have an assigned CVE, a known exploitation in the wild, and a remediation available. Deadlines imposed by CISA for remediation among federal agencies vary, with ransomware vulnerabilities being treated with the most urgency.
4. Bitsight’s report revealed that organizations experienced various levels of KEVs in 2023, with critical KEVs being remediated significantly faster than non-KEV counterparts.
5. Organizations are urged to focus on establishing effective vulnerability management systems, gathering context about the threat using the KEV list and other sources, and measuring remediation rates with accountability for slow progress.
6. According to Langevin and Bitsight’s VP of government affairs Jake Olcott, the KEV list should be used to provide context around the threat landscape and to identify vulnerabilities that should be elevated to the highest levels of the business for discussion.
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