[ISN] Security UPDATE -- Hacking IIS 6.0 -- April 13, 2005

InfoSec News isn at c4i.org
Thu Apr 14 08:55:40 EDT 2005


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====================

1. In Focus: Hacking IIS 6.0

2. Security News and Features
   - Recent Security Vulnerabilities
   - Eight Security Patches from Microsoft
   - Help with HIPAA, SOX, and GLBA Compliance
   - Auditing Permission Changes on a Folder 

3. Security Toolkit
   - Security Matters Blog
   - FAQ
   - Security Forum Featured Thread

4. New and Improved
   - Keep Track of Your Registry

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==== 1. In Focus: Hacking IIS 6.0 ====
   by Mark Joseph Edwards, News Editor, mark at ntsecurity / net

Have you heard about Windows IT Pro's "Hack IIS 6.0 Challenge"? Roger 
Grimes will secure a Microsoft IIS 6.0 system and make it available on 
the Internet April 17 through June 8 so that people can try to break 
into it. In the July issue, Roger will write about how he secured the 
system and what happened during the contest. For more information about 
the contest, go to
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7629:4FB69 

I've already read messages on one security mailing list from people 
complaining about the challenge or poking fun at it. One person wrote 
that it's a ploy to gather zero-day (previously unpublished) exploits. 
I don't know whether anybody will collect packets during the contest or 
whether such packets will be examined to learn more about how people 
approach hacking an IIS 6.0 box. But such forensic analysis might 
occur. Would that be a bad thing? 

There were also comments that the contest is an attempt to identify 
hackers and arrest them. That notion is laughable (and probably based 
in paranoia) given the fact that people have been invited to hack the 
box. 

Some people also felt that such challenges don't work because of 
eventual Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. One person mentioned that the 
hackiis6.com site is located on the same subnet as the magazine's Web 
farm. So if somebody decides to launch a Distributed DoS (DDoS) attack 
against the site, it could overwhelm the gateway and thereby render all 
sites behind the gateway unavailable. That's true. But the hackiis6.com 
site is only an information site. It's not the actual system that will 
be made available for hacking. Sometime in the next week, further 
information will become available at the hackiis6.com site, so check 
back to learn more details, including the address of the system to 
hack. 

People also pointed out that the challenge can't really prove that the 
site is secure. If no one manages to break into the site, it might just 
be because somebody who might know how to break in doesn't take part in 
the challenge. That's rational; we should probably assume that somebody 
somewhere knows how to break any particular piece of software. It's a 
widely held opinion that no system is completely secure.

We could enjoy the challenge for exactly what it is--a challenge--
without trying to read all sorts of motives into it. Many people attend 
various hacker conferences at which such challenges are relatively 
common. The main difference here is that this challenge is open to the 
public. It's a way to test your skills and have some fun trying to find 
a way to breach security. That's it. 

Speaking of contests, the Windows IT Pro annual Readers' Choice contest 
is underway. Vote for your favorite IT products and reward companies 
that provide excellent products and services. The September 2005 issue 
of Windows IT Pro will feature the winners. To vote, go to
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7623:4FB69 

And, finally, if you use the Windows IT Pro Web site, you might be 
happy to have a chance to tell us how to improve it. Give us your 
opinion in the usability survey at 
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=761A:4FB69

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====================

==== 2. Security News and Features ====

Recent Security Vulnerabilities
   If you subscribe to this newsletter, you also receive Security 
Alerts, which inform you about recently discovered security 
vulnerabilities. You can also find information about these 
discoveries at
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7616:4FB69

Eight Security Patches from Microsoft
   Yesterday, April 12, was Patch Tuesday for Windows users, and 
Microsoft released eight security patches. The company also announced 
that beginning this month, it will change its Security Bulletin Advance 
Notification information provisioning to include other useful 
information. 
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=761D:4FB69

Help with HIPAA, SOX, and GLBA Compliance
   Vigilar announced a new service aimed at helping companies comply 
with the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley (GLB) Act, 
and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). A 
compelling feature of Vigilar's new AuditPass program is that it 
guarantees that your company will pass compliance and audit checks.
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=761F:4FB69

Auditing Permission Changes on a Folder
   Randy Franklin Smith points out that you'll need to enable auditing 
for successful object-access events on the servers on which the folders 
reside and you'll need to enable auditing on the folders you want to 
monitor. You'll also need to look for specific events in the Security 
log. Learn the details in this article on our Web site. 
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=761E:4FB69

====================

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==== 3. Security Toolkit ==== 

Security Matters Blog 
   by Mark Joseph Edwards, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7622:4FB69

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FAQ
   by John Savill, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7620:4FB69 

Q: Do I need to take any special steps when restoring a backup of my 
Relative Identifier (RID) master?

Find the answer at
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=761B:4FB69

Security Forum Featured Thread: AD Permissions
   A forum participant is having trouble restricting permissions in 
Windows Server 2003. He's running Active Directory (AD) in Mixed Mode 
and has a few global groups that need access to resources on a member 
server. However, anyone--not just the intended groups--can access the 
folders and subfolders that he's trying to secure. Join the discussion 
at
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=7613:4FB69

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