Security Tasks

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated April 18, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Security Tasks

    Security Tasks in ServiceNow's Security Center allow you to efficiently monitor, prioritize, and manage all security-related activities in one centralized location. This capability helps you save time by organizing and tracking tasks that improve and maintain your instance’s security posture.

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    Access and Filtering

    You can access Security Tasks by navigating to All > Security Center > Security Tasks. The interface displays all tasks by default and provides convenient cards for filtering tasks based on their status—such as upcoming, overdue, or open—while showing the count for each category. Additionally, you can use standard table filters and an advanced filter view to create and save custom filters for recurring use.

    User Roles and Permissions

    • System Administrator (admin): Full rights to view, create, assign, and delete tasks.
    • Security Center Viewer: Read-only access to view tasks without editing or creating capabilities.
    • Security Task Manager: Can manage assigned tasks and create/manage tasks within Security Center; can view others’ tasks but cannot edit tasks assigned to others; access is limited to task manager pages.
    • ITIL: Can interact with tasks assigned to them but does not have visibility over all tasks.

    Task Management Features

    • Bulk Assignment: Select multiple tasks using checkboxes to assign them to yourself or delete them in bulk.
    • Task Creation: Create tasks from various security pages, such as from the Best Practices tool, by using the +Create Task button to assign specific security improvements.
    • Automatic Task Generation: Security Tasks can be generated automatically in response to platform events, ensuring timely action on security issues.
    • Edit and Assign Tasks: Tasks can be edited to assign to users, set due dates, and add detailed instructions, helping streamline task completion.
    • Export Tasks: Export Security Tasks into various file formats for external review or reporting purposes.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    Using Security Tasks empowers security teams to centralize task management, improve accountability through roles and permissions, automate task creation based on system events, and maintain clear visibility into security activities. This structured approach facilitates proactive security posture management and efficient task prioritization within your ServiceNow environment.

    Use Security Tasks to monitor, prioritize, and assign all your security-related tasks in one place.

    Save time tracking and organizing all the tasks needed to improve and maintain your instance security posture using Security Tasks.

    Review and manage Security Tasks

    Security Task page in Security Center

    Access the Security Tasks by navigating to All > Security Center > Security Tasks. By default, all tasks are displayed in the list. You can easily filter upcoming, overdue, or open tasks by selecting the cards above the list. These cards also display the current count of tasks in each of these categories. You can further refine your filter by using the normal table field filtering options and then selecting the filter button (filter button), then selecting the Advanced view button to create and save a custom filters to use later.

    User roles

    The Security Tasks use the following roles:

    User Required role Description
    System Administrator admin System Administrators can view, create, assign, and delete Security Tasks.
    Security Center Viewer sn_vsc_security_center_viewer Viewers can view, but not create, delete or edit Security Tasks.
    Security Task Manager sn_vsc_task_manager Security Task Managers can work on assigned tasks, view task manager-related pages, and create and manage tasks within Security center. They can view tasks assigned to other users but can't edit tasks assigned to other users. Task managers can't access non-task manager pages in Security Center.
    ITIL itil ITIL users can interact with Security Tasks assigned to them, but can't view all tasks as the admin and Security Task manager roles can.

    Quickly assign to yourself Security Tasks

    Use the check boxes to the left of the items in the list to select multiple items. When one of more tasks is selected, you can use the Delete button to delete the selected tasks, or the Edit button to assign the selected tasks to yourself.

    Selected tasks on the task list

    Create Security Tasks

    Create a Security Task with the +Create Task button, which is available various platform security pages.

    For example, in Security Center, on the Best Practices tool details page, the admin can select the +Create Task button to create and assign a task to complete this best practice.

    Incomplete best practices in Security CenterBest practices list
    Incomplete best practice record with create task button Security task record

    Automatically generated tasks

    Security Tasks can be automatically generated. Automatic Security Task generation is triggered by an associated event that occurred on the platform. Learn more about generated Security Tasks in Automatic Security Task generation.

    Edit and assign Security Tasks

    Edit Security Tasks to assign them to users, define due dates, and provide additional details to the users who will complete these tasks. For details, see Edit Security Tasks.

    Export tasks

    You can export Security Tasks into the format of your choice to view on other platforms. For details, see Export Security Tasks.