Tag: cyber security

ISBA IT Strategy and Cyber Security Conference

The main conference venue before things began on Wednesday

On Wednesday I had the opportunity to present a session at the ISBA’s IT Strategy and Cyber Security Conference in London.   I had previously volunteered to contribute to the conference and was expecting and had planned for a small breakout session anticipating around 20 people.   On the day upon arriving at the conference I found out that my breakout session would be following Mark Steed’s keynote speech in the main conference venue and therefore with quite a few more than 20 people.

The session very much focused on my thoughts and experiences around cyber security with key messages around the extent of the risk we all face plus the opposing extremes of over confidence in security efforts or a constant need for heavy security measures at the expense of school operational efficiency.    I described my approach as being one of a “healthy” paranoia and of a robust risk assessment and risk recording process.

You can read my slides from the session here.

 

Cyber thoughts from the train

Sat on the train going on my way back from London and I noticed my Samsung Galaxy phone was displaying a message telling me that it had detected a Samsung Gear device near me and wanted to connect.    The connection it was trying to establish was via Bluetooth which was enabled to allow my phone to connect to my cars audio system.   I hadn’t even thought to disable it.

As I look around the train I can see various people making use of mobile devices including laptops as we speed through the countryside.    The train is equipped with Wi-Fi thereby allowing everyone to remain connected even as they travel.

Two things worry me about the above.  The first worry is that of stray connections such as the one my phone tried to make with another passengers Samsung Gear.    As the various people on the train sit watching their video on their device, listening to music or working away their mobile devices are constantly seeking to make connections.    To connect to Wi-Fi for internet access, to connect via Bluetooth to external speakers, wireless headphones or in car audio devices.    As we use more and more technology our devices become more and more interconnected.    In doing so though we expose ourselves to an increasing risk of inappropriate connections being made either due to device error or due to human error, such as if I had accepted the connection which my phone was trying to make without reading the actual message.    These inappropriate connections may then give rise to unauthorised access and download of our data or to malicious acts being committed via our devices.

The other thing that worries me is the free Wi-Fi.    Now I suspect most people assume that the trains Wi-Fi is sufficiently secure although I cannot be sure of this.   The issue is the ease with which a passenger on the train could bring their own Access Point and set up a dummy Wi-Fi network, pretending to be the train providers network, for other passengers to connect to.   By doing so the owner of the dummy AP could gather data from those on the train who connect to the dummy AP.   This just seems all too easy.

The third thing that worries me is general awareness and consideration of security.    I doubt many people other than myself was giving cyber security of the many devices in use in the train carriage I sat in much in the way of consideration.    I would love to be able to survey people on a train or in another public space where free Wi-Fi is available in order to prove or disprove this assertion.   My belief, until I have any evidence to the contrary, is that we are a little too accepting.

Events such as the recent National Health Service ransomware attack highlights the issue of cyber security however the impact is not limited to big incidents occurring to big organisations like the NHS.   It affects each and every one of us, every day, even when sat on a train.    Also we cannot afford to be outraged and concerned only when a large breach like the WannaCry virus occurs, before almost instantly returning back to normal and forgetting all about security and the potential risks and implications.

We need a societal shift in terms of our perception of cyber security.

Cyber threats: Some thoughts

The recent WannaCry ransomware outbreak clearly identified the importance of keeping operating systems and other apps up to date to protect against identified vulnerabilities.   Given the high level of news publicity it is likely that a lot of us went home and updated our home PCs and also checked with IT departments to make sure they had done the same with company machines.    The outbreak, in my opinion, highlights a number of critical issues.

The vulnerability in this case had been previously identified and a patch made available by Microsoft, as such had all machines in the world been patched the impact would have been minimal.     But what if the vulnerability had not have been previously identified?    Had this been the case the attack could have been considered as a “zero-day” attack as it would have been on an unidentified vulnerability.    This would therefore have required the identification of the vulnerability followed by the coding and release of a patch, all post the initial infection.    In this case the impact of the ransomware would likely have been much more significant than it was.

The WannaCry Ransomware was specific to machines running Microsoft operating systems.    This has already resulted in a number of comments online suggesting people make use of Linux or Apple as these weren’t affected, suggesting that these may be safer systems.    As an operating system Microsoft has the predominant share of the desktop and laptop markets although the specific figures are difficult to ascertain.    This makes Microsoft machines a preferred target as there are simply more machines to attack.    Although there are differences in how the operating systems are managed, with Apple using a very closed development process and Linux using an open source approach, Apples OS, Linux and also Microsoft OS’s are all equally complex.   It is in this complexity that lies the risk of as yet unidentified vulnerabilities with equal risk across all the above OS’s.    The difference currently lies in the fact that Windows is the most common desktop OS, however if we were all to go out and buy an Apple or install Linux, it is likely the threat of attack would follow the masses.

My final issue is that of the devices we don’t give much thought to.    We think about the operating system of our laptop or desktop and even these days of our phone, and in thinking about these we carry out, or not, the required updates.    Our homes however increasingly contain more and more internet enabled devices and I would suggest we don’t give these the same level of thought.   My router, with which I connect to the internet, runs software in order to allow it to connect, to allow it to present an admin page along with providing other functionality.   This software is basically its operating system.     Your SMART TV runs an operating system which allows it to respond to your voice commands, search the internet and also carry out its other functions.    Your web connected home surveillance system runs an operating system which allows it to connect to cameras around your house and to allow you to connect in to view footage remotely, again, along with other functions.   And what about your wireless printer?    The above is the tip of an ever growing iceberg, however do we know how to upgrade the software in these devices to protect against identified vulnerabilities?   Do we know whether these devices automatically update or how to change the update settings?   Do we know how to check the version number or when the last update was done?

Microsoft called the recent attack a “wake up call”.   I tend to agree.    We need to be more aware of the implications of the use of each technology item, be it hardware or software.   We need to be aware of the risk to which usage exposes us as well as the precautions which we need to take.

My biggest take away from the whole incident is a reminder of what Nassim Taleb described in “The Black Swan”.   On Thursday 11th May all was well, systems were generally safe and precautions were in place.   Largely we didn’t expect a serious whole world cyber incident.   By the following day it was clear all was not well and that significant vulnerabilities existed.   A global cyber incident was underway.   A lot changed in a day and we didn’t do too well at predicting and preparing for it.    What shape will the next incident take if we can’t predict it?     And are those areas where we believe we are the safest those which are most at risk given we are unable to predict the unexpected?

A cyber learning opportunity

The global cyber attack of yesterday marks a learning opportunity in relation to discussing cyber security with our students.     It is important that our students are aware of the implications of such attacks including the impact and also the measures that can be taken to protect against attacks being successful or at least minimise their impact.

So what are the key learning points to take away from this incident and to discuss with our students:

OS and Software Updates:

One of the key points to take away is ensuring that desktop and server operating systems are regularly updated.  This includes updates and also upgrading of versions, for example upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 10.    Older operating systems eventually stop receiving support from those that produced it, meaning that new security flaws which are identified go unaddressed leaving users vulnerable.  Support for Windows XP ended back in 2014 so users of XP would be vulnerable to flaws identified between then and now.     For more modern operating systems such as Windows 7 and 10 the key here is the updates.   These updates provide the fixes to security flaws as they are identified and therefore it is important to keep your system updated to make sure vulnerabilities are promptly addressed.      This expands beyond operating systems to application software as well, as equally applications which have not been updated may expose users to vulnerability which the appropriate updates would have addressed.

Data Backup:

In the case of ransomware backup is critical as the virus will encrypt all files it can get access to.  As such at this point you can either pay the ransom which may or may not get you your files back, or, assuming you have kept backups, roll back to your latest backup with only minor loss of data.    As such regular backups represent the best protection against ransomware attacks.   The more regular the backup the less the loss so a weekly backup means a loss of up to a week worth of work, whereas a nightly backup reduces this loss down to 1 day worth of work in the event of a successful ransomware infection.

User Awareness:

The weakest point in the network is usually the user, the human being making use of the system.   An IBM report from 2014 identified that 95% of security incidents involved a human being.    It is unlikely that this figure has changed much.   As such it is important to try and educate users to exercise caution and to be aware of the precautions they should be taking in relation to suspicious emails, password security, etc.

Anti-virus:

While not protecting you against zero day attacks or new variants anti-virus will provide some protection against existing identified threats.   It is also worth noting that new anti-virus products are introducing new capabilities such as heuristic based identification of threats and sandboxing to provide additional protection.

Segmentation:

A key security maxim has always been assignment of minimum privileges required.   This means ensuring that users only have access to the files that they need to have access to in order to carry out their role.    This includes defining whether a user is limited to reading files or can in fact modify or delete them.    This also includes whether users have access to specific networks or whether their access is limited, such as in the case of a guest user.     By limiting access in this way we limit the impact of ransomware or other viruses to some extent.   As such in looking at the resources on our network assigning the minimum privileges is a key step.

Conclusion:

The recent attack is the largest attack I can remember since the Love Bug Virus which I vaguely remember from back in 2000.   It is likely that such attacks will become more common as we become more and more connected and reliant on technology, adding more and more connected devices into our homes and using more and more software apps in our daily lives.   As such, in preparing our students for the future, it is important that we take every opportunity to discuss how these attacks can and do impact on us and how we might all take appropriate precautions.    With the latest incident so widely reported in the news, now is a good time.

 

 

Home Tech: Some security tips

Yesterday I sat the ISACA Cybersecurity Fundamentals exam as part of my programme of continual professional development.   This got me thinking about what tips we might give our students in making their home technology a little bit safer.     As such I came up with the points below:

  • Passwords: This is an obvious one!   Make sure all devices connecting to your network have appropriate passwords set.    The longer the passwords are the better.    Also avoid using passwords across multiple devices and/or web services.
  • Network Devices: Any accessible devices such as Wi-Fi printers, network web cams, etc. represent a possible intrusion point.    It is therefore very important that you check the default settings for devices, especially in relation to the security settings and also any default access passwords, which you should immediately change.
  • Wi-Fi SSID: Make sure your SSID doesn’t give any info away about your router.   By default the SSIDs are usually something like SKY35735 or DlinkWD501 or similar giving hackers a starting point in that they now know the make and possibly the model of the device they are seeking to compromise.    As such it makes sense to change the default password when initially setting up your router.
  • Router Admin Password: The default admin password and username are often set to simply “admin”.  This means once in, a malicious actor can easily take admin control of the router and leave themselves a permanent back door to your network, resources and data.    Another key tip therefore is to change the admin password or both the username and password.
  • Web Admin: By default web admin is usually enabled meaning a user can access the administrative interface of the router via Wi-Fi.    Disabling this means that to access the admin interface a user would need to be physically connected your home network or router thereby reducing the possible access and the associated risk.
  • Wi-Fi Security: Make sure that you have either WPA or preferably WPA2 enabled in your Wi-Fi security settings.   This is all the more important if you have an older router which may still be using WEP or even worse a router where the default is set to Open and therefore no security is applied.

The above are just a couple of tips, of which many more could be added specific to different types of devices, operating systems, manufacturers, etc.    Hopefully the above represents a useful starting point.