Vulnerability Scanning Essay example

* Check existing security scan reports, from WireShark and NetWitness Investigator, and see if we can identify data leakage, and setup new policies and procedures for monitoring web servers and applications.

Protocol capture tools and protocol analyzers are important tools for an information systems security professional. These utilities can be used to troubleshoot issues on the network. They can verify adherence to corporate policies, such as whether or not clear text privacy data is being sent on the network. They can be used to test security countermeasures and firewall deployments and are needed to perform audits, security assessments, network baseline definitions, and identification of rogue IP devices.

Companies should develop a control that requires that routine vulnerability assessment of their customer facing web sites, network infrastructure, and associated systems (such as database systems). Vulnerability assessment can help identify potential weaknesses to systems and also provide a sort of feedback to the organization’s IT department on their current operational policy and security posture. The cost of performing a routine vulnerability assessment is considerably less than that of an actual data breach.

HTML5 will also allow pen-testers to review new scans, create new policies, and view scans from any device on the scanner, which means the entire network will be secure. This magnificent security tool is capable of providing any vulnerability within the IP address range, network or host located on the network. Within the configuration and compliance auditing, it can be compared to the Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP), which is a method used to enable automated vulnerability management (National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2016). Nessus will also ensure the system is configured to be compliant within the security structure of Windows, Linux, Mac OS and applications. One more feature included is the integration of patch management, which allows patch information to be retrieved and to be included in the patch management report. Nessus will go one step further and check to ensure that patches have been properly installed, will audit mobile device weaknesses, gathering data and writing reports about potential threats for the devices connected to the network, whether it be iOS, Android, or Windows operating

Conducting vulnerability assessments on a regular basis can assist the organization in reducing the likelihood of attack. Conducting penetration testing at random times during a fiscal year will also reduce the probability of attack through improved security. Not only will this kind of testing regimen ensure that weaknesses and vulnerabilities are quickly identified but it will also improve the security awareness of individual

The periodic assessment of risk to agency operations or assets resulting from the operation of an information system is an important activity. It summarizes the risks associated with the vulnerabilities identified during the vulnerability scan. Impact refers to the magnitude of potential harm that may be caused by successful exploitation. It is determined by the value of the resource at risk, both in terms of its inherent (replacement) value, its importance (criticality) to business missions, and the sensitivity of data contained within the system. The results of the system security categorization estimations for each system, is used as an aid to determining individual impact estimations for each finding. The level of impact is rated

The penetration tools provided in this document allow us to review our network from a security standpoint. This paper focused predominantly on phase two of a penetration test, the exploitation phase; however, a successful penetration test typically starts with the reconnaissance phase. In this phase, the tester attempts to gain as much information about the target company and its network as possible. He or she will test the physical infrastructure (how do people gain access to the building?) and other organizational aspects of the company to find a weakness and a way to get in. Also during this portion of the test, the penetration tester will use tools such as NMAP, whois.com, and other resources to obtain information regarding the network

vulnerability assessment. Zenmap (Nmap) is used to perform an initial IP host discovery as well

Risk assessment and threat assessment should go hand-in-hand.The outcome of the risk assessment and threat assessment should provide recommendations that maximize the protection of confidentiality, integrity and availability while still providing functionality and usability. The purpose of a risk assessment is to ensure sensitive data and valuable assets are protected. An organization should take a hard look at who has access to sensitive data and if those accesses are required. The security audit should monitor the companies systems and users to detect illicit activity.The security audit should

Objective: Assess the security vulnerabilities of an organization's computer/network operating systems along with the techniques used to protect them.

3.1.6 Vulnerability testing: by conducting vulnerability tests allows the organization to see if the system can be penetrated and if there are any weak areas in the system. If vulnerabilities are found this allows the organization time to fix the problem.

In the current society, business, organizations and government are very dependent on computers and Internet. Adequately protecting an organization 's information assets is a requisite issue. Many organizations have deployed security software or devices, such as firewalls or intrusion detection systems, to help protect their information assets and to quickly identify potential attacks. IBM Systems Journal states that "some organizations came to realize that one of the best ways to evaluate the intruder threat to their interests would be to have independent computer security professionals attempt to hack into their computer systems" (IBM 2001). This might be a good way to evaluate the system vulnerability. However, to allow a penetration test team break into their systems, the organization may have faces some risks. For example, the penetration test team may fail to identify significant vulnerabilities; sensitive security information may be disclosed, increasing the risk of the organizations being vulnerable to external attacks (The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants). Some organization even send their system administrator to be trained Ethical Hacking as a career course in Tertiary

This report contains an overview of the testing process and issues that were found, details of the testing process, results found, the risks associated with the vulnerability and recommendations for rectifying the vulnerability. The results of the test can be of assistance to Ernst & Young when making decisions regarding information security.

The goal of intrusion detection is to monitor network assets, detect anomalous behavior, and identify misuse within a network (Ashoor, Gore, 2011). An intrusion detection system (IDS) is a device or software application that monitors network system activities for malicious activity or policy violations and produces reports to a management station (Kashyap, Agrawal, Pandey, Keshri, 2013), additionally there are three types of IDS:

It provides modules for testing thousands of known vulnerabilities, is updated when new vulnerabilities are identified, and is one of the most used penetration testing tools used (Rapid7, nd).