In response to the vulnerability tagged as CVE-2021-44228, known as “Log4Shell”, from Artica PFMS we confirm that Pandora FMS does not use this Apache log component and therefore it is not affected.
Discovered by the Alibaba security team, the problem refers to a case of remote execution of unauthenticated code (RCE) in any application that uses this open source utility and affects unpatched versions, from Apache Log4j 2.0-beta9 up to 2.14. 1.
It is true that if we used it, we would be compromised, but fortunately it is a dependency that is not necessary for the operation of our product.
In turn, we must also state that the Elasticsearch component for the log collection feature is potentially affected by CVE-2021-44228.
Recommended solution
There is, however, a solution recommended by the Elasticsearch developers:
1) You can upgrade to a JDK later than 8 to achieve at least partial mitigation.
2) Follow the Elasticsearch instructions from the developer and upgrade to Elasticsearch 6.8.21. or 7,16,1 superior.
Additional solution
In case you can’t update your version here we show you an additional method to solve the same problem:
Disable formatMessageLookup as follows:
Stop the Elasticsearch service.
Add -Dlog4j2.formatMsgNoLookups = true to the log4j part of /etc/elasticsearch/jvm.options
Restart the Elasticsearch service.
In the event of any other eventuality we will keep you informed.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About PandoraFMS Pandora FMS is a flexible monitoring system, capable of monitoring devices, infrastructures, applications, services and business processes. Of course, one of the things that Pandora FMS can control is the hard disks of your computers.
In recent years, the technological dependence of companies and society has only increased. Companies have increasingly invested in digitizing their processes and providing the best experience for customers, partners, suppliers, and employees.
The digital transformation process and new technologies such as Cloud, Big Data, Internet of Things, and 5G have brought an increase in cyber threats with them. And the migration to remote work models driven by the Covid-19 pandemic has made people and businesses even more vulnerable to malicious attacks. This makes the cybersecurity issue remain on the rise and the protection of this entire infrastructure is increasingly essential in organizations’ strategies.
Thus, as the end of the year approaches, security leaders are looking for the main information security market trends and the challenges that await them for 2022 to be prepared for this threat scenario. According to a Flexera study, cybersecurity will be the top IT initiative for half of the organizations surveyed.
Therefore, in times when data is considered the new oil, it is essential that organizations know the market trends and then outline their cybersecurity strategies to protect this very valuable asset and ensure the continuity of their business.
Next, we present 9 information security topics that will be highlighted in 2022, which should be considered by organizational leaders in their cybersecurity strategies.
1.Greater Coverage of Data Protection Laws
With the exponential growth of data volume, news on data leaks will become more and more frequent. Consequently, the demand for data security and privacy is sure to grow. To respond to this trend, governments tend to increase regulatory pressures through the publication of personal data protection laws. So much so that Gartner estimates the personal information of 75% of the world’s population will be covered by specific data protection laws by 2023. In 2021, China, Saudi Arabia, and Brazil were some of the countries that put specific data protection laws in force. Europe already regulated the transfer of personal data from European Union countries to non-member countries. On the other hand, the United States remains on the list of countries without a specific federal law to guarantee the protection of personal data, depending only on states like California, Colorado, and Virginia to legislate on the subject.
2.Remote Work Protection
Work environments have undergone the greatest transformation in recent decades. Dining rooms were adapted so that we could share workstations and accommodate a remote workforce. According to research by Tenable and Forrester, 74% of security leaders recognize that the remote work measures implemented as a result of the pandemic have left their infrastructure vulnerable to malicious attacks. And even with the end of the pandemic and the return to face-to-face work, the expectation is that there will be a hybrid work adoption. Also, according to the survey, 70% of organizations plan to have their employees work from home at least one day a week.
3.Cyber Awareness
It is jargon in the cybersecurity market that “it is impossible to invest in state-of-the-art security solutions without addressing the weakest link in this chain: people”. Furthermore, as security vendors develop new technologies to protect infrastructure, attackers devise methods to bypass them and carry out their malicious actions. According to Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report 2021, 85% of data leaks surveyed involved the human factor, with social engineering accounting for more than a third of those leaks. Phishing was present in 36% of data leaks surveyed by Verizon.
4.Talents Wanted
In recent years, we have seen an increase in the number of projects related to digital transformation and connected devices, as well as a migration to cloud-based environments. Additionally, the risk landscape includes cyberwars and attacks such as ransomware, which increasingly affect business continuity. However, security budgets have not kept up with this escalation. To adequately respond to these risks and ensure infrastructure protection, there is an increased demand for cybersecurity professionals. According to an Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) study, 57% of professionals surveyed said that the lack of cybersecurity talents had impacted their organizations in some way, while 10% recognized this impact as significant.
5.It is All About Connection
The development of 5G and the Internet of Things has led to a growth in the number of connected devices. These devices have enabled connectivity and have become increasingly essential in the daily lives of people and businesses. According to a Cisco report, the number of connected devices is expected to surpass 29 billion by 2023, resulting in a larger attack surface to be exploited by malicious attackers through vulnerabilities and malicious software. According to Gartner, by 2025, cyberattackers will turn Operational Technology (OT) environments into weapons to cause even human deaths. In this way, attacks on the so-called critical infrastructure, such as the generation and distribution of energy, water, and gas, can have serious impacts not only on organizations but also on governments and society.
6.Mobile Attacks
The spread of smartphones has made our personal and professional life easier, stimulating the development of a series of applications for communication, shopping, finance, and travel. In addition, the shift to remote work has led to increased use of mobile devices by employees, bringing benefits such as faster speed and productivity improvements. In 2020, the percentage of internet traffic through these devices surpassed that of desktop computers and laptops for the first time. Cybercriminals have taken advantage of these facts to increasingly use mobile devices as an attack vector.
7.(Even) More Ransomware
Each year, we have seen new records in ransomware-related numbers. And in 2021, that was no different. SonicWall recorded a 148% increase in attacks involving ransomware in 2021, reaching the number of 495 million attacks with this type of malicious software, which is expected to exceed 700 million by the end of the year. It is worth remembering that the techniques used in these pieces of software have also become more sophisticated, showing an evolution in cybercriminals’ planning and execution of this type of attack. Moreover, the Ransomware-as-a-Service models have allowed scaling the development of this type of malicious software, allowing criminals without programming knowledge to develop their own ransomware. In September 2021 alone, SonicWall’s malicious software detection tools discovered more than 370,000 new malware variants, with governments and critical infrastructure being a top target.
8.Social Freedom
In recent years, we have seen social media influencing important events in some way, such as Brexit and the Brazilian and American elections via the Cambridge Analytica scandal. And with new occurrences involving Facebook and its employees, we will continue to see increasing pressure on social media to perform proper controls on their users’ posts. These posts include the dissemination of fake news and crimes such as selling illegal items, financial scams, and child pornography. This will undoubtedly influence governments to regulate and establish better-defined controls on how content is published, including the verification of facts posted on social media and facilitating access by authorities to the respective sources.
9.Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for Cybersecurity
The elimination of the security perimeter and the migration to distributed work models, driven by the Covid-19 pandemic, made devices even more vulnerable to cyber threats. And with the increase in these threats, boosted by the lack of specialized security staff, it is essential to use tools based on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to detect cybersecurity risks. Through the use of these technologies, one can analyze and recognize patterns for the prevention and adequate response to these threats. In this way, the cybersecurity process becomes much more proactive and effective.
You can see that 2022 will not be easy in terms of cybersecurity. With the trend of increasing attacks and scarce resources, security teams will have a tough mission to detect and adequately respond to the growing demands in the industry. Now, the question is not whether, but when organizations will suffer a cyberattack. Thus, adequately responding to cyber threats not only must be considered by the security teams but also be part of the business strategies.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About Senhasegura Senhasegura strive to ensure the sovereignty of companies over actions and privileged information. To this end, we work against data theft through traceability of administrator actions on networks, servers, databases and a multitude of devices. In addition, we pursue compliance with auditing requirements and the most demanding standards, including PCI DSS, Sarbanes-Oxley, ISO 27001 and HIPAA.
Similar to how software bugs are triaged for a severity level, so too are security vulnerabilities as they need to be assessed for impact and risk, which aids in vulnerability management. The forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) is an international organization of trusted security scientists and computer researchers that have received the task of creating best practices and tools for incident responses teams, as well as standardizing security methodologies and policies. One of FIRST’s initiatives is the Special Interest Group (SIG) that is responsible for developing and maintaining the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) specification to assist the security team to understand and prioritize the severity of a security vulnerability.
Scoring Vulnerabilities
CVSS is known as a standard measurement system for organizations, industries and governments that need consistent and accurate vulnerability impact scores. The quantitative model of CVSS ensures accurate and repeatable measurement while allowing users to see the core vulnerability features that were used to generate the scores. CVSS is normally used to prioritize vulnerability remediation activities and to calculate vulnerabilities discovered on one’s systems.
Challenges with CVSS
Missing Applicability Context
Vulnerability scores do not always count for the right context in which a vulnerable component is used by an organization. A Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) system can factor in different variables when determining the score of an organization. However, in some cases others can affect the way in which a vulnerability is handled in spite of the score given to it by a CVE.
For instance, a high severity vulnerability that’s classified by the CVSS which was found in a component used for testing purposes, such as a test harness, might end up receiving little or no attention from security experts. One reason this can happen is that this component is used as a tool and is not in any way exposed in an interface accessible to the public.
Additionally, vulnerability scores do not extend their context to account for material consequences such as when a vulnerability applies to cars, utility grids and medical devices. Each firm would need to triage and account for specific implications based on relevance to the prevalence in the specific vulnerable components for their products.
Incorrect Scoring
A vulnerability score includes a wide range of major characteristics and without supporting information, proper guidance and experience, mistakes can easily be made. It’s not rare to find false positives in a CVE or inaccuracies in scores that are assigned to any of the metrics groups that introduces a risk of losing trust in a CVE or creating panic for organizations.
CVSS has a score range of 0-10 that ranks severity levels starting from low to high. Inaccuracies of variables may lead to a score that maps to an inaccurate CVSS level. CVSS v3.0 can be used for evaluating and communicating security vulnerability features and their impact. The security research team takes part in discovering new vulnerabilities across ecosystems. Additionally, they work to triage CVE scores to properly showcase severities to balance the scoring inaccuracy that’s made by other authorities that issue CVEs.
An organization database provides supporting metadata beyond the CVE details for each vulnerability. The security experts curate each vulnerability with information like details about the type of vulnerability or overview of the vulnerable components that are enriched with reference links and examples to commits, fixes or other matter related to vulnerability.
How CVSS Works
There are three versions in CVSS’s history, beginning from its first release in 2004 to the widespread adoption of CVSS v2.0 and to the present working specification of CVSS v3.0. The specification offers a structure that standardizes the way vulnerabilities are scored in a way that’s grouped to showcase individual areas of concerns.
The Metrics For A CVSS Score Are Allocated In Different Groups:
Base: Impact assessment and exploitability metrics that are not dependent on the times of a vulnerability or a user environment, such as the ease at which the vulnerability can be exploited. For instance, if a vulnerability component is denied total access because of a vulnerability, it will score a high availability impact.
CVSS base metrics are composed of exploitability and impact metric sub-groups and assess their applicability to a software component, which may impact other components (hardware, software or networking devices).
Temporal: This metric accounts for situations that affect a vulnerability score. For instance, if there is a known exploit for a vulnerability the score will increase. However, if there is a patch or fix available, the score will decrease.
The main purpose of the temporal score is to offer context according to the timing of a CVE severity. For example, if there are known public exploits for a security vulnerability, this raises the severity and criticality for the CVE because of the considerably easy access to resources for employing such attacks.
A complete CVSS score is calculated which includes the temporal score part based on the highest risk for a value and will only be included if there is temporal risk. Consequently, any temporal score values that are assigned will keep the overall CVSS score at the lease or lower than the overall score.
Environmental: This metric enables customizing the score to the impact for a user or company’s environment. For instance, if the organization values the availability that’s related to a vulnerable component, it may set a high level of availability requirement and increase the whole CVSS score.
In conclusion, the base metrics form the bases of a CVSS vector. If temporal or environmental metrics are available, they are incorporated into the whole CVSS score.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About vRx vRx is a consolidated vulnerability management platform that protects assets in real time. Its rich, integrated features efficiently pinpoint and remediate the largest risks to your cyber infrastructure. Resolve the most pressing threats with efficient automation features and precise contextual analysis.
Most of us have visited a hotel at some point in our lives. We arrive at reception, if we request a room, they give us a key; if we are going to visit a guest, they lead us to the waiting room as a visitor; if we are going to have dinner at their restaurant, they label us as a customer; or if we attend a conference on technology, we go to their conference room. It would not be the case that we would end up in the pool or enter the laundry room for a very important reason: we were assigned a role upon arrival.
Do you know what Role-Based Access Control or RBAC is?
In the field of computing too, since its inception, all this has been taken into account, but remember that the first machines were extremely expensive and limited, so we had to settle for simpler resources before Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) arrived.
Access Control List
In 1965, there was a timeshare operating system called Multics (created by Bell Laboratories and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology) which was the first to use access control lists (ACL). I wasn’t even born at that time so I will trust what Wikipedia has to say about this topic. What I do know, first-hand, is the filesystem access control list (filesystem ACL) that Netware Novell® used in the early 1990s and that I already told you about in a previous article on this blog.
But let’s go back to the access control list: What is an access control? This is the easiest thing to explain, it is nothing more and nothing less than a simple restriction on a user regarding a resource. Either by means of a password, a physical key or even your biometric values, such as a fingerprint, for example.
An access control list then is to write down each of the users who can access (explicitly allowed) or not (explicitly prohibited, under no circumstances) something. As you may imagine, this becomes tedious, constantly staying aware of noting the users one by one and also the processes of the operating system or the programs that run on it… You see, what a mess to write down all the entries, known as access control entries (ACEs).
Following the example of rights on files, directories and beyond (such as full resources: optical disks or entire “hard drives”), I came to work, last century, with Netware Novell®. This is a Filesystem ACL (Network File System access control list). Then came the millennium shock, the NFS ACL version 4 that picked up and expanded, in a standardized way, everything we had used since 1989 when RFC 1094 established the Network File System Protocol Specification. I think I have summarized a lot and should name, at least, the use that MS Windows® gives to ACLs through its Active Directory (AD), the Networking ACLs for the cases of network hardware (routers, hubs, etc.) and the implementations that some databases make.
All these technologies, and more, make use of the concept of access control lists, and as everything in life evolves, the concept of groups sharing some similarities emerged, and thus it was possible to save work by keeping the lists of access. Now imagine that you have one, or more access control lists, that only support groups. Well, in 1997 a man named John Barkley demonstrated that this type of list is equivalent to a minimum Role-Based Access Control, but RBAC at the end of the day, which brings us to the core of the issue…
Role-based access control RBAC
The concept of role in RBAC goes beyond permissions, it can also be well-defined skills. In addition, you may have several assigned roles, depending on the needs of the protagonist (user, software, hardware…). Going back to the billing department example. A salesperson, who already has a corresponding role as such, could also have a collection role to analyze customer payments and focus their sales on solvents. With roles this is relatively easy to do.
Benefits of RBAC
• First of all, RBAC dramatically reduces the risks of breaches and data leaks. If the roles were created and assigned rigorously, the return on investment of the work done in RBAC is guaranteed.
• Reduce costs by assigning more than one role to a user. It is unnecessary to buy new virtual computers if they can be shared with groups already created. Let Pandora FMS monitor and provide you with information to make decisions about redistributing the hourly load or, if necessary and only if necessary, acquire more resources.
• Federal, state, or local regulations on privacy or confidentiality can be required of companies, and RBACs can be a great help in meeting and enforcing those requirements.
• RBACs not only help efficiency in companies when new employees are hired, they also help when third parties perform security work, audits, etc. because beforehand, and without really knowing who will come, they will already have their work space well defined in one or more combined roles.
Disadvantages of RBAC
• The number of roles can grow dramatically. If a company has 5 departments and 20 functions, we can have up to a maximum of 100 roles.
• Complexity.Perhaps this is the most difficult part: identifying and assigning all the mechanisms established in the company and translating them into RBAC. This requires a lot of work.
• When someone needs to temporarily extend their permissions, RABCs can become a difficult chain to break. For this, Pandora FMS proposes an alternative that I explain in the next section.
RBAC Rules
To take full advantage of the RBAC model, developing the concept of roles and authorizations always comes first. It is important that identity management to be able to assign these roles is also done in a standardized way, for this the ISO/IEC 24760-1 standard of 2011 tries to deal with it.
There are three golden rules for RBACs that must be displayed according to their order in time and enforced in due course:
1. Role assignment:Someone may exercise a permission only if they have been assigned a role.
2. Role authorization:The active role of a person must be authorized for that person. Along with rule number one, this rule ensures that users can only assume the roles for which they are authorized.
3. Permission authorization:Someone can exercise a permission only if the permission is authorized for the person’s active role. Along with rules one and two, this rule ensures that users can only exercise the permissions for which they are authorized.
The Enterprise version of Pandora FMS has an ultra complete RBAC and authentication mechanisms such as LDAP or AD, as well as double authentication mechanisms with Google® Auth. In addition, with the tag system that Pandora FMS handles, you may combine RBAC with ABAC. The attribute-based access control is similar to RBAC but instead of roles, it is based on user attributes. In this case, assigned labels, although they could be other values such as location or years of experience within the company, for example.
But we leave that for another article…
Before finishing this article, remember Pandora FMS is a flexible monitoring software, capable of monitoring devices, infrastructures, applications, services and business processes.
Would you like to find out more about what Pandora FMS can offer you? Find out clicking here: https://pandorafms.com/
Also, remember that if your monitoring needs are more limited, you have Pandora FMS OpenSource version available. Learn more information here:
https://pandorafms.org/
Do not hesitate to send us your questions. Pandora FMS team will be happy to help you!
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About PandoraFMS Pandora FMS is a flexible monitoring system, capable of monitoring devices, infrastructures, applications, services and business processes. Of course, one of the things that Pandora FMS can control is the hard disks of your computers.
Data leaks are extremely harmful to your company and users, therefore, actions to avoid such failures and information collection is crucial for your company to have a respectable image and become a reference in this segment.
How to Prevent a Data Leak by Internal Users?
A good company must have efficient ways of monitoring data, so they know who and when certain information was accessed, creating a network that limits hostile actions and improper copies.
In order to avoid such harmful practices, measures are needed to improve the security structure. For this, senhasegura can help you with those that should be taken to remedy such complications.
Recording and Monitoring
In most cases of information leaks by internal users, improper copies of the information contained in their company’s database are made, but using complex password recording actions and monitoring of who had access to the specific file, it is possible to prevent illegal collection.
Proper Configuration for The Network Environment
Companies all over the world have gone through hostile attacks and one of the gateways is the network environment, as they are easily accessed by individuals who wish to practice illegal activities, but a suitable configuration can solve such problems.
Another way of prevention is to configure the device used so that its internet connection is limited and data is not transferred improperly. In case the individual needs to be online at all times, it is possible to use WEP encryption, although it is considered weak by professionals in the field.
Education for Implementing a Security System
Although it seems banal, it is always important to explain to the internal user that, just having access to the data contained in a file makes them responsible for handling the information responsibly.
Along with basic network security training, the employee must be aware of the legal measures that may fall on them in case inappropriate actions are taken with confidential data, and even with these actions, monitoring and recording are of paramount importance.
The Access Privilege
With the aid of monitoring, certain information can be further protected through the right of access. This action is intended to determine who should or should not access information contained in a given file.
With it, only one group will be able to have access to the data, making the verification of suspicious actions in the system faster in order to determine possible failures in the security of information.
Constant Changes to Passwords
Every time a certain individual has suspicious actions and ends up being dismissed from the company, the access passwords must be changed so that they do not end up remotely accessing the network.
This practice should become commonplace, as access logins can often be known by unscrupulous people and the constant change of passwords helps keep your company data secure.
Protect Yourself from External Devices
Information can often be improperly archived on mobile devices such as USB sticks or SSDs, but through simple processes such as blocking USB ports and wireless, it can make data protection more effective.
These devices are not of paramount importance for your company’s daily activities, therefore, it is possible to forbid the use of the aforementioned options, and with this, all data transfer will be done over the network, where they can be monitored and blocked as needed by the company.
As part of our mission to secure the world’s OT, IoT and Cyber Physical infrastructures, we invest resources into offensive research of vulnerabilities and attack techniques.
Ripple20 are 19 vulnerabilities revealed by Israeli firm JSOF that affect millions of OT and IOT devices. The vulnerabilities reside in a TCP/IP stack developed by Treck, Inc. The TCP/IP stack is widely used by manufacturers in the OT and IoT industries and thus affects a tremendous amount of devices.
Among the affected devices are Cisco Routers, HP Printers, Digi IoT devices, PLCs by Rockwell Automation and many more. Official advisories by companies who confirmed having affected devices can be found here, in the “More Information” section.
The most critical vulnerabilities are three that can cause a stable Remote Code Execution (CVE-2020-11896, CVE-2020-11897, CVE-2020-11901) and another that can cause the target device’s memory heap to be leaked (CVE-2020-11898).
On behalf of our customers, we set out to explore the real impact of these vulnerabilities, which we’re now sharing with the public.
The research has been conducted by researchers Maayan Fishelov and Dan Haim, and has been managed by SCADAfence’s Co-Founder and CTO, Ofer Shaked.
Exploitability Research We set out to check the exploitability of these vulnerabilities, starting with CVE-2020-11898 (the heap memory leak vulnerability), one of the 19 published vulnerabilities.
We created a Python POC script that is based on JSOF official whitepaper for this vulnerability. According to JSOF, the implementation is very similar to CVE-2020-11896, which is an RCE vulnerability that is described in the whitepaper. Also mentioned about the RCE vulnerability: “Variants of this Issue can be triggered to cause a Denial of Service or a persistent Denial of Service, requiring a hard reset.”
Trial Results: Test 1 target: Samsung ProXpress printer model SL-M4070FR firmware version V4.00.02.18 MAY-08-2017. This device is vulnerable according to the HP Advisory.
Test 1 result: The printer’s network crashed and required a hard reset to recover. We were unable to reproduce the heap memory leak as described, and this vulnerability would have been tagged as unauthenticated remote DoS instead, on this specific printer.
Test 2 target: HP printer model M130fw. This device is vulnerable according to the HP Advisory.
Test 2 result: Although reported as vulnerable by the manufacturer, we were unable to reproduce the vulnerability, and we believe that this device isn’t affected by this vulnerability. We believe that’s because the IPinIP feature isn’t enabled on this printer, which we’ve verified with a specially crafted packet.
Test 3 target: Undisclosed at this stage due to disclosure guidelines. We will reveal this finding in the near future.
Test 3 result: We found an unreported vendor and device, on which we can use CVE-2020-11898 to remotely leak 368 bytes from the device’s heap, disclosing sensitive information. No patch is available for this device. Due to our strict policy of using Google’s Responsible Disclosure, we’ve reported this to the manufacturer, to allow them to make a patch available prior to the publication date.
Key Takeaways We’ve confirmed the exploitability vulnerabilities on our IoT lab devices.
On the negative side: The vulnerabilities exist on additional products that are unknown to the public. Attackers are likely to use this information gap to attack networks. On the positive side: Some devices that are reported as affected by the manufacturers are actually not affected, or are affected by other vulnerabilities. It might require attackers to tailor their exploits to specific products, increasing the cost of exploitation, and prevent them from using the vulnerability on products that are reported as vulnerable.
SCADAfence Research Recommendations Check your asset inventory and vulnerability assessment solutions for unpatched products affected by Ripple20. The SCADAfence Platform creates an asset inventory with product and software versions passively and actively, and allows you to manage your CVEs across all embedded and Windows devices. Prioritize patching or other mitigation measures based on: Exposure to the internet, exposure to insecure networks (business LAN and others), criticality of the asset. This prioritization can automatically be obtained from tools such as the SCADAfence Platform. Detect exploitation based on network traffic analysis. The SCADAfence Platform detects usage of these exploits in network activity by searching for patterns that indicate usage of this vulnerability in the TCP/IP communications. If you have any questions or concerns about Ripple20, please contact us and we’ll be happy to assist you and share our knowledge with you or with your security experts.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About SCADAfence SCADAfence helps companies with large-scale operational technology (OT) networks embrace the benefits of industrial IoT by reducing cyber risks and mitigating operational threats. Our non-intrusive platform provides full coverage of large-scale networks, offering best-in-class detection accuracy, asset discovery and user experience. The platform seamlessly integrates OT security within existing security operations, bridging the IT/OT convergence gap. SCADAfence secures OT networks in manufacturing, building management and critical infrastructure industries. We deliver security and visibility for some of world’s most complex OT networks, including Europe’s largest manufacturing facility. With SCADAfence, companies can operate securely, reliably and efficiently as they go through the digital transformation journey.
BRATISLAVA, MONTREAL – ESET researchers are releasing their in-depth analysis into the operations of Evilnum, the APT group behind the Evilnum malware. According to ESET’s telemetry, the targets are financial technology companies – for example, platforms and tools for online trading. Although most of the targets are located in EU countries and the UK, ESET has also seen attacks in countries such as Australia and Canada. The main goal of the Evilnum group is to spy on its targets and obtain financial information from both the targeted companies and their customers.
“While this malware has been seen in the wild since at least 2018 and documented previously, little has been published about the group behind it and how it operates,” says Matias Porolli, the ESET researcher leading the investigation into Evilnum. “Its toolset and infrastructure have evolved and now consist of a mix of custom, homemade malware combined with tools purchased from Golden Chickens, a Malware-as-a-Service provider whose infamous customers include FIN6 and Cobalt Group,” he adds.
Evilnum steals sensitive information, including customer credit card information and proof of address/identity documents; spreadsheets and documents with customer lists, investments and trading operations; software licenses and credentials for trading software/platforms; email credentials; and other data. The group has also gained access to IT-related information, such as VPN configurations.
“Targets are approached with spearphishing emails that contain a link to a ZIP file hosted on Google Drive. That archive contains several shortcut files that extract and execute a malicious component, while displaying a decoy document,” elaborates Porolli. These decoy documents seem genuine, and they are continuously and actively collected in the group’s current operations as they try to compromise new victims. It targets technical support representatives and account managers, who regularly receive identity documents or credit cards from their customers.
As with many malicious codes, commands can be sent to Evilnum malware. Among those are commands to collect and send Google Chrome saved passwords; take screenshots; stop the malware and remove persistence; and collect and send Google Chrome cookies to a command and control server.
“Evilnum leverages large infrastructure for its operations, with several different servers for different types of communication,” concludes Porolli.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About ESET For 30 years, ESET® has been developing industry-leading IT security software and services for businesses and consumers worldwide. With solutions ranging from endpoint security to encryption and two-factor authentication, ESET’s high-performing, easy-to-use products give individuals and businesses the peace of mind to enjoy the full potential of their technology. ESET unobtrusively protects and monitors 24/7, updating defenses in real time to keep users safe and businesses running without interruption. Evolving threats require an evolving IT security company. Backed by R&D facilities worldwide, ESET became the first IT security company to earn 100 Virus Bulletin VB100 awards, identifying every single “in-the-wild” malware without interruption since 2003.
GREYCORTEX is actively responding to the reported high severity vulnerability (CVE-2021 – 44228) that was found in the Apache Log4j library. All Mendel installations deployed in the last few years are vulnerable to this vulnerability. The new version, 3.8.0, which will be released in the upcoming days, is not affected and current versions 3.7.x and 3.6.x have now been covered with security updates.
Background
A high severity vulnerability (CVE-2021 – 44228) impacting multiple versions of the Apache Log4j 2 utility was disclosed publicly via the project’s GitHub on December 9, 2021. The vulnerability impacts Apache Log4j 2 versions 2.0 to 2.14.1.
Log4j is used as a component of our GREYCORTEX Mendel product. More information on the vulnerability can be found in the links below.
All Mendel installations deployed in the last few years are affected by this vulnerability but the vulnerable part of the Mendel deployment is NOT exposed to a direct Internet connection.
What can I do to mitigate and resolve this issue?
GREYCORTEX has actively responded to the reported remote code execution vulnerability in the Apache Log4j 2 Java library, dubbed Log4Shell (or LogJam). We have investigated and taken action regarding our product GREYCORTEX Mendel. The new version 3.8.0, which will be released in the upcoming days, is not affected and current versions 3.7.x and 3.6.x are now covered with security updates, which are automatically distributed through the update server.
Older systems will not be patched, customers who are using older versions are strongly advised to upgrade.
Mitigations: if you are not able to upgrade to the newer version or your Mendel instance does not have access to the update server, then please restrict access to Mendel via your firewall settings. It is recommended to restrict access only to a trustworthy IP address range, also for normal operations.
How can I find out if my Mendel system or other systems of our customers have been compromised?
Mendel includes a set of detection rules that can detect whether a vulnerability in the Apache Log4j logging framework has been exploited to attack the Mendel system itself or other systems in your infrastructure. These rules are automatically available through the GREYCORTEX update server. If your Mendel instance or your customer instance is online, these signatures will be added to it automatically.
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About GREYCORTEX GREYCORTEX uses advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data mining methods to help organizations make their IT operations secure and reliable.
MENDEL, GREYCORTEX’s network traffic analysis solution, helps corporations, governments, and the critical infrastructure sector protect their futures by detecting cyber threats to sensitive data, networks, trade secrets, and reputations, which other network security products miss.
MENDEL is based on 10 years of extensive academic research and is designed using the same technology which was successful in four US-based NIST Challenges.
Until two weeks ago, Log4j was just a popular Java logging framework, one of the numerous components that run in the background of many modern web applications. But since a zero-day vulnerability (CVE-2021-44228) was published, Log4j has made a huge impact on the security community as researchers found that it’s vulnerable to arbitrary code execution.
The good news is that the Apache Software Foundation has already fixed and rolled out the patch for the vulnerability. On top of the patch, thanks to SCADAfence’s research and R&D team, our latest build supports the detection of Log4j exploit attempts.
Quick Recap of CVE-2021-44228 in Log4j
Log4J is an unauthenticated remote code execution (RCE, code injection) vulnerability in the popular Log4j logging framework for Java. By exploiting it, the attacker can easily execute any code from a remote source on the attacked target. NIST has given this vulnerability (CVE-2021-44228) a score of 10 out of 10, which reflects its criticality.
Over 3 billion devices run Java, and because there are only a handful of logging libraries, many of them are likely to run Log4j. Worse still, many internet-exposed target applications can be exploited by external users without authentication.
Over the past two weeks, major OT vendors disclosed the security impact of this vulnerability on their software and equipment, and additional disclosures will continue as vendors work to identify the use of Log4j across their product lines. Originally, the Log4j vulnerability made it challenging to identify potentially impacted servers on a given network. For OT networks that have incorporated network segmentation, the risk from these protocols can be mitigated to an extent.
How To Ensure That Your Systems Are Safe
First, it’s important to understand that the root cause of this issue lies within the Log4j library. The Apache Software Foundation released an emergency patch for the vulnerability. You should upgrade your systems to Log4j 2.15.0 immediately or apply the appropriate mitigations.
Our OT security threat intelligence database learns about the different behavior to highlight activities attempting to leverage this vulnerability and to provide remediation guidance. Our customers are notified of log4j exploit attempts, and also on any anomaly detected by our anomalies engine. but our customers are already protected simply based on the efficacy of our anomaly detection.
The SCADAfence Platform, the Governance Portal, and the Multi-Site Portal do not use Log4J or the Apache server, and thus SCADAfence product installations are updated and secure from the Log4J vulnerability. Customers do not need to take action for any of our on-prem or hosted web solutions.
At SCADAfence, we felt network segmentation wasn’t enough to fight off the critical vulnerability. The latest build of the SCADAfence Platform detects and allows SCADAfence customers to leverage our OT security threat intelligence service to ensure they can patch and mitigate this exploit in any of their OT devices.
The SCADAfence Platform Detects & Alerts if an OT Asset is Vulnerable to the Log4Shell Vulnerability
We’ve updated our log4shells/log4j exploit detection inside the SCADAfence Platform as we have maneuvered ahead. We added CVE signatures to our database which detect and alert RCE (Remote Code Execution) exploits.
The following CVEs were added to the SCADAfence database to correlate and alert of vulnerable OT assets:
How Can You Deploy The Latest Version of SCADAfence
The latest version of the SCADAfence Platform which detects the CVE signatures relating to the vulnerability is available in build 6.6.1.167. To get the latest version, please contact your customer success representative.
If your organization is looking into securing its industrial networks, the experts atSCADAfence are seasoned veterans in this space and can show you how it’s done.
To learn more about SCADAfence’s array of OT & IoT security products, and to see short product demos, click here:https://l.scadafence.com/demo
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About SCADAfence SCADAfence helps companies with large-scale operational technology (OT) networks embrace the benefits of industrial IoT by reducing cyber risks and mitigating operational threats. Our non-intrusive platform provides full coverage of large-scale networks, offering best-in-class detection accuracy, asset discovery and user experience. The platform seamlessly integrates OT security within existing security operations, bridging the IT/OT convergence gap. SCADAfence secures OT networks in manufacturing, building management and critical infrastructure industries. We deliver security and visibility for some of world’s most complex OT networks, including Europe’s largest manufacturing facility. With SCADAfence, companies can operate securely, reliably and efficiently as they go through the digital transformation journey.
What’s new in the latest Pandora FMS release, Pandora FMS 759
Let’s take a look together at the features and improvements included in the new Pandora FMS release: Pandora FMS 759.
NEW FEATURES AND IMPROVEMENTS
State change thresholds based on percentage
It is an improvement that many users had requested. It allows a module changing status to be specified based on a percentage change in the value of the last data received. That way, it is more intuitive to define the situations in which you consider that a module goes into WARNING or CRITICAL status.
New trend modules
These new modules compare the current average with the average of the previous period and return the difference in absolute value or as a percentage. They are useful to express in a simple way that, for example, the use of your network is currently 25% higher than last week, or that the temperature is 2ºC above normal if you compare it to the previous month.
Capacity planning modules
It makes predictions based on the time frame specified by the user, assuming a more or less linear performance of the target module. This type of predictive module allows you to find out how many days you have left until the disk is completely full, or the number of requests to the database you will have within a month if you continue as before. These modules replace the old prediction modules.
Network Configuration Manager
We improved the NCM features. Now in addition to being able to execute commands manually on different devices, firmwares can be uploaded, configuration changes can be verified and backups can be scheduled.
More IPAM improvements
Following in the wake of the previous release, we added some additional features to our IPAM such as defining SITES, isolated islands that allow duplicate addresses. We also added the possibility of defining a location of a previous list, ordering the lists, editing from the supernet browser and more improvements have also been incorporated.
Editor of special days in Metaconsole
The special days editor has been added and the way to assign special days to alert definition has been improved, making it more intuitive.
Policy auto-enforcement by group
A system of automatic application of policies has been designed so that groups can be assigned policies and when a new agent is added to the group, the associated policies are applied automatically. This improves current auto-provisioning operations and enables large amounts of agents to be handled quickly.
Metaconsole inventory
Inventory display feature has been added to the Metaconsole.
Secondary IP macros in network components and plugins
From now on, through the _address_n_ macro you may use any of the secondary (or successive) IPs of an agent in network modules or remote plugins.
New alert action history report
It complements the existing event or alert reports, offering the details of each action (send email, SMS, log) for each alert launched on an agent/module. It is based on events (which now save that information when an alert is fired).
If you have to monitor more than 100 devices, you may also enjoy a Pandora FMS Enterprise FREE 30-day TRIAL. Installation on Cloud or On-Premise, you choose!! Get it here!
Last but not least, remember that if you have a reduced number of devices to monitor, you can use Pandora FMS OpenSource version. Find more information here.
Do not hesitate to send us your questions. Pandora FMS team will be happy to help you!
About Version 2 Limited Version 2 Limited is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company develops and distributes IT products for Internet and IP-based networks, including communication systems, Internet software, security, network, and media products. Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 Limited offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.
About PandoraFMS Pandora FMS is a flexible monitoring system, capable of monitoring devices, infrastructures, applications, services and business processes. Of course, one of the things that Pandora FMS can control is the hard disks of your computers.
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