Which of the following is a proactive exercise that scans for vulnerabilities before they are exploited?

Threat hunting is a proactive exercise aimed at detecting and mitigating vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by malicious actors. This approach involves actively searching for signs of threats within an organization's network and systems, even when there are no known indicators of compromise. By doing so, security professionals can identify and address vulnerabilities that might otherwise go unnoticed.

This approach goes beyond traditional security measures, focusing on understanding the tactics, techniques, and procedures that attackers may use. By employing threat hunting, organizations can enhance their security posture, reduce the risk of a successful attack, and strengthen their incident response capabilities.

In contrast, statistics gathering does not directly address vulnerabilities; it may collect data for analysis but lacks a proactive security focus. Patch management is critical for closing known vulnerabilities but does not inherently include the active search for potential threats. Backup solutions are essential for data recovery but do not proactively identify or mitigate vulnerabilities. Thus, threat hunting stands out as the most effective proactive exercise in scanning for vulnerabilities.