Is your network at risk

Is Your Site or Network at Risk?

"Web security" is relative and has two components, one internal and one public. Your relative security is high if you have few network resources of financial value, your company and site aren't controversial in any way, your network is set up with tight permissions, your web server is patched up to date with all settings done correctly, your applications on the web server are all patched and updated, and your web site code is done to high standards.

Your web security is relatively lower if your company has financial assets like credit card or identity information, if your web site content is controversial, your servers, applications and site code are complex or old and are maintained by an underfunded or outsourced IT department. All IT departments are budget challenged and tight staffing often creates deferred maintenance issues that play into the hands of any who want to challenge your web security.

If you have assets of importance or if anything about your site puts you in the public spotlight then your web security will be tested. We hope that the information provided here will prevent you and your company from being embarrassed - or worse.

It's well known that poorly written software creates security issues. The number of bugs that could create web security issues is directly proportional to the size and complexity of your web applications and web server. Basically, all complex programs either have bugs or at the very, least weaknesses. On top of that, web servers are inherently complex programs. Web sites are themselves complex and intentionally invite ever greater interaction with the public. And so the opportunities for security holes are many and growing.

Technically, the very same programming that increases the value of a web site, namely interaction with visitors, also allows scripts or SQL commands to be executed on your web and database servers in response to visitor requests. Any web-based form or script installed at your site may have weaknesses or outright bugs and every such issue presents a web security risk.

Contrary to common knowledge the balance between allowing web site visitors some access to your corporate resources through a web site and keeping unwanted visitors out of your network is a delicate one. There is no one setting, no single switch to throw that sets the security hurdle at the proper level. There are dozens of settings if not hundreds in a web server alone, and then each service, application and open port on the server adds another layer of settings. And then the web site code... you get the picture.

Add to that the different permissions you will want to grant visitors, prospects, customers, partners and employees. The number of variables regarding web security rapidly escalates.

A web security issue is faced by site visitors as well. A common web site attack involves the silent and concealed installation of code that will exploit the browsers of visitors. Your site is not the end target at all in these attacks. There are, at this time, many thousands of web sites out there that have been compromised. The owners have no idea that anything has been added to their sites and that their visitors are at risk. In the meantime visitors are being subject to attack and successful attacks are installing nasty code onto the visitor's computers.

This post compliments of Beyond Security

More to come soon.

Joe