Jason C Singer CYBR 515 Assignment 1.

3 Principle Components of a Security Plan In this paper, I will discuss the principle components of a security plan using a Windows environment, but these basic principles can be used with any networked system. Including each component in your plan will insure your network has the best chance at protection from accidental corruption and malicious attacks. A security plan starts with knowing your security risks. It is very important to analyze the risks that can affect your network. I say, can, because you will never know every possible attack method or scenario that may take place with an attack against your system goes down, but if you know where your entry points are then you can better prepare from intruders. Microsoft lists twelve security risks that a hacker can use to compromise your system, such as data interception and social engineering attacks (Developing a Network Security Plan). An important part of listing your security risks is keeping them up-to-date, staying abreast to the current trends and forecasting new techniques and perpetrators that may arise. To protect the availability, integrity, and confidentiality of data in an organization's information technology one has to develop a security strategy that fits within the organizations budget, available time, and affordable effort (Benson, 2000). Christopher Benson suggests using a methodology I will describe. First, you have to predict attacks and assess your risk from those attacks. Next, develop proactive and reactive steps for each type of attack and method of attack you have already listed in your security risks. Once the steps have been documented, do simulations and review outcomes. Next, review the documented policies effectiveness and adjust them accordingly (Benson, 2000).

Jason C Singer CYBR 515 Assignment 1.3 Public key infrastructure policies in your plan describe how and when PKI will be used. This is important because PKI is how trust can be established between a user and the system, as well as user-to-user. Through the proper use of PKI, network logon and authentication strategies you can prove who sent a message (digital signatures), prove who made a transmission over the network (non-repudiation), verify data was not modified in route, and increase privacy through encryption (Stallings, 2011, p. 14). The next two components of a proper security plan include security group descriptions and group policies. Security group policies describe how permissions will be assigned to large groups of people. Each security group will be given various permissions based on need of access within the system. When writing policies for each group within an organization it is important to understand what their role is within the system. Improper setting may give too much control to a user who may cause trouble. Information security strategies describe how services within a system will be implemented. Email, FTP, storage access, etc. need to be planned early when creating a security plan, ultimately these services are why there is a network and you are writing this security plan. Writing policies or creating plans that make access to network services/data impossible or difficult to use is counterproductive, and it will cause the security plan to be changed needlessly. Finally, administrative policies are an important part of a security plan because it lays out the responsibilities of the administrators, how tasks will be delegated, and security procedures will be done (Developing a Network Security Plan). It is more important for the administrators to have guidance than the users, as they are the first line defense from attackers!

Jason C Singer CYBR 515 Assignment 1.3

References
Benson, C. (2000). Security Strategies. Retrieved August 2, 2011, from Microsoft TechNet: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc723506.aspx Developing a Network Security Plan. (n.d.). Retrieved August 2, 2011, from http://technet.microsoft.com: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc960627.aspx Stallings, W. (2011). Introduction. In W. Stallings, Network Security Essentials (p. 14). Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.