Reducing Security Risk Through Automated Patching
A Tier-1 bank reduced its security exposure by transforming manual patching into an automated, auditable workflow with real-time visibility and control.
Context
In a large banking environment, patching is both critical and constant. Thousands of servers and applications require regular security updates, yet the organisation’s patching workflow relied heavily on manual requests and hand-offs.
This created delays, reduced visibility and increased risk. Leadership lacked confidence in which systems were patched and which remained exposed, while technical teams spent valuable time managing administration rather than remediation. Each delay extended the organisation’s vulnerability window and increased compliance pressure.
Approach
This engagement focused on removing friction from a critical security process, replacing manual effort with automation, visibility and assurance.
Define
The first step was understanding where risk was being introduced.
Existing patching workflows were mapped end-to-end, exposing redundant steps, manual bottlenecks and points where requests stalled. This provided a clear baseline for how long patching actually took and where delays were increasing exposure.
Just as importantly, it highlighted the absence of reliable reporting, making it difficult for leadership to assess security posture with confidence.
Align
With the baseline established, the workflow was redesigned for speed and clarity.
An optimised, automated patching request process was implemented within ServiceNow, ensuring requests were triggered, tracked and validated with minimal human intervention. Automation replaced manual coordination, allowing work to progress consistently and predictably.
A real-time reporting layer was also introduced, giving security and operations teams immediate visibility into patching status across the environment.
Govern
Governance was embedded through transparency and repeatability.
Automated reporting enabled continuous oversight without slowing delivery. Leadership could now see, at any point, which systems were compliant, which required attention and where risk was being actively managed.
This shifted governance from retrospective reporting to proactive assurance.
Outcome
Security posture improved and operational effort reduced.
The window of vulnerability for unpatched systems was significantly reduced as updates moved through the organisation faster and more consistently. High-value technical staff were freed from administrative overhead, lowering the cost per patch and improving overall throughput.
With audit-ready reporting in place, the organisation can now demonstrate compliance with internal security standards and external regulatory requirements at any time, confidently and without manual effort.