10 Steps to Create Your Own Security Audit

Every business has valuable IT assets such as computers, networks, and data. And protecting those assets requires that companies big and small conduct their own IT security audits in order to get a clear picture of the security risks they face and how to best deal with those threats.

The following are 10 steps to conducting your own basic IT security audit. While these steps won't be as extensive as audits provided by professional consultants, this DIY version will get you started on the road to protecting your own company.

1. Defining the Scope of Your Audit: Creating Asset Lists and a Security Perimeter

The first step in conducting an audit is to create a master list of the assets your company has, in order to later decide upon what needs to be protected through the audit. While it is easy to list your tangible assets, things like computers, servers, and files, it becomes more difficult to list intangible assets. To ensure consistency in deciding which intangible company assets are included, it is helpful to draw a "security perimeter" for your audit.

What is the Security Perimeter?
The security perimeter is both a conceptual and physical boundary within which your security audit will focus, and outside of which your audit will ignore. You ultimately decide for yourself what your security perimeter is, but a general rule of thumb is that the security perimeter should be the smallest boundary that contains the assets that you own and/or need to control for your own company's security.

Assets to Consider
Once you have drawn up your security perimeter, it is time to complete your asset list. That involves considering every potential company asset and deciding whether or not it fits within the "security perimeter" you have drawn. To get you started, here is a list of common sensitive assets:

1. Computers and laptops
2. Routers and networking equipment
3. Printers
4. Cameras, digital or analog, with company-sensitive photographs
5. Data - sales, customer information, employee information
6. Company smartphones/ PDAs
7. VoIP phones, IP PBXs (digital version of phone exchange boxes), related servers
8. VoIP or regular phone call recordings and records
9. Email
10. Log of employees daily schedule and activities
11. Web pages, especially those that ask for customer details and those that are backed by web scripts that query a database
12. Web server computer
13. Security cameras
14. Employee access cards.
15. Access points (i.e., any scanners that control room entry)

This is by no means an exhaustive list, and you should at this point spend some time considering what other sensitive assets your company has. The more detail you use in listing your company's assets (e.g., "25 Dell Laptops Model D420 Version 2006", instead of "25 Computers") the better, because this will help you recognize more clearly the specific threats which face each particular company asset.

2. Creating a 'Threats List'

You can't protect assets simply by knowing what they are, you also have to understand how each individual asset is threatened. So in this stage you will compile an overall list of threats which currently face your assets.

What Threats to Include?
If your threat list is too broad, your security audit will end up getting focused on threats which are extremely small or remote. When deciding whether to include a particular threat on your 'Threat List' keep in mind that your test should follow a sliding scale. For example, if you are considering whether the possibility of a hurricane flooding out your servers you should consider both, how remote the threat is, but also how devastating the harm would be if it occurred. A moderately remote harm can still be reasonably included in your threat list if the potential harm it would bring is large enough to your company.

Common 'Threats' to Get you Started?
Here are some relatively common security threats to help you get started in creating your company's threat list:

1. Computer and network passwords. Is there a log of all people with passwords (and what type). How secure is this ACL list, and how strong are the passwords currently in use?
2. Physical assets. Can computers or laptops be picked up and removed from the premises by visitors or even employees?
3. Records of physical assets. Do they exist? Are they backed up?
4. Data backups. What backups of virtual assets exist, how are they backed up, where are the backups kept, and who conducts the backups?
5. Logging of data access. Each time someone accesses some data, is this logged, along with who, what, when, where, etc.?
6. Access to sensitive customer data, e.g., credit card info. Who has access? How can access be controlled? Can this information be accessed from outside the company premises?
7. Access to client lists. Does the website allow backdoor access into the client database? Can it be hacked?
8. Long-distance calling. Are long-distance calls restricted, or is it a free-for-all? Should it be restricted?
9. Emails. Are spam filters in place? Do employees need to be educated on how to spot potential spam and phishing emails? Is there a company policy that outgoing emails to clients not have certain types of hyperlinks in them?

3. Past Due Diligence & Predicting the Future

At this point, you have compiled a list of current threats, but what about security threats that have not come on to your radar yet, or haven't even been developed? A good security audit should account not just for those security threats that face your company today, but those that will arise in the future.

Examining Your Threat History
The first step towards predicting future threats is to examine your company's records and speak with long-time employees about past security threats that the company has faced. Most threats repeat themselves, so by cataloging your company's past experiences and including the relevant threats on your threat list you'll get a more complete picture of your company's vulnerabilities.

Checking Security Trends
In addition to checking for security threats specific to your particular industry,check with IT security threat list which will keep you abreast of all new security threat developments. Spend some time looking through these resources and consider how these trends are likely to affect your business in particular. If you're stumped on what to do here then Ask the IT Security Experts directly.

Checking with your Competition
When it comes to outside security threats, companies that are ordinarily rivals often turn into one another's greatest asset. By developing a relationship with your competition you can develop a clearer picture of the future threats your company will face by sharing information about security threats with one another.

4. Prioritizing Your Assets & Vulnerabilities

You have now developed a complete list of all the assets and security threats that your company faces. But not every asset or threat has the same priority level. In this step, you will prioritize your assets and vulnerabilities in order to know your company's greatest security risks, and so that you can allocate your company's resources accordingly.

Perform a Risk Calculation/ Probability Calculation
The bigger the risk, the higher priority dealing with the underlying threat is. The formula for calculating risk is:

Risk = Probability x Harm

The risk formula just means that you multiply the likelihood of a security threat actually occurring (probability) times the damage that would occur to your company if the threat actually did occur (harm). The number that comes out of that equation, is the risk that threat poses to your company.

Calculating Probability
Probability is simply the chance that a particular threat will actually occur. Unfortunately, there isn't a book that lists the probability that your website will be hacked this year, so you have to come up with those figures yourself.

Your first step in calculating probability should be to do some research into your company's history with this threat, your competitors' history, and any empirical studies on how often most companies face this threat. Any probability figure that you ultimately come up with is an estimate, but the more accurate the estimate, the better your risk calculation will be.

Calculating Harm
How much damage would a particular threat cause if it occurred? Calculating the potential harm of a threat can be done in a number of different ways. You might count up the cost in dollars that replacing the lost revenue or asset would cost the company. Or instead you might calculate the harm as the number of man-hours which would be lost trying to remedy the damage once it has occurred. But whatever method you use, it is important that you stay consistent throughout the audit in order to get an accurate priorities list.

Developing Your Security Threat Response Plan

When working down your newly developed priority list, there will be a number of potential responses you could make to any particular threat. The remaining six points in this article cover the primary responses a company can make to a particular threat. While these security responses are by no means the only appropriate ways to deal with a security threat, they will cover the vast majority of the threats your company faces, and as a result you should go through this list of potential responses before considering any alternatives.

5. Implementing Network Access Controls

Network Access Controls, or NACs, check the security of any user trying to access a network. So, for example, if you are trying to come up with a solution for the security threat of your competition stealing company information from private parts of the company's website, applying network access controls or NACs is an excellent solution.
Part of implementing effective NAC is to have an ACL (Access Control List), which indicates user permissions to various assets and resources. Your NAC might also include steps such as; encryption, digital signatures, ACLs, verifying IP addresses, user names, and checking cookies for web pages.

6. Implementing Intrusion Prevention

While a Network Access Control deals with threats of unauthorized people accessing the network by taking steps like password protecting sensitive data, an Intrustion Prevention System (IPS) prevents more malicious attacks from the likes of hackers.

The most common form of an IPS is a second generation firewall. Unlike first generation firewalls, which were merely content based filters, a second generation firewall adds to the content filter a 'Rate-based filter'.

• Content-based. The firewall does a deep pack inspection, which is a thorough look at actual application content, to determine if there are any risks.
• Rate-based. Second generation firewalls perform advanced analyses of either web or network traffic patterns or inspection of application content, flagging unusual situations in either case.

7. Implementing Identity & Access Management

Identity and Access Management (IAM) simply means controlling users' access to specific assets. Under an IAM, users have to manually or automatically identify themselves and be authenticated. Once authenticated, they are given access to those assets to which they are authorized.

An IAM is a good solution when trying to keep employees from accessing information they are not authorized to access. So, for instance, if the threat is that employees will steal customers credit card information, an IAM solution is your best bet.

8. Creating Backups

When we think of IT security threats, the first thing that comes to mind is hacking. But a far more common threat to most companies is the accidental loss of information. Although it's not sexy, the most common way to deal with threats of information loss is to develop a plan for regular backups. These are a few of the most common backup options and questions you should consider when developing your own backup plan:

• Onsite storage. Onsite storage can come in several forms, including removable hard drives or tape backups stored in a fireproofed, secured-access room. The same data can be stored on hard drives which are networked internally but separated by a DMZ (demilitarized zone) from the outside world.
• Offsite storage. Mission-critical data could be stored offsite, as an extra backup to onsite versions. Consider worst-case scenarios: If a fire occurred, would your hard-drives or digital tapes be safe? What about in the event of a hurricane or earthquake? Data can be moved offsite manually on removable media, or through a VPN (Virtual Private Network) over the Internet.
• Secured access to backups. Occasionally, the need to access data backups will arise. Access to such backups, whether to a fireproofed room or vault, or to an offsite data center, physically or through a VPN, must be secure. This could mean issuing keys, RFID-enabled "smart pass cards", VPN passwords, safe combinations, etc.
• Scheduling backups. Backups should be automated as much as possible, and scheduled to cause minimum disruption to your company. When deciding on the frequency of backups, be aware that if your backups aren't frequent enough to be relevant when called upon, they are not worth conducting at all.

9. Email Protection & Filtering

Each day, 55 billion spam messages are sent by email throughout the world. To limit the security risk that unwanted emails pose, spam filters and an educated workforce are a necessary part of every company's security efforts. So, if the threat you are confronting is spam emails, the obvious (and correct) response is to implement an email security and filtering system for your company.

While the specific email security threats confronting your company will determine the appropriate email protections you choose, here are a few common features:

• Encrypt emails. When sending sensitive emails to other employees at other locations, or to clients, emails should be encrypted. If you have international clients, make sure that you use encryption allowed outside of the United States and Canada.
• Try steganography. Steganography is a technique for hiding information discreetly in the open, such as within a digital image. However, unless combined with something like encryption, it is not secure and could be detected.
• Don't open unexpected attachments. Even if you know the sender, if you are not expecting an email attachment, don't open it, and teach your employees to do the same.
• Don't open unusual email. No spam filter is perfect. But if your employees are educated about common spam techniques, you can help keep your company assets free of viruses.

10. Preventing Physical Intrusions

Despite the rise of new generation threats like hacking and email spam, old threats still imperil company assets. One of the most common threats is physical intrusions. If, for example, you are trying to deal with the threat of a person breaking into the office and stealing company laptops, and along with them valuable company information, then a plan for dealing with physical intrusions is necessary.

Here are some common physical threats along with appropriate solutions for dealing with them:

• Breaking into the office: Install a detection system. Companies like ADT have a variety of solutions for intrusion detection and prevention, including video surveillance systems.
• Stolen laptop: Encrypt hard drive. Microsoft offers an Encrypt File System, or EFS, which can be used to encrypt sensitive files on a laptop.
• Stolen screaming smart phones. A new service from Synchronica protect smartphones and PDAs, should they be stolen. Once protected, a stolen phone cannot be used without an authorization code. If this is not given correctly, all data is wiped from the phone and a high-pitch "scream" is emitted. Once your phone is recovered, the data can be restored from remote servers. Currently, this particular service is limited to the UK, but comparable services are available throughout the world.
• Kids + Pets = Destruction: Prevent unauthorized access. For many small-business owners, the opportunity to work from home is an important perk. But having children and/or pets invading office space and assets can often be a greater risk that that posed by hackers. By creating an appropriate-use policy and sticking with it small business owners can quickly deal with one of their most significant threats.
• Internal Click Fraud: Education and Blocks. Many web-based businesses run advertising such as Google AdSense or Chitika to add an extra revenue stream. However, inappropriate clicking of the ads by employees or family can cause your account to be suspended. Make employees aware of such things, and prevent the company's live website from being viewed internally.

Conclusion

These 10 steps to conducting your own IT Security Audit will take you a long way towards becoming more aware of the security threats facing your company as well as help you begin to develop a plan for confronting those threats. But it is important to remember that security threats are always changing, and keeping your company safe will require that you continually assess new threats and revisit your response to old ones.

I understand even these steps would have been difficult for most of you who are reading it. If you think it’s not your cup of tea then I better recommend you to leave it to the security auditors to do the complete job on your Information Security part. I hope you know where to find the security auditor. ;). I would like to thank IT security website which gave me a lot of idea and thoughts on this article to share with you all here.

For The IT recruiters and Hiring managers (Must Read)

Open Letter from Geeks to IT Recruiters and Hiring Managers

Preface: No, I'm not looking for a job. I just wanted all the IT recruiters and Hiring Managers to read this. I've seen it before, and my friends (some currently unemployed) are seeing it still.

For the love of all things good in the world, learn how to hire and employ a geek. You're doing it wrong.

Office Politics
Try to measure productivity in output, not in hours.

Geeks automate. Geeks script. Geeks compile. They summon computing power to get things done quickly on their behalf. If your geek seemingly spends all day on Orkut and Facebook but somehow manages to still complete tasks ahead of schedule, your geek is multi-tasking. This is normal.

Assign tasks to the geeks who are most interested in them, not the ones with the most experience.

When geeks are interested, they are passionate. When they're passionate, they learn fast. You'll get more productivity out of an interested geek with no prior experience than you will with a bored drone who's been doing the same thing for the past five years. Sometimes, the one with the most experience is the one that's most interested. In those cases, you are a lucky manager!

Segregate the corporate, compensatory hierarchy from the leadership hierarchy.

With a team of geeks under you, one or more will eventually become to go-to guy (or girl) for certain things. You don't usually need to assign a "team lead" - Through meritocracy, the Alpha Geek will emerge. That Alpha Geek may lack seniority, but will have the most influence. It's best to let this occur naturally. It's awkward when the one who best fits the role has to answer to someone else just because they've been around longer. Furthermore, the members of your team will still go to the Alpha Geek because the wrong person has the "Team Lead" label. As Paul Glen puts it: Geeks don't hate hierarchy. They hate your hierarchy.

You'll know you've found the Alpha Geek when you see people from your team (and likely other teams) at said geek's desk getting advice or validation on a frequent basis.

Pre-hiring and interview
Have all screening and profile "paperwork" in one comprehensive online wizard or form.

Geeks do not like pens, pencils, or clip boards. We also despise giving you the same piece of information more than once on fifteen different sheets of paper. We'd rather not be sitting on an uncomfortable chair in a room that's far too brightly lit just so that we can give you the information that you want. It's easy to get the information to you electronically.

Only ask for information you need to make a hiring decision.

W2's, Direct deposit information, full fingerprints, home address and all that crap can be handled during orientation. The only personally identifiable information you need before hiring is a name.

Don't grill us on our resume and work history.

You don't hire a geek for what he or she did two years ago. You hire them for what they will be able to do for you now and in the future. Ask your geek to describe scenarios where problems arose that required them to pick up a new skill set to solve. All geeks worth their salt have stories like that and love telling them.

Instead of asking about skills that qualify them for the position, ask about their interest in the kind of work they think they'll be doing.

Remember: Interested geeks work harder. The above requirement will still let you H.R. types ask that oh-so-predictable question: "What is it that you think this company does?" while offering your candidate a chance to really show he or she will be a good match.

6 Free Ways to Manage All Your Passwords

Its very difficult to remembers all of your passwords, the easy options to remebers them is using the same password each time or writing them down on paper or in a spreadsheet but that one i not so secure. In fact, security experts strongly warn against these options as they leave you vulnerable to online theft. So am here posting some of the best password managers that can help you to remember all you password safely.

KeyPass Password Safe: KeePass is a free, open source, light-weight and easy-to-use password manager for Windows and mobile devices. It will store an unlimited number of passwords and will automatically fill username and password fields, or you can fill them yourself with copy-and-paste or drag-and-drop. And, since it’s open source, there are several unofficial projects that bring KeePass to other platforms like Mac OS X, Linux, and Pocket PC.

Password Manager Plus: The Billeo Free Password Manager Plus toolbar works with both Firefox and Internet Explorer, and allows you to store not only passwords but credit card numbers and online account information, and can autofill your information as you shop online or paying bills, for example.

RoboForm 6.9: RoboForm makes logging into Web sites and filling forms faster, easier, and more secure. RoboForm provides storage for all types of information and complete automation for filling out forms on the web. It gives you several encryption options, enables true “one-click” logins, will generate strong, random passwords for you, can handle complex web forms without being “trained,” and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. If you want it, RoboForm’s probably got it.
RoboForm also has Windows Mobile, Pocket PC, Palm, and Symbian versions too, but for those of us without handheld computers RoboForm brings RoboForm2Go, a portable app designed to live entirely on a portable storage device like a pocket USB drive. This lets you bring your whole collection of secure information, plus RoboForm’s automatic form-filling magic, anywhere

Clipperz: Unlike most password managers, this solution is online ” so you can access it anywhere. And it stores more than passwords ” credit card numbers, account numbers, anything really. Storing passwords and other confidential information online can make someplace nervous, but Clipperz uses an encryption method that means not even Clipperz knows what its storing. This is a good solution if you need access to your passwords from multiple computers, rather than just one or two.

Password generator: This is a little bookmarklet that combines your master password with the sites name to create a stronger password, and one that is different for each site. Very handy and simple.

Password Hasher: This Firefox extension generates strong passwords for you by scrambling your master password with the sites name. The passwords generated by this extension are better than any you could come up with yourself.

These are the few ways to manage all your passwords but remember these are the best ways to hack all your passwords together too. But be safe don't fall into social engineering and let the others use your computer if you are using these kinds of password managers. If the attacker tries to get into your computer and cracks your password manager then all your passwords are revealed to him. So be safe in using these kind of password managers. ;) So you decide your self what is this post for? Benefit for you for tracking all the passwords or is it a real security threat?? I am confused too ;) You need to store all your passwords somewhere because you cannot remember them all. But at the same time its a security threat too.. ;) So always remember you atleast store the passwords in a jumble way to keep your accounts safe.

Ok people I'll get back to you when i have more thoughts on this password manager.

AntiVirus, Spyware, Malware, Badware..??

Virus???

Lets get into subject of threats. I know many will be confused on which security application to download or buy to protect the computer completely. Most of them need one such application which will defend their computer from any kind of virus,spyware,trojans,worms or any kind of badware. And we all need it for free??? First please understand that viruses are into market for some serious business for the Anti-virus companies. So only if you are ready to purchase some real good antivirus your computer will be protected to the best.

How to choose the best antivirus for your computer?

Now before buying or downloading any kind of antivirus from the market do a complete research on the product. All you must know that read the requirements of the product. see whether your computer will support that product. I have seen people buying the products by just reading the reviews. Yes the product may be rated 9/10 but will that product support your computer. The product reviews are done on a very good systems. Is your system equipped?? Before you buy the latest antivirus see to that your computer is updated to a reasonably good configuration. If you cannot update your computer to the latest antivirus in market then its better to stick to some old versions of the antivirus which will run good on your system.

Using the Antivirus

If you have bought a good antivirus for your computer then before installing the product see to that you uninstall the previous antivirus which is installed in your computer. Installing more than one antivirus in your computer will slow down to your computer a lot. Most of the latest antivirus come with internet security and spyware removal too. Do a complete scan on your computer atleast once a week. Do not use your computer when the scan is running. See to that you scan any kind of external storage device before opening it. If the antivirus is not able to clean the virus it will show you the report that it was failed to remove the particular virus. Copy the report and send it to the particular product technical support team. The technical support team will find a solution and send you a update as soon as possible. Keep updating your antivirus daily.

Piracy of Antivirus?

Many download pirated antivirus from the torrents all around. Its not as easy as you guys think. Downloading torrents from the internet where you might think you are downloading the best antivirus for free of cost. Most of the torrents are already uploaded with trojans. When you download the antivirus and run the setup you will be affected with the trojan. Now you dont know whom to trust. Never trust the pirated copies of antivirus. Its better to go for a free antivirus which are available on the internet than downloading the pirated antivirus which is going to crash your computer completely. Most of the hackers will steal your data in your computer by placing a trojan in your computer. So never trust any pirated copies. Be true to your self . Buy Original.


Suggestions for Free Antivirus.

There are so many free and good antivirus in the internet like AVG,AVAST,AVIRA,PANDA etc., I have used these antivirus application. I have to say that each application is good in its own way. They do not promise you complete protection of your computer but they atleast let you know what they do. The transparency of the free products are good. If the antivirus is not able to remove any kind of virus or trojan from your computer it will let you know that your computer is affected with this kind of virus and it was not able to remove it. Now after you see that you should know that your computer needs some protection then find a good antivirus to delete it or in few free antivirus products they have paid products which will remove the viruses which were detected in free versions. So thats what you call it as business. Now atleast you will know what is happening with your computer.


Paid Antivirus?

I dont want to give any suggestions on this here. Most of the real equipped antivirus like Mcafee, Webroot Antivirus, Norton360, k.i.s 2009, Eset nod 32, Bit defender ,F-Secure Anti-Virus, AVG Paid etc., are good on their own features but see to that your computer supports with the requirements needed. If you buy these kind of antivirus you will definitely get the support for it. So if there is any virus problem with your computer then the technical support team will takecare of your virus issue and will help you the best. So i think these kind of anti virus are the best to go with. You can find the top 10 anti-virus here. Mcafee has released a World Virus Map to show the regions and computer which are infected with viruses Click Here to view the map.



These are some of the tips about Antivirus here
I will keep updating this post here.

10 Fast and Free Security Enhancements

Fast and Free Security Enhancements!!


Although i have already spoken about securing your computer in 6 steps which is very similar to this post. But there is one big difference here. I mentioned FREE security enhancement ;).

Before you spend a dime on security, there are many precautions you can take that will protect you against the most common threats.

1. Check Windows Update and Office Update regularly (_http://office.microsoft.com/productupdates); have your Office CD ready. Windows Me, 2000, and XP users can configure automatic updates. Click on the Automatic Updates tab in the System control panel and choose the appropriate options.

2. Install a personal firewall. Both SyGate (_www.sygate.com) and ZoneAlarm (_www.zonelabs.com) offer free versions.


3. Install a free spyware blocker. Our Editors' Choice ("Spyware," April 22) was SpyBot Search & Destroy (_http://security.kolla.de). SpyBot is also paranoid and ruthless in hunting out tracking cookies.

4. Block pop-up spam messages in Windows NT, 2000, or XP by disabling the Windows Messenger service (this is unrelated to the instant messaging program). Open Control Panel | Administrative Tools | Services and you'll see Messenger. Right-click and go to Properties. Set Start-up Type to Disabled and press the Stop button. Bye-bye, spam pop-ups! Any good firewall will also stop them.

5. Use strong passwords and change them periodically. Passwords should have at least seven characters; use letters and numbers and have at least one symbol. A decent example would be f8izKro@l. This will make it much harder for anyone to gain access to your accounts.

6. If you're using Outlook or Outlook Express, use the current version or one with the Outlook Security Update installed. The update and current versions patch numerous vulnerabilities.

7. Buy antivirus software and keep it up to date. If you're not willing to pay, try Grisoft AVG Free Edition (Grisoft Inc., w*w.grisoft.com). And doublecheck your AV with the free, online-only scanners available at www.pandasoftware.com/activescan and _http://housecall.trendmicro.com.

8. If you have a wireless network, turn on the security features: Use MAC filtering, turn off SSID broadcast, and even use WEP with the biggest key you can get. For more, check out our wireless section or see the expanded coverage in Your Unwired World in our next issue.

9. Join a respectable e-mail security list, like http://security.ziffdavis.com, so that you learn about emerging threats quickly and can take proper precautions.

10. Be skeptical of things on the Internet. Don't assume that e-mail "From:" a particular person is actually from that person until you have further reason to believe it's that person. Don't assume that an attachment is what it says it is. Don't give out your password to anyone, even if that person claims to be from "support."


Guess these tips were useful for you all. Be safe ;)

SQL Injection

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.