What are INDICATORS OF EXPOSURE (IOE) ? (2024)

IOEs are the factors that can lead to an attack and should be identified alongside IOCs. IOCs represent an artifact of an attack; IOEs highlight the preconditions that make an exploit more likely.

IOEs describe security weaknesses that are particular to an enterprise network and can be exploited by an attacker.

By combining IOEs into a single, dynamic view, security practitioners gain the advantage of access to a comprehensive representation of their enterprise attack surface. This level of attack surface visibility and analysis of the IOEs that contribute to it constitute a game changer for security managers and chief information security officers (CISOs).

It is not enough to only catalog a list of vulnerabilities. Consideration must be given to those vulnerabilities that are not only exposed to a potential attack, but also put key assets at risk.

IOEs must be determined by analyzing multiple factors, i.e., events as opposed to observing a single one event. An unexpected firewall rule change is an event, but an unexpected firewall rule change that opens up an access path to a critical asset is an IOE.

By linking together IOEs with an understanding of network topology and assets, enterprises can discern which attack vectors are most likely to be exploited in a multistep attack.

Working with identified IOEs rather than raw vulnerabilities and other risk data also allows security teams to use the power of contextual analysis to determine actions that will significantly reduce the size of their attack surface with less effort than a “fix everything” approach.