Free template
Vulnerability Management Policy Template
Establish clear rules for finding and remediating vulnerabilities across systems and software with this Vulnerability Management Policy Template.
Downloaded 4197 times
Download template
Vulnerability Management Policy Template
This Vulnerability Management Policy (the “Policy”) is adopted by [Company Name] as of [Effective Date].
1. Purpose
1.1 Purpose. This Policy defines how [Company Name] identifies, assesses, prioritizes, remediates, and verifies security vulnerabilities across Company systems and software.
1.2 Scope. This Policy applies to: ☐ Servers ☐ Endpoints ☐ Network devices ☐ Cloud resources ☐ Applications ☐ Containers ☐ Third-party dependencies ☐ Other: [Scope].
2. Definitions
2.1 Vulnerability. A weakness that could be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability.
2.2 Asset. Any system, service, application, device, or software component owned or managed by the Company.
2.3 Severity. Vulnerability risk rating based on CVSS and contextual factors (exposure, data sensitivity, exploitability).
2.4 Remediation. Actions to eliminate or reduce risk (patch, config change, upgrade, mitigation control).
2.5 Exception. Approved temporary acceptance of risk when remediation cannot be completed within required timelines.
3. Roles and Responsibilities
3.1 Policy Owner. [Security Team/Role] owns this Policy and maintains it.
3.2 Asset Owners. System and application owners are responsible for remediation within timelines.
3.3 Security Team. Runs scans, triages findings, provides guidance, and verifies remediation.
3.4 IT/Operations. Applies patches/config changes for infrastructure assets and supports remediation.
3.5 Engineering. Fixes application and dependency vulnerabilities and maintains secure SDLC controls.
4. Asset Inventory and Coverage
4.1 Inventory Required. Assets must be tracked in: [CMDB/Inventory tool], including owner and environment (prod/staging/dev).
4.2 Coverage Requirements. Vulnerability scanning coverage must include:
Internet-facing assets
Production systems handling Sensitive Data
Developer and CI/CD systems (as applicable)
4.3 Critical Assets. Define critical assets as: [Criteria], and apply stricter SLAs where needed.
5. Identification and Scanning
5.1 Scanning Tools. Approved tools: [Vuln scanner, EDR, SCA, container scanner].
5.2 Scan Cadence.
Internet-facing infrastructure: ☐ Weekly ☐ Biweekly ☐ Monthly
Internal infrastructure: ☐ Monthly ☐ Quarterly
Applications (DAST/SAST): ☐ Per release ☐ Monthly ☐ Other: [Cadence]
Dependencies (SCA): ☐ Continuous ☐ Per build ☐ Weekly ☐ Other
Containers/images: ☐ Per build ☐ Weekly ☐ Other
5.3 Threat Intelligence. Security team will monitor advisories and critical CVEs relevant to Company stack.
5.4 Penetration Tests (Optional). Frequency: ☐ Annual ☐ Semiannual ☐ Other: [Cadence].
6. Prioritization and Risk Rating
6.1 Base Severity. Use CVSS score as a baseline when available.
6.2 Context Adjustments. Adjust priority based on:
Exposure (internet-facing vs. internal)
Data sensitivity
Known exploitation (“in the wild”)
Asset criticality
Compensating controls
6.3 Severity Levels (Customize).Critical: [Criteria]
High: [Criteria]
Medium: [Criteria]
Low: [Criteria]
6.4 Emergency Process. Critical, actively exploited vulnerabilities may trigger emergency patching/change windows.
7. Remediation SLAs and Timelines
7.1 Standard SLAs (Customize).
Critical: fix or mitigate within [__] days
High: within [__] days
Medium: within [__] days
Low: within [__] days
7.2 Shorter SLAs for Internet-Facing Assets (Optional).Critical: [__] days
High: [__] days
7.3 Verification. Remediation must be verified by: ☐ Re-scan ☐ Manual validation ☐ Testing evidence.
7.4 Risk Mitigations. If immediate fix is not possible, apply compensating controls (WAF rules, segmentation, config hardening) and document them.
8. Tracking and Reporting
8.1 Ticketing. All findings must be tracked in: [Ticketing tool], with: severity, asset owner, due date, and status.
8.2 Metrics. Track: time to remediate, SLA compliance rate, recurring issues, and vulnerability backlog.
8.3 Reporting Cadence. Provide reports: ☐ Weekly ☐ Monthly ☐ Quarterly to: [Audience].
8.4 Management Escalation. SLA breaches are escalated to: [Leadership roles].
9. Exceptions and Risk Acceptance
9.1 When Allowed. Exceptions may be granted when remediation is not feasible within SLA due to: operational constraints, vendor limitations, or significant business impact.
9.2 Approval Required. Exceptions must be approved by: [Security + Asset owner + Leadership/Legal], depending on severity.
9.3 Documentation. Exceptions must include: vulnerability details, impacted assets, reason, compensating controls, expiration date, and review schedule.
9.4 Revalidation. Exceptions must be revalidated at least every [__] days.
10. Third-Party and Vendor Vulnerabilities
10.1 Vendor Software. Vendor-provided systems must meet security patching expectations and be reviewed periodically.
10.2 Vendor Notifications. Vendor vulnerability notices are tracked by: [Role/Team].
10.3 Contract Requirements (Optional). Vendor contracts should include security update obligations and incident notice requirements, as applicable.
11. Enforcement
11.1 Non-Compliance. Failure to follow this Policy may result in corrective actions, access restrictions, or other measures as permitted by Company policy.
11.2 Audit Support. Teams must provide evidence of remediation and exceptions when requested.
12. Policy Administration
12.1 Owner. Policy owner: [Team/Role].
12.2 Review Cycle. This Policy will be reviewed: ☐ Annually ☐ Every [__] months ☐ After major incidents.
12.3 Related Documents. Related documents: [Patch Management Policy, Secure SDLC, Incident Response Plan, etc.].
Signatures
By signing below, the undersigned acknowledge they have read and agree to comply with this Vulnerability Management Policy.
Company Representative: [Name]
Title: [Title]
Date: [Date]
Signature: ___________________________
Employee/Contractor: [Name]
Title/Role: [Role]
Date: [Date]
Signature: ___________________________
Flash deal
Flash deal
Today
Today
No time to fill it up? Generate your custom agreement with AI Lawyer in seconds
What’s Included
Legal Research
Legal Research
Legal Research
Contract Drafting
Contract Drafting
Contract Drafting
Document Review
Document Review
Document Review
Risk Analytics
Risk Analytics
Risk Analytics
Citation Verification
Citation Verification
Citation Verification
Easy-to-understand jargon
Easy-to-understand jargon
Easy-to-understand jargon
Details
Learn more about
Vulnerability Management Policy Template
Click below for detailed info on the template.
For quick answers, scroll below to see the FAQ.
Click below for detailed info on the template.
For quick answers, scroll below to see the FAQ.
VULNERABILITY MANAGEMENT POLICY TEMPLATE FAQ
What is a vulnerability management policy?
A vulnerability management policy is an internal policy that defines how an organization discovers, evaluates, prioritizes, and remediates security vulnerabilities. It sets scanning requirements, ownership, timelines for fixing issues, and how exceptions are approved and tracked.
What is the difference between vulnerability management and patch management?
Vulnerability management covers the full lifecycle — identifying issues (scanning), assessing risk, prioritizing, remediation tracking, and verification. Patch management is one remediation method (installing vendor updates). Not all vulnerabilities are fixed with patches; some require configuration changes, compensating controls, or code changes.
What should a vulnerability management policy include?
It should include scope (assets covered), scanning cadence, severity definitions (e.g., CVSS), remediation timelines, responsibilities by team, tracking workflow (ticketing), verification steps, third-party and cloud expectations, and an exceptions process with risk acceptance.
How do remediation timelines usually work?
Many teams use severity-based SLAs such as: critical issues within days, high within weeks, and lower severities within longer timeframes. The right timeline depends on business risk, asset criticality, and exposure (internet-facing vs. internal). This template includes customizable SLA fields.
How do you prove compliance to auditors or customers?
Keep evidence: scan results, tickets, remediation dates, exceptions approvals, and verification records. A policy with defined SLAs plus a consistent tracking process makes reporting much easier.
What is AI Lawyer?
AI Lawyer is an AI-powered assistant that helps you create and customize legal and business document templates online. It guides you through key sections, suggests wording, and explains complex concepts in simple language. AI Lawyer does not replace a licensed attorney or provide legal advice, but helps you prepare better documents faster and more confidently.
Similar templates
Other templates from
Policy and Compliance Documents
Money back guarantee
Free trial
Cancel anytime
AI Lawyer protects
your rights and wallet
Money back guarantee
Free trial
Cancel anytime
AI Lawyer protects
your rights and wallet
Money back guarantee
Free trial
Cancel anytime
AI Lawyer protects
your rights and wallet
Money back guarantee
Free trial
Cancel anytime