{runphp}include '/home/gtronc5/includes/ssloff.php';{/runphp}Vulnerability scanners are a good start for securing your network, but the personal experience of a trained analyst can prove to be invaluable.

The importance of scanning your entire network for vulnerabilities cannot be overstated.  Annual scanning by an external party is simply not enough.  At Pacific Northwest National Labs a continuous scan for "top 10" vulnerabilities completes about once per hour, and taking it a step futher they perform a credentialed scan of the network daily.  CIO Jerry Johnson also recommends using several scanning tools since no one tool picks up all vulnerabilities. 

A periodical assessment of your complete program is essential as well.  Both technical and programmatic aspects of cyberprotection should be evaluated.  Help from an independent assessor, such as an external consultant, is a good plan of action.

Don't fall into the trap of becoming too dependent on simply scanning your network.  The knowledge of an experienced analyst goes much further to actually detecting intrusions.  With experience comes intuition.  Beyond experience, look for someone that has been trained in forensics as well.

References:

InformationWeek

http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206801049&subSection=All+Stories