Cybersecurity teams today face an overwhelming volume of vulnerabilities, threats, and operational noise. But it’s not just about quantity. The complexity and fragmentation of modern enterprise environments have made traditional approaches to vulnerability management ineffective. Legacy vulnerability programs aren’t designed for today’s hybrid workforces, sprawling cloud infrastructure, or the speed of modern attackers.
That’s why the industry is shifting toward something broader: Exposure Management.
In making that shift, security teams are encountering a growing list of acronyms—VM, RBVM, CVE, EPSS, KEV, CISA, VPT, VA, EM, CTEM, EAP, AEV, ASCA, CAASM, EASM, DRPS, and TI. While the volume of jargon can feel overwhelming, understanding the role of each concept within the broader shift to Exposure Management is what matters.
From Acronyms to Action
Here’s a simplified glossary that clarifies how these terms relate to the evolution from vulnerability management to Exposure Management:
| Acronym | Definition | Role in Exposure Management |
|---|---|---|
|
VM |
Vulnerability Management |
Traditional identification of known vulnerabilities |
|
RBVM |
Risk Based Vulnerability Management |
Prioritization based on contextual risk
|
|
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures |
Catalog of known software flaws |
|
|
Exploit Prediction Scoring System |
Likelihood a vulnerability will be exploited
|
|
|
Known Exploited Vulnerabilities |
Actively exploited issues tracked by CISA
|
|
|
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency |
U.S. government authority on cybersecurity risks |
|
|
VPT |
Vulnerability Prioritization Technology |
Helps sort remediation efforts by risk |
|
VA |
Vulnerability Assessment |
Point-in-time identification of vulnerabilities |
|
EM |
Exposure Management |
Holistic and contextual risk management |
|
Continuous Threat Exposure Management |
Ongoing identification, prioritization, and response |
|
|
EAP |
Exposure Assessment Platform |
Enables discovery, prioritization, and mobilization |
|
AEV |
Adversarial Exploit Validation |
Validates whether exposures are practically exploitable |
|
ASCA |
Automated Security Controls Assessment |
Assesses the effectiveness of security controls |
|
CAASM |
Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management |
Tracks internal asset inventory and relationships |
|
EASM |
External Attack Surface Management |
Identifies internet-facing risks |
|
DRPS |
Digital Risk Protection Services |
Monitors external threats like impersonation, leaks |
|
TI |
Threat Intelligence |
Provides data on attacker behaviors and indicators |
While you don’t need to memorize every acronym, understanding how they fit into your exposure management strategy is essential.
Why Traditional Vulnerability Management Falls Short
Legacy vulnerability management relies heavily on periodic scanning and spreadsheet-driven workflows. Teams reconcile scanner results with asset inventories, assign CVSS scores, create tickets, and then chase down fixes—only to re-scan later and realize patches failed or issues were missed.
This reactive process no longer works. The attack surface has outpaced it.
Adversaries don’t wait for Patch Tuesday. Neither should you.
Exposure Management is the Evolution
Traditional vulnerability management focuses mostly on CVEs. Exposure Management addresses a much broader set of risks, including:
- Misconfigurations in cloud or endpoint environments
- Missing or malfunctioning security controls
- End-of-life software and compliance gaps
- Excessive access and privilege creep
- Unscanned or shadow assets
These issues span five major attack surfaces: internal, external, user, cloud, and digital. Exposure Management brings continuous visibility and holistic prioritization of all risks—not just vulnerabilities in a scanner.
Moving from Prioritization to Exploitability
Risk scoring alone isn’t enough. High CVSS scores don’t always reflect real-world risk. Exposure Management platforms incorporate:
- Threat intelligence to align with active attacker behavior
- Asset criticality and business context
- Control validation and misconfiguration detection
- Exploit validation to confirm whether exposures are real threats
This added context reduces noise and ensures teams focus on the risks that matter most.
What Can You Do?
The Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) framework is the best starting point. It provides a structured approach to:
- Continuously assess the environment
- Identify exposures beyond CVEs
- Prioritize what truly matters
- Validate exploitability
- Mobilize effective response
And it requires the right technology to support it—an Exposure Assessment Platform.
Explore our digital CTEM whitepaper and Exposure Assessment Platform Buyer’s Guide to learn how to make the leap from vulnerability management to a modern exposure-driven strategy.
Stay informed. Stay ahead.