> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://cortex-docs.paloaltonetworks.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://cortex-docs.paloaltonetworks.com/cortex-xdr-5.x/protect-your-endpoints/install-and-manage-endpoints/harden-endpoint-security/vulnerability-assessment.md). # Vulnerability Assessment Cortex XDR vulnerability assessment enables you to identify and quantify the security vulnerabilities on an endpoint. After evaluating the risks to which each endpoint is exposed and the vulnerability status of an installed application in your network, you can mitigate and patch these vulnerabilities on all the endpoints in your organization. The Vulnerability Assessment feature is included with the Host Insights license. If you have Cortex Cloud Posture Security, Cortex Cloud Runtime Security, Exposure Management, or Attack Surface management add-ons, use the Vulnerability Management feature. For more information, see [Vulnerability management in Cortex XDR](/cortex-xdr-5.x/detect-investigate-and-respond-to-threats/vulnerability-management/vulnerability-management-in-cortex-xdr.md). You can access the vulnerability assessment feature by navigating to Inventory → Endpoints → Host Insights → Vulnerability Assessment. Cortex XDR uses an advanced algorithm to collect extensive details on common vulnerabilities and exposures from comprehensive databases and to produce an in-depth analysis of endpoint vulnerabilities. Cortex XDR retrieves the latest information from the NIST public database to calculate the severity score.
Vulnerability Assessment Vulnerability Assessment uses an advanced algorithm to collect extensive details on CVEs from comprehensive databases and to produce an in-depth analysis of the endpoint vulnerabilities. **Prerequisite** The following are prerequisites for Cortex XDR to perform an Enhanced Vulnerability Assessment of your endpoints. | Requirement | Description | | ---------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Supported Platforms | | | Setup and Permissions | Ensure Host Inventory Data Collection is enabled for your Cortex XDR agent. | | Certificates for Windows and macOS |

When Advanced Vulnerability and Assessment is enabled, these certificates are a prerequisite for Windows and macOS.

Download the certificates from below.

| | Limitations | | After enabling the feature for the first time, it may take up to a week to get the updated data into the platform. Re-collecting the data from all endpoints in your network could take up to 6 hours. After that, Cortex XDR initiates periodical recalculations to rescan the endpoints and retrieve the updated data. If at any point you want to force data recalculation, click Recalculate. The recalculation performed by any user on a tenant updates the list displayed to every user on the same tenant. {% file src="/files/YKc3jisRfNEs2PLk3X0A" %}
CVE Analysis * **View CVE details**: Left-click the CVE to view in-depth details about it on a panel that appears on the right. Use the in-panel links as needed. * **View a complete list of all endpoints in your network that are impacted by a CVE**: Right-click the CVE and then select View affected endpoints. * **Learn more about the applications in your network that are impacted by a CVE**: Right-click the CVE and then select View applications. * **Exclude irrelevant CVEs from your endpoints and applications analysis**: Right-click the CVE and then select Exclude. You can add a comment if needed, as well as Report CVE as incorrect for further analysis and investigation by Palo Alto Networks. The CVE is grayed out and labeled Excluded and no longer appears on the Endpoints and Applications views in Vulnerability Assessment, or in the Host Insights widgets. To restore the CVE, you can right-click the CVE and Undo exclusion at any time. The CVE will be removed/reinstated to all views, filters, and widgets after the next vulnerability recalculation. You can perform the following actions from Cortex XDR as you analyze the existing vulnerabilities: | Value | Description | | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Affected endpoints** | The number of endpoints that are currently affected by this CVE. For excluded CVEs, the affected endpoints are N/A. | | **Applications** | The names of the applications affected by this CVE. | | **CVE** |

The name of the CVE.

You can click each individual CVE to view in-depth details about it on a panel that appears on the right.

| | **Description** | The general NIST description of the CVE. | | **Excluded** | Indicates whether this CVE is excluded from all endpoint and application views and filters, and from all Host Insights widgets. | | **Platforms** | The name and version of the operating system affected by this CVE. | | **Severity** | The severity level (Critical, High, Medium, or Low) of the CVE as ranked in the NIST database. | | **Severity score** | The CVE severity score is based on the NIST Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS). Click the score to see the full CVSS description. | For each vulnerability, Cortex XDR displays the following default and optional values. If you have the Identity Threat Module enabled, you can also view the CVE analysis in the Host Risk View. To do so, from Inventory → Assets → Asset Scores, select the Hosts tab, right click on any endpoint, and select Open Host Risk View. To evaluate the extent and severity of each CVE across your endpoints, you can drill down into each CVE in Cortex XDR and view all the endpoints and applications in your environment that are impacted by the CVE. Cortex XDR retrieves the latest information from the NIST public database. From Inventory → Endpoints → Host Inventory → Vulnerability Assessment, select CVEs on the upper-right bar. This information is also available in the `va_cves` dataset, which you can use to build queries in XQL Search.
Endpoint Analysis * **View endpoint details**: Left-click the endpoint to view in-depth details about it on a panel that appears on the right. Use the in-panel links as needed. * **View a complete list of all applications installed on an endpoint**: Right-click the endpoint and then select View installed applications. This list includes the application name, and version, of applications on the endpoint. If an installed application has known vulnerabilities, Cortex XDR also displays the list of CVEs and the highest Severity. * (Windows only) **Isolate an endpoint from your network**: Right-click the endpoint and then select Isolate the endpoint before or during your remediation to allow the Cortex XDR agent to communicate only with Cortex XDR . * (Windows only) **View a complete list of all KBs installed on an endpoint**: Right-click the endpoint and then select View installed KBs. This list includes all the Microsoft Windows patches that were installed on the endpoint and a link to the Microsoft official Knowledge Base (KB) support article. This information is also available in the `host_inventory_kbs` preset, which you can use to build queries in XQL Search. * **Retrieve an updated list of applications installed on an endpoint**: Right-click the endpoint and then select Rescan endpoint You can perform the following actions from Cortex XDR as you investigate and remediate your endpoints: | Value | Description | | --------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **CVEs** | A list of all CVEs that exist on applications that are installed on the endpoint. | | **Endpoint ID** | Unique ID assigned by Cortex XDR that identifies the endpoint. | | **Endpoint name** |

Hostname of the endpoint.

You can click each individual endpoint to view in-depth details about it on a panel that appears on the right.

| | **Last Reported Timestamp** | The date and time of the last time the Cortex XDR agent started the process of reporting its application inventory to Cortex XDR. | | **MAC address** | The MAC address associated with the endpoint. | | **IP address** | The IP address associated with the endpoint. | | **Platform** | The name of the platform running on the endpoint. | | **Severity** | The severity level (Critical, High, Medium, or Low) of the CVE as ranked in the NIST database. | | **Severity score** | The CVE severity score based on the NIST Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS). Click the score to see the full CVSS description. | For each vulnerability, Cortex XDR displays the following default and optional values. To help you assess the vulnerability status of an endpoint, Cortex XDR provides a full list of all installed applications and existing CVEs per endpoint and also assigns each endpoint a vulnerability severity score that reflects the highest NIST vulnerability score detected on the endpoint. This information helps you to determine the best course of action for remediating each endpoint. From Inventory → Endpoints → Host Inventory → Vulnerability Assessment, select Endpoints on the upper-right bar. This information is also available in the `va_endpoints` dataset. In addition, the `host_inventory_endpoints` preset lists all endpoints, CVE data, and additional metadata regarding the endpoint information. You can use this dataset and preset to build queries in XQL Search.
Application Analysis * To view the details of all the endpoints in your network on which an application is installed, right-click the application and select View endpoints. * To view in-depth details about the application, left-click the application name. From Inventory → Endpoints → Host Inventory, select Applications. Starting with macOS 10.15, Mac built-in system applications are not reported by the Cortex XDR agent and are not part of the Cortex XDR Application Inventory. You can assess the vulnerability status of applications in your network using the Host inventory. Cortex XDR compiles an application inventory of all the applications installed in your network by collecting from each Cortex XDR agent the list of installed applications. For each application on the list, you can see the existing CVEs and the vulnerability severity score that reflects the highest NIST vulnerability score detected for the application. Any new application installed on the endpoint will appear in Cortex XDR within 24 hours. Alternatively, you can re-scan the endpoint to retrieve the most updated list.

--- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://cortex-docs.paloaltonetworks.com/cortex-xdr-5.x/protect-your-endpoints/install-and-manage-endpoints/harden-endpoint-security/vulnerability-assessment.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.