# Vulnerability

A weakness in software, hardware, or a process that could be exploited by an attacker to cause harm.

A **vulnerability[↗](/vulnerability)** is a weakness in software, hardware, or a process that could be exploited by an attacker to cause harm, anything from a coding mistake that allows unauthorized access, to a misconfigured setting that leaves data exposed. Vulnerabilities are typically assigned a public identifier (a CVE number) once discovered, so organizations can track and patch[↗](/patch) them.

Not every vulnerability is equally dangerous: severity depends on how easily it can be exploited, whether the system is reachable from the internet, and what an attacker gains if they succeed. Finding and fixing vulnerabilities before attackers do, through patching, testing, and code review, is a continuous, ongoing process rather than a one-time task.