ISO 27001 Router Security Audit Checklist

Finding ISO
s 27001
Questions Yes No Control
Router Policy
Is a router security policy in place? A.5.1.1
A.11.4.1
Disable Unneeded Services
Are unused interfaces disabled?

A.11.4.4
Is DNS lookups for the router turned
off? A.11.5.4

A.12.6.1

Is TCP small servers and UDP small

servers service disabled on the router?
{applicable before Cisco IOS 11.3} A.12.6.1

A.11.4.4
Is Cisco Discovery Protocol disabled on A.12.6.1.
the router?

Is the finger service disabled on the A.11.4.4

router? {applicable before Cisco IOS A.11.5.4
11.3} A.12.6.1

A.11.4.4

A.11.5.4

A.12.6.1
Is Bootp server disabled on the routers?

Is directed broadcast disabled on all

interfaces?
{applicable before Cisco IOS 11.3} A.12.6.1
Is source routing disabled on the
router?

A.12.6.1

Is Proxy ARP disabled on the router? A.12.6.1

Is ICMP redirects disabled on the

router? A.12.6.1
Password Encryption

Do passwords appear in encrypted form

when viewed at the configuration file? A.11.5.3
Authentication Settings

Is enable secret used for the router

enable mode? A.11.5.3
Does the enable secret password
match any other username password;
enable password, or the enable secret
password of another router in the
network? A.11.5.3

Is a Message of the Day (MOTD) banner

defined? A.11.5.1
Is the following defined on the console
port: A.11.5.1

1.       Exec-timeout A.11.3.1

2.       Password

Is the aux port disabled? A.11.4.4

Is the following defined on the vty lines: A.11.5.1

1.       Exec-timeout (Yes/No) A.11.3.1

2.       Password

Is the vty lines restricted to certain IP

Addresses only? A.11.4.3
According to policy, how often do router
passwords (telnet, username, enable)
have to be changed? A.11.5.3

Do the router passwords meet with the

required complexity as defined by the
policy? A.11.3.1

Is SSH used for the vty lines? A.12.3.1

Do any applications use telnet to
perform management activities such as
backing up configuration? A.10.6.1
Administrator Authentication
Is authentication on the router done
through:
·         Locally configured usernames
and passwords
·         TACACS+/RADUIS server      

A.10.1.1
A.11.2.1

Is there a documented procedure for

creation of users?

Does each router administrator have a

unique account for himself/herself? A.11.2.1

A.10.10.1

Is login and logout tracking/command A.10.10.4

logging for the router administrators
through the TACACS+ system enabled?

Are all user accounts assigned the

lowest privilege level that allows them
to perform their duties? (Principle of
Least Privilege) A.11.2.2
Management Access
Is the http/https Server used for router
management? A.10.6.1

Which version of SNMP is used to

manage the router? A.10.6.1

A.10.6.1

Is the SNMP process restricted to A.11.4.3

certain range of IP Addresses only?

Is the default community strings such

as ‘public’ and ‘private’ changed? A.11.2.3

How often is the SNMP community

string changed? A.11.3.1
Is any access list defined restricting the
syslog host to receive log messages
from the routers only and only
administrators’ systems to connect to
the log host? A.11.4.6

Is the NTP server service used to

synchronize the clocks of all the
routers? A.10.10.6
Ingress/Egress Filtering
Is RFC 1918 filtering implemented? A.11.4.7

Is uRPF enabled on the Cisco router? A.11.4.7

Route Protocol Security

Is routing protocol message

authentication enabled? A.11.4.7
Configuration Maintenance
How often is the router configurations
backed up? A.10.5.1
Is the backup moved to an off-site/DR
site? A.10.5.1
On the system where the configuration
files are stored, is the local operating
system’s security mechanisms used for
restricting access to the files (i.e., the
machine should be password enabled
and prevent unauthorized individuals
from accessing the machine.)? A.10.5.1
Is the TFTP protocol used to transfer
configuration or image files to and from
the router?

If yes,
·         Is the TFTP process restricted
to certain addresses only?
·         Is the TFTP service disabled
when not in use? A.10.6.1
Is there a documented procedure for
backup of router configurations? A.10.5.1
Router Change Management
Are all router changes and updates
documented in a manner suitable for
review according to a change
management procedure? A.10.1.2
Router Redundancy
Is there a router redundancy in cold
standby or hot standby? A.14.1.3
Are disaster recovery procedures for A.14.1.3
the router/network documented and A.14.1.5
are
Logthey tested? and Incident Handling
monitoring
Are all attempts to any port, protocol,
or service that is denied logged? A.13.1.1
Is the CPU utilization/memory of the
router monitored? A.10.10.2

A.10.10.1

A.13.1.1

Is logging to a syslog server enabled on

the router?
Are procedures for audit log review
generated by the router documented
and followed? A.10.1.1
How often is the router logs (covering A.10.10.1
administrator access /access control) A.10.10.2
reviewed? A.10.10.5
Are reports and analyses carried out
based on the log messages? A.13.2.2
What is the course of action to be
followed if any malicious incident is
noticed? A.13.2.1
Security Updates
Is the network engineer aware of the
latest vulnerabilities that could affect A.6.1.7
the router? A.12.6.1

source: iso27001security.com
t Checklist

Standard/Best Practice

Unused interfaces on the router should be

disabled.
Router(config-if)# shutdown
This client service is enabled by default and
is not required on most routers.
The following command is used to turn DNS
lookup off.
Router(config)#no ip domain-lookup
These services are rarely used and hence
can be disabled. This is disabled by default
after Cisco IOS 11.3
Router(config)#no service tcp-small-servers
Router(config)#no service udp-small-servers
CDP which is used to obtain information
such as the ip address, platform type of the
neighboring Cisco devices should be
disabled on the router if not used by any
application.
Router(config)# no cdp run OR
Router(config-if)# no cdp enable
Unauthorized persons can use the
information obtained through this command
for reconnaissance attacks. This service
should be disabled.
Router(config)#no service finger

The Bootp server service which is enabled

by default allows other routers to boot from
this router.

This feature should be disabled on the router

as it is rarely used on today’s networks.
The following command is used to disable
the service.
Router(config)#no ip bootp server
Directed broadcasts permit a host on one
LAN segment to initiate a physical broadcast
on a different LAN segment. This feature
should be disabled on the router as it could
be used in denial-of-service attacks. The
following command is used to disable the
service.
Router(config-if)#no ip directed-broadcast
Source routing is a feature that allows
individual packets to specify routes. This is
used in various attacks.
This feature should be disabled on the
router.
The following command is used to disable
the service.
Router(config)#no ip source-route
Proxy ARP helps in extending a LAN at layer
2 across multiple segments thereby
breaking the LAN security perimeter.
This feature should be disabled on the
router.
The following command is used to disable
the service on individual interfaces.
Router(config-if)#no ip proxy-arp
The three ICMP messages that are
commonly used by attackers for network
mapping and diagnosis are: Host
unreachable, ‘Redirect’ and ‘Mask Reply’.
Automatic generation of these messages
should be disabled on all interfaces,
especially those connected to untrusted
networks.
The following command is used to disable
the service.
Router(config-if)#no ip redirects
Router(config-if)#no ip unreachables
Router(config-if)#no ip-mask reply

Passwords should appear encrypted when

viewed through the configuration file.
The following command is used to
implement the same.
Router(config)#service password-encryption

The enable secret command should be

enabled to implement MD5 hashed
password on enable mode.
Router(config)#enable secret password
The enable secret password should be
unique across each router. If the routers are
too many, instead of keeping a single enable
secret password for all, the password could
be different for routers in different zones.
Login banners should be used as a
preventive measure against unauthorized
access to the routers.
Use the following command to enable a
MOTD banner:
Router# config t
Router(config)# banner motd ^
These parameters should be defined on the
console port to reduce the chance of an
unauthorized access on the console port.
The following commands can be used to
implement the same:
Cisco(config)#line con 0
Cisco(config-line)#exec-timeout 5 0
Cisco(config-line)#password password
Cisco(config-line)#login
The aux port should be disabled if there is
no business need for the same.
Use the following command to disable the
aux port:
Router(config)#line aux 0
Router(config-line)#no exec
These parameter should be defined on the
vty port to reduce the chance of an
unauthorized access.
Use the following to enable these
parameters on the vty lines:
Router(config)#line vty 0 4
Router(config-line)#exec timeout 5 0
Router(config-line)#password password
Router(config-line)#login
Router(config-line)#transport input protocol
If the vty lines use telnet as the transport
protocol, it is advisable to restrict access to
certain IP Addresses only since telnet
transmits data in clear text.
Use the following command to restrict vty
access to certain ip addresses:
Router(config)#access-list 50 permit
192.168.1.x (x represents the IP address of
the administrator’s machine)
Router(config)#access-list 50 deny any log
Router(config)#line vty 0 4
Router(config-line)#access-class 50 in
Router passwords need to be changed
periodically, typically once every 4-6 months
depending on the functionality of the router.
All password defined on the router should
meet the following criteria:
·         Minimum 8 characters in length
·         Should be alphanumeric along with
special characters (@#$%)
·         Should not include organization’s
name in it
SSH is a preferred protocol over Telnet for
vty access since it encrypts the data while in
transit on the network.
The Telnet protocol transfers data in clear
text thereby allowing an intruder to sniff
valuable data such as passwords.
As a remedy the following can be done:
·         Using secure protocols such as SSH
wherever possible
·         Restricting access from certain
workstations only
·         Maintaining strong passwords

     
A documented procedure for creation of
administrators on the router should exist.
The procedure should address:
·         Approval from the department head
·         Recording the authorization level
given to the new administrator and the
duration
Each router administrator should have a
unique account for him/her to maintain
accountability.
The following commands can be executed to
create unique local usernames on the
router:
Router(config)#username username
password password
Router(config)#line vty 0 4
Router(config-line)#login local
A detailed log of every command typed on
the router as well as when an administrator
logged in or out can be recorded for audit
purposes.
Router(config)#aaa accounting exec default
start-stop group tacacs+
Router(config)aaa accounting commands 15
default start-stop group tacacs+
All user accounts should be assigned the
lowest privilege level that allows them to
perform their duties.

If multiple administrators exist on the router,

each administrator should be given an
individual username and password and
assigned the lowest privilege levels.

This service allows the router to be

monitored or have its configuration modified
from the web browser.
If not used, this service should be disabled.
Router(config)#no ip http server
If this service is required, restrict access to
the http/https service using access control
lists.
Router(config)#ip http access-class 22
Router(config)#access-list 22 permit host
mgmt ip
Router(config)#access-list 22 deny any log
Ideally SNMP version 3 should be used on
the router since it introduces authentication
in the form of a username and password and
offers encryption as well.
Since the SNMP process is enabled by
default, it should be disabled if not used.
Router(config)# no snmp-server
If SNMP v1 or v2c is used, ACL’s should be
configured to limit the addresses that can
send SNMP commands to the device. SNMP
v1 or v2c uses the community string as the
only form of authentication and is sent in
clear text across the network.
Router(config)#access-list 67 permit host
snmp-server
Router(config)#access-list 67 deny any log
and ‘private’ should be changed
immediately before bring the router on the
network.
If SNMP v1 or v2c is being used, the SNMP
community strings should be treated like
root passwords by changing them often and
introducing complexity in them.

     
The NTP service which is disabled by default
helps to synchronize clocks between
networking devices thereby maintaining a
consistent time which is essential for
diagnostic and security alerts and log data.
However if configured insecurely, it could
used to corrupt the time clock of the
network devices. To prevent this, restrict
which devices have access to NTP.
The service should also be disabled if not
used.

RFC 1918 addresses are meant to be used

for internal networks only and have no
reason to be seen on the Internet.
The following access-lists should be
implemented on the Internet router:
Router(config)#access-list 101 deny ip
10.0.0.0 0.255.255.255 any log
Router(config)#access-list 101 deny ip
172.16.0.0 0.15.255.255 any log
Router(config)#access-list 101 deny ip
192.168.0.0 0.0.255.255 any log
Router(config)#access-list 101 permit ip any
any
Unicast Reverse Path Forwarding is an
alternative to RFC 2827 filtering.
It can enabled using the following
commands:
Router(config-if)#ip verify unicast reverse-
path

Message authentication helps prevent the

spoofing or modification of a valid routing
protocol message.
periodically depending on importance and
frequency of changes made to the
configuration.
Backup copies should be maintained off-site
for quick recovery during a disaster.

If a file server is used to store configuration

files, the files should be restricted to
authorized personnel only.
The TFTP protocol which is disabled by
default transfers files in clear text and hence
is unsafe to use.
The TFTP process should be restricted to
certain addresses only (management
workstations) to reduce the risk. The service
should also be disabled when not in use
because it allows access to certain files in
the router flash.

     
     

     

     

     
Syslog messages allows for easy
troubleshooting of the network.
Use the following commands to enable
syslog
Router(config)#logging syslog-ip-address
Router(config)#service timestamps log
datetime localtime msec show-timezone

     

     

     

     
The network engineer should receive
periodic updates on the vulnerabilities and
patches affecting the router.