White Paper:
IP Network Configuration and Vulnerabilities: What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You

Enterprise networks have evolved from a background piece of IT infrastructure to a critical business asset. But while the role and criticality of the network has grown dramatically in a very short time, the management practices around this strategic asset still follow tactical and mundane methodologies. One of the greatest challenges enterprise IT faces is managing the configurations and security postures on hundreds, if not thousands, of network devices. The implications around this issue are immense: A single misconfigured device or piece of equipment with unpatched or vulnerable software can expose a business to intrusions and attacks that can lead to financial loss and credibility damage. In fact, the Open Security Foundation reports that from the beginning of 2009, 37 organizations lost almost 132 million sensitive records through external hacks, including the mammoth Heartland Payment Systems breach, which accounted for 130 million records. To protect this business-critical asset, enterprise security and operations groups must adopt a more collaborative process and use tools that give managers a big picture of both overall network health and security status.

This Yankee Group report outlines the importance of taking both a broad and narrow approach to maintaining the health of network and security infrastructure. In the following sections, we describe and analyze the current risk landscape for enterprises and show the current state of operational management for enterprise networks and security. To illustrate the changing nature of enterprise networks and how an integrated approach to management can improve security, we also provide a case study of how one large government organization is dealing with these issues.