It’s Time to Understand and Manage Vulnerability Debt

Vulnerability prioritization isn’t just an important piece of any organization’s vulnerability management process. It’s a requirement. With the volume so high, and growing, it’s simply impossible to address every vulnerability an organization encounters. 

Prioritization comes at a price. Many organizations focus on a small number of the most critical vulnerabilities in their environment, which leads to an important question: What happens to the rest? 

Those vulnerabilities don’t disappear. They pile up over time, creating what experts are beginning to call vulnerability debt—a hidden liability that can come due when attackers exploit issues once considered “low priority.” 

During a recent interview with industry analyst Jon Oltsik on his podcast, The Cybersecurity Bridge, Nucleus co-founder Scott Kuffer said: 

“From 2016 to about 2022, it was the, hey, only 2% of vulnerabilities matter… And I’m like, well, what about the other 98%? Because all the data shows that the stuff that doesn’t matter right now will matter in the future.” 

Let’s take a closer look at vulnerability debt and what organizations can do to address it.

What Is Vulnerability Debt? 

Vulnerability debt is the accumulation of unfixed vulnerabilities that organizations choose not to remediate today. This is often because of limited resources, prioritization frameworks, or tool fatigue. 

Like technical debt in software development, vulnerability debt grows quietly until it becomes unmanageable. Over time, dormant vulnerabilities may resurface as exploited weaknesses, leaving organizations exposed. 

Vulnerability and technical debt operate very much like financial debt for individuals or families. Paying for expenses or goods using a credit card or loan helps accelerate things in the near-term. Accruing debt comes at a cost, however, with interest payments, additional future debt, and other expenses taxing your available funds. 

Like credit card debt, ignored vulnerabilities quietly accrue interest. The longer you ignore them, the more expensive they become. This can leave organizations struggling to catch up after old vulnerabilities and exposures compound over the years. 

Why Is Vulnerability Debt a Problem? 

1. Economic burden 

Fixing vulnerabilities is costly. According to Scott, “It can cost anywhere from $100 to $50,000 per vulnerability to fix … and just economically, you can’t justify spending $50 million to fix vulnerabilities when you’re trying to operate a business.” 

When left unmanaged, debt compounds, increasing both direct remediation costs and indirect risk exposure. 

2. Expanding attack surface 

Cloud, SaaS, containers, and IoT environments mean vulnerabilities ignored today can become internet-facing tomorrow. The rate of discovery for new CVEs isn’t slowing down, either. According to the conversation, in 2017 there were 14,645 CVEs reported. In 2024, that number rose to around 40,000. 

3. Regulatory and compliance pressure 

Frameworks like CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) list and new SEC rules require faster response times, leaving less room to let vulnerabilities linger. 

How Do You Measure Vulnerability Debt? 

Organizations can think about vulnerability debt in terms of a curve: 

• Unmanaged debt grows exponentially, as vulnerabilities pile up and become harder to address.
• Managed debt stays contained, thanks to systematic processes and efficient remediation.

A conceptual illustration of the growing tech debt curve

How Can You Reduce Vulnerability Debt? 

Reducing vulnerability debt requires both short-term action and long-term strategy: 

1. Start With what you can control 

Don’t wait for perfect inventories or full CISO buy-in. Prove value within a small scope, then expand. 

“Everybody gets bogged down in ‘My asset inventory isn’t perfect,’ but I’ll tell you that you can make a huge impact with just what your reality is today.” Scott Kuffer, Nucleus CPO and Co-Founder 

2. Bundle remediation 

Align fixes with existing patch cycles (e.g., Patch Tuesday) to address multiple issues at once. In the Nucleus Platform, the Fixes page displays vulnerabilities grouped by specific remediation steps to help this process. 

3. Prioritize with business context 

Risk scoring helps, but context—asset criticality, exploitability, and internet exposure—ensures effort is directed where it matters most. 

4. Track and report debt 

Treat vulnerability debt like financial or technical debt. Use metrics to show leadership how it changes over time. 

Quick Answers to Common Questions 

What is vulnerability debt in cybersecurity? 
Vulnerability debt is the backlog of unfixed vulnerabilities an organization carries forward, creating long-term security and economic risk. 

Why does vulnerability debt matter? 
It compounds over time, increasing the chance that older, “low priority” vulnerabilities become exploitable, costly, and subject to regulatory scrutiny. 

How can organizations reduce vulnerability debt? 
Start small, bundle fixes, apply business context to prioritization, and track progress like financial debt. 

Final Thoughts 

Vulnerability debt is the cybersecurity industry’s silent liability. Prioritization alone isn’t enough. The long tail of unfixed issues, if left unmanaged, will eventually demand attention, often when resources are stretched and stakes are highest. 

The good news is that organizations can manage vulnerability debt proactively. By combining context-driven prioritization, efficient remediation, and strategic tracking, security teams can prevent debt from spiraling out of control. 

In other words, the goal isn’t to eliminate all vulnerabilities. It’s to manage vulnerability debt as carefully as any other business risk. Contact us to learn how you can manage your vulnerability debt more efficiently using the Nucleus platform.