Host Based Security

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Host Based Security

• John Scrimsher, CISSP
• jps_at_hp.com

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Why Host Based Security?

• Perimeter Security vs. Host Based

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Why Host Based Security?

• Malware
• Internal Threats
• Employee Theft
• Unpatched systems

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What is Malware?

• Anything that you would not want deliberately
  installed on your computer.
• Viruses
• Worms
• Trojans
• Spyware
• More

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Where are the threats?

• Un-patched Computers
• Email
• Network File Shares
• Internet Downloads
• Social Engineering
• Blended Threats
• Hoaxes / Chain Letters

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Phishing

• Email messages sent to large distribution lists.
• Disguised as legitimate businesses
• Steal personal information

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Identity Theft

• Since viruses can be used to steal personal data,
  that data can be used to steal your identity
• Phishing
• Keystroke loggers
• Trojans
• Spyware

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Legal Issues

• Many countries are still developing laws
• Privacy Laws can prevent some investigation

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Kaspersky Quote

• "It's hard to imagine a more ridiculous
  situation a handful of virus writers are playing
  unpunished with the Internet, and not one member
  of the Internet community can take decisive
  action to stop this lawlessness.
• The problem is that the current architecture of
  the Internet is completely inconsistent with
  information security. The Internet community
  needs to accept mandatory user identification -
  something similar to driving licenses or
  passports.
• We must have effective methods for identifying
  and prosecuting cyber criminals or we may end up
  losing the Internet as a viable resource."
• Eugene KasperskyHead of Antivirus Research

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Notable Legal History

• Robert Morris Jr. - WANK worm. First internet
  worm ever created, set loose by accident across
  the internet.
• Randal Schwartz - hacked into Intel claiming he
  was trying to point out weaknesses in their
  security.
• David Smith - Melissa. First known use of
  mass-mailing technique used in a malicious
  manner. Some jail time.
• OnTheFly, The Netherlands - Anna virus using
  worm generator tool. The writer was a youth who
  was remorseful but little was done to punish
  him.
• Philippines - Loveletter. No jail time because
  there were no laws.
• Jeffrey Lee Parsons 2005 18 months in prison
  for variant of Blaster worm.

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Regulatory Issues

• Sarbanes Oxley Act (2002)
• Graham-Leach-Bliley Act (1999)
• Health Information Portability and Accountability
  Act (1996)
• Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986)

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What is Managements role?

• Management ties everything together
• Responsibility
• Ownership

• Security is a Mindset, not a service. It must be
  a part of all decisions and implementations.

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Now, what do we do about it?

• C.I.A. Security Model
• Confidentiality
• Integrity
• Availability

• Current Solutions
• Antivirus / AntiSpyware
• Personal Firewall / IDS / IPS
• User Education

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How do these products help?

• Host Firewall / IPS blocks many unknown and known
  threats

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How do these products help?

• Antivirus Captures Threats that use common access
  methods
• Web Downloads
• Email
• Application Attacks (Buffer Overflow)

VBSim demo
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Social Engineering

• 70 percent of those asked said they would
  reveal their computer passwords for a

Bar of chocolate
Schrage, Michael. 2005. Retrieved from
http//www.technologyreview.com/articles/05/03/iss
ue/review_password.asp?p1
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Educated Users Help

• The biggest threat to the security of a company
  is not a computer virus, an unpatched hole in a
  key program or a badly installed firewall. In
  fact, the biggest threat could be you. What I
  found personally to be true was that it's easier
  to manipulate people rather than technology. Most
  of the time organizations overlook that human
  element.

Mitnick, Kevin, How to Hack People. BBC
NewsOnline, October 14, 2002.
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How do these products help?

• User Education
• Dont open suspicious email
• Dont download software from untrusted sites.
• Patch

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Things to look for

• Unusually high number of network connections
  (netstat a)
• CPU Utilization
• Unexpected modifications to registry RUN section.
• Higher than normal disk activity

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Open Source

• Shared information
• Business Models
• Is it more secure?
• Development model
• Security reviewers tend to be the same people
  doing the proprietary reviews
• Value in education
• Lots of good security tools

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Open Source - Browsers

• Firefox vs. Internet Explorer
• Vulnerabilities reported in 2005

• Internet Explorer
• SecurityFocus 43
• Secunia Research 9
• Symantec - 13

• Firefox
• SecurityFocus 43
• Secunia Research 17
• Symantec - 21

What about shared vulnerabilities? Plugins, WMF
images
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On the Horizon - Microsoft

• House on the hill
• Targeted because they are Big?
• Insecure because they are Big?

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On the Horizon

• Early Detection and Preventative Tools
• Virus Throttle
• Active CounterMeasures
• Principle of Least Authority (PoLA)
• WAVE
• Anomaly Detection
• Viral Patching

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On the Horizon

• Viral Targets
• Mobile Phones, PDAs
• Embedded Operating Systems
• Automobiles
• Sewing Machines
• Bank Machines
• Kitchen Appliances

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On the Horizon

• Octopus worms
• Multiple components working together
• Warhol Worms
• MSBlaster was proof of capability

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Learn Learn Learn

• Authors
• Sarah Gordon
• Peter Szor
• Roger Grimes
• Kris Kaspersky
• Search your library or online

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Questions?
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Resources

• http//www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,116163,0
  0.asp
• http//www.detnews.com/2003/technology/0309/03/tec
  hnology-258376.htm
• http//www.sans.org/rr/whitepapers/engineering/123
  2.php
• http//www.research.ibm.com/antivirus/SciPapers/Go
  rdon/Avenger.html