Patch management is the process of keeping software and operating systems updated in an organized way.
Businesses may have dozens or hundreds of applications, and each one can develop security problems.
A patch management process identifies updates, tests them when necessary, installs them, and reports on systems that are still missing important fixes.
This is especially important for internet-facing systems, web browsers, operating systems, and remote access software.
Automatic updates help, but they do not always cover every business application.
Good patch management also includes removing old software that is no longer supported.
An unsupported application may stop receiving security fixes completely.
Regular patching is not exciting, but it closes many of the same weaknesses that attackers routinely try to exploit.