Category: Trendmicro

What is Firewall Design?

27.07.2023

A firewall is a network security device designed to monitor and control network traffic flow based on predetermined security rules. It acts as a barrier, selectively allowing or blocking incoming and outgoing network connections to protect the internal network from external threats. Essentially, a firewall ensures that only authorized and secure connections are made by filtering network traffic based on defined criteria.

Firewalls operate using a combination of rule-based filtering and packet inspection techniques. When network traffic passes through a firewall, it undergoes scrutiny based on various parameters, including source and destination IP addresses, ports, protocols, and the state of connections.

The Importance of Firewall Design for Network Security

So how does firewall design impact your network security? Here are the top reasons.

Protecting Against Unauthorized Access

One of the primary functions of firewall design is to prevent unauthorized access to an organization’s network resources. Firewalls act as gatekeepers, examining incoming and outgoing network traffic and enforcing access control policies based on predefined rules.

Identifying and configuring firewalls carefully will help organizations prevent unauthorized access by ensuring that only legitimate connections are allowed.

Mitigating Cyber Threats

Firewalls employ packet filtering, deep packet inspection, and stateful inspection to analyze network traffic and identify potential threats. They can detect and block suspicious or malicious traffic. Organizations can reduce the risk of successful attacks and protect their networks and sensitive information.

Preventing Data Breaches

Data breaches can severely affect organizations, resulting in financial losses, reputational damage, and legal liabilities. Firewall design prevents data breaches by monitoring and controlling network traffic. Also, firewall design principles advocate for network segmentation, which helps contain potential breaches and limit the impact on critical assets.

Enforcing Security Policies

Firewall design allows organizations to enforce and manage their security policies effectively. Organizations can align firewall configurations with security objectives and compliance requirements by defining rules and access controls.

Firewall policies can be customized based on traffic, user roles, and data sensitivity. Regular review and updates of firewall policies can ensure the effectiveness of their security measures.

Compliance with Regulations

Compliance with industry regulations and data protection laws is crucial for organizations across various sectors. Firewall design plays a significant role in achieving compliance by implementing security controls and access restrictions mandated by regulatory frameworks.

Organizations can demonstrate their commitment to protecting sensitive data by enforcing policies in line with GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI DSS regulations.

Characteristics of a Firewall

1. Physical Barrier

A firewall is a physical barrier between an internal network and the external world. It inspects incoming and outgoing network traffic, allowing or blocking connections based on predetermined security rules. By serving as a protective boundary, a firewall helps safeguard the internal network from unauthorized access and potential threats.

2. Multi-Purpose

A firewall is a versatile security tool that performs various functions beyond basic network traffic filtering. It can support additional security features, such as intrusion detection/prevention systems, VPN connectivity, antivirus scanning, content filtering, and more. This multi-purpose nature enables firewalls to provide comprehensive security measures tailored to an organization’s needs.

3. Security Platform

Firewalls serve as a security platform by integrating different security mechanisms into a unified system. They combine packet filtering, stateful inspection, application-level gateways, and other security technologies to protect against cyber threats. By functioning as a consolidated security platform, firewalls offer a layered defense strategy against potential attacks.

4. Flexible Security Policies

Firewalls offer flexible security policy implementation, allowing organizations to define and enforce customized rules and access controls. These policies can be based on various factors, including source/destination IP addresses, ports, protocols, user identities, and time of day.

With the ability to tailor security policies to specific requirements, organizations can effectively manage network traffic and adapt to evolving security needs.

5. Access Handler

A firewall acts as an access handler by controlling and managing network access permissions. It determines what connections are allowed or denied using predefined rules and policies. By regulating access to network resources, a firewall ensures that only authorized users and devices can establish connections, reducing the risk of unauthorized access and potential data breaches.

Firewall Design Principles

It is important to remember certain principles when designing a firewall to ensure its effectiveness in safeguarding network security. These principles serve as guidelines for architects and administrators, helping them design robust firewall architectures that protect against unauthorized access and potential threats.

  • Defense-in-Depth Approach: A fundamental principle in firewall design is adopting a defense-in-depth strategy. Rather than relying solely on a single firewall, organizations should deploy multiple firewalls, intrusion detection/prevention systems, and other security measures to create a layered defense architecture. 
  • Least Privilege Principle: The principle of least privilege is crucial in firewall design to minimize the potential attack surface. It advocates granting the minimum level of privileges and access necessary for users and systems to perform their required functions. This minimizes exposure to potential threats and reduces the risk of unauthorized access or malicious activities.
  • Rule Set Optimization: Firewall rule set optimization is another important design principle. As firewalls employ rule-based filtering mechanisms, regularly reviewing and optimizing the rule sets is essential. This involves removing unnecessary or redundant rules, consolidating overlapping rules, and organizing rules logically and efficiently. 
  • Secure Default Configurations: Firewall design should prioritize secure default configurations to ensure a strong foundation for network security. Default settings often allow all traffic, leaving the network vulnerable to attacks. Secure defaults are a starting point for designing effective firewall policies and help prevent misconfigurations that may lead to security gaps.
  • Regular Monitoring and Updates: Monitoring and updating firewalls are critical principles in firewall design. Regular monitoring allows organizations to promptly detect and respond to security incidents, identify unauthorized access attempts, and analyze network traffic patterns. 

7 Steps to Designing the Perfect Firewall For Your Business

Designing an effective firewall for your business requires careful planning and consideration of specific requirements. This section presents a step-by-step approach to creating the perfect firewall. 

1. Identify Requirements

The first step in designing a firewall is to identify the specific requirements of your business. This involves understanding the network topology, the types of applications and services in use, the security objectives, and any regulatory or compliance requirements.

2. Outline Policies

The next step is to outline the firewall policies based on the requirements. You can decide which traffic is allowed or denied for each source and destination address, port, protocol, and role using rules and access controls.

3. Set Restrictions

Setting restrictions involves configuring the firewall to enforce the outlined policies. This may include blocking certain types of traffic, implementing intrusion prevention mechanisms, enabling VPN connectivity, or configuring content filtering rules.

4. Identify the Deployment Location

This involves determining whether the firewall will be placed at the network perimeter, between internal segments, or within a demilitarized zone (DMZ), depending on the network architecture and security requirements.

5. Identify Firewall Enforcement Points

Identifying firewall enforcement points involves determining where the firewall will be implemented within the network topology. This includes considering factors such as the location of critical assets, the flow of network traffic, and the points where the firewall can effectively inspect and control the traffic.

6. Identify Permitted Communications

As part of the design process, it is important to identify the permitted communications the firewall will allow. This includes identifying the necessary communication channels for business-critical applications, remote access requirements, and any specific exceptions to the firewall policies.

7. Launch

Lastly, launch the firewall and ensure all configurations are correct. This includes testing the firewall’s functionality, monitoring its performance, and conducting regular audits to ensure compliance with security policies and industry best practices.

Safeguarding Networks with Strong Firewall Design – Protect Your Business Today

Take charge of your network security today and safeguard your business from cyber threats. Don’t wait for a security breach to occur—proactively design and deploy a powerful firewall that acts as a shield, protecting your network and ensuring the continuity of your operations.

Take the first step towards a secure network—consult with experts, assess your requirements, and design a robust firewall solution that suits your business needs. Protect your valuable assets, preserve customer trust, and stay one step ahead of potential threats with a well-designed firewall architecture. Safeguard your network and fortify your business with Perimeter 81’s Firewall as a Service.

FAQs

What are 3 common firewall designs?

– Packet Filtering Firewalls: They inspect packets based on rules, operating at Layer 3 of the OSI model.
– Stateful Inspection Firewalls: These track network connections and analyze entire network packets.
– Next-Generation Firewalls (NGFW): NGFWs combine traditional firewall features with intrusion prevention, application awareness, and deep packet inspection.

What are the four basic types of firewall rules?

1. Allow: This rule permits specific traffic to pass through the firewall based on defined criteria, such as source/destination IP addresses, ports, and protocols.
2. Deny: This rule blocks specific traffic from passing through the firewall based on defined criteria. Denied traffic is typically dropped or rejected.
3. NAT (Network Address Translation): NAT rules modify network packets’ source or destination IP addresses.
4. Session Control: These rules define how the firewall handles and manages sessions.

What are the 4 common architectural implementations of firewalls?

1. Network-based Firewalls: Positioned at the network’s edge, they offer centralized security, filtering and monitoring all inbound and outbound traffic.
2. Host-based Firewalls: These are installed directly on devices like servers or workstations, providing tailored protection and control over device-specific traffic.
3. Virtual Firewalls: They ensure security within virtualized environments. Apart from protecting virtual machines, they control and isolate network traffic between VMs.
4. Cloud-based Firewalls: Positioned within cloud environments, they ensure robust security for cloud-based applications and infrastructure, balancing scalability and centralized control.

Source :
https://www.perimeter81.com/blog/network/firewall-design

Exploring Firewall Design Principles for Secure Networks

27.07.2023

Firewall design principles are the bedrock of network security, providing a robust defense mechanism against both internal and external threats. These principles help in developing a security policy that can enforce stringent rulesets and offer layered protection for your private network.

Firewall design principles are crucial for maintaining a secure network. There are different types of firewalls like packet filter firewalls, stateful inspection firewalls, and proxy firewalls along with their unique features.

If you want to be able to design your firewall the right way you need to master the different key components in firewall design such as policies, rulesets, and interfaces, and learn the advanced features like Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) and Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) and be aware of best practices to implement these designs effectively. 

This comprehensive understanding of firewall design principles will empower you to make informed decisions about your organization’s network security infrastructure.

What are Firewall Design Principles?

The realm of network security is complex and vast, with firewalls serving as the critical line of defense against cyber threats. They’re like the bouncers of the internet, keeping the bad guys out and letting the good guys in.

The basic concept behind firewall design principles

A firewall’s primary role is to be the gatekeeper of your network, deciding who gets in and who stays out. It’s like having a very selective doorman at an exclusive venue, only allowing those with the right credentials to enter.

The fundamental principle behind firewall design is simple: filter, filter, filter. The firewall looks at things like IP addresses, domain names, and protocols to decide if a data packet is worthy of entering your network.

Why understanding firewall design principles is essential for network security

In today’s digital age, where cyber threats are increasingly common, having a solid firewall is a must. 

Understanding firewall design principles is like having a secret weapon in your security arsenal. It’s like knowing all the tricks of the trade, so you can configure your firewall to be a fortress against cyber attacks. 

Staying ahead of malicious actors is possible if you understand their strategies and configure your firewall in a way that best protects against cyber threats.

No single approach will suffice when it comes to firewalls; you need to tailor yours to suit your individual needs. Take the time to understand the core firewall design principles and make your firewall the ultimate defender of your network.

Five Principles of Firewall Design

Firewall design principles are critical to protect your private network and to maximize your network security. Here are five principles you can use when establishing your firewall and implementing security policies.

1. Develop a Solid Security Policy

Having a proper security policy is an essential part of designing your firewall. Without it in place, it’s a headache to allow users to navigate the company network and restrict intruders. This proper security policy will also help you know the proper protocol if there is a security breach.

A properly developed security policy can protect you. A solid security policy includes guidance on proper internet protocol, preventing users from using devices on public networks, and recognizing external threats.

Don’t overlook a properly developed security policy! Also, remember that simply having a security policy is only the first step. In addition to establishing security policies, you should have frequent training and refreshers for all employees. Have policies in place for reporting security threats and hold everyone in the organization accountable. 

2. Use a Simple Design

Keep it simple. If you have a complex design, you’ll need to find complex solutions anytime a problem arises. A simple design helps alleviate some of the pain you may feel when a problem comes up (and it inevitably will at some point). Also, complex designs are more prone to configuration errors that can open paths for external attacks.

3. Choose the Right Device

You need to have the right tools to do the job. If you use the wrong device, you have the wrong tools and are at a disadvantage from the start. Using the right part that fits your design will help you create the best firewall for your network.

4. Build a Layered Defense

Firewalls should have layers to properly protect your network. A multi-layered defense creates a complicated protection system that hackers can’t easily break through. Creating layers builds an effective defense and will keep your network safe.

5. Build Protection Against Internal Threats

Don’t just focus on attacks from external sources. A large percentage of data breaches are the result of internal threats and carelessness. Mistakes made by those internally can open your network to attacks from outside sources. Implementing proper security solutions for your internal network can help prevent this from happening.

Something as simple as accessing a web server can expose your network if you aren’t protected internally as well as you are externally.

As you design your firewall, remember these firewall design principles: have a properly developed security policy, keep it simple, use the right tools, build a layered defense, and protect yourself from internal threats.

Types of Firewalls

Different firewalls have varying characteristics and applications, so it’s essential to understand them in order to select the most suitable firewall for your network. Knowing these differences is crucial for picking the right firewall for your network’s needs.

Packet-Filtering Firewalls: Basic but Effective

A packet-filtering or packet-filter firewall does what it says—filters data packets based on predetermined rules. It checks packet headers to see what’s allowed in. 

Simple, but not enough against fancy cyber threats.

Circuit-level Gateways

A circuit-level gateway can be a stand-alone system or it can be a function performed as a gateway for certain applications. A circuit-level gateway does not allow for end-to-end connection but rather sets up two connections with an inner host and a user with an outer host. 

Stateful Inspection Firewalls

Stateful inspection firewalls go beyond packet headers. They keep track of active connections and use that info to validate packets. It remembers who and what is allowed – efficient and effective.

Application-level Gateways (a.k.a. Proxy Firewalls)

Proxy firewalls (also known as application-level gateways) act as intermediaries between internal networks and the Internet. They hide internal IP addresses and offer content filtering. 

The choice among these types depends on your network’s needs relating to size, complexity, and sensitivity. Remember, they often work together in layers; just make sure they’re properly configured and regularly updated. 

Next-Gen Firewalls

Next-gen firewalls are the next step in firewall security. These can protect against advanced malware and application-layer attacks. They typically include:

  • Firewall capabilities like stateful inspection.
  • Integrated intrusion prevention.
  • Application awareness and control to see risky apps.
  • Threat intelligence sources.
  • Upgrade paths to include future information feeds.
  • Techniques to continue evolving.

Now, we’ll explore constructing an efficient firewall.

Key Components in Firewall Design

When it comes to designing a firewall, there are certain key components that should be taken into account. Let’s break it down:

Importance of Policies

Security policies are like the rulebook for your firewall. They decide what traffic gets in and what gets blocked. You want to make sure only the right traffic makes it through.

A proper security policy will help you in both the short term and long term. Make sure to enforce security policies to keep yourself protected.

Rulesets – Defining What Gets Through

Rulesets are like the enforcers of the policies. They make sure the regulations are met. Visualize a vigilant sentry, patrolling your network for any untoward activity and taking swift action when needed. Rulesets often include elements like source address, source port, destination address, and destination port.

Interfaces – Connecting Networks Securely

Interfaces are the gateways between networks. They’re like the bridges that connect different parts of your network. Make sure these bridges are secure, so no unwanted guests can sneak in.

To recap, when it comes to firewall design, policies, rulesets, and interfaces are the key players. They work together to keep your network safe and sound.

Advanced Features in Modern Firewall Designs

In the ever-evolving world of cybersecurity, firewalls have leveled up to tackle sophisticated threats. 

Let’s dive into two cool advancements: Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) and Deep Packet Inspection (DPI).

Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS): Proactive Defense Mechanism

An Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) is like a superhero embedded in modern firewalls. It doesn’t just detect and block known threats; it goes the extra mile.

IPS keeps a watchful eye on network traffic, sniffing out any suspicious activity or weird anomalies. When it spots trouble, it swiftly shuts it down.

Deep Packet Inspection (DPI): Detailed Threat Analysis

Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) adds an extra layer of security by giving data packets a thorough check-up.

  • DPI looks at both the header info and the payload content of each packet.
  • It’s like a detective, figuring out the nature of incoming traffic.
  • If it finds anything fishy, like malware or protocol non-compliance, it sounds the alarm so you can take action.

These advanced features make modern firewalls tougher than traditional ones. But remember, no single solution can guarantee complete security. 

They’re advanced elements of your security squad, but they need backup from a solid information security policy management strategy.

Four Types of Access Control

There are four techniques that firewalls generally use to control access and security policy. 

  • User Control: Control access to a service according to which user is attempting to access the service.
  • Service Control: Determines what services can be accessed to keep your network secure.
  • Direction Control: Determines in which direction a service can be accessed, both inbound and outbound.
  • Behavior Control: Controls how services are accessed and used.

Advantages of Firewalls

There are several advantages of implementing a firewall to protect your network. Here are some of the biggest benefits you’ll see:

Block Infected Files

You come across threats when you browse the internet, or you might even have them delivered to your mailbox. Firewalls help block those files from breaking through your system.

Stop Unwanted Visitors

You don’t want anyone snooping through your system. This can lead to long-term security problems. Your firewall will detect unwanted visitors and keep them out.

Accessing public networks can put you at a higher risk of security breaches, but having a firewall can block access to your sensitive data.

Safeguards Your IP Address

This will protect your network as you browse the internet on a web server so you aren’t exposed to those who want to cause problems for your network. This can be set up with a virtual private network (or VPN) which acts as a network security device to keep your network secure.

Prevents Email Spamming

Security policies should help protect the employees on your network from malware or phishing attempts, but in case a mistake is made, a proper firewall can help prevent spam emails from getting through your system.

Stops Spyware

When using a web server, you can come across files that will install spyware on your system. A firewall will easily block access so you don’t have to worry about being exposed to outside threats.

Limitations of Firewalls

For as many advantages as you gain from having a firewall, there are still some limitations it will create on your server.

Internal Loose Ends

As a firewall can easily block access to external threats, it can struggle to prevent internal attacks. If you have an employee who accidentally cooperates with an attacker, you may still be exposed internally.

Infected Files

Because of the sheer number of files your network may come across, it’s impossible for every file to be reviewed by your network security device. 

Cost

It can be expensive to set up a firewall that protects your system, and the bigger your network gets, the more expensive it can become. That said, even a single large data breach could cost your company dearly, so having the proper protection in place is an investment worth making.

User Restriction

Sometimes firewalls can make it more difficult for users to access the systems they need to do their work. This can impact productivity when certain users need to access multiple applications.

System Performance

Implementing a firewall takes up a lot of bandwidth and using the RAM and power supply that may need to go to other devices can impact your system’s performance.

Firewall Delivery Methods

There are several different delivery methods for a firewall. Here are some of the most common delivery methods that are used:

  • Software firewalls: A software firewall is a type of software that runs on your computer. It is mainly used to protect your specific device.
  • Hardware firewalls: This is a device that is specifically used to implement a firewall. This can protect your entire network.
  • Cloud firewalls: These firewalls are hosted in the cloud and are also called firewall-as-a-service (FWaaS).

Boost Your Firewall Design with Perimeter 81

Understanding firewall design principles is crucial for network security. Different types of firewalls and their key components help create a strong defense against cyber threats. 

Packet filtering firewalls provide a basic yet effective approach, while stateful inspection firewalls consider the context of network traffic. Proxy firewalls bridge the gap between internal and external networks.

When implementing firewall designs, follow best practices like applying the least privilege principle and regularly updating configurations. Advanced features like intrusion prevention systems (IPS) and deep packet inspection (DPI) enhance your proactive defense mechanism. 

Incorporating these firewall design principles protects networks from unauthorized access and potential security breaches. Learn more about Perimeter 81’s Firewall as a Service.

FAQs

What are the four characteristics used by firewalls?

The four basic types of firewall rules include – allow all (permissive), block all (restrictive), specific permission-based access controls, and content filters

What are the 5 steps of firewall protection?

The five steps of firewall protection include – securing your firewall, building firewall zones & IP addresses, configuring access, configuring firewall services, testing the configuration.

What is the architecture of a firewall?

The four most commonly implemented architectures in firewall design principles include packet-filtering routers, application gateways, circuit-level gateways, and multilayer inspection firewalls. 

How do you design firewall architecture?

The principles of firewall design include clear policies, traffic control rulesets, secure network connections, and advanced features like Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) and Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). 

How many layers do firewalls have?

It’s common to see 3-layer or 7-layer firewalls. A 3-layer firewall is used for a network while a 7-layer firewall is used for applications.

Source :
https://www.perimeter81.com/blog/network/firewall-design-principles

What is a Cloud Firewall?

27.07.2023

In the past when fires were fought, people used traditional means like fire extinguishers and water hoses.

Translating this to the virtual world of computing — a cloud firewall is akin to the digital ‘fire extinguisher’ and ‘hose.’ It is a tool designed to stop, slow, or prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network.

It inspects incoming and outgoing traffic, based on predetermined security rules. They can be a standalone system or incorporated into other network components.

In technical words, it acts as a barrier between on-premises networks and external networks.

Cloud firewalls are often deployed in a ‘perimeter’ security model — where they act as the first line of defense against cyber threats. This includes protection against DDoS attacks, SQL injections, and cross-site scripting.

The Benefits of Using a Cloud Firewall

In this section, we’ll discuss the benefits of using a cloud firewall over traditional ones.

Scalability

Traditional firewalls can’t keep pace as your network grows — their hardware limitations bound them.

On the other hand, a cloud firewall can easily adapt and expand in line with your business needs. Because it’s cloud-based, scaling does not require any additional hardware investment or complex configurations.

Be it on-site installation, maintenance, or upgrading, cloud firewalls wipe out all those physical processes, saving you time and resources.

Availability

Unlike traditional firewalls that rely on singular hardware systems and can fail, cloud firewalls are designed for high availability. Their decentralization means that even if one part fails, the rest continue to operate, ensuring constant protection.

Being cloud-based, they can also balance the load during peak traffic times to prevent slowdowns or outages.

For instance — during an attack like DDoS when the traffic dramatically increases, a cloud firewall can distribute the traffic across multiple servers. This ensures that your systems remain accessible and functional.

Extensibility

Cloud-based firewalls are not just scalable and highly available — they are also highly extensible.

This means that you can easily integrate them with other security features or services — such as Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS), and Secure Web Gateways (SWG) — to create a solid security system.

Release updates and patches can be applied automatically, ensuring that the security is always up-to-date.

Identity Protection

When it comes to identity protection, cloud firewalls reign supreme.

They can identify and control application access on a per-user basis. This means that if unauthorized access is attempted, it can be immediately identified and blocked, providing extra security to your sensitive information.

Along with that, they can also provide an audit trail so that attempted breaches can be traced back to their origins. This info is beneficial for investigating cyber crimes and strengthening your cybersecurity strategy in the long run.

Performance Management

Sometimes, it’s not just about blocking harmful traffic, but also about prioritizing useful traffic.

Cloud firewalls enable performance management by prioritizing network traffic and providing quality of service (QoS) capabilities.

This can be handy during peak usage times or when certain services require higher bandwidth.

For instance, a cloud firewall can prioritize the traffic for certain high-demand resources, ensuring uninterrupted access and excellent performance. As a result, end users experience less lag and appreciate better service.

Moreover, the firewall can be programmed to give a higher priority to certain types of workloads or specific applications, like Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) or video streaming services.

Secure Access Parity

Remote work is another area where cloud firewalls shine.

Cloud firewalls enable a consistent security policy across all locations and users, no matter where they’re accessing from. This ensures that remote workers are just as protected as on-site ones.

Also, you get comprehensive visibility and control over all network traffic, and thanks to their cloud nature — updates can be pushed globally.

Migration Security

Migration — in particular to the cloud — can be a risky process in terms of security. The necessity to move data from one place to another can expose it to potential threats. Cloud firewalls eliminate these concerns.

Due to their inherent design, they provide end-to-end security during data migration. The data is protected at the source, during transit, and at the destination. This ensures a secure and seamless cloud migration process.

It’s like having a secure convoy for your data as it travels.

Types of Cloud Firewalls

There are four major types of cloud firewalls which can be broadly categorized as — SaaS Firewalls/Firewall as a service (FWaaS), Next-generation Firewall (NGFW), Public Cloud Firewall, and Web Application Firewall (WAF).

SaaS Firewalls/Firewall as a Service (FWaaS)

SaaS Firewalls, or Firewall as a Service, operate directly in the cloud. Offering security as a service — they are a scalable, flexible, and cost-effective solution.

  • Flexibility: Being cloud-based, these firewalls can rapidly adapt to changes in network traffic and configuration.
  • Scalability: FWaaS can comfortably scale up or down based on the needs without harming performance.
  • Cost-effective: As a subscription-based service, FWaaS can be adjusted to fit any budget and eliminates the need for expensive hardware and software maintenance.
  • Integrated approach: FWaaS offers a comprehensive, integrated approach to security, so you have complete visibility and control over network traffic and user activity.
  • Ease of deployment: Require less administrative effort and minimize human error.

Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW)

Next-Generation Firewalls represent the evolution in firewall technology, designed to go beyond traditional firewall functions.

  • Deep packet inspection: NGFWs are capable of examining the payload of a packet, crucial for detecting advanced threats within seemingly legitimate traffic.
  • Application awareness: NGFWs offer application-level control, significantly enhancing the granularity of security policies.
  • Threat detection: Their advanced threat detection capabilities protect organizations from a broad range of attacks, including zero-day vulnerabilities.
  • Integrated IPS: They feature an integrated Intrusion Prevention System that can identify and block potential security breaches, adding a layer of protection.
  • User identification: Unlike traditional firewalls, NGFWs can identify users and devices, not just IP addresses. This helps in creating more targeted, effective security policies.

Public Cloud Firewall

Public cloud firewalls are built within public cloud infrastructures like AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure to provide a layer of security control.

  • Seamless integration: These firewalls integrate seamlessly with other cloud services, infrastructure, and applications.
  • Autoscaling: Being cloud-native, they can scale dynamically with the workload, managing a substantial increase in network traffic without compromising performance.
  • Cloud-specific rulesets: These firewalls enable cloud-specific packet filtering, applying rules to cloud-native as well as hybrid and multi-cloud environments.
  • Compatibility: Public Cloud Firewalls are compatible with the automatic deployment mechanisms of their respective cloud platforms. This compatibility reduces the overhead of manual configurations.
  • Resilience: With a distributed, highly available architecture, they provide resilience — ensuring that the firewall is operational even if individual components fail.

Web Application Firewall (WAF)

A Web Application Firewall specifically protects web applications by filtering, monitoring, and blocking HTTP traffic that could exploit vulnerabilities in these applications.

  • Web app protection: WAFs stop attacks targeting web applications, including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and others.
  • Custom policies: Customizable Policies in WAFs allow for tailored protection suited to the individual needs of every web application.
  • Inspection: They offer a thorough inspection of HTTP/S traffic, ensuring no harmful requests reach the web applications.
  • Bot control: WAFs can discern harmful bots from legitimate traffic, granting access only to authorized users and services.
  • API security: Security for APIs against attacks such as DDoS, improving overall protection.

Using Cloud Firewall vs Other Network Security Approaches

How do cloud firewalls compare to other network security approaches? See how they compare to virtual firewall appliances, IP-based network security policies, and security groups.

Virtual Firewall Appliances

Despite brands like Cisco, Juniper, and Fortinet making a strong push for them, virtual firewall appliances don’t fit in a work environment that is heavily cloud-based.

  • Not scalable: Virtual appliances have limitations in scaling. When traffic increases, they struggle to keep pace, affecting performance.
  • Operational inefficiency: They require manual configurations and adjustments, which can lead to operational inefficiencies and potential mistakes.
  • Limited visibility: They usually provide limited visibility into network traffic and, in some cases, can’t even offer granular control at the application level.
  • Architectural complexity: These appliances often introduce architectural complexity, as they need to intercept and secure network traffic at different points.
  • High cost: Acquiring, maintaining, and upgrading a virtual firewall appliance can be expensive, especially when compared to subscription-based cloud firewalls.
  • Limited extensibility: Be it AWS transit gateways, Gateway Load Balancers, or VPC/VNet peering — virtual appliances usually struggle to integrate with these advanced cloud-native services.

IP-Based Network Security Policy

IP-based network security policies have traditionally been used in many organizations. However, they also have shortcomings when compared to cloud firewalls.

  • Dynamic IP difficulties: These policies are primarily based on static IP addresses, triggering issues when dealing with dynamic IPs — such as those used in today’s highly scalable, distributed infrastructures.
  • Granularity problems: IP-based policies offer less granular control over access to applications and data, compared to cloud firewalls.
  • Security loopholes: Because they rely heavily on IP addresses for identification, they can be vulnerable to IP spoofing, creating potential security loopholes.
  • Inefficient management: IP-based policies can be tedious to manage, especially when dealing with larger, more complex network infrastructures.
  • Limited scalability: Like virtual appliances, IP-based policies struggle when it comes to handling a significant increase in network traffic.
  • Dependency on IP reputation: These policies depend on the reputation of IP addresses, which can be unreliable and manipulated. Also, legitimate IP addresses can be compromised, creating a potential avenue for attacks.

Security Groups

Lastly, security groups, while being a crucial part of network security in a cloud-based environment, fall short compared to cloud firewalls on several fronts.

  • Scope limitation: Security groups usually have a limited scope — often only applicable within a single instance or VPC. This might not be adequate for enterprises with large-scale or diverse cloud deployments.
  • Manual administration: This can lead to potential errors and security risks, more so in large and complex environments.
  • Lack of visibility: Security groups don’t provide comprehensive visibility into network traffic or robust logging and audit capabilities — both of which are fundamental for troubleshooting and regulatory compliance.
  • Limited flexibility: Security groups lack the flexibility to adapt quickly to changes in network configuration or traffic patterns. This can hinder performance and affect user experience.
  • Dependencies: Security groups are dependent on the underlying cloud service. This means that they can be impacted by any disruptions or changes to that service. So, the level of independence and control tends to be on the lower end.

It’s evident, compared to the other network security approaches, cloud firewalls provide superior flexibility, scalability, visibility, and control.

How does a Cloud-Based Firewall Fit into a SASE Framework?

SASE is a concept introduced by Gartner that stands for Secure Access Service Edge. It combines network security and wide area networking (WAN) capabilities in a single cloud-based service.

Cloud-based firewalls fit wonderfully into this framework as they provide network security enforcement. Below’s how.

  • Unified security and networking: By integrating with other SASE components, cloud-based firewalls facilitate unified security and networking. They ensure that security controls and networking capabilities are not siloed but work together seamlessly.
  • Location-agnostic: Being cloud-based, these firewalls offer location-agnostic security. This is important in a SASE framework which is designed to support securely connected, geographically-dispersed endpoints.
  • Dynamic scaling: The dynamism of cloud-based firewalls aligns with the scalable nature of SASE. So, the security scales with network requirements.
  • Policy enforcement: They provide efficient enforcement of security policies across a distributed network, aiding in consistent security compliance.
  • Visibility and control: In a SASE framework, cloud-based firewalls offer enriched visibility and control over network traffic and user activity. This aids in improved threat detection and response times.
  • Data protection: They provide encryption and decryption, protecting sensitive data transmitted across the network. This capability is pivotal for data protection in a SASE architecture.
  • Fast deployment: Enjoy operational simplicity as they can be seamlessly deployed across multiple locations.
  • Easier management: Management becomes easier as there is a single point of control allowing for unified threat management.
  • Lower costs: Reduced capital expenditure as the need for on-premise hardware decreases significantly.
  • Highly available: These firewalls offer high availability and resilience, adhering to the SASE principle of continual access and service regardless of location. Thus, enhancing the overall security posture in an ever-increasing remote work landscape.

Secure your network with firewall-as-a-service today!

Organizations across the globe are transitioning to a cloud-first strategy. Perimeter 81 can assist you in this journey. Our Firewall-as-a-Service model provides security, scalability, and simplicity that is unmatched in the industry. Learn more here!

FAQs

What is the disadvantage of cloud firewall?

Reliance on the availability of the FaaS provider is a potential disadvantage of cloud firewalls.

Why do you need a cloud firewall?

Just like you need a security gate to prevent unauthorized entry into your house, a cloud firewall acts as a barrier to block malicious traffic from entering your network. It provides real-time protection and security monitoring — making it crucial in today’s world where cyber threats are rampant.

What is the main reason to operate a public cloud firewall?

Application visibility and control is the primary reason to operate a public cloud firewall. And unlike traditional firewalls, cloud firewalls allow for extensive network traffic logging and reporting, providing a thorough overview of your application’s security status.

What is cloud vs hardware firewall?

A cloud firewall, also known as a Firewall-as-a-Service (FaaS), is a firewall hosted in the cloud, providing scalability, cost efficiency, and real-time updates. Hardware firewalls, on the other hand, are physical devices installed in the infrastructure of a network. While cloud firewall is software-based, traditional ones can be both software and hardware-based.

Is a cloud-based firewall more secure?

Cloud-based firewall comes with the same level of security as a traditional or on-premises firewall but with advanced access policy, encryption, connection management, and filtering between servers.

What is the difference between a next-generation firewall and a cloud firewall?

While next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) offer advanced security capabilities such as intrusion prevention systems (IPS), deep packet inspection, and application awareness— they can be limiting when it comes to scalability and flexibility, especially in a dynamic, cloud-based environment. That’s where cloud firewalls excel.

Source :
https://www.perimeter81.com/blog/network/cloud-based-firewall

What network ports are used by Synology DSM services?

Last updated: Aug 10, 2023

Details

The operations of DSM services require specific ports to be opened to ensure normal functionality. In this article, you can find the network ports and protocols required by DSM services for operations.

Contents

Resolution

Setup Utilities

TypePort NumberProtocol
Synology Assistant9999, 9998, 9997UDP

Backup

TypePort NumberProtocol
Active Backup for Business5510 (Synology NAS)1TCP
443 (vCenter Server and ESXi host), 902 (ESXi host),
445 (SMB for Hyper-V host), 5985 (HTTP for Hyper-V host), 5986 (HTTPS for Hyper-V host)		TCP
Data Replicator, Data Replicator II, Data Replicator III9999, 9998, 9997, 137, 138, 139, 445TCP
DSM 5.2 Data Backup, rsync, Shared Folder Sync, Remote Time Backup873, 22 (if encrypted over SSH)TCP
Hyper Backup (destination)6281 (remote Synology NAS), 22 (rsync with transfer encryption enabled), 873 (rsync without transfer encryption)TCP
Hyper Backup Vault6281,
For DSM 7.0 or above: 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)		TCP
DSM 5.2 Archiving Backup6281TCP
LUN Backup3260 (iSCSI), 873, 22 (if encrypted over SSH)TCP
Snapshot Replication5566 (Advanced LUNs and shared folders)TCP
3261 (Legacy Advanced LUNs)TCP

Download

TypePort NumberProtocol
BTFor DSM 2.0.1 or above: 16881,
For DSM 2.0.1-3.0401 or below: 6890-6999		TCP/UDP
eMule4662TCP
4672UDP

Web Applications

TypePort NumberProtocol
DSM5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP

Mail Service

TypePort NumberProtocol
IMAP143TCP
IMAP over SSL/TLS993TCP
POP3110TCP
POP3 over SSL/TLS995TCP
SMTP25TCP
SMTP-SSL465TCP
SMTP-TLS587TCP

File Transferring

TypePort NumberProtocol
AFP548TCP
CIFS/SMBsmbd: 139 (netbios-ssn), 445 (microsoft-ds)TCP/UDP
Nmbd: 137, 138UDP
FTP, FTP over SSL, FTP over TLS21 (command),
20 (data connection in Active Mode), 1025-65535 (data connection in Passive Mode)2		TCP
iSCSI3260, 3263, 3265TCP
NFS111, 892, 2049TCP/UDP
TFTP69UDP
WebDAV5005, 5006 (HTTPS)TCP

Packages

TypePort NumberProtocol
Audio Station1900 (UDP), 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS), 5353 (Bonjour service), 6001-6010 (AirPlay control/timing)TCP/UDP
C2 Identity Edge Server389 (LDAP), 7712 (HTTP), 8864TCP
53UDP
Central Management System5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
CIFS Scale-out Cluster49152-49252TCP/UDP
17909, 17913, 19998, 24007, 24008, 24009-24045, 38465-38501, 4379TCP
Cloud Station6690TCP
DHCP Server53, 67, 68TCP/UDP
DNS Server53 (named)TCP/UDP
LDAP Server (formerly Directory Server)389 (LDAP), 636 (LDAP with SSL)TCP
Download Station5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
File Station5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Hybrid Share50051 (catalog), 443 (API), 4222 (NATS)TCP
iTunes Server3689TCP
Log Center (syslog server)514 (additional port can be added)TCP/UDP
Logitech® Media Server3483, 9002TCP
MailPlus Server1344, 4190, 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS), 5252, 8500 – 8520, 8893, 9526 – 9529, 10025, 10465, 10587, 11211, 11332 – 11334, 12340, 24245, 24246TCP
MailPlus web client5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Mail Station80 (HTTP), 443 (HTTPS)TCP
Media Server1900 (UPnP), 50001 (content browsing), 50002 (content streaming)TCP/UDP
Migration Assistant7400-7499 (DRBD), 22 (SSH)3DRBD
Note Station5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Photo Station, Web Station80 (HTTP), 443 (HTTPS)TCP
Presto File Server3360, 3361TCP/UDP
Proxy Server3128TCP
RADIUS Server1812, 18120UDP
SMI-S Provider5988 (HTTP), 5989 (HTTPS)TCP
Surveillance Station5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Calendar5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology CardDAV Server8008 (HTTP), 8443 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Chat5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Contacts5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Directory Server88 (Kerberos), 389 (LDAP), 464 (Kerberos password change)TCP/UDP
135 (RPC Endpoint Mapper), 636 (LDAP SSL), 1024 (RPC), 3268 (LDAP GC), 3269 (LDAP GC SSL), 49152 (RPC)4, 49300-49320 (RPC)TCP
Synology Drive Server80 (link sharing), 443 (link sharing), 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS), 6690 (file syncing/backup)TCP
Synology High Availability (HA)123 (NTP), ICMP, 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS),
1234, 9997, 9998, 9999 (Synology Assistant), 874, 5405, 5406, 7400-7999 (HA)		TCP/UDP
Synology Moments5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Photos5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Video Station1900 (UDP), 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS), 9025-9040, 5002, 5004, 65001 (for using the HDHomeRun network tuner)TCP/UDP
Virtual Machine Manager2379-2382 (cluster network), ICMP, 3260-3265 (iSCSI), 5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS), 5566 (replication), 16509, 16514, 30200-30300, 5900-5999 (QEMU), 2385 (Redis Server)TCP
VPN Server (OpenVPN)1194UDP
VPN Server (PPTP)1723TCP
VPN Server (L2TP/IPSec)500, 1701, 4500UDP

Mobile Applications

TypePort NumberProtocol
DS audio5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS cam5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS cloud6690TCP
DS file5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS finder5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS get5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS note5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
DS photo80(HTTP), 443 (HTTPS)TCP
DS video5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
MailPlus5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Drive5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Moments5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP
Synology Photos5000 (HTTP), 5001 (HTTPS)TCP

Peripheral Equipment

TypePort NumberProtocol
Bonjour5353UDP
LPR515UDP
Network Printer (IPP)/CUPS631TCP
Network MFP3240-3259TCP
UPS3493TCP

System

TypePort NumberProtocol
LDAP389, 636 (SLAPD)TCP
MySQL3306TCP
NTP123UDP
Resource Monitor/SNMP161TCP/UDP
SSH/SFTP22TCP
Telnet23TCP
WS-Discovery3702UDP
WS-Discovery5357 (Nginx)TCP

Notes:

  1. For the backup destination of Synology NAS, Hyper-V, or physical Windows/Linux/macOS devices.
  2. The default range varies according to your Synology product models.
  3. For the SSH service that runs on a customized port, make sure the port is accessible.
  4. Only Synology Directory Server version 4.10.18-0300 requires port 49152.

Further reading

Source :
https://kb.synology.com/en-global/DSM/tutorial/What_network_ports_are_used_by_Synology_services

New SEC Cybersecurity Rules: What You Need to Know

By: Greg Young – Trendmicro
August 03, 2023
Read time: 4 min (1014 words)

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently adopted rules regarding mandatory cybersecurity disclosure. Explore what this announcement means for you and your organization.

On July 26, 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted rules regarding mandatory cybersecurity disclosure. What does this mean for you and your organization? As I understand them, here are the major takeaways that cybersecurity and business leaders need to know:

Who does this apply to?

The rules announced apply only to registrants of the SEC i.e., companies filing documents with the US SEC. Not surprisingly, this isn’t limited to attacks on assets located within the US, so incidents concerning SEC registrant companies’ assets in other countries are in scope. This scope also, not surprisingly, does not include the government, companies not subject to SEC reporting (i.e., privately held companies), and other organizations.

Breach notification for these others will be the subject of separate compliance regimes, which will hopefully, at some point in time, be harmonized and/or unified to some degree with the SEC reporting.

Advice for security leaders: be aware that these new rules could require “double reporting,” such as for publicly traded critical infrastructure companies. Having multiple compliance regimes, however, is not new for cybersecurity.

What are the general disclosure requirements?

Some pundits have said “four days after an incident” but that’s not quite correct. The SEC says that “material breaches” must be reported “four business days after a registrant determines that a cybersecurity incident is material.”

We’ve hit the first squishy bit: materiality. Directing companies to disclose material events shouldn’t be necessary before there’s a mixed record of companies making materiality for public company operation. But what kind of cybersecurity incident would be likely to be important to a reasonable investor?

We’ve seen giant breaches that paradoxically did not move stock prices, and minor breaches that did the opposite. I’m clearly on the side of compliance and disclosure, but I recognize it is a gray area. Recently we saw some companies that had the MOVEit vulnerability exploited but had no data loss. Should they report? But in some cases, their response to the vulnerability was in the millions: how about then? I expect and hope there will be further guidance.

Advice for security leaders: monitor the breach investigation and monitor the analysis of materiality. Security leaders won’t often make that call but should give guidance and continuous updates to the CxO who are responsible.

The second squishy bit is that the requirement is the reporting should be made four days after determining the incident is material. So not four days after the incident, but after the materiality determination. I understand why it was structured this way, as a small indicator of compromise must be followed up before understanding the scope and nature of a breach, including whether a breach has occurred at all. But this does give a window to some of the foot-dragging for disclosure we’ve unfortunately seen, including product companies with vulnerabilities.

Advice for security leaders: make management aware of the four-day reporting requirement and monitor the clock once the material line is crossed or identified.

Are there extensions?

There are, but not because you need more time. Instead “The disclosure may be delayed if the United States Attorney General determines that immediate disclosure would pose a substantial risk to national security or public safety and notifies the Commission of such determination in writing.” Note that it specifically states that the Attorney General (AG) makes that determination, and the AG communicates this to the SEC. There could be some delegation of this authority within the Department of Justice in the future, but today it is the AG.

How does it compare to other countries and compliance regimes?

Breach and incident reporting and disclosure is not new, and the concept of reporting material events is already commonplace around the world. GDPR breach reporting is 72 hours, HHS HIPAA requires notice not later than 60 days and 90 days to individuals affected, and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has breach reporting requirements. Canada has draft legislation in Bill C-26 that looks at mandatory reporting through the lens of critical industries, which includes verticals such as banking and telecoms but not public companies. Many of the world’s financial oversight bodies do not require breach notification for public companies in the exchanges they are responsible for.

Advice to security leaders: consider the new SEC rules as clarification and amplification of existing reporting requirements for material events rather than a new regime or something that is harsher or different to other geographies.

Is breach reporting the only new rule?

No, I’ve only focused on incident reporting in this post. There’s a few more. The two most noteworthy ones are:

  • Regulation S-K Item 106, requiring registrants to “describe their processes, if any, for assessing, identifying, and managing material risks from cybersecurity threats, as well as the material effects or reasonably likely material effects of risks from cybersecurity threats and previous cybersecurity incidents.”
  • Also specified is that annual 10-Ks “describe the board of directors’ oversight of risks from cybersecurity threats and management’s role and expertise in assessing and managing material risks from cybersecurity threats.”

Bottom line

SEC mandatory reporting for material cybersecurity events was already a requirement under the general reporting requirements, however the timelines and nature of the reporting are getting real and have a ticking four-day timer on them.

Stepping back from the rules, the importance of visibility and continuous monitoring are the real takeaways. Time to detection can’t be at the speed of your least experienced analyst. Platform means unified visibility rather than a wall of consoles. Finding and stopping breaches means internal visibility must include a rich array of telemetry, and that it be continuously monitored.

Many SEC registrants have operations outside the US, and that means visibility needs to include threat intelligence that is localized to other geographies. These new SEC rules show more than ever that that cyber risk is business risk.

To learn more about cyber risk management, check out the following resources:

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/sec-cybersecurity-rules-2023.html

Cybersecurity Threat 1H 2023 Brief with Generative AI

By: Trend Micro
August 08, 2023
Read time: 4 min (1020 words)

How generative AI influenced threat trends in 1H 2023

A lot can change in cybersecurity over the course of just six months in criminal marketplaces. In the first half of 2023, the rapid expansion of generative AI tools began to be felt in scams such as virtual kidnapping and tools by cybercriminals. Tools like WormGPT and FraudGPT are being marketed. The use of AI empowers adversaries to carry out more sophisticated attacks and poses a new set of challenges. The good news is that the same technology can also be used to empower security teams to work more effectively.

As we analyze the major events and patterns observed during this time, we uncover critical insights that can help businesses stay ahead of risk and prepare for the challenges that lie ahead in the second half of the year.

AI-Driven Tools in Cybercrime

The adoption of AI in organizations has increased significantly, offering numerous benefits. However, cybercriminals are also harnessing the power of AI to carry out attacks more efficiently.

As detailed in a Trend research report in June, virtual kidnapping is a relatively new and concerning type of imposter scam. The scammer extorts their victims by tricking them into believing they are holding a friend or family member hostage. In reality, it is AI technology known as a “deepfake,” which enables the fraudster to impersonate the real voice of the “hostage” whilst on the phone. Audio harvested from their social media posts will typically be used to train the AI model.

However, it is generative AI that’s playing an increasingly important role earlier on in the attack chain—by accelerating what would otherwise be a time-consuming process of selecting the right victims. To find those most likely to pay up when confronted with traumatic content, threat groups can use generative AI like ChatGPT to filter large quantities of potential victim data, fusing it with geolocation and advertising analytics. The result is a risk-based scoring system that can show scammers at a glance where they should focus their attacks.

This isn’t just theory. Virtual kidnapping scams are already happening. The bad news is that generative AI could be leveraged to make such attacks even more automated and effective in the future. An attacker could generate a script via ChatGPT to then convert to the hostage’s voice using deepfake and a text-to-speech app.

Of course, virtual kidnapping is just one of a growing number of scams that are continually being refined and improved by threat actors. Pig butchering is another type of investment fraud where the victim is befriended online, sometimes on romance sites, and then tricked into depositing their money into fictitious cryptocurrency schemes. It’s feared that these fraudsters could use ChatGPT and similar tools to improve their conversational techniques and perhaps even shortlist victims most likely to fall for the scams.

What to expect

The emergence of generative AI tools enables cybercriminals to automate and improve the efficiency of their attacks. The future may witness the development of AI-driven threats like DDoS attacks, wipers, and more, increasing the sophistication and scale of cyberattacks.

One area of concern is the use of generative AI to select victims based on extensive data analysis. This capability allows cybercriminals to target individuals and organizations with precision, maximizing the impact of their attacks.

Fighting back

Fortunately, security experts like Trend are also developing AI tools to help customers mitigate such threats. Trend pioneered the use of AI and machine learning for cybersecurity—embedding the technology in products as far back as 2005. From those early days of spam filtering, we began developing models designed to detect and block unknown threats more effectively.

Trend’s defense strategy

Most recently, we began leveraging generative AI to enhance security operations. Companion is a cybersecurity assistant designed to automate repetitive tasks and thereby free up time-poor analysts to focus on high-value tasks. It can also help to fill skills gaps by decoding complex scripts, triaging and recommending actions, and explaining and contextualizing alerts for SecOps staff.

What else happened in 1H 2023?

Ransomware: Adapting and Growing

Ransomware attacks are becoming sophisticated, with illegal actors leveraging AI-enabled tools to automate their malicious activities. One new player on the scene, Mimic, has abused legitimate search tools to identify and encrypt specific files for maximum impact. Meanwhile, the Royal ransomware group has expanded its targets to include Linux platforms, signaling an escalation in their capabilities.

According to Trend data, ransomware groups have been targeting finance, IT, and healthcare industries the most in 2023. From January 1 to July 17, 2023, there have been 219, 206, and 178 successful compromises of victims in these industries, respectively.

Our research findings revealed that ransomware groups are collaborating more frequently, leading to lower costs and increased market presence. Some groups are showing a shift in motivation, with recent attacks resembling those of advanced persistent threat (APT) groups. To combat these evolving threats, organizations need to implement a “shift left” strategy, fortifying their defenses to prevent threats from gaining access to their networks in the first place.

Vulnerabilities: Paring Down Cyber Risk Index

While the Cyber Risk Index (CRI) has lowered to a moderate range, the threat landscape remains concerning. Smaller platforms are exploited by threat actors, such as Clop ransomware targeting MOVEIt and compromising government agencies. New top-level domains by Google pose risks for concealing malicious URLs. Connected cars create new avenues for hackers. Proactive cyber risk management is crucial.

Campaigns: Evading Detection and Expanding Targets

Malicious actors are continually updating their tools, techniques and procedures (TTP) to evade detection and cast a wider net for victims. APT34, for instance, used DNS-based communication combined with legitimate SMTP mail traffic to bypass security policies. Meanwhile, Earth Preta has shifted its focus to target critical infrastructure and key institutions using hybrid techniques to deploy malware.

Persistent threats like the APT41 subgroup Earth Longzhi have resurfaced with new techniques, targeting firms in multiple countries. These campaigns require a coordinated approach to cyber espionage, and businesses must remain vigilant against such attacks.

To learn more about Trend’s 2023 Midyear Cybersecurity Report, please visit: https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/us/security/research-and-analysis/threat-reports/roundup/stepping-ahead-of-risk-trend-micro-2023-midyear-cybersecurity-threat-report

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/cybersecurity-threat-2023-generative-ai.html

The Journey to Zero Trust with Industry Frameworks

By: Alifiya Sadikali – Trendmicro
August 09, 2023
Read time: 4 min (1179 words)

Discover the core principles and frameworks of Zero Trust, NIST 800-207 guidelines, and best practices when implementing CISA’s Zero Trust Maturity Model.

With the growing number of devices connected to the internet, traditional security measures are no longer enough to keep your digital assets safe. To protect your organization from digital threats, it’s crucial to establish strong security protocols and take proactive measures to stay vigilant.

What is Zero Trust?

Zero Trust is a cybersecurity philosophy based on the premise that threats can arise internally and externally. With Zero Trust, no user, system, or service should automatically be trusted, regardless of its location within or outside the network. Providing an added layer of security to protect sensitive data and applications, Zero Trust only grants access to authenticated and authorized users and devices. And in the event of a data breach, compartmentalizing access to individual resources limits potential damage.

Your organization should consider Zero Trust as a proactive security strategy to protect its data and assets better.

The pillars of Zero Trust

At its core, the basis for Zero Trust is comprised of a few fundamental principles:

  • Verify explicitly. Only grant access once the user or device has been explicitly authenticated and verified. By doing so, you can ensure that only those with a legitimate need to access your organization’s resources can do so.
  • Least privilege access. Only give users access to the resources they need to do their job and nothing more. Limiting access in this way prevents unauthorized access to your organization’s data and applications.
  • Assume breach. Act as if a compromise to your organization’s security has occurred. Take steps to minimize the damage, including monitoring for unusual activity, limiting access to sensitive data, and ensuring that backups are up-to-date and secure.
  • Microsegmentation. Divide your organization’s network into smaller, more manageable segments and apply security controls to each segment individually. This reduces the risk of a breach spreading from one part of your network to another.
  • Security automation. Use tools and technologies to automate the process of monitoring, detecting, and responding to security threats. This ensures that your organization’s security is always up-to-date and can react quickly to new threats and vulnerabilities.

A Zero Trust approach is a proactive and effective way to protect your organization’s data and assets from cyber-attacks and data breaches. By following these core principles, your organization can minimize the risk of unauthorized access, reduce the impact of a breach, and ensure that your organization’s security is always up-to-date and effective.

The role of NIST 800-207 in Zero Trust

NIST 800-207 is a cybersecurity framework developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. It provides guidelines and best practices for organizations to manage and mitigate cybersecurity risks.

Designed to be flexible and adaptable for a variety of organizations and industries, the framework supports the customization of cybersecurity plans to meet their specific needs. Its implementation can help organizations improve their cybersecurity posture and protect against cyber threats.

One of the most important recommendations of NIST 800-207 is to establish a policy engine, policy administrator, and policy enforcement point. This will help ensure consistent policy enforcement and that access is granted only to those who need it.

Another critical recommendation is conducting continuous monitoring and having real-time risk-based decision-making capabilities. This can help you quickly identify and respond to potential threats.

Additionally, it is essential to understand and map dependencies among assets and resources. This will help you ensure your security measures are appropriately targeted based on potential vulnerabilities.

Finally, NIST recommends replacing traditional paradigms, such as implicit trust in assets or entities, with a “trust but verify” methodology. Adopting this approach can better protect your organization’s assets and resources from internal and external threats.

CISA’s Zero Trust Maturity Model

The Zero Trust Maturity Model (ZMM), developed by CISA, provides a comprehensive framework for assessing an organization’s Zero Trust posture. This model covers critical areas including:

  • Identity management: To implement a Zero Trust strategy, it is important to begin with identity. This involves continuously verifying, authenticating, and authorizing any entity before granting access to corporate resources. To achieve this, comprehensive visibility is necessary.
  • Devices, networks, applications: To maintain Zero Trust, use endpoint detection and response capabilities to detect threats and keep track of device assets, network connections, application configurations, and vulnerabilities. Continuously assess and score device security posture and implement risk-informed authentication protocols to ensure only trusted devices, networks and applications can access sensitive data and enterprise systems.
  • Data and governance: To maximize security, implement prevention, detection, and response measures for identity, devices, networks, IoT, and cloud. Monitor legacy protocols and device encryption status. Apply Data Loss Prevention and access control policies based on risk profiles.
  • Visibility and analytics: Zero Trust strategies cannot succeed within silos. By collecting data from various sources within an organization, organizations can gain a complete view of all entities and resources. This data can be analyzed through threat intelligence, generating reliable and contextualized alerts. By tracking broader incidents connected to the same root cause, organizations can make informed policy decisions and take appropriate response actions.
  • Automation and orchestration: To effectively automate security responses, it is important to have access to comprehensive data that can inform the orchestration of systems and manage permissions. This includes identifying the types of data being protected and the entities that are accessing it. By doing so, it ensures that there is proper oversight and security throughout the development process of functions, products, and services.

By thoroughly evaluating these areas, your organization can identify potential vulnerabilities in its security measures and take prompt action to improve your overall cybersecurity posture. CISA’s ZMM offers a holistic approach to security that will enable your organization to remain vigilant against potential threats.

Implementing Zero Trust with Trend Vision One

Trend Vision One seamlessly integrates with third-party partner ecosystems and aligns to industry frameworks and best practices, including NIST and CISA, offering coverage from prevention to extended detection and response across all pillars of zero trust.

Trend Vision One is an innovative solution that empowers organizations to identify their vulnerabilities, monitor potential threats, and evaluate risks in real-time, enabling them to make informed decisions regarding access control. With its open platform approach, Trend enables seamless integration with third-party partner ecosystems, including IAM, Vulnerability Management, Firewall, BAS, and SIEM/SOAR vendors, providing a comprehensive and unified source of truth for risk assessment within your current security framework. Additionally, Trend Vision One is interoperable with SWG, CASB, and ZTNA and includes Attack Surface Management and XDR, all within a single console.

Conclusion

CISOs today understand that the journey towards achieving Zero Trust is a gradual process that requires careful planning, step-by-step implementation, and a shift in mindset towards proactive security and cyber risk management. By understanding the core principles of Zero Trust and utilizing the guidelines provided by NIST and CISA to operationalize Zero Trust with Trend Vision One, you can ensure that your organization’s cybersecurity measures are strong and can adapt to the constantly changing threat landscape.

To read more thought leadership and research about Zero Trust, click here.

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/industry-zero-trust-frameworks.html

ChatGPT Highlights a Flaw in the Educational System

By: William Malik – Trendmicro
August 14, 2023
Read time: 4 min (1014 words)

Rethinking learning metrics and fostering critical thinking in the era of generative AI and LLMs

I recently participated in a conversation about artificial intelligence, specifically ChatGPT and its kin, with a group of educators in South Africa. They were concerned that the software would help students cheat.

We discussed two possible alternatives to ChatGPT: First, teachers could require that students submit handwritten homework. This would force students to at least read the material once before submitting it; Second, teachers could grade the paper submissions no higher than 89 percent (or a “B”), but that to get an “A,” the student would have to stand in front of the class and verbally discuss the material, their research, their conclusion, and answer any questions the teacher or other classmates might ask. (With that verbal defense of the ideas, the teacher might even waive the requirement for paper submission at all!)

The fundamental problem is that the grading system depends on homework. If education aims to teach an individual both a) a body of knowledge and b) the techniques of reasoning with that knowledge, then the metrics proving that achievement is misaligned.

One of the most quoted management scientists is Fredrick W. Taylor. He is most known for saying, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” Interestingly, he never said that – which is fortunate because it is entirely wrong. People always manage things without metrics – from driving a car to raising children. He said: “If you measure it, you’ll manage it” – and he intended that as a warning. Whenever you adopt a metric, you will adjust your assessment of the underlying process in terms of your chosen metric. His warning is to be very careful about which metrics you choose.

Sometime in the past forty years, we decided that the purpose of education is to do well on tests. Unfortunately, that is also wrong. The purpose of education is to teach people to gather evidence and to think clearly about it. Students should learn how to judge various forms of evidence. They should understand rhetorical techniques (in the classical sense – how to render ideas clearly). They should be aware of common errors in thinking – the cognitive pitfalls we all fall into when rushed or distracted and logical fallacies which rob our arguments of their validity.

Large Language Models (LLMs) aggregate vast troves of text. Those data sources are not curated, so LLMs reflect the biases, logical limitations, and cognitive distortions in so much of what’s online. We are all familiar with early chatbots that were easily corrupted – the Microsoft chatbot Tay was perverted into being a racist resonator. (See “Twitter taught Microsoft’s AI Chatbot to be a Racist A**hole in Less than a Day” from The Verge, March 24, 2016, at https://www.theverge.com/2016/3/24/11297050/tay-microsoft-chatbot-racist accessed Aug 2023.)

LLMs do not think. They scan as much material as possible, then build a set of probabilities about which word is most likely to follow another word. If the word “pterodactyl” occurs in a text, then the next most likely word might be “soaring,” and “flying” might be in second place. If ChatGPT gets the word “pterodactyl” as input, it will put “soaring” next to it. This may look plausible to a person reading the output, but it cannot be correct. Correctness implies some kind of comprehension and judgment. ChatGPT does neither. It merely arranges words based on their statistical likelihood in the LLM’s database. We are now learning that LLMs that ingest computer-generated content become even more skewed – augmenting the likelihood of one word following another by rescanning the previous output. Over time, LLMs fed AI-generated content will drift farther and farther from actual human writing. The oft-mentioned hallucinations that LLMs generate will become more common as the distillation and amplification of the more likely subset of words leads to a contracted pool of possible machine-generated responses. Eventually – if we are not able to prevent LLMs from ingesting already-processed content – the output of ChatGPT will become more and more constrained, which, taken to the extreme, will yield one plot, one answer, one painting, and one outcome regardless of the specific input. Long before then, people will have abandoned LLM-based efforts for any activity that requires creativity.

Where can LLMs help? By sorting through bounded sets of information. That means an LLM trained on protein sequences could rapidly develop a most likely model for a protein that could attack a particular disease or interrupt an allergic reaction. In that case, the issue isn’t seeking creativity but rapidly scanning a set of nearly identical data overreactions to find the few that stand out enough to make a difference. A human doing this kind of work would quickly grow bored and likely make errors. LLMs can help science move quickly through vast quantities of data in closed domains. But when looking at an unbounded domain (art, poetry, fiction, movies, music, and the like), LLMs can only build average content, filling in the space between works. Artists seek to reach beyond the space their prior work defined.

The core problem with LLMs may be unsolvable. At this point, various organizations are exploring ways to tag AI-generated content (written and graphic) so humans can spend a moment assessing the accuracy and validity of the material. Of course, message digests can be corrupted and watermarks forged. A bad actor might maliciously tag authentic content as AI-generated. Recent developments include malicious ChatGPT variants designed to create BEC and phishing email content,

Students will always look for a shortcut, and that habit is difficult to overcome. In business, it will also be tempting for bureaucrats to use tools to simplify their tasks. How will your firm incorporate LLMs safely into your business processes? Organizations should consider how they will audit their internal procedures to ensure that LLM outputs are incorporated appropriately into communications. Imagine the potential for harm if some publicly traded company was found to have used an LLM to develop its annual financial report!

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below, or contact me @wjmalik@noc.social

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/chatgpt-flaw.html

OT Security is Less Mature but Progressing Rapidly

By: Kazuhisa Tagaya – Trendmicro
August 14, 2023
Read time: 2 min (638 words)

The latest study said that OT security is less mature in several capabilities than IT security, but most organizations are improving it.

e asked participants whether OT security for cybersecurity capabilities is less mature or more mature than IT in their organizations with reference to the NIST CSF.

As an average of all items, 39.5% answered that OT has a lower level of maturity. (18% answered OT security is more mature, and 36.4% at the same level)

Categorizing security capabilities into the five cores of the NIST CSF and aggregating them for each core, the most was that Detect is lower maturity in OT security than in IT. (42%)

figure1
Figure1: What security capabilities in OT are lower than IT (NIST CSF 5 Core)

Furthermore, looking at the specific security capabilities, the score of “Cyber event detection” is the most(45.7%).

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Figure2: What security capabilities in OT are lower than IT (detail)

The OT environment has more diverse legacy assets, and protocol stacks dedicated to ICS/OT, making it difficult to implement sensors to detect malicious behavior or apply the patches on the assets. The inability to implement uniform measures in the same way as IT security is an obstacle to increasing the maturity level.

Detection in OT: Endpoint and Network

The survey asked respondents about their Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and Network Security Monitoring (NSM) implementations to measure their visibility in their OT environments. They answered whether EDR (including antivirus) was implemented in the following three places.

  • Server assets running commercial OS (Windows, Linux, Unix): 41%
  • Engineering (engineering workstations, instrumentation laptops, calibration and test equipment) assets running commercial OS (Windows, Unix, Linux): 34%
  • Operator assets (HMI, workstations) running commercial OS (Windows, Linux, Unix): 33%　

In addition, 76% of organizations that have already deployed EDR said they plan to expand their deployment within 24 months.

figure3
Figure3: EDR deployment

We also asked whether NSM (including IDS) was implemented at the following levels referring to the Purdue model.

  • Purdue Level 4 (Enterprise): 30%
  • Purdue Level 3.5 (DMZ): 36%
  • Purdue Level 3 (Site or SCADA-wide): 38%
  • Purdue Level 2 (Control): 20%
  • Purdue Levels 1/0 (Sensors and Actuators): 8%

Like EDR, 70% of organizations that have already implemented NSM said they have plans to expand implementation within 24 months.

figure4
Figure4: NSM deployment

In this survey, EDR implementation rates tended to vary depending on the respondent’s industry and size of organization. The implementation rate of NSM was relatively high in DMZ and Level 3, and the implementation rate decreased according to the lower layers. But I think it is not appropriate to conclude the decisive trend from the average value in the questions, because there are variations in the places where they are implemented EDR and NSM depending on the organization. The implementation rate shown here is just a rough standard. Where and how much to invest depends on the environment and decision-making of the organization. Asset owners can use the result as a reference to see where to implement EDR and NSM and evaluate their implementation plans.

To learn about how to assess risk in your OT environment to invest appropriately, please refer to our practices of risk assessment in smart factories.

Reference:
Breaking IT/OT Silos with ICS/OT Visibility – 2023 SANS ICS/OT visibility survey

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/ot-security-2023.html

Top 10 AI Security Risks According to OWASP

By: Trend Micro
August 15, 2023
Read time: 4 min (1157 words)

The unveiling of the first-ever Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP) risk list for large language model AI chatbots was yet another sign of generative AI’s rush into the mainstream—and a crucial step toward protecting enterprises from AI-related threats.

For more than 20 years, the Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP) top 10 risk list has been a go-to reference in the fight to make software more secure. So it’s no surprise developers and cybersecurity professionals paid close attention earlier this spring when OWASP published an all-new list focused on large language model AI vulnerabilities.

OWASP’s move is yet more proof of how quickly AI chatbots have swept into the mainstream. Nearly half (48%) of corporate respondents to one survey said that by February 2023 they had already replaced workers with ChatGPT—just three months after its public launch. With many observers expressing concern that AI adoption has rushed ahead without understanding of the risks involved, the OWASP top 10 AI risk list is both timely and essential.

Large language model vulnerabilities at a glance

OWASP has released two draft versions of its AI vulnerability list so far: one in May 2023 and a July 1 update with refined classifications and definitions, examples, scenarios, and links to additional references. The most recent is labeled ‘version 0.5’, and a formal version 1 is reported to be in the works.

We did some analysis and found the vulnerabilities identified by OWASP fall broadly into three categories:

  1. Access risks associated with exploited privileges and unauthorized actions.
  2. Data risks such as data manipulation or loss of services.
  3. Reputational and business risks resulting from bad AI outputs or actions.

In this blog, we take a closer look at the specific risks in each case and offer some suggestions about how to handle them.

1. Access risks

Of the 10 vulnerabilities listed by OWASP, four are specific to access and misuse of privileges: insecure plugins, insecure output handling, permissions issues, and excessive agency.

According to OWASP, any large language model that uses insecure plugins to receive “free-form text” inputs could be exposed to malicious requests, resulting in unwanted behaviors or the execution of unauthorized remote code. On the flipside, plugins or applications that handle large language model outputs insecurely—without evaluating them—could be susceptible to cross-site and server-side request forgeries, unauthorized privilege escalations, hijack attacks, and more.

Similarly, when authorizations aren’t tracked between plugins, permissions issues can arise that open the way for indirect prompt injections or malicious plugin usage.

Finally, because AI chatbots are ‘actors’ able to make and implement decisions, it matters how much free reign (i.e., agency) they’re given. As OWASP explains, “When LLMs interface with other systems, unrestricted agency may lead to undesirable operations and actions.” Examples include personal mail reader assistants being exploited to propagate spam or customer service AI chatbots manipulated into issuing undeserved refunds.

In all of these cases, the large language model becomes a conduit for bad actors to infiltrate systems.

2. Data risks

Poisoned training data, supply chain vulnerabilities, prompt injection vulnerabilities and denials of serviceare all data-specific AI risks.

Data can be poisoned deliberately by bad actors who want to harm an organization. It can also be distorted inadvertently when an AI system learns from unreliable or unvetted sources. Both types of poisoning can occur within an active AI chatbot application or emerge from the large language model supply chain, where reliance on pre-trained models, crowdsourced data, and insecure plugin extensions may produce biased data outputs, security breaches, or system failures.

With prompt injections, ill-meaning inputs may cause a large language model AI chatbot to expose data that should be kept private or perform other actions that lead to data compromises.

AI denial of service attacks are similar to classic DOS attacks. They may aim to overwhelm a large language model and deprive users of access to data and apps, or—because many AI chatbots rely on pay-as-you-go IT infrastructure—force the system to consume excessive resources and rack up massive costs.

3. Reputational and business risks

The final OWASP vulnerability (according to our buckets) is already reaping consequences around the world today:overreliance on AI. There’s no shortage of stories about large language models generating false or inappropriate outputs from fabricated citations and legal precedents to racist and sexist language.

OWASP points out that depending on AI chatbots without proper oversight can make organizations vulnerable to publishing misinformation or offensive content that results in reputational damage or even legal action.
Given all these various risks, the question becomes, “What can we do about it?” Fortunately, there are some protective steps organizations can take. 

What enterprises can do about large language model vulnerabilities

From our perspective at Trend Micro, defending against AI access risks requires a zero-trust security stance with disciplined separation of systems (sandboxing). Even though generative AI has the ability to challenge zero-trust defenses in ways that other IT systems don’t—because it can mimic trusted entities—a zero-trust posture still adds checks and balances that make it easier to identify and contain unwanted activity. OWASP also advises that large language models “should not self-police” and calls for controls to be embedded in application programming interfaces (APIs).

Sandboxing is also key to protecting data privacy and integrity: keeping confidential information fully separated from shareable data and making it inaccessible to AI chatbots and other public-facing systems. (See our recent blog on AI cybersecurity policies for more.)

Good separation of data prevents large language models from including private or personally identifiable information in public outputs, and from being publicly prompted to interact with secure applications such as payment systems in inappropriate ways.

On the reputational front, the simplest remedies are to not rely solely on AI-generated content or code, and to never publish or use AI outputs without first verifying they are true, accurate, and reliable.

Many of these defensive measures can—and should—be embedded in corporate policies. Once an appropriate policy foundation is in place, security technologies such as endpoint detection and response (EDR), extended detection and response (XDR), and security information and event management (SIEM) can be used for enforcement and to monitor for potentially harmful activity.

Large language model AI chatbots are here to stay

OWASP’s initial work cataloguing AI risks proves that concerns about the rush to embrace AI are well justified. At the same time, AI clearly isn’t going anywhere, so understanding the risks and taking responsible steps to mitigate them is critically important.

Setting up the right policies to manage AI use and implementing those policies with the help of cybersecurity solutions is a good first step. So is staying informed. The way we see it at Trend Micro, OWASP’s top 10 AI risk list is bound to become as much of an annual must-read as its original application security list has been since 2003.

Next steps

For more Trend Micro thought leadership on AI chatbot security, check out these resources:

Source :
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/h/top-ai-risks.html