Category: Qnap

Altaro VM Backup’s Services Explained

Altaro VM Backup has a number of services, handing different types of operations and in certain cases it’s important to know the role of a specific service.

Below you can find an extensive list of each service’s responsibility.

Services on the Altaro VM Backup Console


The list below can also be used for services running on an Altaro Offsite Server machine only.

Display Name                          Description
Altaro VM Backup EngineManagement of backup schedules and configuration
Altaro VM Backup Deduplication ServicePerforms deduplication of data during backup operations
Altaro Offsite Server 6Altaro Offsite Server for v5 & v6 Offsite Copies
Altaro Offsite Server 8Altaro Offsite Server for Offsite Copies
Altaro Offsite Server 8 ControllerProvides an interface between the Offsite Server Management Console UI and the Altaro Offsite Server
Altaro VM Backup API ServiceEnables a RESTful API interface to Altaro VM Backup
Altaro VM Backup Hyper-V Host Agent – N1Facilitates backup and restore operations for Virtual machines on a Hyper-V Host and/or a VMware Host using VDDK 5.5
Altaro VM Backup Hyper-V Host Agent – N2Facilitates backup and restore operations for Virtual machines on a VMware Host using VDDK 6.5 & 6.7
Altaro VM Backup ControllerProvides an interface between the Management Console UI and the Altaro VM Backup Service

Services on a Hyper-V Host added to Altaro VM Backup

DisplayName                          Description
Altaro VM Backup Hyper-V Host Agent – N1Facilitates backup and restore operations for Virtual machines on a Hyper-V Host and/or a VMware Host using VDDK 5.5
Altaro VM Backup Hyper-V Host Agent – N2Facilitates backup and restore operations for Virtual machines on a VMware Host using VDDK 6.5 & 6.7
Altaro Offsite Server 6Altaro Offsite Server for v5 & v6 Offsite Copies
Altaro Offsite Server 8Altaro Offsite Server for Offsite Copies

Source :
https://help.altaro.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416906020625-Altaro-VM-Backup-s-Services-Explained

Best Practices for setting up Altaro VM Backup

This best practice guide goes through the Altaro VM Backup features explaining their use and the optimal way to configure them in order to make the best use out of the software.

You will need to adapt this to your specific environment, especially depending on how much resources you have available, however this guide takes you through the most important configurations that are often overlooked too.

Setting up the Altaro VM Backup Management Console

The Altaro VM Backup Management Console can be utilised to add and manage multiple hosts in one console. However these hosts must be in the same LAN and at the same physical site (same building). Setups with multiple physical sites must have an instance of Altaro VM Backup at each site.

To manage these multiple installations, you can utilise the ‘Central Monitoring Console’ where you’ll be able to monitor as well as manage these Altaro VM Backup installations remotely.

A single Altaro VM Backup instance can manage both Hyper-V & VMware hosts.

For optimal results, Altaro runs some maintenance specific tasks using (multiple) single threaded operations. For this reason installing on a machine which has a CPU with a higher single thread performance would yield better results than installing on a machine which has a CPU with more cores and lower single thread performance.

Thus for the fastest results, installing Altaro VM Backup on a machine with a higher single thread CPU speed would be best.

Backup Locations

Make sure Opportunity Locks (Oplocks) are disabled if the backup location is a NAS.

If your backup location is a Windows machine, the equivalent to Oplocks is: Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableLeasing 0

Run the above command via Powershell.

Offsite Copies

With Altaro VM Backup, you are provided with the functionality of an Offsite Copy Location, which is a redundant/secondary copy of your backups. You can even backup your VM’s to 2 different offsite copy locations for further redundancy of your data, so you can pick a cloud location as well as an Altaro Offsite Server for instance.

There are multiple options for setting this up:

  • You can choose a Physical Drive connected to the management console (the best practice for offsites is to have them located in another building/location).
  • Drive Rotation/Swap which allows you to set up a pool of drives/network paths.
  • A Network Path (LAN Only) or else to an offsite location via a WAN/VPN/Internet connection, which is an ideal tool for Disaster Recovery purposes. Please note that the latter situation (non-LAN) requires use of the Altaro Offsite Server
  • Backup to Microsoft Azure, Amazon S3 or Wasabi.

Setting up an offsite copy location is as crucial as setting up backups to a primary location. Apart from the obvious reason that you’ll have a redundant set of backups to restore from, should the local backups become unusable due to disk corruption or other disk failures. Having a secondary copy of your backup sets also allows you to keep a broader history for your VM backups on your secondary location and you’ll be able to go further back when restoring if required.

Deduplication

Altaro VM Backup makes use of Augmented In-line Deduplication. Enabling this is highly recommended and is done from the ‘Advanced Settings’ screen as this will essentially ensure that any common data blocks across virtual machines are only written to the backup location once. This helps by saving a considerable amount of space and also makes backups much quicker since common information is only transferred once.

Boot From Backup

The Boot From Backup drive feature comes along with 2 options, either ‘Verification Mode’ or ‘Recovery Mode’. This is a very good option for getting your RTO down since you’re able to boot up the VM immediately from a backup location and start a restore in the background as well.

However it’s very important that if you are planning to do this, you’ll need a fast backup location that can handle the I/O of a booted VM that’s essentially going into production. Please note that when the VM has finished restoring, it’s suggested to restart the restored VM as soon as you get a chance in order to switch to the restored drives, which would have faster I/O throughput.

Notifications

E-mail notifications are a simple and effective method of monitoring the backup status, yet it’s often overlooked. Setting up these notifications will provide you with a quick overview of the status over your of your backup jobs, hence – you won’t need to login into the Altaro Management console every day to confirm the backup status.

This way you’ll be alerted of any backup failures, allowing you to address said issues before the next backup schedule. Thereby ensuring that you always have a restorable backup point; so as a general best practice, always monitor your backup notifications.

Master Encryption Key

The Master Encryption Key in Altaro is utilised to encrypt the backups using AES 256-bit. It’s used if you choose to encrypt the local backups from the ‘Advanced Settings’ screen, while if you’re configuring offsite copies it must be used as offsite copies must be encrypted.

Altaro VM Backup will require the encryption key upon restoring, so it’s critical that you either remember it or take note of it in a secure password manager as there is no method of recovery for the master encryption key.

Scheduled Test Drills

Altaro VM Backup has the ability to run manual or automated verification of your backup data. This allows you to run scheduled verification jobs that will check the integrity of your backups on your backup location, or schedule full VM restores so that you can actually boot up the VM and confirm that everything works as expected. The VM will be restored with the NIC disabled so as to avoid IP conflicts with the production machine as well.

Failure of storage devices is not uncommon, therefore scheduling test drills is strongly advised for added peace-of-mind. Full instructions on configuring test drills.

Other General Best Practices

  • Backups and production VM’s should not be placed on the same drive.
  • Make sure Opportunity Locks (Oplocks) are disabled if the backup location is a NAS.
  • Backups should not be placed on a drive where an OS is running.
  • Altaro uses the drive it’s installed on as temporary storage and will require a small amount of free space (varying according to the size of the VMs being backed up).
  • Keep at least 10% of the backup location free.
  • The main Altaro VM Backup installation should not be installed on a machine that is also a domain controller (DC).
  • Directories/files inside the Altaro backup folder should not be tampered with, deleted or moved.
  • Do not take snapshots DFSR databases: “Snapshots aren’t supported by the DFSR database or any other Windows multi-master databases. This lack of snapshot support includes all virtualization vendors and products. DFSR doesn’t implement USN rollback quarantine protection like Active Directory Domain Services.” Source. 

Best Practices for Replication

Exclude Page File from Backup

As you’re aware Altaro VM Backup will take note of all changes since the last backup and transfer over all of the blocks that changed to the backup location. The page file will be changing very often and potentially causing your replication jobs to take longer.

Therefore, excluding the page file from backup equals, less transferred changes and as a result the replication jobs takes less time. This can be done by placing the page file onto a separate VHDX/VMDK file from the VM itself and then you can follow the steps here, in order to exclude the VHDX/VMDK file.

High Disk IO and Hypervisor Performance

Replication needs to make use of CDP (Continuous Data Protection), in order to take a backup every couple of minutes/hours, which makes Replication possible.

It’s important to note however that you should only enable high-frequency CDP (15 minutes or less) on VM’s that you really need to. This will ensure that the VM’s you really need to will be able to achieve the selected maximum frequency and in order not to have an impact your Hypervisor’s performance.

Source :
https://help.altaro.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416921650577-Best-Practices-for-setting-up-Altaro-VM-Backup

How to relocate the Altaro temporary files

Altaro VM Backup will create temporary files during backup operations and by default the location for these files is on the C: drive.

If you’d like to move the location of this temporary directory, please see according to which version you’re running below:

7.6 and newer

To do so, you can follow these steps:

  1. Ensure you are running at least 7.6.14. If not, update to the latest version from here
  2. Firstly, create a folder named “Overrides” in this path: C:\ProgramData\Altaro\AltaroBackupProfile
    If you’d like to move the temp files on the Altaro Offsite Server, create a folder named “Overrides” in this path: C:\ProgramData\Altaro\AltaroOffsiteServerProfile
  3. Then create a text file named “OverrideTempFolder.txt” inside the newly created folder
  4.  In the text file enter the path where you wish to store Altaro’s temp files, for example:{ “TempFolderPathOverride”:”E:\\Temp\\Altaro” }Ensure this location exists & that you use a double backslash as a separator (like above)
  5. Restart all Altaro services and on next Operation, the Altaro temporary files will now be stored in the above directory

7.5 and older

To do so, you can follow these steps:

  1. Ensure you are running at least version 5.0.97
  2. Firstly, create a folder named “Overrides” in this path: C:\ProgramData\Altaro\AltaroBackupProfile
    If you’d like to move the temp files on the Altaro Offsite Server, create a folder named “Overrides” in this path: C:\ProgramData\Altaro\AltaroOffsiteServerProfile
  3. Then create a text file named “OverrideTempFolder.txt” inside the newly created folder
  4.  In the text file enter the path where you wish to store Altaro’s temp files, for example: “E:\AltaroTemp” (without quotes) — ensure this location exists
  5. Restart all Altaro services and on next Operation, the Altaro temporary files will now be stored in the above directory

Tips

  • ProgramData is a hidden folder by default
  • Ensure that the file extension is showing, or you might end up with a file named “OverrideTempFolder.txt.txt”
  • Ensure there are no spaces at the end of the path and no extra line breaks in the text file

    Source :
    https://help.altaro.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416899962001

Which Altaro directories do I need to exclude from AntiVirus software?

If you are running an AntiVirus software or a file-scanning software, we do recommend excluding a couple of directories used by Altaro in order to ensure that it’s operation remains undisrupted.

We do recommend excluding the following:

  • all onsite backup drive directories
  • all offsite backup drive directories
  • C:\ProgramData\Altaro on the Altaro Management and on the Hyper-V hosts
  • C:\Program Files\Altaro on the Altaro Management and on the Hyper-V hosts

Also, if you relocated the Altaro temporary files ensure to exclude that directory as well.

Source :
https://help.altaro.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416905883409-Which

Altaro Dealing with “Windows Error 64” and “Windows Error 59”

PROBLEM

The backup fails with a one of the following errors:

  • “Windows Error 64: The specified network name is no longer available.”
  • “Windows Error 59: An unexpected network error occurred.”

CAUSE

There’s a number of reasons that can very easily cause networks issues which will result in a failed backup pointing to a Windows Error 64 or 59. Mainly it could be down to potential hardware failures/issues or even configuration of network devices for that matter.

Aside from that, firewalls, other traffic on the line or other software could be causing load on the network or even on the storage device itself, that might be going over timeouts or maximum retransmission limits.

Sending backups over an unreliable connection such as a VPN/WAN connection can also result in such a failure, unless using the Altaro Offsite Server tool for offsite copies.

Timeouts from specific NAS boxes when using domain credentials can also be causing such disconnections.

SOLUTION

There are numerous, distinct solutions applicable for backups failing with this error, seeing as it could be occurring for a number of reasons.

  • If you’re using a NAS as a backup location, it’s recommended that you utilise the credentials of the NAS box itself, even if it’s connected to Active Directory. The reason behind this, being that certain NAS’s have a timeout period associated for connections connected via domain credentials, so it could be the cause for the backup failure.
  • In addition to that this also doubles as a security measure in order to protect against Crypto-malware.
  • Another point to keep in mind if you’re using a NAS box, is to check whether the particular model you’re using has a sleep/standby option that could be causing such backup failure.
  • If you have other storage media available, try taking backups to this location, as the previous location may be experiencing hardware or software issues that may only present themselves during backup times. This will serve as a definite confirmation if the issue is with the previously configured location as well as a temporary solution.
  • If the backup location you have configured is going over an unreliable network, such a VPN/WAN connection, please note that this is not supported. This would only be supported if you’re making use of the Altaro Offsite Server which is only applicable for offsite copies and not primary backups.
  • If you’re using a backup device, such as a NAS which supports connections via iSCSI it’s recommended to set up the backup location this way. Devices connected via iSCSI usually perform better and in turn offer increased performance.
  • If the backup device is connected to a different switch to the backup server then it’s best to connect it to the same switch and re-test.
  • It’s recommended to change the network cables that the backup device and the backup server are connected with; additionally changing the ports on the switch would also be suggested.
  • Make sure Opportunity Locks (Oplocks) are disabled if the backup location is a NAS
  • If your backup location is a Windows machine, the equivalent to Oplocks is: Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableLeasing 0

    Run the above command via Powershell.
  • It’s also a good idea to reboot the backup device as well as the backup server to clear any open connections and refresh the devices.

    SessTimeout
    Key:HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanWorkstation\Parameters\
    DWORD: SessTimeoutThe value entered here should be in seconds. You can try entering a value of 300 seconds (5 minutes) or 600 seconds (10 minutes). The default for this is 1 minute.
    This will increase the time the backup server waits for a response before the connection is aborted.

    TcpMaxDataRetransmissions
    Key:HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
    DWORD: TcpMaxDataRetransmissions
    The value entered here will reflect the number of retries. The default number for this is 5.This will increase the number of tries the TCP retransmission mechanism will attempt to transmit data before the connection is aborted.
  • If the above does not help and you’re still experiencing issues, it’s recommended to temporarily disable any firewalls and antivirus products on the backup server, the hosts and the backup device. This applies for both software and hardware firewalls.

Source :
https://help.altaro.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416921704081-Dealing-w

Microsoft finds Raspberry Robin worm in hundreds of Windows networks

Microsoft says that a recently spotted Windows worm has been found on the networks of hundreds of organizations from various industry sectors.

The malware, dubbed Raspberry Robin, spreads via infected USB devices, and it was first spotted in September 2021 by Red Canary intelligence analysts.

Cybersecurity firm Sekoia also observed it using QNAP NAS devices as command and control servers (C2) servers in early November [PDF], while Microsoft said it found malicious artifacts linked to this worm created in 2019.

Redmond’s findings align with those of the Red Canary’s Detection Engineering team, which also detected this worm on the networks of multiple customers, some of them in the technology and manufacturing sectors.

Although Microsoft observed the malware connecting to addresses on the Tor network, the threat actors are yet to exploit the access they gained to their victims’ networks.

This is in spite of the fact that they could easily escalate their attacks given that the malware can bypass User Account Control (UAC) on infected systems using legitimate Windows tools.

Microsoft shared this info in a private threat intelligence advisory shared with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint subscribers and seen by BleepingComputer.

Raspberry Robin worm infection flow
Raspberry Robin worm infection flow (Red Canary)

Abuses Windows legitimate tools to infect new devices

As already mentioned, Raspberry Robin is spreading to new Windows systems via infected USB drives containing a malicious .LNK file.

Once the USB device is attached and the user clicks the link, the worm spawns a msiexec process using cmd.exe to launch a malicious file stored on the infected drive.

It infects new Windows devices, communicates with its command and control servers (C2), and executes malicious payloads using several legitimate Windows utilities:

  • fodhelper (a trusted binary for managing features in Windows settings),
  • msiexec (command line Windows Installer component),
  • and odbcconf (a tool for configuring ODBC drivers).

“While msiexec.exe downloads and executes legitimate installer packages, adversaries also leverage it to deliver malware,” Red Canary researchers explained.

“Raspberry Robin uses msiexec.exe to attempt external network communication to a malicious domain for C2 purposes.”

Security researchers who spotted Raspberry Robin in the wild are yet to attribute the malware to a threat group and are still working on finding its operators’ end goal.

However, Microsoft has tagged this campaign as high-risk, given that the attackers could download and deploy additional malware within the victims’ networks and escalate their privileges at any time.

Source :
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/microsoft-finds-raspberry-robin-worm-in-hundreds-of-windows-networks/

Critical PHP flaw exposes QNAP NAS devices to RCE attacks

QNAP has warned customers today that some of its Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices (with non-default configurations) are vulnerable to attacks that would exploit a three-year-old critical PHP vulnerability allowing remote code execution.

“A vulnerability has been reported to affect PHP versions 7.1.x below 7.1.33, 7.2.x below 7.2.24, and 7.3.x below 7.3.11. If exploited, the vulnerability allows attackers to gain remote code execution,” QNAP explained in a security advisory released today.

“To secure your device, we recommend regularly updating your system to the latest version to benefit from vulnerability fixes.”

The Taiwanese hardware vendor has already patched the security flaw (CVE-2019-11043) for some operating system versions exposed to attacks (QTS 5.0.1.2034 build 20220515 or later and QuTS hero h5.0.0.2069 build 20220614 or later).

However, the bug affects a wide range of devices running:

  • QTS 5.0.x and later
  • QTS 4.5.x and later
  • QuTS hero h5.0.x and later
  • QuTS hero h4.5.x and later
  • QuTScloud c5.0.x and later

QNAP customers who want to update their NAS devices to the latest firmware automatically need to log on to QTS, QuTS hero, or QuTScloud as administrator and click the “Check for Update” button under Control Panel > System > Firmware Update.

You can also manually upgrade your device after downloading the update on the QNAP website from Support > Download Center.

QNAP devices targeted by ransomware

Today’s warning comes after the NAS maker warned its customers on Thursday to secure their devices against active attacks deploying DeadBolt ransomware payloads.

BleepingComputer also reported over the weekend that ech0raix ransomware has started targeting vulnerable QNAP NAS devices again, according to sample submissions on the ID Ransomware platform and multiple user reports who had their systems encrypted.

Until QNAP issues more details on ongoing attacks, the infection vector used in these new DeadBolt and ech0raix campaigns remains unknown.

While QNAP is working on patching the CVE-2019-11043 PHP vulnerability in all vulnerable firmware versions, you should ensure that your device is not exposed to Internet access as an easy way to block incoming attacks.

As QNAP has advised in the past, users with Internet-exposed NAS devices should take the following measures to prevent remote access:

  • Disable the Port Forwarding function of the router: Go to the management interface of your router, check the Virtual Server, NAT, or Port Forwarding settings, and disable the port forwarding setting of the NAS management service port (port 8080 and 433 by default).
  • Disable the UPnP function of the QNAP NAS: Go to myQNAPcloud on the QTS menu, click the “Auto Router Configuration,” and unselect “Enable UPnP Port forwarding.”

QNAP also provides detailed info on how to toggle off remote SSH and Telnet connections, change the system port number, change device passwords, and enable IP and account access protection to further secure your device.

Update June 22, 08:45 EDT: After this story was published, QNAP’s PSIRT team updated the original advisory and told BleepingComputer that devices with default configurations are not impacted by CVE-2019-11043.

Also, QNAP said that the Deadbolt ransomware attacks are targeting devices running older system software (released between 2017 and 2019).

For CVE-2019-11043, described in QSA-22-20, to affect our users, there are some prerequisites that need to be met, which are:

  1. nginx is running, and
  2. php-fpm is running.

As we do not have nginx in our software by default, QNAP NAS are not affected by this vulnerability in their default state. If nginx is installed by the user and running, then the update provided with QSA-22-20 should be applied as soon as possible to mitigate associated risks.

We are updating our security advisory QSA-22-20 to reflect the facts stated above. Again we would like to point out that most QNAP NAS users are not affected by this vulnerability since its prerequisites are not met. The risk only exists when there is user-installed nginx present in the system.

 We have also updated the story to reflect the new information provided by QNAP.

Source :
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/critical-php-flaw-exposes-qnap-nas-devices-to-rce-attacks/

QNAP Urges Users to Update NAS Devices to Prevent Deadbolt Ransomware Attacks

Taiwanese network-attached storage (NAS) devices maker QNAP on Thursday warned its customers of a fresh wave of DeadBolt ransomware attacks.

The intrusions are said to have targeted TS-x51 series and TS-x53 series appliances running on QTS 4.3.6 and QTS 4.4.1, according to its product security incident response team.

“QNAP urges all NAS users to check and update QTS to the latest version as soon as possible, and avoid exposing their NAS to the internet,” QNAP said in an advisory.

This development marks the third time QNAP devices have come under assault from DeadBolt ransomware since the start of the year.

Deadbolt Ransomware Attacks

In late January, as many as 4,988 DeadBolt-infected QNAP devices were identified, prompting the company to release a forced firmware update. A second uptick in new infections was observed in mid-March.

DeadBolt attacks are also notable for the fact that they allegedly leverage zero-day flaws in the software to gain remote access and encrypt the systems.

Ransomware Attacks

According to a new report published by Group-IB, exploitation of security vulnerabilities in public-facing applications emerged as the third most used vector to gain initial access, accounting for 21% of all ransomware attacks investigated by the firm in 2021.

Source :
https://thehackernews.com/2022/05/qnap-urges-users-to-update-nas-devices.html

QNAP Releases Firmware Patches for 9 New Flaws Affecting NAS Devices

QNAP, Taiwanese maker of network-attached storage (NAS) devices, on Friday released security updates to patch nine security weaknesses, including a critical issue that could be exploited to take over an affected system.

“A vulnerability has been reported to affect QNAP VS Series NVR running QVR,” QNAP said in an advisory. “If exploited, this vulnerability allows remote attackers to run arbitrary commands.”

Tracked as CVE-2022-27588 (CVSS score: 9.8), the vulnerability has been addressed in QVR 5.1.6 build 20220401 and later. Credited with reporting the flaw is the Japan Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center (JPCERT/CC).

Aside from the critical shortcoming, QNAP has also resolved three high-severity and five medium-severity bugs in its software –

This World Password Day consider ditching passwords altogether

Did you know that May 5, 2022, is World Password Day?1 Created by cybersecurity professionals in 2013 and designated as the first Thursday every May, World Password Day is meant to foster good password habits that help keep our online lives secure. It might seem strange to have a day set aside to honor something almost no one wants to deal with—like having a holiday for filing your income taxes (actually, that might be a good idea). But in today’s world of online work, school, shopping, healthcare, and almost everything else, keeping our accounts secure is more important than ever. Passwords are not only hard to remember and keep track of, but they’re also one of the most common entry points for attackers. In fact, there are 921 password attacks every second—nearly doubling in frequency over the past 12 months.2

But what if you didn’t have to deal with passwords at all? Last fall, we announced that anyone can completely remove the password from their Microsoft account. If you’re like me and happy to ditch passwords completely, read on to learn how Microsoft is making it possible to start enjoying a passwordless life today. Still, we know not everyone is ready to say goodbye to passwords, and it’s not possible for all your online accounts. We’ll also go over some easy ways to improve your password hygiene, as well as share some exciting news from our collaboration with the FIDO Alliance about a new way to sign in without a password.  

Free yourself with passwordless sign-in

Yes, you can now enjoy secure access to your Microsoft account without a password. By using the Microsoft Authenticator app, Windows Hello, a security key, or a verification code sent to your phone or email, you can go passwordless with any of your Microsoft apps and services. Just follow these five steps:

  1. Download and install Microsoft Authenticator (linked to your personal Microsoft account).
  2. Sign in to your Microsoft account.
  3. Choose Security. Under Advanced security options, you’ll see Passwordless account in the section titled Additional security.
  4. Select Turn on.
  5. Approve the notification from Authenticator.
User interface of Microsoft Authenticator app providing instructions on how to turn on passwordless account option.
Notification from Microsoft Authenticator app confirming user's password has been removed.

Once you approve the notification, you’ll no longer need a password to access your Microsoft accounts. If you decide you prefer using a password, you can always go back and turn off the passwordless feature. Here at Microsoft, nearly 100 percent of our employees use passwordless options to log into their corporate accounts.

Strengthen security with multifactor authentication

One simple step we can all take to protect our accounts today is adding multifactor authentication, which blocks 99.9 percent of account compromise attacks. The Microsoft Authenticator app is free and provides multiple options for authentication, including time-based one-time passcodes (TOTP), push notifications, and passwordless sign-in—all of which work for any site that supports multifactor authentication. Authenticator is available for Android and iOS and gives you the option to turn two-step verification on or off. For your Microsoft Account, multifactor authentication is usually only needed the first time you sign in or after changing your password. Once your device is recognized, you’ll just need your primary sign-in.

Microsoft Authenticator screen showing different accounts, including: Microsoft, Contoso Corporation, and Facebook.

Make sure your password isn’t the weak link

Rather than keeping attackers out, weak passwords often provide a way in. Using and reusing simple passwords across different accounts might make our online life easier, but it also leaves the door open. Attackers regularly scroll social media accounts looking for birthdates, vacation spots, pet names and other personal information they know people use to create easy-to-remember passwords. A recent study found that 68 percent of people use the same password for different accounts.3 For example, once a password and email combination has been compromised, it’s often sold on the dark web for use in additional attacks. As my friend Bret Arsenault, our Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) here at Microsoft, likes to say, “Hackers don’t break in, they log in.”

Some basics to remember—make sure your password is:

  • At least 12 characters long.
  • A combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
  • Not a word that can be found in a dictionary, or the name of a person, product, or organization.
  • Completely different from your previous passwords.
  • Changed immediately if you suspect it may have been compromised.

Tip: Consider using a password manager. Microsoft Edge and Microsoft Authenticator can create (and remember) strong passwords using Password Generator, and then automatically fill them in when accessing your accounts. Also, keep these other tips in mind:

  • Only share personal information in real-time—in person or by phone. (Be careful on social media.)
  • Be skeptical of messages with links, especially those asking for personal information.
  • Be on guard against messages with attached files, even from people or organizations you trust.
  • Enable the lock feature on all your mobile devices (fingerprint, PIN, or facial recognition).
  • Ensure all the apps on your device are legitimate (only from your device’s official app store).
  • Keep your browser updated, browse in incognito mode, and enable Pop-Up Blocker.
  • Use Windows 11 and turn on Tamper Protection to protect your security settings.

Tip: When answering security questions, provide an unrelated answer. For example, Q: “Where were you born?” A: “Green.” This helps throw off attackers who might use information skimmed from your social media accounts to hack your passwords. (Just be sure the unrelated answers are something you’ll remember.)

Passwordless authentication is becoming commonplace

As part of a historic collaboration, the FIDO Alliance, Microsoft, Apple, and Google have announced plans to expand support for a common passwordless sign-in standard. Commonly referred to as passkeys, these multi-device FIDO credentials offer users a platform-native way to safely and quickly sign in to any of their devices without a password. Virtually unable to be phished and available across all your devices, a passkey lets you sign in simply by authenticating with your face, fingerprint, or device PIN.

In addition to a consistent user experience and enhanced security, these new credentials offer two other compelling benefits:

  1. Users can automatically access their passkeys on many of their devices without having to re-enroll for each account. Simply authenticate with your platform on your new device and your passkeys will be there ready to use—protecting you against device loss and simplifying device upgrade scenarios.
  2. With passkeys on your mobile device, you’re able to sign in to an app or service on nearly any device, regardless of the platform or browser the device is running. For example, users can sign in on a Google Chrome browser that’s running on Microsoft Windows, using a passkey on an Apple device.

These new capabilities are expected to become available across Microsoft, Apple, and Google platforms starting in the next year. This type of Web Authentication (WebAuthn) credential represents a new era of authentication, and we’re thrilled to join the FIDO Alliance and others in the industry in supporting a common standard for a safe, consistent authentication experience. Learn more about this open-standards collaboration and exciting passwordless capabilities coming for Microsoft Azure Active Directory in a blog post from Alex Simons, Vice President, Identity Program Management.

Helping you stay secure year-round

Read more about Microsoft’s journey to provide passwordless authentication in a blog post by Joy Chik, Corporate Vice President of Identity. You can also read the complete guide to setting up your passwordless account with Microsoft, including FAQs and download links. And be sure to visit Security Insider for interviews with cybersecurity thought leaders, news on the latest cyberthreats, and lots more.

To learn more about Microsoft Security solutions, visit our website. Bookmark the Security blog to keep up with our expert coverage on security matters. Also, follow us at @MSFTSecurity for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity.

Source :
https://www.microsoft.com/security/blog/2022/05/05/this-world-password-day-consider-ditching-passwords-altogether/