Hardening Windows Endpoint with CIS Benchmark

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• Deploying new Windows 10/11 or Server 2019/2022 endpoints that require security hardening
• Establishing organization-wide security baselines using CIS Level 1 or Level 2 profiles
• Remediating findings from compliance audits (PCI DSS, HIPAA, SOC 2) that reference CIS benchmarks
• Validating existing endpoint configurations against current CIS benchmark versions

Do not use this skill for Linux endpoints (use hardening-linux-endpoint-with-cis-benchmark) or for cloud-native workloads that require CIS cloud benchmarks.

Prerequisites

• Windows 10/11 Enterprise or Windows Server 2019/2022 target endpoints
• Active Directory Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) for enterprise deployment
• CIS-CAT Pro Assessor or CIS-CAT Lite for automated benchmark assessment
• Administrative access to target endpoints or domain controller
• Current CIS Benchmark PDF for the target Windows version (download from cisecurity.org)