What does the term ‘False Positive’ mean in vulnerability management?

In vulnerability management, the term ‘False Positive’ refers to a scenario where a vulnerability is reported in a system or application that, upon further investigation, is found not to be actually exploitable or does not exist. This could occur due to various reasons, such as overly aggressive scanning tools or misconfigurations that lead to incorrect assessments.

Understanding false positives is crucial for organizations because they can create unnecessary concern and waste resources if the vulnerabilities reported are not real. It can also detract from addressing actual vulnerabilities that require attention, thereby affecting the overall security posture of the organization.

The other options describe different aspects of vulnerability management but do not accurately define what a false positive is. A genuine vulnerability reported inaccurately indicates a miscommunication or misunderstanding about the severity or nature of the vulnerability, but it does not reflect the definition of a false positive. A non-existent vulnerability flagged by the system conveys a similar idea but lacks clarity regarding the context of being “not actually exploitable.” Finally, an exploit that has been successfully mitigated refers to vulnerabilities that have been properly addressed, which is unrelated to the concept of false positives.