Facing forward: How security leaders take command of the attack surface

The digital threat landscape is far from predictable (understatement!), with security teams asking themselves, ‘how quickly can we respond when something does break through?’

With the rise of zero-day exploits, the sophistication of ransomware, and the sheer size and scale of the modern attack surface, security teams are thinking beyond tools, to a strategy rooted in visibility, adaptability, and speed.

Stay ahead of evolving threats

In 2023, over half of widespread compromise events were linked to zero-day vulnerabilities; that is weaknesses organisations didn’t even know existed until it was too late. These exploits, often buried deep within third-party edge devices and critical infrastructure, highlight how reactive security models no longer cut it.And add to that the resurgence of ransomware, which in 2023/2024 saw over 5,600 tracked incidents according to our Attack Intelligence Report.

The takeaway? Attackers are innovating and defenses must evolve too.

Rethink risk: from static defense to dynamic exposure management

Traditional security strategies are often built around fixed perimeters and known assets in the organisation. These no longer hold up in today’s hybrid environments. With assets sprawled across cloud platforms, SaaS ecosystems, remote endpoints, and third-party dependencies, we must rethink how to assess and manage risk.

Instead of trying to defend everything equally, we must shift to exposure-led thinking: What’s exposed? What matters most? Where are we blind? And how fast can we act?

This is where continuous attack surface visibility and threat-aware prioritisation need to come into play as daily operational imperatives. They’re not ‘nice-to-haves’ when some budget is left over at the end of the fiscal year.

What high-maturity teams do differently

The most effective security leaders make smarter, faster decisions with better context. Their playbook looks something like this:

• Asset clarity across environments: Knowing what they have, no matter where it lives; from cloud workloads to forgotten legacy systems.
• Real-time risk prioritisation: Not just listing vulnerabilities, but understanding which exposures actually matter based on attacker behaviour and business context.
• Automated response loops: They scale limited teams by integrating remediation workflows into their existing ecosystems. Making limited budgets and capabilities go further.

These are the principles behind exposure and surface command strategies, providing teams with the operational command they need to move with speed and precision.

Embed security into everyday decisions

It sounds cliché, sure, but security really is everyone’s responsibility. High-performing organisations embed security checks directly into the development lifecycle and cloud provisioning processes. By integrating continuous scanning and infrastructure-as-code assessments for example, they catch issues early, when they’re faster (and far cheaper) to fix.

And because humans can’t do it all manually, automation should be the backbone of scalable defense. From response, to routine hygiene and for alert triage. Working smarter under the guidance of human intelligence.

A more proactive, resilient posture

Resilience really is the name of the game, providing the confidence that when attackers move, you’re already in position. When new exposures emerge, you’re already aware. And when incidents occur, your team can move decisively and face forward. That’s why exposure management and attack surface control aren’t just buzzwords, they are the foundation of a modern cyber security strategy built around visibility, context, and control.

As always, Rapid7, through our team of experts, will be sharing insights at the event. If you want to discover more about exposure management and commanding your  attack surface, you can catch us at the following speaking slots as well as at booth number 05.C106 :

Keynote

License to Hack: Nation-State Warfare in the AI Age (May 21 at 14:45 on Keynote stage).

Christiaan Beek, Senior Director Threat Analytics

Breakout sessions

You’re under Attack, what’s next? (May 21 at 10am in Theatre 7)

During this session, we will show a real life cyber attack simulation, providing insights and hands-on experience to mitigate risks.

Speakers: Berry Rijnbeek, Senior Security Solutions Engineer & Joey van de Watering, Senior Solutions Engineer Rapid7

Ransomware attack simulation (May 22 at 10am in Theatre 7)

During this session, we’ll be simulating a real-world ransomware attack, providing you with hands-on experience in identifying, responding to, and mitigating such threats.

Speakers: Berry Rijnbeek, Senior Security Solutions Engineer & Joey van de Watering, Senior Solutions Engineer Rapid7