You might understandably wonder about the difference between the two of those terms. Can you use them interchangeably? What actually is an attack surface? And how do you define an attack vector?
What Is an Attack Vector?
An attack vector is a pathway or entry point that a cybercriminal uses to access a system. For example, a perpetrator might create a phishing email that asks people to provide their passwords. When recipients fall for the trick, they give a hacker a potential attack vector that enables system entry.
As cybersecurity teams assess what happened during an attack, however, they often find several utilized vectors. A criminal may initially use a password to gain access, then later find that an outdated point-of-service terminal lets them get customer transaction data.
When people get into discussions about attack vector and attack surface differences, they often wonder how vulnerabilities come into the picture. A vulnerability is an unaddressed risk that could become an attack vector. A strong password by itself is not a vulnerability, but it could become one after getting exposed on the Dark Web.
What Is an Attack Surface?
The attack surface represents all the places or points a hacker could exploit. They could include Internet of Things (IoT) devices, email servers, and anything else that connects to the internet. Think of the attack surface as anything a hacker could successfully target.
Moreover, an attack surface consists of all known, unknown, and potential risks. Thus, when cybersecurity experts aim to protect their organizations against online threats, they must put themselves in a cybercriminal’s position and think at length how the perpetrator might proceed.
An attack surface also typically becomes more complex with a company’s increased reliance on technology. For example, if a company leader invests in tools to let people work from home, that decision makes the attack surface larger and makes additional precautions necessary.
How Are Attack Vectors and Surfaces Evolving?
An effective cybersecurity strategy must account for how attack vectors and surfaces change with time. People can be potential vectors too. That’s particularly true when they don’t follow the cybersecurity rules an organization sets.
One study found that 40 percent of decision-makers had to let workers go after they breached internet security policies. That means, if a workforce size increases or there’s a larger percentage of people not abiding by the rules, attack vectors could go up.
Cybersecurity professionals have also warned that the 5G network widens the attack surface. As more IoT devices and smartphones connect to the network, hackers will have more possibilities for orchestrating their plans.
Online criminals pay attention to societal trends when choosing their attack vectors too. Phishing emails were once primarily created for the masses. Now, many hackers target victims more precisely, often only focusing on people who work in a particular company department or perhaps one individual in a high-responsibility role.
Attack Vector vs. Attack Surface: Different but Equally Important
You now know that attack vectors and attack surfaces are separate but related things. It’s insufficient to only focus on one or the other.
An all-encompassing cybersecurity plan minimizes the attack vectors a criminal might use, and it manages the attack surface’s risks.
