Vuloncology: The study, isolation and treatment of vulnerabilities growing in compute devices and their environments.

Description: A Cybersecurity Diagnostic and Treatment Model that involves Detection, Diagnosis, Treatment, Removal, and Monitoring

Pronounced:     Vul•on•col•o•gy     /     vul-on-kuh-luh-jee     /     vəl-änˈkäləjē    

• Not just spotting “vulnerabilities”, but diagnosing how and why they exist.
• Studying patterns of spread, impact, persistence, and recurrence.
• Applying preventive, responsive, and corrective treatments, like in oncology.

Detection (Screening): Regular scans for vulnerabilities, including low-visibility weaknesses. Diagnosis (Classification): CVE triage, risk scoring, and context analysis. Treatment Plan (Mitigation): Patching, isolating, monitoring, etc. Surgical Removal (Hardening): Remove affected services or redesign insecure patterns. Monitoring (Preventative): Use logs, SIEMs, and baselining to prevent recurrence.

In short: Vulnerability Management keeps the floors clean and dry. Vuloncology asks why the roof is leaking.

	Vulnerability Management	Vuloncology
Scope	Surface-level vulnerability lifecycle	Deep analysis of systemic weaknesses
Focus	Scanning, Scoring, Patching, Reporting	How it entered, where it originated, why it returns
Tools	Scanners, patch managers, CVSS	Behavioral analysis, threat modeling
Methodology	Identify, assess, remediate	Diagnose, isolate, treat, monitor
Mindset	Reactive and procedural	Investigative and preventative

• The Vuloncology report identified findings that require immediate remediation with additional preventative measures.
• Treating every CVE like a standalone incident ignores the bigger picture when vuloncology teaches us to understand how and why vulnerabilities grow in complex systems.
• We’re launching a vuloncology unit within the Security Operations Center to proactively detect, isolate, and remediate high-risk vulnerabilities before they metastasize across environments.

Vuloncologist: A person who specializes in detecting, diagnosing, analyzing, and treating vulnerabilities that behave like malignant threats.

Pronounced:     Vul•on•col•o•gist     /     vul-on-kuh-luh-jist     /     vəl-änˈkäləjist

• Diagnose Vulnerability Behavior: Identify how vulnerabilities spread or recur.
Analyze logs, Review secure baselines drift, scans over time, threat intelligence feeds, shared apps, supply chains, reused code.

• Map the Infection: Use scanning and behavioral tools to trace spread.
Scan (wazuh,qualys,tenable), correlate with EDR (MS Defender, CrowdStrike Falcon, SentinelOne), NDR to follow a spread (Darktrace), SIEM to track (Wazuh, Splunk MS Sentinel), Sandbox for understanding (Any.Run, Cuckoo, Joe).

• Prescribe Treatments: Layered remediation with patching and segmentation.
Patch Deployment, Network Segmentation, System Hardening, Access Control Review, Application Whitelisting.

• Security Surgery: Remove high-risk components entirely if needed.
Remove: Legacy software or services, EOL systems, Hard-Coded Secrets in Codebases, Insecure Third-Party Libraries, Insecure Remote Access Tools.

• Monitor for Relapse: Watch devices and CI/CD pipelines for reinfection.
Regular Vulnerability Scanning, Patch Level monitoring, Configuration Drift, File Integrity Monitoring, EDR, SIEM Based Behavior Correlation, Manual System Audits, Service Monitoring, Software Composition Analysis.

• Educate: Promote the detection of compromise, understanding root cause, and prevent vulnerability relapse.
Teach Security as a Lifecycle Not a One-Time Fix, Identify Systemic Weaknesses, champion long-term remediation.

The Vuloncologist is a specialized security professional responsible for diagnosing, treating, and preventing the recurrence of critical vulnerabilities across enterprise systems. This role requires more than reactive patching, it demands deep analysis, cross-functional collaboration, and proactive intervention strategies to protect against systemic, behavioral, and recurring security weaknesses.

You won't just find flaws. You'll understand why they exist, how they persist, and what must be done to eradicate and immunize the environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Perform in-depth triage and analysis of discovered vulnerabilities.
• Trace infection sources using log correlation, threat intelligence, and system behavior.
• Map vulnerabilities to architectural patterns, third-party dependencies, and business functions.
• Prescribe layered remediation strategies, including patching, segmentation, access controls, or component removal.
• Collaborate with infrastructure, DevOps, and app teams to ensure safe, complete treatment of systemic risk.
• Conduct “Security Surgery” to remove high-risk services or libraries when necessary.
• Establish relapse monitoring through SIEM, EDR, and configuration drift tools.
• Lead vulnerability trend analysis to identify recurring issues across time and teams.
• Monitor CI/CD pipelines, if applicable, and production environments for reintroduction vectors.
• Train technical teams on the Vuloncology model and how to embed it in their workflows.
• Promote “secure by design” thinking and proactive vulnerability defense.
• Serve as a “Vulnerability Evangelist” across the organization—fostering accountability, vigilance, and resilience.

Required Skills & Tools

• Deep knowledge of CVEs, CWE taxonomy, and real-world exploit chains.
• Experience with vulnerability scanning tools (e.g., Nessus, Qualys, OpenVAS).
• Proficiency with EDR/SIEM platforms (e.g., CrowdStrike, Splunk, Sentinel).
• Familiarity with SCA and IaC security (e.g., Snyk, Terraform Sentinel).
• Strong understanding of network segmentation, identity controls, and hardening practices.
• Ability to correlate logs and behaviors to root cause.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in cybersecurity with a focus on vulnerability management, threat analysis, or DevSecOps.
• Bachelor’s in Information Security, Computer Science, or related field.
• Certifications a plus: CISSP, OSCP, GWAPT, GCIH, or equivalent.
• Excellent analytical and diagnostic skills—combined with the diplomacy to work cross-functionally.

Bonus Traits

• You think in systems, not silos.
• You treat vulnerabilities like living threats, not static bugs.
• You’re part surgeon, part detective, part teacher.