Written with contributions from Bryon Singh, Director of Security Operations, RailWorks Corporation
In Ridley Scott’s The Martian, astronaut Mark Watney is stranded on Mars with limited resources and a damaged habitat. His survival hinges on one critical principle: identify problems quickly and fix them immediately. Whether it’s sealing a breach in the Hab or hacking together a communication system, Watney must detect issues and remediate them immediately for his survival.
This is the essence of CIS Safeguard 7.7, which emphasizes the need to remediate detected vulnerabilities in enterprise systems. Detection alone isn’t enough. Action is what prevents disaster.
What Is CIS Safeguard 7.7?
CIS Safeguard 7.7 is part of the Vulnerability Management control family. It states:
“Remediate detected vulnerabilities on a timely basis, based on risk.”
This safeguard builds on the previous steps of identifying and scanning for vulnerabilities. Once vulnerabilities are found; whether through automated scans, threat intelligence, or manual discovery; they must be prioritized and remediated based on their potential impact.
Why It Matters (Just Ask Mark Watney)
In The Martian, Watney’s habitat suffers a breach. He doesn’t wait for a committee or a monthly review cycle; he patches it immediately using plastic sheeting and duct tape. His life depends on it.
In cybersecurity, the stakes are different but no less serious. A known vulnerability left unpatched can be exploited within hours. Attackers don’t wait for change control windows, they act fast. So must defenders.
How to Implement It
To align with CIS Safeguard 7.7, organizations should:
- Establish a risk-based remediation process as not all vulnerabilities are equal.
- Use CVSS scores and business context to prioritize fixes.
- Automate patch deployment where possible, especially for critical systems.
- Track remediation timelines and set SLAs (e.g., critical vulns patched within 72 hours).
- Verify remediation through follow-up scans or configuration checks.
- Report metrics to leadership: time-to-remediate, open vulnerabilities, and trends.
Pop Culture Parallel: Watney’s Mars Mission
Watney’s success wasn’t just about being smart, it was about being decisive and resourceful. He didn’t ignore problems or wait for ideal conditions. He triaged, prioritized, and remediated, often with limited tools and under extreme pressure.
Cybersecurity teams face similar constraints: limited staff, complex environments, and constant threats. But like Watney, success comes from acting on what you know, not just knowing it.
Final Thoughts
CIS Safeguard 7.7 is the action phase of vulnerability management. It’s where detection turns into defense. Just like in The Martian, survival depends not on identifying problems—but on fixing them.
So when your scanners light up with red alerts, channel your inner Mark Watney: patch the breach, seal the hole, and keep your systems breathing.
Resources
Here’s a link to the Policy Templates provided free of charge from the fine folks at the Center for Internet Security:
Looking for even more detail? Here you go. If this still doesn’t satisfy your curiosity, DM me.
CIS Control 7 – Continuous Vulnerability Management
Develop a plan to continuously assess and track vulnerabilities on all enterprise assets within the enterprise’s infrastructure, in order to remediate, and minimize, the window of opportunity for attackers. Monitor public and private industry sources for new threat and vulnerability information.
CIS Safeguard 7.7 – Remediate Detected Vulnerabilities
Remediate detected vulnerabilities in software through processes and tooling on a monthly, or more frequent, basis, based on the remediation process.
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