I’m now providing an updated Linux Penetration Testing Laptop Setup document to help install popular and useful vulnerability assessment tools for the Linux operating system. You can go and obtain Backtrack but I feel that you will have more understanding of the tools and Linux in general if you install the tools yourself. You will also have the most current version available. See Configuration Tutorials for the latest document.
Sep 082011
I created a tutorial on how to setup and configure the Nokia N810 Internet Tablet to conduct a wireless assessment or audit. The tools included in the tutorial include how to setup kismet (oldcore and newcore), aircrack-ng (airbase and aircrack), and btscanner. I’m still working on developing steps to install Metasploit and Karmetasploit for wireless client attacks. The tutorial also details using the internal GPS as well as adding an external wireless adapter. The latest version of the tutorial can be found here.
The 4th annual Atlanta Chapter of ISACA GEEK WEEK conference was held the week of August 22nd – 26th. GEEK WEEK is a track-oriented, full week Conference focusing on providing training, networking, and roundtable sessions on IT governance, audit & security.
I conducted the presentation Wireless Auditing on a Budget: Using Low Cost Hardware and Open Source Software. You can find the presentation slides here. For links and information on the other presentations you can go here.
Jun 072011
I put together another Technical Assessment Plan for assessing the SNMP protocol. You will use open source and freely download-able utilities to assess the SNMP protocol. This is for auditors that do not have access to or cannot afford the Solarwinds toolset. This is version 0.1 of the document and I plan on making updates and add new tools in the future.
May 022011
I created Project RF to have a reporting framework that provides consistent reports for various vulnerability scanning tools. The project started with support for Nessus back when I would parse nbe files. I’ve since included reporting for eEye Retina, Nmap, HP WebInpect, AppScan AppDetective, Kismet, and GFI Languard. This project is still in its alpha stages as I’m not a top notch web program developer. Scan results are exported to XML which is then uploaded, parsed, and imported into a backend MySQL database. I have found this framework very useful in generating reports for my workpapers. I still continue to work on this project even though I’m no longer an auditor. Recently I stripped it down to just Nessus and I rewrote the Nessus portion to support the .nesses v2 xml output. Installation and setup instructions can be found here.
This framework supports many options for report generation and executive reporting.
Mar 302011
Students from ISA 4220 Server Systems Security can download the PowerPoint presentation from here.
Feb 242011
I put together a Technical Assessment Plan that can be used to conduct external fingerprinting using the tools and utilities that a penetration tester would use. The assessment plans are structured in a way to help with the documentation of evidence for inclusion in a work-paper process. The plan provides helpful information on how to install, configure, and use the tools to obtain the evidence needed for an engagement. The Technical Assessment Plans that I have created can be found here.
Earning CPE credits in a down economy for your Information Security certifications.
As we enter 2011 the financial talking heads say that our economy is recovering. However, your company’s training budget does not reflect this recovery. Trips to security conferences in Las Vegas, Miami, and Orlando are all out of the question. With all of the information security certifications that you have obtained to keep competitive in this tough economy you are required to earn Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits. Below I will list some simple steps you can take to still keep current on the latest security trends while earning those valuable CPE credits to maintain your certification.
A question was raised today during a presentation about what utilities you can use without installing them. There are engagements that the auditor is not allowed to use their own laptop and must use a laptop provided by the auditee. This severely limits how effective an engagement can be but it is not impossible to obtain the information you need when you connect to the auditee’s network. I’ve made changes to the Security Tools page to highlight which tools are stand-alone and do not require installation. Also for reference see Penetration Testing Ninjitsu which I pulled from a Core Security webcast.