Overview#
Route an attacker can take from the internet into internal assets. Analyzed in attack surface management and threat modeling to prioritize remediation.
Core objectives#
- Establish shared definitions of External Attack Path for security, engineering, and leadership teams.
- Connect External Attack Path activities to measurable risk reduction and resilience goals.
- Provide onboarding notes so new team members can quickly understand how External Attack Path works here.
Implementation notes#
- Identify the primary owner for External Attack Path, the data sources involved, and the systems affected.
- Document the minimum viable process, tooling, and runbooks that keep External Attack Path healthy.
- Map External Attack Path practices to standards such as ISO/IEC 27001, NIST CSF, or CIS Controls.
Operational signals#
- Leading indicators: early warnings that External Attack Path might degrade (e.g., backlog growth, noisy alerts, or missed SLAs).
- Lagging indicators: realized impact that shows External Attack Path failed or needs investment (e.g., incidents, audit findings).
- Feedback loops: retrospectives and metrics reviews that tune External Attack Path continuously.
Related practices#
- Align External Attack Path with defense-in-depth planning, threat modeling, and disaster recovery tests.
- Communicate updates to stakeholders through concise briefs, dashboards, and internal FAQs.
- Pair External Attack Path improvements with tabletop exercises to validate expectations.