Few security practices carry as much weight as patch management. Consider the cautionary tale of Travelex. In early 2020, the British currency exchange was hit by a ransomware attack that spread quickly across its network, locking staff out of their systems. Reports suggest the company paid millions to restore access and prevent sensitive data from being sold; an outcome that underscores how a single gap in patching can cascade into a business-wide crisis.
The root cause was widely believed to be an unpatched flaw in a Pulse Connect Secure VPN.
Attackers leveraged the weakness to bypass authentication and move directly into the network.
The breach triggered months of disruption, ultimately driving Travelex into administration and leading to more than 1,000 job losses, though the company continues to operate today.
This is far from an isolated case.
Unpatched vulnerabilities remain one of the most exploited entry points for attackers, making patch management a cornerstone of both IT and security.
For IT leaders, resilient workflows align IT and security, strengthen governance, and turn audits into routine checkpoints, all while building confidence that compliance and business velocity can coexist.
For practitioners, they mean fewer tickets, faster patch cycles, and less disruption for end users.
With an intelligent workflow platform, IT teams can orchestrate patching end to end; connecting systems, reducing manual effort, and embedding security earlier in the process. The result is improved business continuity, a smaller attack surface, and reduced financial, reputational, and compliance risk.
The problems with patch management
If patching were easy, we wouldn’t keep hearing stories about breaches at organizations like Travelex, Advanced, and Equifax. But IT teams face persistent challenges:
CVE overload. More than 40,000 new CVEs were published in 2024; a record-breaking 38% increase. Without an intelligent workflow platform, it’s nearly impossible to prioritize and deploy patches at this scale.
Manual processes. Managing patches by hand increases human error, creates bottlenecks, and delays rollouts.
Fragmented systems. The more fragmented systems and point solutions involved in patch management, the greater the overhead and the higher the risk of gaps in coverage.
Visibility issues. Incomplete information and siloed systems make it difficult to see patch status across environments, whether cloud, on prem, or even hybrid.
End-user resistance. Employees may delay or skip updates to avoid disruption, exposing the organization to unnecessary risk.
This is the daily reality for many IT teams, but it doesn’t have to be. Orchestrated workflows make patch management faster, more reliable, and less disruptive, giving IT confidence in the process and employees a seamless experience.
The cost of getting it wrong
The stakes for patch management couldn’t be higher.
Failure to address a known vulnerability can directly result in data loss, extortion, or both.
Verizon reports that 20% of data breaches last year began with vulnerability exploitation.
IBM puts the average cost of a breach at $4.4 million. When ransomware is in play, the cost multiplies; downtime, lost revenue, reputational damage, and regulatory penalties. Compliance frameworks from PCI DSS and HIPAA to GDPR, NIS2, and DORA all demand effective patch management, making it both a security imperative and a regulatory requirement.
Tines: Confidence in every patch cycle
Patch management is often complex and inconsistent. With Tines, IT and security teams orchestrate the process end to end, removing manual effort, reducing risk, while always ensuring security and compliance scale with the business.
Orchestrated patch management enables:
Complete visibility into assets, timelines, and blockers so nothing falls through the cracks.
Unified orchestration across every environment, from SaaS and cloud to on-prem infrastructure.
Built-in consistency and compliance, minimizing error and simplifying audit readiness.
Agility at scale, giving IT and security the confidence to support growth without additional headcount.
Proof in action
Customers use Tines to transform their patch management programs:
A global crowdfunding company reduced unpatched vulnerabilities by 83% in the first 90 days. A Tines exposure management workflow identified medium- or high-severity vulnerabilities left unpatched for more than 30 days. It then messaged end users in Slack with instructions and deadlines, cutting vulnerabilities from 3,000 per month to just 500.
BCM One, a US-based telecoms provider, needed to manage more than one million vulnerabilities without adding engineering overhead. Using Tines’ intuitive and flexible interface, VP of IT and Information Security Dan Rubins rebuilt the company’s patch management program, reducing vulnerabilities by 55%.
MyFitnessPal streamlined macOS updates with a self-service workflow that let users opt into a pilot group. After testing, updates were automatically rolled out across the organization, reducing manual coordination and improving adoption.
Reddit is building a Slack-based workflow that prompts employees who haven’t patched their systems. If ignored, the workflow escalates automatically, creating a consistent, repeatable enforcement process while maintaining end-user trust.
Turo used Tines to connect AWS insights directly into Jira, giving a lean security team real-time visibility across endpoints and creating auditable, consistent patching processes.
Get started with orchestrating patch management
Kick-starting patch management with Tines doesn’t require an overhaul, just three practical steps to build momentum and confidence:
Aggregate and prioritize: Combine vulnerability insights from MDMs, patch platforms, and asset inventories into a unified workflow, helping you pinpoint risks and exposed endpoints with clarity and confidence.
Orchestrate with precision: Reduce end-user disruption by grouping systems, staging rollouts, and auto-triggering patches at the right time, reinforcing consistency and efficiency across your IT landscape.
Continuously measure and optimize: Automate tracking of patch metrics, system health, and workflow performance. Refine tactics by adding context-aware enhancements e.g. region-specific schedules, emergency update prompts, or exclusion rules for critical users.
Here’s what a simple patch management workflow looks like in the Tines platform:
Streamline macOS software updates with self-service patch management
Our macOS Patch Management automation streamlines the entire lifecycle of managing software updates for macOS operating systems. It includes a self-service implementation of opting in and out of the patch management pilot group via Tines pages and a ring 0/ring1 approach to distributing macOS operating system updates. Updates are initially pushed to the pilot group for testing, and after a week, they are rolled out to the production group. This automation neatly balances user empowerment, system security and stability, and overall reduction of our company's attack surface.
Tools
Community author
Tyler Talaga at MyFitnessPal
Better with Tines
As IT environments grow more complex, the cost of unpatched vulnerabilities rises. Attackers now use automation to find weaknesses in minutes, but orchestration can work in your favor.
With Tines, IT leaders strengthen resilience, simplify compliance, and align seamlessly with security priorities.
Practitioners gain the visibility, speed, and relief from manual work they need to stay ahead. Together, teams reduce risk, improve oversight, and unlock time for projects that drive real business value.
Download our free guide to see how Tines’ intelligent workflow platform can transform patch management.