An average of 19 vulnerabilities per day were reported in 2014, according to the data from the National Vulnerability Database (NVD). In this article, I look at some of the trends and key findings for 2014 based on the NVD’s database.

Those of us who like to stay on the cutting edge of technology are probably well on our way to fully deploying Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1. While it’s great to be on the cutting edge, sometimes that edge is sharp enough to put us on the bleeding edge. That’s where many of […]

The number of reported security vulnerabilities in 2013 continued to increase compared to 2012. In this post, I provide an overview of the statistics for 2013 related to software security vulnerabilities. These are compiled from data from the National Vulnerability Database (NVD). On average, 13 new vulnerabilities per day were reported in 2013, for a […]

Vulnerabilities in software and operating systems remain a thorn in the side for administrators around the world. A single vulnerability exploited by the bad guys can bring a company to its knees. Maintaining patched systems is a must in today’s ever-changing security landscape. Yet, in number terms, what are we looking at? What is the […]

An important aspect of patch management and your patching schedule is to understand the patch release cycles adopted by the most important software vendors. In this post, we take a look at some statistics on this topic and how patch release cycles have changed over the last few years. The big players in software industry […]

No web browser is fully secure and research shows that vulnerabilities in web browsers are a target for hackers and criminals. Patching your browser will reduce the risk of a security breach. And there is good reason why. In 2011, as in 2010, web browsers had the higher number of security vulnerabilities reported compared to […]

As a sys admin, you should try to keep abreast of all the latest and most important security updates for operating systems, applications and so long. Here is an in-depth look at some of the statistics around vulnerabilities that I collated for 2011. To begin with, National Vulnerability Database (NVD) reports 3532 vulnerabilities in 2011. […]

In the previous post I wrote about the interesting questions raised due to the hacking of IT security firm HBGary. What should we learn from this incident? So, going back to HBGary – why were they apparently so easy to hack? It is not because they have no clue about security, but rather because they […]

The story with all the interesting details about how security company HBGary was hacked earlier this month, published by Ars Technica last week, has made quite some noise with people concerned about IT security. It is a perfect – by the book – example of how to find and use weaknesses in a security system […]

Analyzing the data on 2010 from National Vulnerability Database reveals some interesting statistics.