What is Firewall Traffic Analysis? Firewall traffic analysis (FTA) is a network security operation that grants visibility into the data packets that travel through your network’s firewalls. Cybersecurity professionals conduct firewall traffic analysis as part of wider network traffic analysis (NTA) workflows. The traffic monitoring data they gain provides deep visibility into how attacks can penetrate your network and what kind of damage threat actors can do once they succeed. NTA vs. FTA... Firewall Policy Management Firewall Traffic Analysis: The Complete Guide Asher Benbenisty 2 min read Asher Benbenisty Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 10/24/23 Published What is Firewall Traffic Analysis? Firewall traffic analysis (FTA) is a network security operation that grants visibility into the data packets that travel through your network’s firewalls. Cybersecurity professionals conduct firewall traffic analysis as part of wider network traffic analysis (NTA) workflows. The traffic monitoring data they gain provides deep visibility into how attacks can penetrate your network and what kind of damage threat actors can do once they succeed. NTA vs. FTA Explained NTA tools provide visibility into things like internal traffic inside the data center, inbound VPN traffic from external users, and bandwidth metrics from Internet of Things (iOT) endpoints. They inspect on-premises devices like routers and switches, usually through a unified, vendor-agnostic interface. Network traffic analyzers do inspect firewalls, but might stop short of firewall-specific network monitoring and management. FTA tools focus more exclusively on traffic patterns through the organization’s firewalls. They provide detailed information on how firewall rules interact with traffic from different sources. This kind of tool might tell you how a specific Cisco firewall conducts deep packet inspection on a certain IP address, and provide broader metrics on how your firewalls operate overall. It may also provide change management tools designed to help you optimize firewall rules and security policies . Firewall Rules Overview Your firewalls can only protect against security threats effectively when they are equipped with an optimized set of rules. These rules determine which users are allowed to access network assets and what kind of network activity is allowed. They play a major role in enforcing network segmentation and enabling efficient network management. Analyzing device policies for an enterprise network is a complex and time-consuming task. Minor mistakes can lead to critical risks remaining undetected and expose network devices to cyberattacks. For this reason, many security leaders use automated risk management solutions that include firewall traffic analysis. These tools perform a comprehensive analysis of firewall rules and communicate the risks of specific rules across every device on the network. This information is important because it will inform the choices you make during real-time traffic analysis. Having a comprehensive view of your security risk profile allows you to make meaningful changes to your security posture as you analyze firewall traffic. Performing Real-Time Traffic Analysis AlgoSec Horizon Security Analyzer captures information on the following traffic types: External IP addresses Internal IP addresses (public and private, including NAT addresses) Protocols (like TCP/IP, SMTP, HTTP, and others) Port numbers and applications for sources and destinations Incoming and outgoing traffic Potential intrusions The platform also supports real-time network traffic analysis and monitoring. When activated, it will periodically inspect network devices for changes to their policy rules, object definitions, audit logs, and more. You can view the changes detected for individual devices and groups, and filter the results to find specific network activities according to different parameters. For any detected change, Horizon Security Analyzer immediately aggregates the following data points: Device – The device where the changes happened. Date/Time – The exact time when the change was made. Changed by – Tells you which administrator performed the change. Summary – Lists the network assets impacted by the change. Many devices supported by Horizon Security Analyzer are actually systems of devices that work together. You can visualize the relationships between these assets using the device tree format. This presents every device as a node in the tree, giving you an easy way to manage and view data for individual nodes, parents nodes, and global categories. For example, Horizon Security Analyzer might discover a redundant rule copied across every firewall in your network. If its analysis shows that the rule triggers frequently, it might recommend moving to a higher node on the device tree. If it turns out the rule never triggers, it may recommend adjusting the rule or deleting it completely. If the rule doesn’t trigger because it conflicts with another firewall rule, it’s clear that some action is needed. Importance of Visualization and Reporting Open source network analysis tools typically work through a command-line interface or a very simple graphic user interface. Most of the data you can collect through these tools must be processed separately before being communicated to non-technical stakeholders. High-performance firewall analysis tools like AlgoSec Horizon Security Analyzer provide additional support for custom visualizations and reports directly through the platform. Visualization allows non-technical stakeholders to immediately grasp the importance of optimizing firewall policies, conducting netflow analysis, and improving the organization’s security posture against emerging threats. For security leaders reporting to board members and external stakeholders, this can dramatically transform the success of security initiatives. AlgoSec Horizon Security Analyzer includes a Visualize tab that allows users to create custom data visualizations. You can save these visualizations individually or combine them into a dashboard. Some of the data sources you can use to create visualizations include: Interactive searches Saved searches Other saved visualizations Traffic Analysis Metrics and Reports Custom visualizations enhance reports by enabling non-technical audiences to understand complex network traffic metrics without the need for additional interpretation. Metrics like speed, bandwidth usage, packet loss, and latency provide in-depth information about the reliability and security of the network. Analyzing these metrics allows network administrators to proactively address performance bottlenecks, network issues, and security misconfigurations. This helps the organization’s leaders understand the network’s capabilities and identify the areas that need improvement. For example, an organization that is planning to migrate to the cloud must know whether its current network infrastructure can support that migration. The only way to guarantee this is by carefully measuring network performance and proactively mitigating security risks. Network traffic analysis tools should do more than measure simple metrics like latency. They need to combine latency into complex performance indicators that show how much latency is occuring, and how network conditions impact those metrics. That might include measuring the variation in delay between individual data packets (jitter), Packet Delay Variation (PDV), and others. With the right automated firewall analysis tool, these metrics can help you identify and address security vulnerabilities as well. For example, you could automate the platform to trigger alerts when certain metrics fall outside safe operating parameters. Exploring AlgoSec’s Network Traffic Analysis Tool AlgoSec Horizon Security Analyzer provides a wide range of operations and optimizations to security teams operating in complex environments. It enables firewall performance improvements and produces custom reports with rich visualizations demonstrating the value of its optimizations. Some of the operations that Horizon Security Analyzer supports include: Device analysis and change tracking reports. Gain in-depth data on device policies, traffic, rules, and objects. It analyzes the routing table that produces a connectivity diagram illustrating changes from previous reports on every device covered. Traffic and routing queries. Run traffic simulations on specific devices and groups to find out how firewall rules interact in specific scenarios. Troubleshoot issues that emerge and use the data collected to prevent disruptions to real-world traffic. This allows for seamless server IP migration and security validation. Compliance verification and reporting. Explore the policy and change history of individual devices, groups, and global categories. Generate custom reports that meet the requirements of corporate regulatory standards like Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA, PCI DSS, and others. Rule cleanup and auditing. Identify firewall rules that are either unused, timed out, disabled, or redundant. Safely remove rules that fail to improve your security posture, improving the efficiency of your firewall devices. List unused rules, rules that don’t conform to company policy, and more. Horizon Security Analyzer can even re-order rules automatically, increasing device performance while retaining policy logic. User notifications and alerts. Discover when unexpected changes are made and find out how those changes were made. Monitor devices for rule changes and send emails to pre-assigned users with device analyses and reports. Network Traffic Analysis for Threat Detection and Response By monitoring and inspecting network traffic patterns, firewall analysis tools can help security teams quickly detect and respond to threats. Layer on additional technologies like Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), Network Detection and Response (NDR), and Threat Intelligence feeds to transform network analysis into a proactive detection and response solution. IDS solutions can examine packet headers, usage statistics, and protocol data flows to find out when suspicious activity is taking place. Network sensors may monitor traffic that passes through specific routers or switches, or host-based intrusion detection systems may monitor traffic from within a host on the network. NDR solutions use a combination of analytical techniques to identify security threats without relying on known attack signatures. They continuously monitor and analyze network traffic data to establish a baseline of normal network activity. NDR tools alert security teams when new activity deviates too far from the baseline. Threat intelligence feeds provide live insight on the indicators associated with emerging threats. This allows security teams to associate observed network activities with known threats as they develop in real-time. The best threat intelligence feeds filter out the huge volume of superfluous threat data that doesn’t pertain to the organization in question. Firewall Traffic Analysis in Specific Environments On-Premises vs. Cloud-hosted Environments Firewall traffic analyzers exist in both on-premises and cloud-based forms. As more organizations migrate business-critical processes to the cloud, having a truly cloud-native network analysis tool is increasingly important. The best of these tools allow security teams to measure the performance of both on-premises and cloud-hosted network devices, gathering information from physical devices, software platforms, and the infrastructure that connects them. Securing the Internet of Things It’s also important that firewall traffic analysis tools take Internet of Things (IoT) devices in consideration. These should be grouped separately from other network assets and furnished with firewall rules that strictly segment them. Ideally, if threat actors compromise one or more IoT devices, network segmentation won’t allow the attack to spread to other parts of the network. Conducting firewall analysis and continuously auditing firewall rules ensures that the barriers between network segments remain viable even if peripheral assets (like IoT devices) are compromised. Microsoft Windows Environments Organizations that rely on extensive Microsoft Windows deployments need to augment the built-in security capabilities that Windows provides. On its own, Windows does not offer the kind of in-depth security or visibility that organizations need. Firewall traffic analysis can play a major role helping IT decision-makers deploy technologies that improve the security of their Windows-based systems. Troubleshooting and Forensic Analysis Firewall analysis can provide detailed information into the causes of network problems, enabling IT professionals to respond to network issues more quickly. There are a few ways network administrators can do this: Analyzing firewall logs. Log data provides a wealth of information on who connects to network assets. These logs can help network administrators identify performance bottlenecks and security vulnerabilities that would otherwise go unnoticed. Investigating cyberattacks. When threat actors successfully breach network assets, they can leave behind valuable data. Firewall analysis can help pinpoint the vulnerabilities they exploited, providing security teams with the data they need to prevent future attacks. Conducting forensic analysis on known threats. Network traffic analysis can help security teams track down ransomware and malware attacks. An organization can only commit resources to closing its security gaps after a security professional maps out the killchain used by threat actors to compromise network assets. Key Integrations Firewall analysis tools provide maximum value when integrated with other security tools into a coherent, unified platform. Security information and event management (SIEM) tools allow you to orchestrate network traffic analysis automations with machine learning-enabled workflows to enable near-instant detection and response. Deploying SIEM capabilities in this context allows you to correlate data from different sources and draw logs from devices across every corner of the organization – including its firewalls. By integrating this data into a unified, centrally managed system, security professionals can gain real-time information on security threats as they emerge. AlgoSec’s Horizon Security Analyzer integrates seamlessly with leading SIEM solutions, allowing security teams to monitor, share, and update firewall configurations while enriching security event data with insights gleaned from firewall logs. Horizon Security Analyzer uses a REST API to transmit and receive data from SIEM platforms, allowing organizations to program automation into their firewall workflows and manage their deployments from their SIEM. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Omer Ganot, Cloud Security Product Manager at AlgoSec, outlines six key things that businesses should be doing to ensure their security... Hybrid Cloud Security Management Six best practices for managing security in the hybrid cloud Omer Ganot 2 min read Omer Ganot Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 8/5/21 Published Omer Ganot, Cloud Security Product Manager at AlgoSec, outlines six key things that businesses should be doing to ensure their security in a hybrid cloud environment Over the course of the past decade, we’ve seen cloud computing vastly transitioning from on-prem to the public cloud. Businesses know the value of the cloud all too well, and most of them are migrating their operations to the cloud as quickly as possible, particularly considering the pandemic and the push to remote working. However, there are major challenges associated with transitioning to the cloud, including the diversity and breadth of network and security controls and a dependency on legacy systems that can be difficult to shake. Public cloud allows organizations for better business continuity, easier scalability and paves the way for DevOps to provision resources and deploy projects quickly. But, what’s the security cost when looking at the full Gpicture of the entire hybrid network? Here I outline the six best practices for managing security in the hybrid cloud: 1. Use next-generation firewalls Did you know that almost half (49%) of businesses report running virtual editions of traditional firewalls in the cloud? It’s becoming increasingly clear that cloud providers’ native security controls are not enough, and that next-gen firewall solutions are needed. While a traditional stateful firewall is designed to monitor incoming and outgoing network traffic, a next-generation firewall (NGFW) includes features such as application awareness and control, integrated breach prevention and active threat intelligence. In other words, while a traditional firewall will allow for layer 1-2 protection, NGFWs allow for protection from levels 3 through 7. 2. Use dynamic objects On-premise security tends to be easier because subnets and IP addresses are typically static. In the cloud, however, workloads are dynamically provisioned and decommissioned, IP addresses change, so traditional firewalls simply cannot keep up. NGFW dynamic objects allow businesses to match a group of workloads using cloud-native categories, and then use these objects in policies to properly enforce traffic and avoid the need to frequently update the policies. 3. Gain 360-degree visibility As with any form of security, visibility is critical. Without that, even the best preventative or remedial strategies will fall flat. Security should be evaluated both in your cloud services and in the path from the internet and data center clients. Having one single view over the entire network estate is invaluable when it comes to hybrid cloud security. AlgoSec’s powerful AutoDiscovery capabilities help you understand the network flows in your organization. You can automatically connect the recognized traffic flows to the business applications that use them and seamlessly manage the network security policy across your entire hybrid estate. 4. Evaluate risk in its entirety Too many businesses are guilty of only focusing on cloud services when it comes to managing security. This leaves them inherently vulnerable on other network paths, such as the ones that run from the internet and data centers towards the services in the cloud. As well as gaining 360-degree visibility over the entire network estate, businesses also need to be sure to actively monitor those areas for risk with equal weighting in terms of priority. 5. Clean up cloud policies regularly The cloud security landscape changes at a faster rate than most businesses can realistically keep up with. For that reason, cloud security groups tend to change with the wind, constantly being adjusted to account for new applications. If a business doesn’t keep on top of its cloud policy ‘housekeeping’, they’ll soon become bloated, difficult to maintain and risky. Keep cloud security groups clean and tidy so they’re accurate, efficient and don’t expose risk. 6. Embrace DevSecOps The cloud might be perfect for DevOps in terms of easy and agile resource and security provisioning using Infrastructure-as-code tools, but the methodology is seldom used for risk analysis and remediation recommendations. Businesses that want to take control of their cloud security should pay close attention to this. Before a new risk is introduced, you should obtain an automatic what-if risk check as part of the code’s pull request, before pushing to production. From visibility and network management right through to risk evaluation and clean-up, staying secure in a hybrid cloud environment might sound like hard work, but by embracing these fundamental practices your organization can start putting together the pieces of its own security puzzle. The AlgoSec Security Management Suite (ASMS) makes it easy to support your cloud migration journey, ensuring that it does not block critical business services and meet compliance requirements. To learn more or ask for your personalized demo, click here . Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Secure VPC as the main pillar of cloud security Remember the Capital One breach back in 2019 ? 100 million customers' data exposed,... Cloud Security A secure VPC as the main pillar of cloud security Asher Benbenisty 2 min read Asher Benbenisty Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 11/11/24 Published Secure VPC as the main pillar of cloud security Remember the Capital One breach back in 2019 ? 100 million customers' data exposed, over $270 million in fines – all because of a misconfigured WAF. Ouch! A brutal reminder that cloud security is no joke. And with cloud spending skyrocketing to a whopping $675.4 billion this year, the bad guys are licking their chops. The stakes? Higher than ever. The cloud's a dynamic beast, constantly evolving, with an attack surface that's expanding faster than a pufferfish in a staring contest. To stay ahead of those crafty cybercriminals, you need a security strategy that's as agile as a ninja warrior. That means a multi-layered approach, with network security as the bedrock. Think of it as the backbone of your cloud fortress, ensuring all your communication channels – internal and external – are locked down tighter than Fort Knox. In this post, we're shining the spotlight on Virtual Private Clouds (VPCs) – the cornerstone of your cloud network security. But here's the kicker: native cloud tools alone won't cut it. They're like a bicycle in a Formula 1 race – good for a leisurely ride, but not built for high-speed security. We'll delve into why and introduce you to AlgoSec, the solution that turbocharges your VPC security and puts you in the driver's seat. The 5 Pillars of Cloud Security: A Quick Pit Stop Before we hit the gas on VPCs, let's do a quick pit stop to recap the five foundational pillars of a rock-solid cloud security strategy: Identity and Access Management (IAM): Control who gets access to what with the principle of least privilege and role-based access control. Basically, don't give the keys to the kingdom to just anyone! Keep a watchful eye with continuous monitoring and logging of access patterns. Integrate with SIEM systems to boost your threat detection and response capabilities. Think of it as having a security guard with night vision goggles patrolling your cloud castle 24/7. Data Encryption: Protect your sensitive data throughout its lifecycle – whether it's chilling in your cloud servers or traveling across networks. Think of it as wrapping your crown jewels in multiple layers of security, making them impenetrable to those data-hungry thieves. Network Security: This is where VPCs take center stage! But it's more than just VPCs – you also need firewalls, security groups, and constant vigilance to keep your network fortress impenetrable. It's like having a multi-layered defense system with moats, drawbridges, and archers ready to defend your cloud kingdom. Compliance and Governance: Don't forget those pesky regulations and internal policies! Use audit trails, resource tagging, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) to stay on the right side of the law. It's like having a compliance officer who keeps you in check and ensures you're always playing by the rules. Incident Response and Recovery: Even with the best defenses, breaches can happen. It's like a flat tire on your cloud journey – annoying, but manageable with the right tools. Be prepared with real-time threat detection, automated response, and recovery plans that'll get you back on your feet faster than a cheetah on Red Bull. Why Network Security is Your First Line of Defense Network security is like the moat around your cloud castle, the first line of defense against those pesky attackers. Breaches can cost you a fortune, ruin your reputation faster than a bad Yelp review, and send your customers running for the hills. Remember when Equifax suffered a massive data breach in 2017 due to an unpatched vulnerability? Or the ChatGPT breach in 2023 where a misconfigured database exposed sensitive user data? These incidents are stark reminders that even a small slip-up can have massive consequences. VPCs: Building Your Secure Cloud Fortress VPCs are like creating your own private kingdom within the vast public cloud. You get to set the rules, control access, and keep those unwanted visitors out. This isolation is crucial for preventing those sneaky attackers from gaining a foothold and wreaking havoc. With VPCs, you have granular control over your network traffic – think of it as directing the flow of chariots within your kingdom. You can define routing tables, create custom IP address ranges, and isolate different sections of your cloud environment. But here's the thing: VPCs alone aren't enough. You still need to connect to the outside world, and that's where secure options like VPNs and dedicated interconnects come in. Think of them as secure tunnels and bridges that allow safe passage in and out of your kingdom. Native Cloud Tools: Good, But Not Good Enough The cloud providers offer their own security tools – think AWS CloudTrail, Azure Security Center, and Google Cloud's Security Command Center. They're a good starting point, like a basic toolkit for your cloud security needs. But they often fall short when it comes to dealing with the complexities of today's cloud environments. Here's why: Lack of Customization: They're like one-size-fits-all suits – they might kinda fit, but they're not tailored to your specific needs. You need a custom-made suit of armor for your cloud kingdom, not something off the rack. Blind Spots in Multi-Cloud Environments: If you're juggling multiple cloud platforms, these tools can leave you with blind spots, making it harder to keep an eye on everything. It's like trying to guard a castle with multiple entrances and only having one guard. Configuration Nightmares: Misconfigurations are like leaving the back door to your castle wide open. Native tools often lack the robust detection and prevention mechanisms you need to avoid these costly mistakes. You need a security system with motion sensors, alarms, and maybe even a moat with crocodiles to keep those intruders out. Integration Headaches: Trying to integrate these tools with other security solutions can be like fitting a square peg into a round hole. This can leave gaps in your security posture, making you vulnerable to attacks. You need a security system that works seamlessly with all your other defenses, not one that creates more problems than it solves. To overcome these limitations and implement best practices for securing your AWS environment, including VPC configuration and management, download our free white paper: AWS Best Practices: Strengthening Your Cloud Security Posture . AlgoSec: Your Cloud Security Superhero This is where AlgoSec swoops in to save the day! AlgoSec is like the ultimate security concierge for your cloud environment. It streamlines and automates security policy management across all your cloud platforms – whether it's a hybrid setup or a multi-cloud extravaganza. Here's how it helps you conquer the cloud security challenge: X-Ray Vision for Your Network: AlgoSec gives you complete visibility into your network, automatically discovering and mapping your applications and their connections. It's like having X-ray vision for your cloud fortress, allowing you to see every nook and cranny where those sneaky attackers might be hiding. Automated Policy Enforcement: Say goodbye to manual errors and inconsistencies. AlgoSec automates your security policy management, ensuring everything is locked down tight across all your environments. It's like having a tireless army of security guards enforcing your rules 24/7. Risk Prediction and Prevention: AlgoSec is like a security fortune teller, predicting and preventing risks before they can turn into disasters. It's like having a crystal ball that shows you where the next attack might come from, allowing you to prepare and fortify your defenses. Compliance Made Easy: Stay on the right side of those regulations with automated compliance checks and audit trails. It's like having a compliance officer who whispers in your ear and keeps you on the straight and narrow path. Integration Wizardry: AlgoSec plays nicely with other security tools and cloud platforms, ensuring a seamless and secure ecosystem. It's like having a universal translator that allows all your security systems to communicate and work together flawlessly. The Bottom Line VPCs are the foundation of a secure cloud environment, but you need more than just the basics to stay ahead of the bad guys. AlgoSec is your secret weapon, providing the comprehensive security management and automation you need to conquer the cloud with confidence. It's like having a superhero on your side, always ready to defend your cloud kingdom from those villainous attackers. AWS Security Expertise at Your Fingertips Dive deeper into AWS security best practices with our comprehensive white paper. Learn how to optimize your VPC configuration, enhance network security, and protect your cloud assets. Download AWS security best practices white paper now! If you’re looking to enhance your cloud network security, explore AlgoSec's platform.  Request a demo to see how AlgoSec can empower you to create a secure, compliant, and resilient cloud infrastructure. Dive deeper into cloud security: Read our previous blog post, Unveiling Cloud's Hidden Risks , to uncover the top challenges and learn how to gain control of your cloud environment. Don't miss out : We'll be publishing more valuable insights on critical cloud security topics, including Security as Code implementation, Azure best practices, Kubernetes security, and cloud encryption. These articles will equip you with the knowledge and tools to strengthen your cloud defenses. Subscribe to our blog to stay informed and join us on the journey to a safer and more resilient cloud future. Have a specific cloud security challenge? Contact us today for a free consultation. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

In the rapidly evolving landscape of technology, containers have become a cornerstone for deploying and managing applications efficiently. However, with the increasing reliance on containers, understanding their intricacies and addressing security concerns has become paramount. In this blog, we will delve into the fundamental concept of containers and explore the crucial security challenges they pose. Additionally, we will introduce a cutting-edge solution from AlgoSec, Horizon ACE, that... Cloud Network Security Enhancing container security: A comprehensive overview and solution Nitin Rajput 2 min read Nitin Rajput Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. cloudsecurity, cnapp, networksecurity Tags Share this article 1/23/24 Published In the rapidly evolving landscape of technology, containers have become a cornerstone for deploying and managing applications efficiently. However, with the increasing reliance on containers, understanding their intricacies and addressing security concerns has become paramount. In this blog, we will delve into the fundamental concept of containers and explore the crucial security challenges they pose. Additionally, we will introduce a cutting-edge solution from AlgoSec, Horizon ACE, that empowers organizations to fortify their containerized environments. Understanding containers At its core, a container is a standardized software package that seamlessly bundles and isolates applications for deployment. By encapsulating an application’s code and dependencies, containers ensure consistent performance across diverse computing environments. Notably, containers share access to an operating system (OS) kernel without the need for traditional virtual machines (VMs), making them an ideal choice for running microservices or large-scale applications. Security concerns in containers Container security encompasses a spectrum of risks, ranging from misconfigured privileges to malware infiltration in container images. Key concerns include using vulnerable container images, lack of visibility into container overlay networks, and the potential spread of malware between containers and operating systems. Recognizing these challenges is the first step towards building a robust security strategy for containerized environments. Introducing Horizon ACE’s innovative solution At AlgoSec, we've identified an advanced approach to mitigating container security risks. Horizon ACE’s Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP) is an unparalleled, agentless solution designed to enhance visibility into security and compliance gaps. This empowers cloud operations and security teams to prioritize risks and adhere to internet security benchmarks effectively. Dynamic threat protection for containers Horizon ACE’s focus on threat protection for containers involves a comprehensive static and dynamic analysis. In the static analysis phase, Horizon ACE meticulously scans packages for malware and known vulnerabilities, ensuring that container images are free from Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) or viruses during the deployment process. On the dynamic analysis front, Horizon ACE employs a multifaceted approach, including: Behavioral analysis : Identifying malware that evades static scanners by analyzing dynamic payloads. Network traffic inspection : Intercepting and inspecting all container-generated network traffic, including HTTPS, to detect any anomalous patterns. Activity correlation : Establishing a visual hierarchy, presented as a force-directed graph, to identify problematic containers swiftly. This includes monitoring new file executions and executed scripts within shells, enabling the identification of potential remote access points. In conclusion, container security is a critical aspect of modern application deployment. By understanding the nuances of containers and using solutions like Horizon ACE's CNAPP, organizations can fortify their cloud-native applications, mitigate risks, and ensure compliance in an ever-evolving digital landscape. #cloudsecurity #CNAPP #networksecurity Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Linux containers aren’t new. In fact, this technology was invented 20 years ago. In 2013, Docker entered the scene and revolutionized Linux containers by offering an easy-to-use command line interface (CLI), an engine, and a registry server. Combined, these technologies have concealed all the complexity of building and running containers, by offering one common industry standard. As a result, Docker’s popularity has sky-rocketed, rivalling Virtual Machines, and transforming the industry. In... Cloud Security Operation “Red Kangaroo”: Industry’s First Dynamic Analysis of 4M Public Docker Container Images Rony Moshkovich 2 min read Rony Moshkovich Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 12/1/20 Published Linux containers aren’t new. In fact, this technology was invented 20 years ago. In 2013, Docker entered the scene and revolutionized Linux containers by offering an easy-to-use command line interface (CLI), an engine, and a registry server. Combined, these technologies have concealed all the complexity of building and running containers, by offering one common industry standard . As a result, Docker’s popularity has sky-rocketed, rivalling Virtual Machines, and transforming the industry. In order to locate and share Docker container images, Docker is offering a service called Docker Hub . Its main feature, repositories , allows the development community to push (upload) and pull (download) container images. With Docker Hub, anyone in the world can download and execute any public image, as if it was a standalone application. Today, Docker Hub accounts over 4 million public Docker container images . With 8 billion pulls (downloads) in January 2020 and growing , its annualized image pulls should top 100 billion this year. For comparison , Google Play has 2.7M Android apps in its store, with a download rate of 84 billion downloads a year. How many container images currently hosted at Docker Hub are malicious or potentially harmful? What sort of damage can they inflict? What if a Docker container image downloaded and executed malware at runtime? Is there a reliable way to tell that? What if a compromised Docker container image was downloaded by an unsuspecting customer and used as a parent image to build and then deploy a new container image into production, practically publishing an application with a backdoor built into it? Is there any way to stop that from happening? At AlgoSec, we asked ourselves these questions multiple times. What we decided to do has never been done before. The Challenge At AlgoSec, we have built a dynamic analysis sandbox that uses the same principle as a conventional sandbox that 'detonates' malware in a safe environment. The only difference is that instead of 'detonating' an executable file, such as a Windows PE file or a Linux ELF binary, the AlgoSec container analyzer first pulls (downloads) an image from any container registry, and then 'detonates' it in its own virtual environment, outside the organization/customer infrastructure. Using our solution, we then dynamically analyzed all 4 million container images hosted at Docker Hub. In order to handle such a massive volume of images, the analyzer was executed non-stop for a period of one month on 800 machines running in parallel. The result of our dynamic scan reveals that: 51 percent of all containers had “critical” vulnerabilities, while 13 percent were classified as “high” and four percent as “moderate” vulnerabilities. Six thousand containers were riddled with cryptominers, hacking tools/pen testing frameworks, and backdoor trojans. While many cryptominers and hacking tools may not be malicious per se, they present a potentially unwanted issue to an enterprise. More than 400 container images (with nearly 600,000 pulls) of weaponized Windows malware crossing over into the world of Linux. This crossover is directly due to the proliferation of cross-platform code (e.g. GoLang, .NET Core and PowerShell Core). Our analysis of malicious containers also shows that quite a few images contain a dynamic payload. That is, an image in its original form does not have a malicious binary. However, at runtime, it might be scripted to download a source of a coinminer, to then compile and execute it. A dynamic analysis sandbox, such as the AlgoSec container analyzer, is the only solution that provides a behavioral analysis of Docker containers. It is built to reveal malicious intentions of Docker containers by executing them in its own virtual environment, revealing a full scope of their behavior. The whitepaper with our findings is available here . Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Previous Part of the analysis is available here. Next Part of the analysis is available here. Update from 19 December 2020: ‍Prevasio... Cloud Security Sunburst Backdoor, Part II: DGA & The List of Victims Rony Moshkovich 2 min read Rony Moshkovich Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 12/17/20 Published Previous Part of the analysis is available here . Next Part of the analysis is available here . Update from 19 December 2020: Prevasio would like to thank Zetalytics for providing us with an updated (larger) list of passive (historic) DNS queries for the domains generated by the malware. As described in the first part of our analysis, the DGA (Domain Generation Algorithm) of the Sunburst backdoor produces a domain name that may look like: fivu4vjamve5vfrtn2huov[.]appsync-api.us-west-2[.]avsvmcloud[.]com The first part of the domain name (before the first dot) consists of a 16-character random string, appended with an encoded computer’s domain name. This is the domain in which the local computer is registered. From the example string above, we can conclude that the encoded computer’s domain starts from the 17th character and up until the dot (highlighted in yellow): fivu4vjamve5vfrt n2huov In order to encode a local computer’s domain name, the malware uses one of 2 simple methods: Method 1 : a substitution table, if the domain name consists of small letters, digits, or special characters ‘-‘, ‘_’, ‘.’ Method 2 : base64 with a custom alphabet, in case of capital letters present in the domain name Method 1 In our example, the encoded domain name is “n2huov” . As it does not have any capital letters, the malware encodes it with a substitution table “rq3gsalt6u1iyfzop572d49bnx8cvmkewhj” . For each character in the domain name, the encoder replaces it with a character located in the substitution table four characters right from the original character. In order to decode the name back, all we have to do is to replace each encoded character with another character, located in the substitution table four characters left from the original character. To illustrate this method, imagine that the original substitution table is printed on a paper strip and then covered with a card with 6 perforated windows. Above each window, there is a sticker note with a number on it, to reflect the order of characters in the word “n2huov” , where ‘n’ is #1, ‘2’ is #2, ‘h’ is #3 and so on: Once the paper strip is pulled by 4 characters right, the perforated windows will reveal a different word underneath the card: “domain” , where ‘d’ is #1, ‘o’ is #2, ‘m’ is #3, etc.: A special case is reserved for such characters as ‘0’ , ‘-‘ , ‘_’ , ‘.’ . These characters are encoded with ‘0’ , followed with a character from the substitution table. An index of that character in the substitution table, divided by 4, provides an index within the string “0_-.” . The following snippet in C# illustrates how an encoded string can be decoded: static string decode_domain( string s) { string table = "rq3gsalt6u1iyfzop572d49bnx8cvmkewhj" ; string result = "" ; for ( int i = 0 ; i < s.Length; i++) { if (s[i] != '0' ) { result += table[(table.IndexOf(s[i]) + table.Length - 4 ) % table.Length]; } else { if (i < s.Length - 1 ) { if (table.Contains(s[i + 1 ])) { result += "0_-." [table.IndexOf(s[i + 1 ]) % 4 ]; } else { break ; } } i++; } } return result; } Method 2 This method is a standard base64 encoder with a custom alphabet “ph2eifo3n5utg1j8d94qrvbmk0sal76c” . Here is a snippet in C# that provides a decoder: public static string FromBase32String( string str) { string table = "ph2eifo3n5utg1j8d94qrvbmk0sal76c" ; int numBytes = str.Length * 5 / 8 ; byte [] bytes = new Byte[numBytes]; int bit_buffer; int currentCharIndex; int bits_in_buffer; if (str.Length < 3 ) { bytes[ 0 ] = ( byte )(table.IndexOf(str[ 0 ]) | table.IndexOf(str[ 1 ]) << 5 ); return System.Text.Encoding.UTF8.GetString(bytes); } bit_buffer = (table.IndexOf(str[ 0 ]) | table.IndexOf(str[ 1 ]) << 5 ); bits_in_buffer = 10 ; currentCharIndex = 2 ; for ( int i = 0 ; i < bytes.Length; i++) { bytes[i] = ( byte )bit_buffer; bit_buffer >>= 8 ; bits_in_buffer -= 8 ; while (bits_in_buffer < 8 && currentCharIndex < str.Length) { bit_buffer |= table.IndexOf(str[currentCharIndex++]) << bits_in_buffer; bits_in_buffer += 5 ; } } return System.Text.Encoding.UTF8.GetString(bytes); } When the malware encodes a domain using Method 2, it prepends the encrypted string with a double zero character: “00” . Following that, extracting a domain part of an encoded domain name (long form) is as simple as: static string get_domain_part( string s) { int i = s.IndexOf( ".appsync-api" ); if (i > 0 ) { s = s.Substring( 0 , i); if (s.Length > 16 ) { return s.Substring( 16 ); } } return "" ; } Once the domain part is extracted, the decoded domain name can be obtained by using Method 1 or Method 2, as explained above: if (domain.StartsWith( "00" )) { decoded = FromBase32String(domain.Substring( 2 )); } else { decoded = decode_domain(domain); } Decrypting the Victims’ Domain Names To see the decoder in action, let’s select 2 lists: List #1 Bambenek Consulting has provided a list of observed hostnames for the DGA domain. List #2 The second list has surfaced in a Paste bin paste , allegedly sourced from Zetalytics / Zonecruncher . NOTE: This list is fairly ‘noisy’, as it has non-decodable domain names. By feeding both lists to our decoder, we can now obtain a list of decoded domains, that could have been generated by the victims of the Sunburst backdoor. DISCLAIMER: It is not clear if the provided lists contain valid domain names that indeed belong to the victims. It is quite possible that the encoded domain names were produced by third-party tools, sandboxes, or by researchers that investigated and analysed the backdoor. The decoded domain names are provided purely as a reverse engineering exercise. The resulting list was manually processed to eliminate noise, and to exclude duplicate entries. Following that, we have made an attempt to map the obtained domain names to the company names, using Google search. Reader’s discretion is advised as such mappings could be inaccurate. Decoded Domain Mapping (Could Be Inaccurate) hgvc.com Hilton Grand Vacations Amerisaf AMERISAFE, Inc. kcpl.com Kansas City Power and Light Company SFBALLET San Francisco Ballet scif.com State Compensation Insurance Fund LOGOSTEC Logostec Ventilação Industrial ARYZTA.C ARYZTA Food Solutions bmrn.com BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. AHCCCS.S Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System nnge.org Next Generation Global Education cree.com Cree, Inc (semiconductor products) calsb.org The State Bar of California rbe.sk.ca Regina Public Schools cisco.com Cisco Systems pcsco.com Professional Computer Systems barrie.ca City of Barrie ripta.com Rhode Island Public Transit Authority uncity.dk UN City (Building in Denmark) bisco.int Boambee Industrial Supplies (Bisco) haifa.edu University of Haifa smsnet.pl SMSNET, Poland fcmat.org Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team wiley.com Wiley (publishing) ciena.com Ciena (networking systems) belkin.com Belkin spsd.sk.ca Saskatoon Public Schools pqcorp.com PQ Corporation ftfcu.corp First Tech Federal Credit Union bop.com.pk The Bank of Punjab nvidia.com NVidia insead.org INSEAD (non-profit, private university) usd373.org Newton Public Schools agloan.ads American AgCredit pageaz.gov City of Page jarvis.lab Erich Jarvis Lab ch2news.tv Channel 2 (Israeli TV channel) bgeltd.com Bradford / Hammacher Remote Support Software dsh.ca.gov California Department of State Hospitals dotcomm.org Douglas Omaha Technology Commission sc.pima.gov Arizona Superior Court in Pima County itps.uk.net IT Professional Services, UK moncton.loc City of Moncton acmedctr.ad Alameda Health System csci-va.com Computer Systems Center Incorporated keyano.local Keyano College uis.kent.edu Kent State University alm.brand.dk Sydbank Group (Banking, Denmark) ironform.com Ironform (metal fabrication) corp.ncr.com NCR Corporation ap.serco.com Serco Asia Pacific int.sap.corp SAP mmhs-fla.org Cleveland Clinic Martin Health nswhealth.net NSW Health mixonhill.com Mixon Hill (intelligent transportation systems) bcofsa.com.ar Banco de Formosa ci.dublin.ca. Dublin, City in California siskiyous.edu College of the Siskiyous weioffice.com Walton Family Foundation ecobank.group Ecobank Group (Africa) corp.sana.com Sana Biotechnology med.ds.osd.mi US Gov Information System wz.hasbro.com Hasbro (Toy company) its.iastate.ed Iowa State University amr.corp.intel Intel cds.capilanou. Capilano University e-idsolutions. IDSolutions (video conferencing) helixwater.org Helix Water District detmir-group.r Detsky Mir (Russian children’s retailer) int.lukoil-int LUKOIL (Oil and gas company, Russia) ad.azarthritis Arizona Arthritis and Rheumatology Associates net.vestfor.dk Vestforbrænding allegronet.co. Allegronet (Cloud based services, Israel) us.deloitte.co Deloitte central.pima.g Pima County Government city.kingston. City of Kingston staff.technion Technion – Israel Institute of Technology airquality.org Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District phabahamas.org Public Hospitals Authority, Caribbean parametrix.com Parametrix (Engineering) ad.checkpoint. Check Point corp.riotinto. Rio Tinto (Mining company, Australia) intra.rakuten. Rakuten us.rwbaird.com Robert W. Baird & Co. (Financial services) ville.terrebonn Ville de Terrebonne woodruff-sawyer Woodruff-Sawyer & Co., Inc. fisherbartoninc Fisher Barton Group banccentral.com BancCentral Financial Services Corp. taylorfarms.com Taylor Fresh Foods neophotonics.co NeoPhotonics (optoelectronic devices) gloucesterva.ne Gloucester County magnoliaisd.loc Magnolia Independent School District zippertubing.co Zippertubing (Manufacturing) milledgeville.l Milledgeville (City in Georgia) digitalreachinc Digital Reach, Inc. deniz.denizbank DenizBank thoughtspot.int ThoughtSpot (Business intelligence) lufkintexas.net Lufkin (City in Texas) digitalsense.co Digital Sense (Cloud Services) wrbaustralia.ad W. R. Berkley Insurance Australia christieclinic. Christie Clinic Telehealth signaturebank.l Signature Bank dufferincounty. Dufferin County mountsinai.hosp Mount Sinai Hospital securview.local Securview Victory (Video Interface technology) weber-kunststof Weber Kunststoftechniek parentpay.local ParentPay (Cashless Payments) europapier.inte Europapier International AG molsoncoors.com Molson Coors Beverage Company fujitsugeneral. Fujitsu General cityofsacramento City of Sacramento ninewellshospita Ninewells Hospital fortsmithlibrary Fort Smith Public Library dokkenengineerin Dokken Engineering vantagedatacente Vantage Data Centers friendshipstateb Friendship State Bank clinicasierravis Clinica Sierra Vista ftsillapachecasi Apache Casino Hotel voceracommunicat Vocera (clinical communications) mutualofomahabanMutual of Omaha Bank Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Tal Dayan, security expert for AlgoSec, discusses the secret to passing audits seamlessly and how to introduce automated compliance... Auditing and Compliance Compliance Made Easy: How to improve your risk posture with automated audits Tal Dayan 2 min read Tal Dayan Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 4/29/21 Published Tal Dayan, security expert for AlgoSec, discusses the secret to passing audits seamlessly and how to introduce automated compliance Compliance standards come in many different shapes and sizes. Some organizations set their own internal policies, while others are subject to regimented global frameworks such as PCI DSS , which protects customers’ card payment details; SOX to safeguard financial information or HIPAA , which protects patients’ healthcare data. Regardless of which industry you operate in, regular auditing is key to ensuring your business retains its risk posture whilst also remaining compliant. The problem is that running manual risk and security audits can be a long, drawn-out, and tedious affair. A 2020 report from Coalfire and Omdia  found that for the majority of organizations, growing compliance obligations are now consuming 40% or more of IT security budgets and threaten to become an unsustainable cost.  The report suggests two reasons for this growing compliance burden.  First, compliance standards are changing from point-in-time reviews to continuous, outcome-based requirements. Second, the ongoing cyber-skills shortage is stretching organizations’ abilities to keep up with compliance requirements. This means businesses tend to leave them until the last moment, leading to a rushed audit that isn’t as thorough as it could be, putting your business at increased risk of a penalty fine or, worse, a data breach that could jeopardize the entire organization. The auditing process itself consists of a set of requirements that must be created for organizations to measure themselves against. Each rule must be manually analyzed and simulated before it can be implemented and used in the real world. As if that wasn’t time-consuming enough, every single edit to a rule must also be logged meticulously. That is why automation plays a key role in the auditing process. By striking the right balance between automated and manual processes, your business can achieve continuous compliance and produce audit reports seamlessly. Here is a six-step strategy that can set your business on the path to sustainable and successful ongoing auditing preservation: Step 1: Gather information This step will be the most arduous but once completed it will become much easier to sustain. This is when you’ll need to gather things like security policies, firewall access logs, documents from previous audits and firewall vendor information – effectively everything you’d normally factor into a manual security audit. Step 2: Define a clear change management process A good change management process is essential to ensure traceability and accountability when it comes to firewall changes. This process should confirm that every change is properly authorized and logged as and when it occurs, providing a picture of historical changes and approvals. Step 3: Audit physical & OS security With the pandemic causing a surge in the number of remote workers and devices used, businesses must take extra care to certify that every endpoint is secured and up-to-date with relevant security patches. Crucially, firewall and management services should also be physically protected, with only designated personnel permitted to access them. Step 4: Clean up & organize rule base As with every process, the tidier it is, the more efficient it is. Document rules and naming conventions should be enforced to ensure the rule base is as organized as possible, with identical rules consolidated to keep things concise. Step 5: Assess & remediate risk Now it’s time to assess each rule and identify those that are particularly risky and prioritize them by severity. Are there any that violate corporate security policies? Do some have “ANY” and a permissive action? Make a list of these rules and analyze them to prepare plans for remediation and compliance. Step 6: Continuity & optimization Now it’s time to simply hone the first five steps and make these processes as regular and streamlined as possible. By following the above steps and building out your own process, you can make day-to-day compliance and auditing much more manageable. Not only will you improve your compliance score, you’ll also be able to maintain a sustainable level of compliance without the usual disruption and hard labor caused by cumbersome and expensive manual processes. To find out more about auditing automation and how you can master compliance, watch my recent webinar and visit our firewall auditing and compliance page. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

For your organization to implement robust security policies, it must have clear information on the security risks it is exposed to. An... Uncategorized How to Perform a Network Security Risk Assessment in 6 Steps Tsippi Dach 2 min read Tsippi Dach Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 1/18/24 Published For your organization to implement robust security policies, it must have clear information on the security risks it is exposed to. An effective IT security plan must take the organization’s unique set of systems and technologies into account. This helps security professionals decide where to deploy limited resources for improving security processes. Cybersecurity risk assessments provide clear, actionable data about the quality and success of the organization’s current security measures. They offer insight into the potential impact of security threats across the entire organization, giving security leaders the information they need to manage risk more effectively. Conducting a comprehensive cyber risk assessment can help you improve your organization’s security posture, address security-related production bottlenecks in business operations, and make sure security team budgets are wisely spent. This kind of assessment is also a vital step in the compliance process . Organizations must undergo information security risk assessments in order to meet regulatory requirements set by different authorities and frameworks, including: The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) What is a Security Risk Assessment? Your organization’s security risk assessment is a formal document that identifies, evaluates, and prioritizes cyber threats according to their potential impact on business operations. Categorizing threats this way allows cybersecurity leaders to manage the risk level associated with them in a proactive, strategic way. The assessment provides valuable data about vulnerabilities in business systems and the likelihood of cyber attacks against those systems. It also provides context into mitigation strategies for identified risks, which helps security leaders make informed decisions during the risk management process. For example, a security risk assessment may find that the organization needs to be more reliant on its firewalls and access control solutions . If a threat actor uses phishing or social engineering to bypass these defenses (or take control of them entirely), the entire organization could suffer a catastrophic data breach. In this case, the assessment may recommend investing in penetration testing and advanced incident response capabilities. Organizations that neglect to invest in network security risk assessments won’t know their weaknesses until after they are actively exploited. By the time hackers launch a ransomware attack, it’s too late to consider whether your antivirus systems are properly configured against malware. Who Should Perform Your Organization’s Cyber Risk Assessment? A dedicated internal team should take ownership over the risk assessment process . The process will require technical personnel with a deep understanding of the organization’s IT infrastructure. Executive stakeholders should also be involved because they understand how information flows in the context of the organization’s business logic, and can provide broad insight into its risk management strategy . Small businesses may not have the resources necessary to conduct a comprehensive risk analysis internally. While a variety of assessment tools and solutions are available on the market, partnering with a reputable managed security service provider is the best way to ensure an accurate outcome. Adhering to a consistent methodology is vital, and experienced vulnerability assessment professionals ensure the best results. How to Conduct a Network Security Risk Assessment 1. Develop a comprehensive asset map The first step is accurately mapping out your organization’s network assets. If you don’t have a clear idea of exactly what systems, tools, and applications the organization uses, you won’t be able to manage the risks associated with them. Keep in mind that human user accounts should be counted as assets as well. The Verizon 2023 Data Breach Investigation Report shows that the human element is involved in more than a quarter of all data breaches. The better you understand your organization’s human users and their privilege profiles, the more effectively you can protect them from potential threats and secure critical assets effectively. Ideally, all of your organization’s users should be assigned and managed through a centralized system. For Windows-based networks, Active Directory is usually the solution that comes to mind. Your organization may have a different system in place if it uses a different operating system. Also, don’t forget about information assets like trade secrets and intellectual property. Cybercriminals may target these assets in order to extort the organization. Your asset map should show you exactly where these critical assets are stored, and provide context into which users have permission to access them. Log and track every single asset in a central database that you can quickly access and easily update. Assign security value to each asset as you go and categorize them by access level . Here’s an example of how you might want to structure that categorization: Public data. This is data you’ve intentionally made available to the public. It includes web page content, marketing brochures, and any other information of no consequence in a data breach scenario. Confidential data. This data is not publicly available. If the organization shares it with third parties, it is only under a non-disclosure agreement. Sensitive technical or financial information may end up in this category. Internal use only. This term refers to data that is not allowed outside the company, even under non-disclosure terms. It might include employee pay structures, long-term strategy documents, or product research data. Intellectual property. Any trade secrets, issued patents, or copyrighted assets are intellectual property. The value of the organization depends in some way on this information remaining confidential. Compliance restricted data. This category includes any data that is protected by regulatory or legal obligations. For a HIPAA-compliant organization, that would include patient data, medical histories, and protected personal information. This database will be one of the most important security assessment tools you use throughout the next seven steps. 2. Identify security threats and vulnerabilities Once you have a comprehensive asset inventory, you can begin identifying risks and vulnerabilities for each asset. There are many different types of tests and risk assessment tools you can use for this step. Automating the process whenever possible is highly recommended, since it may otherwise become a lengthy and time-consuming manual task. Vulnerability scanning tools can automatically assess your network and applications for vulnerabilities associated with known threats. The scan’s results will tell you exactly what kinds of threats your information systems are susceptible to, and provide some information about how you can remediate them. Be aware that these scans can only determine your vulnerability to known threats. They won’t detect insider threats , zero-day vulnerabilities and some scanners may overlook security tool misconfigurations that attackers can take advantage of. You may also wish to conduct a security gap analysis. This will provide you with comprehensive information about how your current security program compares to an established standard like CMMC or PCI DSS. This won’t help protect against zero-day threats, but it can uncover information security management problems and misconfigurations that would otherwise go unnoticed. To take this step to the next level, you can conduct penetration testing against the systems and assets your organization uses. This will validate vulnerability scan and gap analysis data while potentially uncovering unknown vulnerabilities in the process. Pentesting replicates real attacks on your systems, providing deep insight into just how feasible those attacks may be from a threat actor’s perspective. When assessing the different risks your organization faces, try to answer the following questions: What is the most likely business outcome associated with this risk? Will the impact of this risk include permanent damage, like destroyed data? Would your organization be subject to fines for compliance violations associated with this risk? Could your organization face additional legal liabilities if someone exploited this risk? 3. Prioritize risks according to severity and likelihood Once you’ve conducted vulnerability scans and assessed the different risks that could impact your organization, you will be left with a long list of potential threats. This list will include more risks and hazards than you could possibly address all at once. The next step is to go through the list and prioritize each risk according to its potential impact and how likely it is to happen. If you implemented penetration testing in the previous step, you should have precise data on how likely certain attacks are to take place. Your team will tell you how many steps they took to compromise confidential data, which authentication systems they had to bypass, and what other security functionalities they disabled. Every additional step reduces the likelihood of a cybercriminal carrying out the attack successfully. If you do not implement penetration testing, you will have to conduct an audit to assess the likelihood of attackers exploiting your organization’s vulnerabilities. Industry-wide threat intelligence data can give you an idea of how frequent certain types of attacks are. During this step, you’ll have to balance the likelihood of exploitation with the severity of the potential impact for each risk. This will require research into the remediation costs associated with many cyberattacks. Remediation costs should include business impact – such as downtime, legal liabilities, and reputational damage – as well as the cost of paying employees to carry out remediation tasks. Assigning internal IT employees to remediation tasks implies the opportunity cost of diverting them from their usual responsibilities. The more completely you assess these costs, the more accurate your assessment will be. 4. Develop security controls in response to risks Now that you have a comprehensive overview of the risks your organization is exposed to, you can begin developing security controls to address them. These controls should provide visibility and functionality to your security processes, allowing you to prevent attackers from exploiting your information systems and detect them when they make an attempt. There are three main types of security control available to the typical organization: Physical controls prevent unauthorized access to sensitive locations and hardware assets. Security cameras, door locks, and live guards all contribute to physical security. These controls prevent external attacks from taking place on premises. Administrative controls are policies, practices, and workflows that secure business assets and provide visibility into workplace processes. These are vital for protecting against credential-based attacks and malicious insiders. Technical controls include purpose-built security tools like hardware firewalls, encrypted data storage solutions, and antivirus software. Depending on their configuration, these controls can address almost any type of threat. These categories have further sub-categories that describe how the control interacts with the threat it is protecting against. Most controls protect against more than one type of risk, and many controls will protect against different risks in different ways. Here are some of the functions of different controls that you should keep in mind: Detection-based controls trigger alerts when they discover unauthorized activity happening on the network. Intrusion detection systems (IDS) and security information and event management (SIEM) platforms are examples of detection-based solutions. When you configure one of these systems to detect a known risk, you are implementing a detection-based technical control. Prevention-based controls block unauthorized activity from taking place altogether. Authentication protocols and firewall rules are common examples of prevention-based security controls. When you update your organization’s password policy, you are implementing a prevention-based administrative control. Correction and compensation-based controls focus on remediating the effects of cyberattacks once they occur. Disaster recovery systems and business continuity solutions are examples. When you copy a backup database to an on-premises server, you are establishing physical compensation-based controls that will help you recover from potential threats. 5. Document the results and create a remediation plan Once you’ve assessed your organization’s exposure to different risks and developed security controls to address those risks, you are ready to condense them into a cohesive remediation plan . You will use the data you’ve gathered so far to justify the recommendations you make, so it’s a good idea to present that data visually. Consider creating a risk matrix to show how individual risks compare to one another based on their severity and likelihood. High-impact risks that have a high likelihood of occurring should draw more time and attention than risks that are either low-impact, unlikely, or both. Your remediation plan will document the steps that security teams will need to take when responding to each incident you describe. If multiple options exist for a particular vulnerability, you may add a cost/benefit analysis of multiple approaches. This should provide you with an accurate way to quantify the cost of certain cyberattacks and provide a comparative cost for implementing controls against that type of attack. Comparing the cost of remediation with the cost of implementing controls should show some obvious options for cybersecurity investment. It’s easy to make the case for securing against high-severity, high-likelihood attacks with high remediation costs and low control costs. Implementing security patches is an example of this kind of security control that costs very little but provides a great deal of value in this context. Depending on your organization’s security risk profile, you may uncover other opportunities to improve security quickly. You will probably also find opportunities that are more difficult or expensive to carry out. You will have to pitch these opportunities to stakeholders and make the case for their approval. 6. Implement recommendations and evaluate the effectiveness of your assessment Once you have approval to implement your recommendations, it’s time for action. Your security team can now assign each item in the remediation plan to the team member responsible and oversee their completion. Be sure to allow a realistic time frame for each step in the process to be completed – especially if your team is not actively executing every task on its own. You should also include steps for monitoring the effectiveness of their efforts and documenting the changes they make to your security posture. This will provide you with key performance metrics that you can compare with future network security assessments moving forward, and help you demonstrate the value of your remediation efforts overall. Once you have implemented the recommendations, you can monitor and optimize the performance of your information systems to ensure your security posture adapts to new threats as they emerge. Risk assessments are not static processes, and you should be prepared to conduct internal audits and simulate the impact of configuration changes on your current deployment. You may wish to repeat your risk evaluation and gap analysis step to find out how much your organization’s security posture has changed. You can use automated tools like AlgoSec to conduct configuration simulations and optimize the way your network responds to new and emerging threats. Investing time and energy into these tasks now will lessen the burden of your next network security risk assessment and make it easier for you to gain approval for the recommendations you make in the future. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Network vulnerability scanning provides in-depth insight into your organization’s security posture and highlights the specific types of... Network Security 5 Best Network Vulnerability Scanning Tools in 2024 Tsippi Dach 2 min read Tsippi Dach Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 2/12/24 Published Network vulnerability scanning provides in-depth insight into your organization’s security posture and highlights the specific types of vulnerabilities attackers may exploit when targeting it. These tools work by systematically scanning your network environment — including all desktops, laptops, mobile endpoints, servers, and other assets for known weaknesses and misconfigurations. Your analyzer then produces a detailed report that tells you exactly how hackers might breach your systems. Find out how these important tools contribute to successfully managing your security policies and protecting sensitive assets from cybercriminals and malware. What is Network Vulnerability Management? Network vulnerability scanners are cybersecurity solutions typically delivered under a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. These solutions match your network asset configurations with a comprehensive list of known misconfigurations and security threats, including unpatched software, open ports, and other security issues. By comparing system details against a comprehensive database of known vulnerabilities, network scanning helps pinpoint areas of weakness that could potentially be exploited by threat actors. This proactive approach is essential for maintaining robust network security and protecting sensitive data from unauthorized access and cyberattacks. This provides your organization with several valuable benefits: Early detection of known security vulnerabilities. If your organization is exposed to security threats that leverage known vulnerabilities, you’ll want to address these security gaps as soon as possible. Comprehensive data for efficient risk management. Knowing exactly how many security vulnerabilities your organization is exposed to gives you clear data for conducting in-depth risk management . Regulatory compliance. Many regulatory compliance frameworks like SOC 2, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS require organizations to undergo regular vulnerability scanning. Reduced costs. Automating the process of scanning for vulnerabilities reduces the costs associated with discovering and remediating security weaknesses manually. Key Features and Functions The best network security vulnerability scanners have several important features in common: Prioritized vulnerability assessment tools. You need to be able to assess and prioritize vulnerabilities based on their severity. This allows you to commit security resources to addressing high-priority vulnerabilities first, and taking care of low-impact weaknesses afterwards. Automation and real-time analysis. Manual scanning is a difficult and time-consuming process. Your vulnerability scanner must support automated, ongoing scanning for real-time vulnerability detection, providing on-demand insights into your security risk profile. Integration with remediation tools: The best network vulnerability scanners integrate with other security tools for quick mitigation and remediation. This lets security teams quickly close security gaps and move on to the next, without having to spend time accessing and managing a separate set of security tools. How Network Vulnerability Scanning Tools Work Step 1. Scanning Process Initial network mapping is the first step in the vulnerability scanning process. At this point, your scanner maps your entire network and identifies every device and asset connected to it. This includes all web servers, workstations, firewalls , and network devices. The automatic discovery process should produce a comprehensive map showing how your network is connected, and show detailed information about each network device. It should include comprehensive port scanning to identify open ports that attackers could use to gain entry to the network. Step 2. Detection Techniques The next step in the process involves leveraging advanced detection techniques to identify known vulnerabilities in the network. Most network vulnerability scanners rely on two specific techniques to achieve this: Signature-Based Detection: The scanner checks for known vulnerabilities by comparing system details against a database of known issues. This database is drawn from extensive threat intelligence feeds and public records like the MITRE CVE Program . Heuristic Analysis: This technique relies on heuristic and behavioral techniques to identify unknown or zero-day vulnerabilities based on unusual system behavior or configurations. It may detect suspicious activities that don’t correspond to known threats, prompting further investigation. Step 3. Vulnerability Identification This step involves checking network assets for known vulnerabilities according to their unique risk profile. This includes scanning for outdated software and operating system versions, and looking for misconfigurations in network devices and settings. Most network scanners achieve this by pinging network-accessible systems, sending them TCP/UDP packets, and remotely logging into compatible systems to gather detailed information about them. Highly advanced network vulnerability scanning tools have more comprehensive sets of features for identifying these vulnerabilities, because they recognize a wider, more up-to-date range of network devices. Step 4. Assessment and Reporting This step describes the process of matching network data to known vulnerabilities and prioritizing them based on their severity. Advanced network scanning devices may use automation and sophisticated scripting to produce a list of vulnerabilities and exposed network components. First, each vulnerability is assessed for its potential impact and risk level, often based on industry-wide compliance standards like NIST. Then the tool prioritizes each vulnerability based on its severity, ease of exploitation, and potential impact on the network. Afterwards, the tool generates a detailed report outlining every vulnerability assessed and ranking it according to its severity. These reports guide the security teams in addressing the identified issues. Step 5. Continuous Monitoring and Updates Scanning for vulnerabilities once is helpful, but it won’t help you achieve the long-term goal of keeping your network protected against new and emerging threats. To do that, you need to continuously monitor your network for new weaknesses and establish workflows for resolving security issues proactively. Many advanced scanners provide real-time monitoring, constantly scanning the network for new vulnerabilities as they emerge. Regular updates to the scanner’s vulnerability database ensure it can recognize the latest known vulnerabilities and threats. If your vulnerability scanner doesn’t support these two important features, you may need to invest additional time and effort into time-consuming manual operations that achieve the same results. Step 6. Integration with Other Security Measures Security leaders must pay close attention to what happens after a vulnerability scan detects an outdated software patch or misconfiguration. Alerting security teams to the danger represented by these weaknesses is only the first step towards actually resolving them, and many scanning tools offer comprehensive integrations for launching remediation actions. Remediation integrations are valuable because they allow security teams to quickly address vulnerabilities immediately upon discovering them. The alternative is creating a list of weaknesses and having the team manually go through them, which takes time and distracts from higher-impact security tasks. Another useful integration involves large-scale security posture analytics. If your vulnerability assessment includes analysis and management tools for addressing observable patterns in your network vulnerability scans, it will be much easier to dedicate resources to the appropriate security-enhancing initiatives. Choosing a Network Vulnerability Scanning Solution There are two major categories of features that network vulnerability scanning tools must offer in order to provide best-in-class coverage against sophisticated threats. Keep these aspects in mind when reviewing your options for deploying vulnerability scans in your security workflow. Important Considerations Comprehensive Vulnerability Database. Access to an extensive CVE database is vital. Many of these are open-source and available to the general public, but the sheer number of CVE records can drag down performance. The best vulnerability management tools have highly optimized APIs capable of processing these records quickly. Customizability and Templates. Tailoring scans to specific needs and environments is important for every organization, but it takes on special significance for organizations seeking to demonstrate regulatory compliance. That’s because the outcome of compliance assessments and audits will depend on the quality of data included in your reports. False Positive Management. All vulnerability scanners are susceptible to displaying false positives, but some manage these events better than others. This is especially important in misconfiguration cases, because it can cause security teams to mistakenly misconfigure security tools that were configured correctly in the first place. Business Essentials Support for Various Platforms. Your vulnerability scan must ingest data from multiple operating systems like Windows, Linux, and a variety of cloud platforms. If any of these systems are not compatible with the scanning process, you may end up with unstable performance or unreliable data. Reporting and Analytics. Detailed reports and analytics help you establish a clear security posture assessment. Your vulnerability management tool must provide clear reports that are easy for non-technical stakeholders to understand. This will help you make the case for necessary security investments in the future. Scalability and Flexibility. These solutions must scale with the growth of your organization’s IT infrastructure . Pay attention to the usage and payment model each vulnerability scanning vendor uses. Some of them may be better suited to small, growing organizations while others are more appropriate for large enterprises and government agencies. Top 5 Network Vulnerability Scanning Providers 1. AlgoSec AlgoSec is a network security platform that helps organizations identify vulnerabilities and orchestrate network security policies in response. It includes comprehensive features for managing firewalls routers , and other security device configurations, and enables teams to proactively scan for new vulnerabilities on their network. AlgoSec reports on misconfigurations and vulnerabilities, and can show how simulated changes to IT infrastructure impact the organization’s security posture. It provides in-depth visibility and control over multi-cloud and on-premises environments. Key features: Comprehensive network mapping. AlgoSec supports automatic network asset discovery, giving security teams complete coverage of the hybrid network. In-depth automation. The platform supports automatic security policy updates in response to detected security vulnerabilities, allowing security teams to manage risk proactively. Detailed risk analysis. When AlgoSec detects a vulnerability, it provides complete details and background on the vulnerability itself and the risk it represents. 2. Tenable Nessus Tenable Nessus is one of the industry’s most reputable names in vulnerability assessment and management. It is widely used to identify and fix vulnerabilities including software flaws, missing security patches, and misconfigurations. It supports a wide range of operating systems and applications, making it a flexible tool for many different use cases. Key features: High-speed discovery. Tenable supports high speed network asset discovery scans through advanced features. Break up scans into easily managed subnetworks and configure ping settings to make the scan faster. Configuration auditing. Security teams can ensure IT assets are compliant with specific compliance-oriented audit policies designed to meet a wide range of assets and standards. Sensitive data discovery. Tenable Nessus can discover sensitive data located on the network and provide clear, actionable steps for protecting that data in compliance with regulatory standards. 3. Rapid7 Nexpose Nexpose offers real-time monitoring and risk assessment designed for enterprise organizations. As an on-premises vulnerability scanner, the solution is well-suited to the needs of large organizations with significant IT infrastructure deployments. It collects vulnerability information, prioritizes it effectively, and provides guidance on remediating risks. Key Features: Enterprise-ready on-premises form factor. Rapid7 designed Nexpose to meet the needs of large organizations with constant vulnerability scanning needs. Live monitoring of the attack surface. Organizations can continuously scan their IT environment and prioritize discovered vulnerabilities using more than 50 filters to create asset groups that correspond to known threats. Integration with penetration testing. Rapid7 comes with a wide range of fully supported integrations and provides vulnerability and exploitability context useful for pentest scenarios. 4. Qualys Qualys is an enterprise cloud security provider that includes vulnerability management in its IT security and compliance platform. It includes features that help security teams understand and manage security risks while automating remediation with intuitive no-code workflows. It integrates well with other enterprise security solutions, but may not be accessible for smaller organizations. Key features: All-in-one vulnerability management workflow . Qualys covers all of your vulnerability scanning and remediation needs in a single, centralized platform. It conducts asset discovery, detects vulnerabilities, prioritizes findings, and launches responses with deep customization and automation capabilities. Web application scanning . The platform is well-suited to organizations with extensive public-facing web applications outside the network perimeter. It supports container runtime security, including container-as-a-service environments. Complete compliance reporting . Security teams can renew expiring certificates directly through Qualys, making it a comprehensive solution to obtaining and maintaining compliance. 5. OpenVAS (Greenbone Networks) OpenVAS is an open-source tool that offers a comprehensive scanning to organizations of all sizes. It is available under a General Public License (GPL) agreement, making it a cost-effective option compared to competing proprietary software options. It supports a range of customizable plugins through its open source developer community. Key Features: Open-source vulnerability scanner. Organizations can use and customize OpenVAS at no charge, giving it a significant advantage for organizations that prioritize cost savings. Customizable plugins. As with many open-source tools, there is a thriving community of developers involved in creating customizable plugins for unique use cases. Supports a wide range of vulnerability tests . The high level of customization offered by OpenVAS allows security teams to run many different kinds of vulnerability tests from a single, centralized interface. Honorable Mentions Nmap (Network Mapper): A versatile and free open-source tool, NMAP is popular for network discovery and security auditing. It’s particularly noted for its flexibility in scanning both large networks and single hosts. Nmap is a powerful and popular Linux command-line tool commonly featured in cybersecurity education courses. Microsoft’s Azure Security Center: Ideal for organizations heavily invested in the Azure cloud platform, this tool provides integrated security monitoring and policy management across hybrid cloud workloads. It unifies many different security features, including vulnerability assessment, proactive threat hunting, and more. IBM Security QRadar Vulnerability Manager: This is a comprehensive solution that integrates with other IBM QRadar products, providing a full-spectrum view of network vulnerabilities. It’s especially valuable for enterprises that already rely on IBM infrastructure for security workflows. McAfee Vulnerability Manager: A well-known solution offering robust vulnerability scanning capabilities, with additional features for risk and compliance management. It provides a combination of active and passive monitoring, along with penetration testing and authentication scanning designed to provide maximum protection to sensitive network assets. Choosing the Right Vulnerability Management Tool Choosing the right vulnerability management tool requires in-depth knowledge of your organization’s security and IT infrastructure context. You need to select the tool that matches your unique use cases and security requirements while providing the support you need to achieve long-term business goals. Those goals may change over time, which makes ongoing evaluation of your security tools an even more important strategic asset to keep in your arsenal. Gathering clear and detailed information about your organization’s security posture allows you to flexibility adapt to changes in your IT environment without exposing sensitive assets to additional risk. AlgoSec provides a wide range of flexible options for vulnerability scanning, policy change management, and proactive configuration simulation. Enhance your organization’s security capabilities by deploying a vulnerability management solution that provides the visibility and flexibility you need to stay on top of a challenging industry. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

Insecure Service Protocols and Ports Okay, we all have them… they’re everyone’s dirty little network security secrets that we try not to... Risk Management and Vulnerabilities Removing insecure protocols In networks Matthew Pascucci 2 min read Matthew Pascucci Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 7/15/14 Published Insecure Service Protocols and Ports Okay, we all have them… they’re everyone’s dirty little network security secrets that we try not to talk about. They’re the protocols that we don’t mention in a security audit or to other people in the industry for fear that we’ll be publicly embarrassed. Yes, I’m talking about cleartext protocols which are running rampant across many networks. They’re in place because they work, and they work well, so no one has had a reason to upgrade them. Why upgrade something if it’s working right? Wrong. These protocols need to go the way of records, 8-tracks and cassettes (many of these protocols were fittingly developed during the same era). You’re putting your business and data at serious risk by running these insecure protocols. There are many insecure protocols that are exposing your data in cleartext, but let’s focus on the three most widely used ones: FTP, Telnet and SNMP. FTP (File Transfer Protocol) This is by far the most popular of the insecure protocols in use today. It’s the king of all cleartext protocols and one that needs to be smitten from your network before it’s too late. The problem with FTP is that all authentication is done in cleartext which leaves little room for the security of your data. To put things into perspective, FTP was first released in 1971, almost 45 years ago. In 1971 the price of gas was 40 cents a gallon, Disneyland had just opened and a company called FedEx was established. People, this was a long time ago. You need to migrate from FTP and start using an updated and more secure method for file transfers, such as HTTPS, SFTP or FTPS. These three protocols use encryption on the wire and during authentication to secure the transfer of files and login. Telnet If FTP is the king of all insecure file transfer protocols then telnet is supreme ruler of all cleartext network terminal protocols. Just like FTP, telnet was one of the first protocols that allowed you to remotely administer equipment. It became the defacto standard until it was discovered that it passes authentication using cleartext. At this point you need to hunt down all equipment that is still running telnet and replace it with SSH, which uses encryption to protect authentication and data transfer. This shouldn’t be a huge change unless your gear cannot support SSH. Many appliances or networking gear running telnet will either need the service enabled or the OS upgraded. If both of these options are not appropriate, you need to get new equipment, case closed. I know money is an issue at times, but if you’re running a 45 year old protocol on your network with the inability to update it, you need to rethink your priorities. The last thing you want is an attacker gaining control of your network via telnet. Its game over at this point. SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) This is one of those sneaky protocols that you don’t think is going to rear its ugly head and bite you, but it can! escortdate escorts . There are multiple versions of SNMP, and you need to be particularly careful with versions 1 and 2. For those not familiar with SNMP, it’s a protocol that enables the management and monitoring of remote systems. Once again, the strings can be sent via cleartext, and if you have access to these credentials you can connect to the system and start gaining a foothold on the network, including managing, applying new configurations or gaining in-depth monitoring details of the network. In short, it a great help for attackers if they can get hold of these credentials. Luckily version 3.0 of SNMP has enhanced security that protects you from these types of attacks. So you must review your network and make sure that SNMP v1 and v2 are not being used. These are just three of the more popular but insecure protocols that are still in heavy use across many networks today. By performing an audit of your firewalls and systems to identify these protocols, preferably using an automated tool such as AlgoSec Firewall Analyzer , you should be able to pretty quickly create a list of these protocols in use across your network. It’s also important to proactively analyze every change to your firewall policy (again preferably with an automated tool for security change management ) to make sure no one introduces insecure protocol access without proper visibility and approval. Finally, don’t feel bad telling a vendor or client that you won’t send data using these protocols. If they’re making you use them, there’s a good chance that there are other security issues going on in their network that you should be concerned about. It’s time to get rid of these protocols. They’ve had their usefulness, but the time has come for them to be sunset for good. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call

As you may have heard already, the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released a joint... Cloud Security Drovorub’s Ability to Conceal C2 Traffic And Its Implications For Docker Containers Rony Moshkovich 2 min read Rony Moshkovich Short bio about author here Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Vitae donec tincidunt elementum quam laoreet duis sit enim. Duis mattis velit sit leo diam. Tags Share this article 8/15/20 Published As you may have heard already, the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory about previously undisclosed Russian malware called Drovorub. According to the report, the malware is designed for Linux systems as part of its cyber espionage operations. Drovorub is a Linux malware toolset that consists of an implant coupled with a kernel module rootkit, a file transfer and port forwarding tool, and a Command and Control (C2) server. The name Drovorub originates from the Russian language. It is a complex word that consists of 2 roots (not the full words): “drov” and “rub” . The “o” in between is used to join both roots together. The root “drov” forms a noun “drova” , which translates to “firewood” , or “wood” . The root “rub” /ˈruːb/ forms a verb “rubit” , which translates to “to fell” , or “to chop” . Hence, the original meaning of this word is indeed a “woodcutter” . What the report omits, however, is that apart from the classic interpretation, there is also slang. In the Russian computer slang, the word “drova” is widely used to denote “drivers” . The word “rubit” also has other meanings in Russian. It may mean to kill, to disable, to switch off. In the Russian slang, “rubit” also means to understand something very well, to be professional in a specific field. It resonates with the English word “sharp” – to be able to cut through the problem. Hence, we have 3 possible interpretations of ‘ Drovorub ‘: someone who chops wood – “дроворуб” someone who disables other kernel-mode drivers – “тот, кто отрубает / рубит драйвера” someone who understands kernel-mode drivers very well – “тот, кто (хорошо) рубит в драйверах” Given that Drovorub does not disable other drivers, the last interpretation could be the intended one. In that case, “Drovorub” could be a code name of the project or even someone’s nickname. Let’s put aside the intricacies of the Russian translations and get a closer look into the report. DISCLAIMER Before we dive into some of the Drovorub analysis aspects, we need to make clear that neither FBI nor NSA has shared any hashes or any samples of Drovorub. Without the samples, it’s impossible to conduct a full reverse engineering analysis of the malware. Netfilter Hiding According to the report, the Drovorub-kernel module registers a Netfilter hook. A network packet filter with a Netfilter hook ( NF_INET_LOCAL_IN and NF_INET_LOCAL_OUT ) is a common malware technique. It allows a backdoor to watch passively for certain magic packets or series of packets, to extract C2 traffic. What is interesting though, is that the driver also hooks the kernel’s nf_register_hook() function. The hook handler will register the original Netfilter hook, then un-register it, then re-register the kernel’s own Netfilter hook. According to the nf_register_hook() function in the Netfilter’s source , if two hooks have the same protocol family (e.g., PF_INET ), and the same hook identifier (e.g., NF_IP_INPUT ), the hook execution sequence is determined by priority. The hook list enumerator breaks at the position of an existing hook with a priority number elem->priority higher than the new hook’s priority number reg->priority : int nf_register_hook ( struct nf_hook_ops * reg) { struct nf_hook_ops * elem; int err; err = mutex_lock_interruptible( & nf_hook_mutex); if (err < 0 ) return err; list_for_each_entry(elem, & nf_hooks[reg -> pf][reg -> hooknum], list) { if (reg -> priority < elem -> priority) break ; } list_add_rcu( & reg -> list, elem -> list.prev); mutex_unlock( & nf_hook_mutex); ... return 0 ; } In that case, the new hook is inserted into the list, so that the higher-priority hook’s PREVIOUS link would point into the newly inserted hook. What happens if the new hook’s priority is also the same, such as NF_IP_PRI_FIRST – the maximum hook priority? In that case, the break condition will not be met, the list iterator list_for_each_entry will slide past the existing hook, and the new hook will be inserted after it as if the new hook’s priority was higher. By re-inserting its Netfilter hook in the hook handler of the nf_register_hook() function, the driver makes sure the Drovorub’s Netfilter hook will beat any other registered hook at the same hook number and with the same (maximum) priority. If the intercepted TCP packet does not belong to the hidden TCP connection, or if it’s destined to or originates from another process, hidden by Drovorub’s kernel-mode driver, the hook will return 5 ( NF_STOP ). Doing so will prevent other hooks from being called to process the same packet. Security Implications For Docker Containers Given that Drovorub toolset targets Linux and contains a port forwarding tool to route network traffic to other hosts on the compromised network, it would not be entirely unreasonable to assume that this toolset was detected in a client’s cloud infrastructure. According to Gartner’s prediction , in just two years, more than 75% of global organizations will be running cloud-native containerized applications in production, up from less than 30% today. Would the Drovorub toolset survive, if the client’s cloud infrastructure was running containerized applications? Would that facilitate the attack or would it disrupt it? Would it make the breach stealthier? To answer these questions, we have tested a different malicious toolset, CloudSnooper, reported earlier this year by Sophos. Just like Drovorub, CloudSnooper’s kernel-mode driver also relies on a Netfilter hook ( NF_INET_LOCAL_IN and NF_INET_LOCAL_OUT ) to extract C2 traffic from the intercepted TCP packets. As seen in the FBI/NSA report, the Volatility framework was used to carve the Drovorub kernel module out of the host, running CentOS. In our little lab experiment, let’s also use CentOS host. To build a new Docker container image, let’s construct the following Dockerfile: FROM scratch ADD centos-7.4.1708-docker.tar.xz / ADD rootkit.ko / CMD [“/bin/bash”] The new image, built from scratch, will have the CentOS 7.4 installed. The kernel-mode rootkit will be added to its root directory. Let’s build an image from our Dockerfile, and call it ‘test’: [root@localhost 1]# docker build . -t test Sending build context to Docker daemon 43.6MB Step 1/4 : FROM scratch —> Step 2/4 : ADD centos-7.4.1708-docker.tar.xz / —> 0c3c322f2e28 Step 3/4 : ADD rootkit.ko / —> 5aaa26212769 Step 4/4 : CMD [“/bin/bash”] —> Running in 8e34940342a2 Removing intermediate container 8e34940342a2 —> 575e3875cdab Successfully built 575e3875cdab Successfully tagged test:latest Next, let’s execute our image interactively (with pseudo-TTY and STDIN ): docker run -it test The executed image will be waiting for our commands: [root@8921e4c7d45e /]# Next, let’s try to load the malicious kernel module: [root@8921e4c7d45e /]# insmod rootkit.ko The output of this command is: insmod: ERROR: could not insert module rootkit.ko: Operation not permitted The reason why it failed is that by default, Docker containers are ‘unprivileged’. Loading a kernel module from a docker container requires a special privilege that allows it doing so. Let’s repeat our experiment. This time, let’s execute our image either in a fully privileged mode or by enabling only one capability – a capability to load and unload kernel modules ( SYS_MODULE ). docker run -it –privileged test or docker run -it –cap-add SYS_MODULE test Let’s load our driver again: [root@547451b8bf87 /]# insmod rootkit.ko This time, the command is executed silently. Running lsmod command allows us to enlist the driver and to prove it was loaded just fine. A little magic here is to quit the docker container and then delete its image: docker rmi -f test Next, let’s execute lsmod again, only this time on the host. The output produced by lsmod will confirm the rootkit module is loaded on the host even after the container image is fully unloaded from memory and deleted! Let’s see what ports are open on the host: [root@localhost 1]# netstat -tulpn Active Internet connections (only servers) Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address Foreign Address State PID/Program name tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:22 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN 1044/sshd With the SSH server running on port 22 , let’s send a C2 ‘ping’ command to the rootkit over port 22 : [root@localhost 1]# python client.py 127.0.0.1 22 8080 rrootkit-negotiation: hello The ‘hello’ response from the rootkit proves it’s fully operational. The Netfilter hook detects a command concealed in a TCP packet transferred over port 22 , even though the host runs SSH server on port 22 . How was it possible that a rootkit loaded from a docker container ended up loaded on the host? The answer is simple: a docker container is not a virtual machine. Despite the namespace and ‘control groups’ isolation, it still relies on the same kernel as the host. Therefore, a kernel-mode rootkit loaded from inside a Docker container instantly compromises the host, thus allowing the attackers to compromise other containers that reside on the same host. It is true that by default, a Docker container is ‘unprivileged’ and hence, may not load kernel-mode drivers. However, if a host is compromised, or if a trojanized container image detects the presence of the SYS_MODULE capability (as required by many legitimate Docker containers), loading a kernel-mode rootkit on a host from inside a container becomes a trivial task. Detecting the SYS_MODULE capability ( cap_sys_module ) from inside the container: [root@80402f9c2e4c /]# capsh –print Current: = cap_chown, … cap_sys_module, … Conclusion This post is drawing a parallel between the recently reported Drovorub rootkit and CloudSnooper, a rootkit reported earlier this year. Allegedly built by different teams, both of these Linux rootkits have one mechanism in common: a Netfilter hook ( NF_INET_LOCAL_IN and NF_INET_LOCAL_OUT ) and a toolset that enables tunneling of the traffic to other hosts within the same compromised cloud infrastructure. We are still hunting for the hashes and samples of Drovorub. Unfortunately, the YARA rules published by FBI/NSA cause False Positives. For example, the “Rule to detect Drovorub-server, Drovorub-agent, and Drovorub-client binaries based on unique strings and strings indicating statically linked libraries” enlists the following strings: “Poco” “Json” “OpenSSL” “clientid” “—–BEGIN” “—–END” “tunnel” The string “Poco” comes from the POCO C++ Libraries that are used for over 15 years. It is w-a-a-a-a-y too generic, even in combination with other generic strings. As a result, all these strings, along with the ELF header and a file size between 1MB and 10MB, produce a false hit on legitimate ARM libraries, such as a library used for GPS navigation on Android devices: f058ebb581f22882290b27725df94bb302b89504 56c36bfd4bbb1e3084e8e87657f02dbc4ba87755 Nevertheless, based on the information available today, our interest is naturally drawn to the security implications of these Linux rootkits for the Docker containers. Regardless of what security mechanisms may have been compromised, Docker containers contribute an additional attack surface, another opportunity for the attackers to compromise the hosts and other containers within the same organization. The scenario outlined in this post is purely hypothetical. There is no evidence that supports that Drovorub may have affected any containers. However, an increase in volume and sophistication of attacks against Linux-based cloud-native production environments, coupled with the increased proliferation of containers, suggests that such a scenario may, in fact, be plausible. Schedule a demo Related Articles Q1 at AlgoSec: What innovations and milestones defined our start to 2026? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read 2025 in review: What innovations and milestones defined AlgoSec’s transformative year in 2025? AlgoSec Reviews Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Navigating Compliance in the Cloud AlgoSec Cloud Mar 19, 2023 · 2 min read Speak to one of our experts Speak to one of our experts Work email* First name* Last name* Company* country* Select country... Short answer* By submitting this form, I accept AlgoSec's privacy policy Schedule a call