Network Host Assessment

Purpose

This document describes how to set up a Network Host Assessment scan.

Introduction

The Network Host Assessment is the process of identifying and evaluating the security risks and vulnerabilities within individual network hosts, such as servers, workstations, or network devices. The goal of a network host assessment is to identify potential security weaknesses and remediate them before they can be exploited by attackers.

A Network Host Assessment identifies the operating system and software applications installed on the host and assesses their vulnerability to known exploits and attacks. The assessment also evaluates the configuration of the host, including the security of network services, access controls, and patch levels. Configuration errors or misconfigurations can create security vulnerabilities that can be exploited by attackers.

The results of the assessment can be used to prioritize vulnerabilities and develop a plan for remediation that includes applying security patches, reconfiguring access controls or network services, or implementing additional security controls such as intrusion detection or prevention systems.

It is important that network host assessments are performed regularly, as new vulnerabilities can be introduced as software is updated or new applications are installed.

When targeting an asset, the newest Asset Identifier is selected to be resolved, if the Asset Identifier is not a hostname, the newest IP number is selected.

Setting up a Network Host Assessment

Requirements

Before initiating the Network Host Assessment, it is recommended to perform a discovery scan to gain an overview of the organization's IT assets. For additional information, refer to: Network Discovery.

Set up

Select Network host assessment.
Fill in the Name input field with a descriptive name for the intended assessment.
Select Policy from the drop-down menu. To create a new scan policy, refer to: Scan Policies.
Optionally, select an Override scan policy from the drop-down menu. For a more detailed description of this parameter, refer to: Policy Settings.
Toggle the Scanning-Less Scanning switch button to enable or disable this option. For a comprehensive understanding of this feature, refer to: Scanning-Less Scanning.
Click on the blue Add button in the lower right corner to add the configuration.

Purpose

Introduction

Setting up a Network Host Assessment

Requirements

Set up

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