ekh_theory_best_practices_p01 - itnett/FTD02H-N GitHub Wiki

📚 Theory & Best Practices

Welcome to the Theory & Best Practices section! This page provides an in-depth exploration of the fundamental theories, frameworks, and best practices that form the backbone of effective IT security. Understanding these concepts is crucial for building a robust security posture, conducting thorough audits, and responding effectively to incidents.

🛡️ Core Security Frameworks

📜 NIST Cybersecurity Framework

  • Description: The NIST Cybersecurity Framework provides a policy framework of computer security guidance for how private sector organizations in the U.S. can assess and improve their ability to prevent, detect, and respond to cyberattacks.
  • Key Components:
    • Identify: Understand your environment to manage cybersecurity risk.
    • Protect: Develop safeguards to ensure the delivery of critical infrastructure services.
    • Detect: Implement activities to identify the occurrence of a cybersecurity event.
    • Respond: Take action regarding a detected cybersecurity event.
    • Recover: Plan for resilience and timely recovery to normal operations.
  • Official Documentation: NIST Cybersecurity Framework

🔒 ISO/IEC 27001

  • Description: ISO/IEC 27001 is an international standard for managing information security. It provides a systematic approach to managing sensitive company information so that it remains secure.
  • Key Components:
    • Information Security Management System (ISMS): A systematic approach to managing sensitive information.
    • Risk Management: Identifying, evaluating, and treating risks.
    • Compliance: Meeting legal, regulatory, and contractual obligations.
  • Official Documentation: ISO/IEC 27001

🧠 CIS Controls

  • Description: The CIS Controls are a set of best practices for securing IT systems and data against the most pervasive threats. They are designed to help organizations prioritize and implement specific changes to defend against cyber threats.
  • Key Components:
    • Inventory and Control of Hardware Assets.
    • Inventory and Control of Software Assets.
    • Continuous Vulnerability Management.
    • Security Awareness and Skills Training.
  • Official Documentation: CIS Controls

🧠 Threat Modeling

🔍 Understanding Threats

  • Description: Threat modeling is the process of identifying, understanding, and prioritizing potential threats to a system, then defining measures to mitigate or prevent these threats.
  • Key Concepts:
    • Assets: What are you trying to protect?
    • Adversaries: Who might try to compromise your system?
    • Attack Vectors: How might they try to do it?
    • Mitigations: What can you do to prevent or reduce the impact?
  • Popular Models:
    • STRIDE: Focuses on Spoofing, Tampering, Repudiation, Information Disclosure, Denial of Service, and Elevation of Privilege.
    • DREAD: Rates threats based on Damage, Reproducibility, Exploitability, Affected Users, and Discoverability.
  • Further Reading: OWASP Threat Modeling

🧩 Practical Threat Modeling Tools

  • Microsoft Threat Modeling Tool: A free tool that provides a graphical interface for creating data flow diagrams and applying STRIDE.
  • Threat Dragon: An open-source threat modeling tool developed by OWASP, suitable for use in both Linux and Windows environments.
  • Attack Trees: A visual representation of the potential attack paths, starting from the goal of the attack and branching into possible tactics an adversary might use.

🚨 Incident Response Best Practices

📋 Incident Response Planning

  • Description: Incident response planning involves developing a formal, documented plan that outlines how your organization will detect, respond to, and recover from a cybersecurity incident.
  • Key Components:
    • Preparation: Establish and train an incident response team (IRT), develop and document an incident response plan.
    • Identification: Detect and identify potential security incidents.
    • Containment: Limit the spread and impact of the incident.
    • Eradication: Remove the root cause of the incident.
    • Recovery: Restore and validate system functionality.
    • Lessons Learned: Analyze the incident to improve future response efforts.
  • Further Reading: SANS Institute Incident Handling

🛡️ Incident Response Tools

  • Splunk: Used for monitoring, analyzing, and visualizing real-time data from various sources, crucial for incident detection.
  • TheHive: An open-source incident response platform for handling, tracking, and sharing information about incidents.
  • Cortex: Complementary to TheHive, used for automating forensic analysis, intelligence gathering, and responding to incidents.

⚖️ Risk Management

📝 Risk Assessment

  • Description: Risk assessment involves identifying, evaluating, and prioritizing risks followed by the application of resources to minimize, monitor, and control the probability or impact of unfortunate events.
  • Key Steps:
    • Identify Risks: Determine what could go wrong.
    • Analyze Risks: Assess the likelihood and impact of identified risks.
    • Evaluate Risks: Compare estimated risks against risk criteria to determine significance.
    • Treat Risks: Select and implement measures to mitigate risks.
  • Frameworks:
    • FAIR: Factor Analysis of Information Risk, focuses on the financial impact of risk.
    • OCTAVE: Operationally Critical Threat, Asset, and Vulnerability Evaluation, a framework for assessing information security risks.
  • Further Reading: NIST Risk Management Framework

🔍 Risk Management Tools

  • RiskWatch: Software for assessing and managing risks, compliance, and performance.
  • Archer: A risk management platform by RSA, helping organizations manage enterprise risks.
  • LogicManager: A risk management solution offering tools for risk assessment, incident management, and compliance.

🚀 How to Apply These Best Practices

Understanding and implementing these frameworks and best practices is critical for maintaining a secure and resilient IT environment. Here are some steps to get started:

  • Start with Frameworks: Begin by adopting a core security framework like NIST or ISO/IEC 27001 to guide your overall security strategy.
  • Model Threats Early: Integrate threat modeling into your software development lifecycle to proactively address security risks.
  • Prepare for Incidents: Develop and regularly update an incident response plan, and ensure your team is trained and ready to respond to potential threats.
  • Manage Risk Continuously: Conduct regular risk assessments and adjust your security controls based on the current threat landscape.

📚 Further Learning Resources

  • Online Courses: Platforms like Coursera, Udemy, and Pluralsight offer courses on these frameworks and practices.
  • Books: Consider reading books like "The CISO Handbook" or "Security Risk Management" to deepen your understanding.
  • Webinars: Attend webinars hosted by security organizations like SANS Institute or ISACA to stay updated on the latest best practices.

🔗 Quick Links:

💡 Pro Tip: Bookmark this page to quickly access the core concepts and practices that underpin a robust IT security strategy!

Stay secure! 🛡️