Security Configuration Research Articles

CPanel Server Hosting Security Against Malware and DDoS Attacks on the Open Journal System Platform

Purpose: This research analyzes the security of cPanel in protecting Open Journal Systems (O.J.S.) from DDoS attacks and malware infections. Since contemporary threats to this environment are continuously evolving, this investigation seeks to offer empirical findings and applicable suggestions for platform managers of academic publishing platforms. Methods: The method applies the scope of the literature study and tests system-specific security using cpanel features to test Imunify360, SSL Manager, IP Blocker, Site Quality Monitoring, Awstats, and Jetbackup. This is then followed by observing the server logs on cPanel, where any suspicious activities or signs of attacks can be identified. It contributes to the detection of attack patterns and weaknesses in a system. Result: This indicates several default settings within cPanel were found to be vulnerable and could allow exploitation for DDoS purposes. Tools available in cPanel helped eliminate malware and strengthen defense against DDoS attacks. This is verified by the AWStats check, which means a quicker and more secure access time from the server. Novelty: This study combines many security features and tools from cPanel to implement a complete manner of detecting and improving its security. This method will not only help find out what the weak points are but also provide actionable solutions that can be employed to secure your application. The research results offer a practical guide for system administrators to enhance cPanel security configurations. This includes applying amended security settings and using more tools to safely sweep O.J.S. from online threats.

Real-World Use of Hybrid Closed-Loop Systems during Diabetes Camp: A Preliminary Study for Secure Configuration Strategies in Children and Adolescents.

The introduction of closed-loop systems in the pediatric population has been a revolution in the management and evolution of diabetes. However, there are not many published studies in situations in which the feeding, schedules, and activities of the children deviate from the routine for which the systems were programmed, as in the case of a summer camp for children and adolescents with diabetes, where the specific programming of this device is not well known. It was a single-center prospective preliminary study. A total of twenty-seven patients (mean age 11.9 ± 1.9 years, 40% male, duration of diabetes 6.44 ± 2.83 years) were included (twenty with Medtronic MiniMed 780G system and seven with Tandem Control-IQ). Glucometric variables and pump functionality were monitored during the 7-day camp and in the following 3 weeks. There was no decrease from the objective TIR 70% at any moment. The worst results in Time Below Range were at 72 h from starting the camp, and the worst results in Time Above Range were in the first 24 h, with a progressive improvement after that. No episodes of level 3 hypoglycemia or ketoacidosis occurred. The use of specific programming in two integrated systems, with complex blood glucose regulation algorithms and not-prepared-for situations with increased levels of physical activity or abrupt changes in feeding routines, did not result in an increased risk of level 3 hypoglycemia and ketoacidosis for our pediatric type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients, regardless of the closed-loop device.

Toward a Truly Secure Telecom Network: Analyzing and Exploiting Vulnerable Security Configurations/ Implementations in Commercial LTE/IMS Networks

Toward a Truly Secure Telecom Network: Analyzing and Exploiting Vulnerable Security Configurations/ Implementations in Commercial LTE/IMS Networks

Key Actions to Enable Automation for Mobile Network Security Operations

Over time, the landscape of Cyberspace surrounding Internet Service Providers (ISPs) has undergone enduring transformations. Notably, mobile networks, integral to contemporary societal infrastructure, consistently encounter evolving cybersecurity threats and risks. ISP processes have adapted with a persistent focus on optimizing network performance and availability, yet the challenges emerge from a laborious and protracted network change management process, hindering the practical automation of network security. Addressing the rightful demand for the highest level of security from mobile network users, our research question probes: "How can we intensify the emphasis on network security and facilitate the automation of network security operations?" To delve into this, we conducted extensive interviews with ISPs globally, affirming the inherent difficulty in automating security operations. The findings categorize challenges into three domains: Security Culture, Operational Processes, and Tools. Cultivating a security culture demands a pivotal commitment to change from top management, coupled with dedicated time and resources. Essential to this is the enhancement of security competence, extending beyond specialists to encompass network engineering staff. Robust network security not only safeguards against threats but significantly influences various business processes. Initiating a secure network requires ISPs to articulate explicit security requirements during the network procurement process, exerting pressure on vendors to fortify systems with a security-by-design approach at the factory. Critical to this is the secure deployment of networks, integrating comprehensive network hardening during the build phase. However, findings indicate a prevalent oversight where network security configuration changes are often neglected or deprioritized in favor of network performance. Achieving a harmonious balance between security and performance necessitates a predefined agreement on a network security configuration baseline. This collaborative effort involves network security specialists and competent network engineers. To effectively monitor and enforce network security configuration, ISPs require automation-enabled tools with the predefined baseline, offering capabilities for monitoring and enforcing network assets. In conclusion, our research emphasizes the imperative need for a paradigm shift in organizational culture, operational processes, and tool utilization to enhance the focus on network security and enable the critical automation of network security operations within the ever-evolving landscape of Cyberspace.

Performance of security options for message protocols: A comparative analysis

AbstractWe explore the challenges around security configuration and performance while utilizing publish–subscribe protocols in the Internet of Things, edge computing, and fog computing. Issues in security configuration can lead to disruptions and higher operation costs. These issues can be prevented by selecting the appropriate transmission technology for each configuration, considering the variations in sizing, installation, sensor profile, distribution, security, networking, and locality. We introduce a comparative analysis of different configurations around a smart agriculture use case. For that, we implemented a simulation environment to generate datasets relevant to research and compare the results in terms of performance, resource utilization, security, and resilience—focused on authentication process. This analysis provides a blueprint to decision support for fog computing engineers on the best practices around security configurations.

HDP Nexus Outcomes and the Integration of Peace Elements: The Case of Iraq after the ISIL Conflict

ABSTRACT Although new policy frameworks such as the humanitarian-development-peace (HDP) nexus are emerging to better respond to increasingly complex and protracted conflicts and humanitarian crises, analysis of their impact remains limited. We analyse the case of Iraq in the aftermath of the ISIL conflict with data that measures the impact of interventions from across the nexus domains. Results show that humanitarian and development outcomes improved steadily over time, while peace outcomes remained poor and relatively unchanged. Improvement in the ‘soft’ security elements of peace related to social cohesion and coexistence were superseded by a deterioration in ‘hard’ security elements linked to protection of civilians and security configurations over time. These findings are explained by the lack of integration of hard security elements into an otherwise comprehensive international response along HDP Triple Nexus components. Separate hard security interventions rather had a critically different scope focused primarily on counterterrorism without further encompassing the wider range of security issues facing conflict-affected populations, including those internally displaced seeking to return, nor did they consider the diffusion of local powers and actors in this regard. This has left particularly vulnerable displaced and conflict-affected communities without remedy as priorities in the country shift.

U.S.-Japan-Australia Trilateralism: The Inner Core of Regional Order Building and Deterrence in the Indo-Pacific

executive summary: This article examines the state of security cooperation between the U.S., Japan, and Australia through the Trilateral Strategic Dialogue (TSD), and finds that even though the TSD maintains a relatively low profile, this minilateral alignment effectively forms the inner core of regional order building and deterrence within the U.S. hub-and-spoke alliance network. main argument Since its formal establishment in 2002, the TSD has come to function as the inner core of coordination among allies in the face of strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific. It possesses significant capability to shape the regional security environment, as seen in terms of normative efforts at order building under the "free and open Indo-Pacific" banner, and is underwritten by a combined commitment to regional deterrence. Compared with the Quad and coordination between Australia, the UK, and the U.S. (AUKUS), the TSD is overlooked and underanalyzed as an exemplar of strategically orientated minilateral cooperation. To remedy this oversight, this article details how the TSD is being employed as a tool of strategic competition by capturing its primary functions while evaluating its capabilities, potential, and weaknesses. Because the TSD would likely form the nucleus of any U.S.-led collective response to a regional contingency, it is the most consequential example of "strategic minilateralism" within the Indo-Pacific security architecture. policy implications • Policymakers are increasingly recognizing the potential of minilateral security configurations as purposeful tools through which to prosecute strategic competition. • Mature minilaterals like the TSD can provide capable and multifaceted forums to achieve combined strategic objectives, such as regional order building and enhanced deterrence. • These tasks are inextricably interlinked, and while TSD partners strive to maintain the regional order, they must increase their efforts to credibly deter conflict and be adequately prepared to respond accordingly should deterrence fail.

A model-based approach for self-adaptive security in CPS: Application to smart grids

Security risk assessment is an important challenge in the design of Cyber Physical Systems (CPS). Even more importantly, the intrinsically dynamical nature of these systems, due to changes in their environment, as well as evolutions in their infrastructures, makes them self-adaptive systems, where security aspects have to be considered in terms of management of detections and reactions for self-protection. In this work, we propose an approach to autonomously mitigate the threats in each reconfiguration at application or infrastructure levels of CPS. We propose and implement a framework for self-adaptive security: software architecture, design method, and integration with model-based decision. We use Attack-Defense Trees for modeling threats, and our approach involves security risk assessment, taking into account its balancing and coordination with quality-of-service aspects. We formulate and formalize the on-line decision problem to be solved at each cycle of the self-adaptation control loop in terms of Constraint Programming (CP) modeling and resolution. The CP model implements a set of constraints that allow to specify secure configurations, evaluated regarding their impact on system performance to pinpoint the most relevant one portraying a good balance between the security and quality of service. We perform validation of our approach with its application to Smart Grids, more particularly to an industrial case study from RTE (the French Energy Transmission company).

Mitigating communications threats in decentralized federated learning through moving target defense

AbstractThe rise of Decentralized Federated Learning (DFL) has enabled the training of machine learning models across federated participants, fostering decentralized model aggregation and reducing dependence on a server. However, this approach introduces unique communication security challenges that have yet to be thoroughly addressed in the literature. These challenges primarily originate from the decentralized nature of the aggregation process, the varied roles and responsibilities of the participants, and the absence of a central authority to oversee and mitigate threats. Addressing these challenges, this paper first delineates a comprehensive threat model focused on DFL communications. In response to these identified risks, this work introduces a security module to counter communication-based attacks for DFL platforms. The module combines security techniques such as symmetric and asymmetric encryption with Moving Target Defense (MTD) techniques, including random neighbor selection and IP/port switching. The security module is implemented in a DFL platform, Fedstellar, allowing the deployment and monitoring of the federation. A DFL scenario with physical and virtual deployments have been executed, encompassing three security configurations: (i) a baseline without security, (ii) an encrypted configuration, and (iii) a configuration integrating both encryption and MTD techniques. The effectiveness of the security module is validated through experiments with the MNIST dataset and eclipse attacks.The results showed an average F1 score of 95%, with the most secure configuration resulting in CPU usage peaking at 68% (± 9%) in virtual deployments and network traffic reaching 480.8 MB (± 18 MB), effectively mitigating risks associated with eavesdropping or eclipse attacks.

Multi-Dimensional Moving Target Defense Method Based on Adaptive Simulated Annealing Genetic Algorithm

Due to the fine-grained splitting of microservices and frequent communication between microservices, the exposed attack surface of microservices has exploded, facilitating the lateral movement of attackers between microservices. To solve this problem, a multi-dimensional moving target defense method based on an adaptive simulated annealing genetic algorithm (MD2RS) is proposed. Firstly, according to the characteristics of microservices in the cloud, a microservice attack graph is proposed to quantify the attack scenario of microservices in the cloud so as to conveniently and intuitively observe the vulnerability of microservices in the cloud and the dependency relationship between microservices. Secondly, the security gain and resource cost are quantified for the key nodes selected by measuring the degree of dependence of each node according to the degree centrality. Finally, the Adaptive Simulated Annealing Genetic Algorithm (ASAGA) is used to solve the optimal security configuration information of the moving target defense, that is, the combination of the number of copies of the multi-copy deployment and the rotation cycle of the dynamic rotation of microservices, in order to quickly evaluate the security risks of microservices and optimize the security policy. Experiments show that the defense return rate of MD2RS is 85.95% higher than that of the mainstream methods, and the experimental results are conducive to applying this method to the dynamic defense of microservices in the cloud.

Vulnerability impact analysis in software project dependencies based on Satisfiability Modulo Theories (SMT)

Software development projects are built on top of external libraries and tools that help manage code and databases and/or facilitate deployment. The external libraries that assist in these tasks create dependent relations with the developed software, thereby increasing the use of dependencies as a common practice. There exist mechanisms in the projects to set up software dependencies in terms of versions and restrictions between said projects. However, any problem, error, or vulnerability affecting a software's configuration dependencies can render the whole project vulnerable. This turns a secure dependency into an insecure dependency, and hinders the maintenance of security in software development projects, since current tools do not cover all possible configurations of dependencies. In this paper, our approach that enables the analysis and inference of the configuration of dependencies of projects in terms of potentially vulnerable configurations. The proposal is developed by constructing a dependency graph network attributed to vulnerabilities. Formal models are integrated based on Satisfiability Modulo Theories (SMT) to enable automatic analysis, such as the identification of the most secure configuration of dependencies. The automatic analysis facilitates ascertaining the vulnerability-free configurations of dependencies with maximum and minimum vulnerability impacts. This proposal has been evaluated by analysing more than 140 Python open-source code repositories and better results than other proposals have been achieved.

Tell Me Where You Live and I Will Tell Your P@Ssw0rd: Understanding the Macrosocial Variables Influencing Password’s Strength

Users’ habits in relation to cybersecurity are frequently examined from the micro perspective, using survey results to obtain impactful variables from individuals, focusing on usability and security factors of passwords. In this paper, the influence of macrosocial factors on password strength is studied in order to offer a global comprehension of the influence of the environment on users. Using the list of the 200 most common passwords by countries released by NordPass in 2021, logistic regression has been used to predict macrosocial variable influencing password strength. Results show that (1) Literacy level of a population; (2) Voice and accountability; (3) Level of global cybersecurity; and (4) Level of data breaches exposure significantly predict users’ password strength performance. The author discusses the impact of government on password hygiene of users hoping to influence the development of policies around cyber security configurations and investment set by nations and institutions.

Cloud security posture management: tools and techniques

Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) is a critical approach to maintaining a secure cloud infrastructure by continuously assessing and improving cloud security configurations. With the rapid growth of cloud adoption across various industries, the need for proactive security measures has become paramount to protect against data breaches, misconfigurations, and compliance violations. CSPM tools and techniques enable organizations to identify security risks, monitor compliance with industry standards, and automate responses to vulnerabilities. This paper explores the evolving landscape of CSPM, highlighting essential tools and techniques used to safeguard cloud environments. Key tools discussed include cloud-native security services, third-party CSPM solutions, and artificial intelligence-driven automation. Techniques covered include continuous monitoring, threat detection, and compliance management. The paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of CSPM's role in enhancing cloud security and guiding organizations toward adopting robust practices for a secure cloud posture.

Exploring the Cloud: Vulnerabilities and Cybersecurity Challenges

Defending cloud platforms against cyberattacks is a critical aspect of modern cybersecurity. With the widespread adoption of cloud computing, organizations face new challenges in protecting their data and infrastructure from evolving threats. This article provides an overview of the strategies and techniques used to defend cloud platforms against cyberattacks. The article begins by highlighting the increasing reliance on cloud platforms and the potential risks associated with their use. It emphasizes the importance of robust security measures to protect sensitive data, applications, and resources stored in the cloud. The article then introduces the key techniques for defending cloud platforms, including strong access controls, encryption, secure configurations, regular patching, network segmentation, and logging and monitoring. The article further explores the significance of proactive monitoring and incident response planning in identifying and mitigating potential security incidents. It emphasizes the role of collaboration between organizations, government agencies, and cloud service providers in developing comprehensive defense strategies. The article also mentions the need for continuous training and skills development to stay ahead of emerging threats and effectively defend against cyberattacks. The article concludes by emphasizing the relevance of the topic in today's digital landscape, where cloud platforms play a pivotal role in driving innovation and enabling digital transformation. It underscores the necessity for organizations to adopt a multi-layered defense approach and stay updated with the latest security practices to protect their cloud environments from cyber threats.

Automation for Network Security Configuration: State of the Art and Research Trends

The size and complexity of modern computer networks are progressively increasing, as a consequence of novel architectural paradigms such as the Internet of Things and network virtualization. Consequently, a manual orchestration and configuration of network security functions is no more feasible in an environment where cyber attacks can dramatically exploit breaches related to any minimum configuration error. A new frontier is then the introduction of automation in network security configuration, i.e., automatically designing the architecture of security services and the configurations of network security functions, such as firewalls, Virtual Private Networks gateways, and so on. This opportunity has been enabled by modern computer networks technologies, such as virtualization. In view of these considerations, the motivations for the introduction of automation in network security configuration are first introduced, along with the key automation enablers. Then, the current state of the art in this context is surveyed, focusing on both the achieved improvements and the current limitations. Finally, possible future trends in the field are illustrated.

The Role of International Law in the Maritime Migration Security Assemblage: EU Activity in the Lampedusa Triangle

This paper concerns itself with the configuration of security at sea, arguing that its implementation is not solely within the security actor’s control. Rather, maritime security configurations are constructed as a result of intended and unintended actions and implications, melding security and insecurity together as a singular sphere of activity. Narrowing in on the specific case of migration governance, this paper investigates the role of international legal obligations and limitations for security actors at sea in understanding the operationalisation of maritime migration security. Questions of the construction of maritime security configurations are considered with reference to boarding and searching of vessels, search and rescue (SAR) and access to territorial waters, perceived through the practice based assemblage approach. It is proposed that assemblage theory is suited to accessing complex relationships between security and international law. Attending to Central Mediterranean migration governance, this paper reflects a reading of international law that resulted in a stagnation of security on the high seas. The convictions of this paper are three-fold. Firstly and primarily, the implementation of a maritime security initiative is not solely within the control of the securitising actor. Secondly, maritime security configurations are malleable, and shaped by unplanned elements, including international legal obligations and instruments. Finally, maritime security is an assemblage, constructed as a result of intentional and unintentional independent elements which form relationships and result in a unique security configuration. The findings demonstrate that international law forms an important aspect of maritime migration security configurations or assemblages, and significantly shapes such operations.

Integrating the manufacturer usage description standard in the modelling of cyber–physical systems

The continuous growth of cyber–physical systems (CPS) attacks, especially due to the conflict in Ukraine, has highlighted the need for cybersecurity management mechanisms, due to the catastrophic consequences that a failure or attack on critical infrastructures such as power plants. Indeed, Gartner predicts that by 2025, 30% of critical infrastructures will suffer a cyberattack. In this context, defining the expected behaviour of the system is key to detecting and mitigating possible vulnerabilities both in the design and runtime phases. Modelling emerges as a tool that facilitates the analysis of the security offered by the system even before the system is implemented, allowing an early risk analysis. However, creating such a model is usually challenging due to its intrinsic complexity, or the reconfiguration needed after a security assessment due to a new vulnerability. The situation gets even worse when the system is a complex CPS-of-Systems, where different Constituent Systems (CS) are interconnected since cascade effects and dependencies are stronger and we might not have all the information from the third-party CS. Also, the results of the evaluation are typically used only during the design phase, thus missing out on potential security policies and mitigations that could be used during the system operation. In this sense, the Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD) allows the manufacturer to define access control policies that reduce the attack surface of a device. However, the limited expressiveness of this standard reduces the possibilities of its application in systems with more complex policies beyond the network level. We propose the usage of the MUD standard as a source of information for CPS modelling, providing information on interactions about third-party components of the system. In addition, we define an extended MUD model that deals with the expressiveness problems of the MUD and allows to automatically generate a behavioural profile that integrates the recommendations obtained from the assessment and modelling processes. The extended MUD could be used during runtime to reduce the attack surface of the system, enforce security configuration or even discern if a component is secure enough to be part of the ecosystem. Our approach has been validated in a real use case in the context of smart grid, to show its applicability.

Theory and practice in secure software development lifecycle: A comprehensive survey

Software development security refers to the practice of integrating security measures and considerations throughout the software development lifecycle to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of software systems. It involves identifying, mitigating, and eliminating security vulnerabilities and threats that could be exploited by attackers. The goal of this paper is to survey the various concepts and methodologies directed towards software security, and the identification of any missing gaps. Based on the findings, it is noted that the development of secure software requires a proactive and comprehensive approach. It begins with establishing secure design principles and incorporating security requirements from the initial stages of development. Here, secure coding practices, such as input validation, output encoding, and secure authentication and authorization mechanisms, are employed to prevent common security vulnerabilities. In addition, regular security testing, including penetration testing and vulnerability scanning, helps identify and address potential weaknesses in the software. Normally, code reviews and security audits are conducted to ensure adherence to secure coding practices and identify any security flaws. It is important that security training and awareness programs be provided to developers and other stakeholders to foster a security-conscious culture. To minimize potential vulnerabilities, secure configuration management, which involves properly configuring servers, networks, and dependencies may be utilized. On the other hand, regular updates and patching are essential to address known security vulnerabilities in software components. To guide their software development security practices, organizations may follow established security standards and frameworks such as ISO 27001 or NIST Cybersecurity Framework. By prioritizing software development security, organizations can protect sensitive data, prevent unauthorized access, and mitigate the risk of security breaches and incidents. In the long run, this helps build trust with users and stakeholders, enhances the reputation of the software, and reduces the potential impact of security incidents on the organization.

Automated Setup System Security Configuration of Network Equipment

A model of the system for automated setting of network equipment security configuration is proposed. In order to improve the security configuration of network equipment, a set of existing security threats in modern information and communication networks was analyzed. It was determined that with the increase in the level of introduction of information technologies in the life of the individual, society and the state, the level of danger in the cyber space increases. The general trends of ensuring cyber security at all levels are considered. The types of threats to users are systematized and their properties are considered. Based on the results of the study, it was determined that the cloud approach is the most appropriate for infrastructure deployment. Cloud services are considered and approaches to the automation of infrastructure deployment are defined, which provide an opportunity to minimize errors in the configuration of the architecture.

Analysis of the Cryptographic Algorithms in IoT Communications

The advances on recent communication paradigms brings new security and privacy challenges, mainly about personal data collection by smart devices. Resource constrained devices face serious issues to run complex cryptographic algorithms. Trying to evaluate the performance impact of those algorithms in usual and common devices used in smart homes, in this paper we tested the impact of different cryptographic algorithms in low computational devices, typically used in smart devices applied in smart homes, testing different security configurations and using the two most used transport protocols (HTTP and MQTT). The experiment measures their effects on six commonly used embedded devices in IoT WSNs: ESP8622, ESP32, and Raspberry Pi (RPi) from 1 to 4. The experiment measured the power consumption, message delay, and additional message length (bytes). Moreover, the analysis was also used to model security algorithms. The experimental results from long runs (72 hours) reveal the cryptographic solution choice is significant for the message delay and additional message length.