If your organization accepts payment cards, protecting cardholder data means meeting specific requirements under the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). For many organizations, one of those responsibilities is ASV scanning.
An ASV, or Approved Scanning Vendor, is an organization approved by the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) to provide external vulnerability scanning services used to validate adherence to applicable PCI DSS requirements. But working with an ASV involves more than running a vulnerability scanner once every few months. It provides a structured process for identifying vulnerabilities, addressing findings, and demonstrating that applicable external scanning requirements have been met.
Understanding how the process works can make ASV PCI DSS compliance easier to manage while helping organizations get more security value from a required activity.
What Does an ASV Do?
An ASV uses a scanning solution that has been tested and approved by the PCI SSC to evaluate internet-facing systems for vulnerabilities. Organizations providing these services must also maintain their approved status with the Council.
The purpose is straightforward: identify vulnerabilities in externally accessible systems that could create risk for payment card environments.
An ASV scan typically begins by identifying the systems included within scope and determining which services are exposed. Those systems are then scanned for issues such as missing patches, configuration problems, vulnerable software, and potentially dangerous services.
Findings must then be reviewed and addressed before the organization can complete the applicable reporting process.
Carson & SAINT has served as a PCI Approved Scanning Vendor since 2008, and SAINT ASV supports this process from initial discovery through validation and attested reporting.
What Are the PCI ASV Scan Requirements?
PCI DSS Requirement 11.3.2 requires applicable organizations to perform external vulnerability scans at least once every three months using an Approved Scanning Vendor.
The PCI ASV scan requirements also apply after significant changes to the environment in certain circumstances. Organizations need to identify the appropriate scope, complete the required scans, address applicable findings, and obtain passing results according to PCI SSC requirements.
The resulting ASV scan report provides documentation of the assessment and is part of demonstrating adherence to the applicable external vulnerability scanning requirement.
For a deeper look at who needs these scans and how they fit into PCI DSS, see PCI ASV Explained: Who Needs It and Why It Matters.
What Happens When an ASV Scan Finds a Vulnerability?
Finding vulnerabilities is part of the process. What happens afterward is just as important.
When an ASV scan identifies an issue that prevents a passing result, the organization needs to investigate the finding, determine the appropriate remediation, make the necessary changes, and scan again.
Potential false positives may also require validation and dispute resolution.
This is one reason the relationship with your PCI ASV matters. Organizations benefit from having a clear process for understanding findings and resolving issues rather than simply receiving a report that says the scan failed.
SAINT ASV provides support through remediation and dispute resolution while allowing organizations to validate findings and rescan as needed.
Passing an ASV Scan Is Not the Same as PCI Compliance
An important distinction can get lost when organizations first encounter ASV PCI requirements: passing an external vulnerability scan does not mean the entire organization is PCI DSS compliant.
ASV scanning addresses specific external vulnerability scanning requirements within PCI DSS. Organizations still need to determine and satisfy the other PCI DSS requirements applicable to their environments.
That makes ASV scanning one component of a broader compliance and security program.
Our ASV Service and PCI Compliance resource provides a closer look at how scanning fits into the broader PCI compliance process.
Quarterly Compliance Should Not Mean Quarterly Visibility
Required quarterly scans establish a compliance cadence. They do not have to establish the limits of your vulnerability management program.
Internet-facing systems change between assessments. Software gets updated. Configurations change. New vulnerabilities are discovered. Waiting until the next required scan to look for problems can leave issues unresolved longer than necessary.
Scanning more frequently can help organizations identify vulnerabilities earlier, address potential failures before the next required assessment, and maintain better visibility into their external attack surface.
SAINT ASV supports on-demand scanning between required compliance cycles, with flexible scanning for environments ranging from a single host to hundreds of targets. Organizations can manage scans, review vulnerabilities, monitor in-scope systems, and generate reports through a secure web-based portal.
Get More From Your ASV Scanning Program
For organizations subject to applicable PCI DSS requirements, ASV scanning is a necessary part of maintaining compliance. It can also provide useful insight into vulnerabilities affecting internet-facing systems.
The difference comes from how the process is managed.
A strong ASV program gives security teams a repeatable path from discovering vulnerabilities to remediation, validation, and reporting. More frequent scanning can also help teams address problems before they become compliance issues or create unnecessary exposure.
With the right process and the right partner, an ASV scan becomes more than a quarterly requirement. It becomes another opportunity to understand your environment, reduce risk, and better protect the payment card data your customers trust you to secure.
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