Incident Response.
Project #1: Incident Response Procedures Manual (Part 1)
Purpose:
Develop a set of tool-focused incident response procedures for endpoint devices.
Before You Begin:
Please make sure that you have read the Sifers-Grayson company profile, the weekly descriptions, and any/all announcements by your instructor prior to beginning this assignment. You also need to be familiar with the phases of the Incident Response Process as documented in NIST SP 800-61 r2 Computer Security Incident Handling Guide http://dx.doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.800-61r2.
Background:
Recent contracts with the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security have imposed additional security requirements upon Sifers-Grayson and its lab operations. The company is now required to comply with NIST Special Publication 800-171 Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal Information Systems and Organizations. The company must also comply with provisions of the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations (DFARS) including section 252-204-7012 Safeguarding Covered Defense Information and Cyber Incident Reporting. These requirements are designed to ensure that sensitive technical information, provided by the federal government and stored on computer systems in the Sifers-Grayson SCADA Lab and the Sifers-Grayson R&D DevOps lab, is protected from unauthorized disclosure. This technical information includes software designs and source code for systems and devices that Sifers-Grayson builds or supports.
The contract requirements also mandate that Sifers-Grayson report cyber incidents to the federal government in a timely manner. As part of the reporting requirements, Sifers-Grayson must provide documentation about its Incident Response Processes and Procedures. The procedures that you develop for this project will become part of the contractually required documentation.
Vendor documentation for Windows 8.1, Windows 10, and other utilities / applications will provide information about how to use various features, tools, and utilities but, during an incident, responders may not have time to search vendor websites and/or the Internet for information about tools and tool usage procedures. For this reason, customized incident response procedures are required to ensure that response is timely and that all incident responders have the information needed to execute their tasks.
References
Cichonski, P., Millar, T., Grance, T., & Scarfone, K. (2012). Computer security incident handling guide (NIST SP 800-62 rev. 2). http://dx.doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.800-61r2
Your Task:
For this project, you will assess and document tools to be used by the Sifers-Grayson Incident Response Team during the preparation, detection, containment, eradication, and recovery phases of the Incident Response Process (as defined in NIST SP 800-61r2). The deliverable for this assignment is a set of three customized procedures suitable for inclusion in the Sifers-Grayson Incident Response Procedures Manual. Each procedure must be written so that it can be added / updated / removed without impacting other procedures in the manual. In other words, the procedures must be self-contained and stand on their own.
Detailed Instructions:
Your deliverable must use the provided MS Word template file (contact your instructor for formatting guidance if you cannot use this file). The required procedures are described below.
Procedure 1: Windows 10 Windows Defender
This procedure will instruct incident responders in the use of the Windows Defender anti-virus application to detect and analyze threats and attacks against Windows 10 endpoint devices.
1. Investigate the use of Windows Defender AV to detect and analyze potential viruses, spyware, and other forms of malware. Your investigation should include researching best practices for configuring and using the scanning, detection, and analysis capabilities for this host-based anti-malware software. At a minimum, your research should address the following
a. Update requirements for anti-virus definition files
b. Configuration requirements to enable real-time scanning
c. Procedures for conducting full system scans
d. Fast or quick scan for high vulnerability areas of the system
e. Removable media scanning
f. Reviewing scan results including reviewing any quarantined files or detected malware
2. Identify how the tool could be used during the incident response and recovery process (it may be useful in more than one phase). Typical uses include:
a. Detecting malware at the point of entry to the system (e.g. in an email message or web page)
b. Detecting intrusion attempts in real-time
c. Analyzing files and file systems to detect and identify malware
d. Quarantining files suspected of carrying threat payloads
e. Deleting Infected Files
f. Scanning removable media
g. Reviewing Windows Event Log entries to find relevant ID’s and incident reporting information
Procedure 2: Windows 10 Windows SmartScreen
This procedure will instruct incident responders in the use of the Windows Defender SmartScreen application to detect and prevent threats and attacks against Windows 10 endpoint devices.
1. Identify how the Smart Screen tool could be used during the incident response and recovery process (it may be useful in more than one phase). Typical uses include:
a. Detect and block known bad websites
b. Detect and block know bad application downloads and installation attempts
c. Detect and report suspicious websites, web pages, and file downloads
d. Reviewing Windows Event Log entries (generated by SmartScreen) to find relevant ID’s and incident reporting information
2. Write a guidance document that identifies the tool, explains the capabilities it provides, and then lists and briefly describes the recommended uses as documented by Microsoft (2017a, 2017b, 2017, c, 2017d). Add a list of resources that can be consulted for additional information. Next, summarize the procedures required to perform the tasks listed under item b.1 (do not provide step-by-step instructions). Close your guidance document with a Notes / Warnings / Restrictions section that answers the question “Is there anything else the incident responder needs to be aware of when using or configuring this tool?”
Procedure 3: Windows 10 Control Panel & Windows Settings Tools
This procedure will be used to instruct incident responders in the use of the Windows 10 Control Panel and Windows Settings tools to manage programs, applications, and operating system features for Windows 10 endpoint devices.
1. Identify appropriate sources of information and instructions for using Programs and Features (accessed via Control Panel; also see “Apps & Features” accessed via Windows Settings) and Update and Security (accessed via Windows Settings). Using your identified sources, research the procedures required to perform the following tasks:
a. Turn Windows 10 Features On or Off
b. Modify, Repair, or Uninstall a program or application from a Windows 10 system
c. Control Installation of Updates for Windows 10
d. Control Installation of Updates for Windows 10 Applications
2. Identify and research how the Programs and Features, Apps & Features, and Update and Security tools could be used during the incident response and recovery process. Typical uses include:
a. Turn off undesired (or “vulnerable”) Windows features, e.g. location services or remote access
b. Turn off features to implement a containment strategy
c. Remove unauthorized or undesirable (vulnerable) programs
d. Remove unwanted changes to operating system utilities or features, applications software, and/or patches / updates
e. Manually apply updates (“patches”) for installed programs
3. Write a guidance document that identifies the tool, explains the capabilities it provides, and then lists and briefly describes the recommended uses identified under item #2. Add a list of resources that can be consulted for additional information. Next, summarize the procedures required to perform the tasks listed under item #1 (do not provide step-by-step instructions). Close your guidance document with a Notes / Warnings / Restrictions section that answers the question “Is there anything else the incident responder needs to be aware of when using this tool?”
Finalize Your Deliverable
1. Using the grading rubric as a guide, refine your incident response guidance. Your final products (incident response procedures) should be suitable for inclusion in the Sifers-Grayson Incident Responder’s Handbook. Remember that, even though you are submitting your work in a single file, you are preparing stand-alone guidance documents. FOLLOW THE TEMPLATE.
2. As appropriate, cite your sources using footnotes or another appropriate citation style.
3. Use the resources section to provide information about recommended readings and any sources that you cite. Use a standard bibliographic format (you may wish to use APA since this is required in other CSIA courses). Information about sources and recommended readings, including in-text citations, should be formatted consistently and professionally.
4. Use the required template file: CSIA310_Template_for_IR_Manual.docx This file is set up to provide the required title page and three incident response guidance documents.
