CVE Watchlist & Action Recommendation Generator

Generate prioritized CVE watchlists with actionable security recommendations for development and security teams.

Workflow

1. Gather Input Data

Collect required inputs:

Required:

• Repository name/path
• CVE scan results (JSON/SARIF format from npm audit, pip-audit, Snyk, etc.)
• Cutoff date (YYYY-MM-DD) for filtering new CVEs

Optional but recommended:

• Reachability analysis results (which vulnerable code paths are actually used)
• Exploit intelligence data (CISA KEV, ExploitDB)
• Dependency criticality ratings (how critical each dependency is)

Parse scan results:

python scripts/parse_scan_results.py scan_results.json auto 2024-01-01 > parsed_cves.json

2. Calculate Risk Scores

Combine multiple risk factors to prioritize CVEs:

python scripts/calculate_risk_score.py parsed_cves.json reachability.json exploits.json criticality.json > scored_cves.json

Risk scoring formula:

Risk Score = (Severity × 0.35) + (Reachability × 0.30) + (Exploitability × 0.20) + (Dependency Criticality × 0.15)

See risk_scoring.md for detailed methodology.

3. Generate Recommendations

For each CVE, determine appropriate action based on risk score and context:

Decision tree:

• Risk ≥ 80 (Critical) → Immediate upgrade (24-48h)
• Risk 60-79 (High) → Upgrade within days (3-5 days)
• Risk 40-59 (Medium) → Next maintenance cycle (2-4 weeks)
• Risk 20-39 (Low) → Monitor or defer
• Risk < 20 (Minimal) → Ignore with justification

See action_guidelines.md for complete decision tree and recommendation templates.

4. Generate Report

Create markdown-formatted report using template:

Report structure:

1. Executive Summary (CVE counts by risk tier)
2. Prioritized CVE Watchlist (grouped by risk tier)
3. For each CVE:
   • Risk score and breakdown
   • Affected package and versions
   • Reachability status
   • Exploit availability
   • Concrete action recommendation
   • Upgrade commands
   • Mitigation options (if applicable)
4. Summary of Actions (immediate, short-term, medium-term)
5. Dependency Overview
6. Next Steps

Use template from assets/report_template.md.

Input Formats

CVE Scan Results

npm audit (JSON):

{
  "vulnerabilities": {
    "package-name": {
      "via": [{
        "cve": ["CVE-2024-1234"],
        "severity": "high",
        "title": "SQL Injection",
        "url": "https://..."
      }],
      "fixAvailable": {"version": "2.0.0"}
    }
  }
}

pip-audit (JSON):

{
  "dependencies": [{
    "name": "package-name",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "vulns": [{
      "id": "CVE-2024-1234",
      "fix_versions": ["2.0.0"],
      "description": "..."
    }]
  }]
}

Snyk (JSON):

{
  "vulnerabilities": [{
    "id": "SNYK-...",
    "identifiers": {"CVE": ["CVE-2024-1234"]},
    "packageName": "package-name",
    "severity": "high",
    "cvssScore": 7.5
  }]
}

Reachability Analysis

{
  "package-name": {
    "status": "direct_call",
    "details": "Called from src/auth.js:42"
  },
  "other-package": {
    "status": "not_reachable",
    "details": "Dev dependency only"
  }
}

Status values: direct_call, indirect_call, imported_unused, not_reachable, unknown

Exploit Intelligence

{
  "CVE-2024-1234": {
    "actively_exploited": true,
    "public_exploit": true,
    "poc_available": true,
    "source": "CISA KEV"
  }
}

Dependency Criticality

{
  "package-name": {
    "level": "critical",
    "reason": "Handles authentication and authorization"
  },
  "dev-tool": {
    "level": "minimal",
    "reason": "Development-only linting tool"
  }
}

Levels: critical, high, medium, low, minimal

Example Output

# CVE Security Report

**Repository**: my-app
**Cutoff Date**: 2024-01-01
**New CVEs**: 5

| Risk Tier | Count | Action Required |
|-----------|-------|-----------------|
| 🔴 Critical | 1 | Immediate (24-48h) |
| 🟠 High | 2 | Within days (3-5d) |
| 🟡 Medium | 1 | Next cycle (2-4w) |
| 🟢 Low | 1 | Monitor |

---

### 🔴 Critical Risk

#### CVE-2024-1234: SQL Injection in database-driver

**Risk Score**: 96 / 100 (Critical)

**Affected Package**: database-driver@1.2.3

**Severity**: Critical (CVSS 9.8)

**Reachability**: Direct call from src/db/query.js:42

**Exploitability**: Public exploit available (ExploitDB)

**Action**: Immediate upgrade required

**Steps**:
1. Upgrade database-driver from 1.2.3 to 2.0.0
2. Run full test suite
3. Deploy with rollback plan

**Command**:
```bash
npm install database-driver@2.0.0

Risk if not addressed: Attackers can execute arbitrary SQL queries, leading to data breach

## Tips

- **Always include reachability data** when available - it significantly improves prioritization accuracy
- **Check for breaking changes** in fix versions before recommending immediate upgrades
- **Document assumptions** when data is missing (e.g., "Assuming moderate risk due to unknown reachability")
- **Provide specific commands** for each package manager (npm, pip, maven, etc.)
- **Include mitigation options** for high-risk CVEs when upgrades are blocked
- **Link to CVE details** and security advisories for further investigation
- **Group multiple CVEs** in the same package when a single upgrade fixes all

## Resources

### scripts/
- `parse_scan_results.py` - Parse CVE scan results from npm audit, pip-audit, Snyk, SARIF
- `calculate_risk_score.py` - Calculate composite risk scores from multiple factors

### references/
- `risk_scoring.md` - Risk scoring methodology and factor calculations
- `action_guidelines.md` - Decision tree for generating recommendations

### assets/
- `report_template.md` - Markdown report template structure