The security world loves its rituals. Every spring, the security world routinely conducts annual assessments in boardrooms. Everyone nods, slides packed with metrics flash by, executives sign off, and then life moves on. But the parade always feels like it’s missing something elemental. This adherence to schedule ignores the reality of the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) lifecycle, where critical patches often drop mere days after a finalized report.
Real, unpredictable threats don’t wait politely for a date in April. Threat actors prowl year-round, poking at doors no one thought to lock last month. So why cling to this tidy schedule? High-profile breaches suggest that last year’s security tests were unable to anticipate the threats that emerged this month. Maybe the old rhythms need breaking altogether.
Speed vs Snapshot
Attackers never take vacations, yet most organizations rely on scheduled scans that are polished once a year. The logic seems sound: Hire experts, poke the network, and fix what’s broken. The box remains checked until the next season. The flaw shows up right after they pack up, the threat landscape spins faster than any calendar invites allow. Static assessments fail to account for configuration drift or shadow IT, leaving new attack vectors like unpatched RCE (Remote Code Execution) vulnerabilities exposed in the interim.
Automated pentest reporting only helps so much when it relies on outdated information or a limited set of test cases. A fast-moving exploit can slip through hours after an assessment concludes. Anyone claiming to offer a “complete” picture of an annual event is selling comfort rather than security.
Continuous Eyes on Target
Constant vigilance isn’t just paranoia. It’s a survival strategy now. Continuous testing keeps eyes on everything that matters every day of the week (not just during business hours). By integrating Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) directly into the CI/CD pipeline, security shifts left, catching flaws before they hit production. We spot vulnerabilities hidden behind new deployments before threat actors discover them and make headlines from errors nobody noticed last quarter. Organizations don’t have time to relax. If a new code enters production, someone needs to check whether it exposes a weakness within minutes, not months later during another formal review cycle.
Action Over Archives
Penetration tests generate stacks of reports, but action rarely follows at the same speed as discovery. In reality, teams often become overwhelmed with documents, subsequently archiving findings with assurances of future solutions. Instead of static PDFs, automated API hooks can push findings directly into Jira or ServiceNow, reducing Mean Time to Remediate (MTTR) drastically.
Many wait until the “next audit.” An always-on approach eliminates the paperwork bottleneck. Critical flaws trigger alerts instantly, and remediation begins before attackers can exploit them. This rhythm aligns with modern DevOps workflows, where development cycles move too quickly for dusty old playbooks or annual sprints toward compliance boxes.
Cost Considerations Play Tricks
An objection directly from the finance department arises: Isn’t continuous testing more costly than a single large audit? Surface-level math says yes until you factor in breach costs or regulatory penalties lurking beneath those savings projections. Lost data dwarfs consulting fees by orders of magnitude if something slips through unchecked for 11 months. The real dollars come from avoiding downtime and reputational loss, not from trimming line items for quarterly budgets. That calculation rarely appears on standard ROI charts circulated at budget meetings.
Conclusion
While old habits persist, adhering to outdated routines provides minimal protection. Tomorrow will offer even less predictability than today. Security demands agility and genuine awareness built into daily operations, not staged annually for effect (or comfort). When attackers work relentlessly, there’s only one way forward: put defense on their clock, not yours. Continuous attention beats tradition every time risk shows up uninvited.
