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Xpanse is a tool from Palo Alto Networks that provides attack surface management by analyzing exposed services and internet-facing assets, giving security operations teams visibility into environmental risks and helping prioritize remediation of vulnerabilities.

Authorization is the component of the AAA (Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting) framework that regulates user access and permissions to resources after identity has been verified. It determines what actions or resources a user is allowed to access.

A Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system collects data from various sources (logs, events, etc.) and uses correlation rules to analyze this data and trigger alarms when suspicious or predefined patterns are detected.

Scripting of manual tasks – SOAR platforms automate repetitive, manual security tasks through playbooks and scripting, improving response time and efficiency.

Consistent incident handling – SOAR ensures that incidents are managed in a standardized and repeatable manner, reducing errors and improving compliance.

Isolated system and log retention are not core advantages of SOAR.

An Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) includes automated security actions, such as blocking malicious traffic, resetting connections, or alerting administrators when it detects suspicious activity, helping to stop attacks in real time.

Application allow listing is a security practice that permits only pre-approved (trusted) applications, files, and processes to run on a system. This approach helps prevent unauthorized or malicious software from executing, thereby reducing the attack surface.

XDR (Extended Detection and Response) uses machine learning (ML) to detect threats by identifying patterns and anomalies. XDR ingests data from multiple sources — including endpoints, networks, servers, and cloud workloads — to provide a unified and correlated view of threats across the environment.

Code security focuses on identifying vulnerabilities and misconfigurations early in the development process. It uses tools like static code analysis and infrastructure-as-code (IaC) scanning to ensure secure coding and configuration before deployment.

Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services combine incident impact analysis and proactive threat hunting to enhance organizational security posture. Incident impact analysis assesses the severity, scope, and potential damage of identified threats, helping prioritize responses. Proactive threat hunting involves skilled analysts searching for hidden threats that automated detection may miss, leveraging threat intelligence and behavioral analytics. Palo Alto Networks’ MDR integrates Cortex XDR and human expertise to detect, investigate, and remediate sophisticated threats early. Unlike routine firewall updates or development processes, MDR is focused on active threat discovery and comprehensive incident management.

Account discovery is a technique in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the Discovery tactic. It involves adversaries attempting to identify user accounts on a system or network.

Credential access, lateral movement, and resource development are tactics — high-level objectives an attacker is trying to achieve.