IAS Module 6-8
IAS Module 6-8
COURSE MODULES
by
Marylene Saldon-Eder
Faculty, Computer Science
IDPSs can issue alerts through multiple channels such as emails, pop-up
messages, text notifications, and integration with management consoles. They
may also be configured to initiate an active response, such as disabling user
accounts, blocking IP addresses, or shutting down specific network services.
Many modern IDPSs also include capabilities to integrate with other systems,
such as firewalls and routers, to enforce security policies dynamically.
The main advantage of IDPSs is their ability to act in real-time. Rather than
waiting for an attack to unfold fully, they can interrupt the intrusion process,
potentially minimizing damage and reducing recovery time.
IDPSs collect logs and evidence useful for forensic analysis and can
demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements. They also deter
attackers by increasing the perceived difficulty and risk of detection.
❖ Advantages
➢ Can monitor and protect large segments of network traffic with relatively
few devices.
➢ Operates independently of individual hosts, reducing system resource
overhead.
➢ Effective at detecting external threats, such as DoS attacks, port scans,
and worms.
➢ Generally non-intrusive in passive mode, making it easier to deploy in
existing networks.
❖ Disadvantages
➢ Cannot analyze encrypted traffic, limiting visibility into secure sessions
(e.g., SSL/TLS).
➢ May be overwhelmed by high volumes of traffic, reducing detection
accuracy.
➢ Requires access to full network traffic, which may not be available in all
architectures.
➢ Cannot reliably detect attacks that occur within encrypted tunnels or on
isolated hosts.
➢ May lack visibility into local activities on individual systems.
2. Wireless IDPS
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❖ Advantages
➢ Specialized detection of threats unique to wireless environments.
➢ Can detect rogue access points and devices, which may go unnoticed by
wired systems.
➢ Enables organizations to inventory and monitor all wireless assets in real
time.
➢ More accurate detection due to the limited number of wireless protocols
and traffic types.
❖ Disadvantages
➢ Limited to monitoring wireless layers, often unable to analyze upper-
layer protocols like TCP/UDP.
➢ Signal interference and range limitations can affect detection capability.
➢ Physically vulnerable due to deployment in accessible public spaces.
➢ Higher costs due to the need for multiple sensors for full coverage.
➢ May be susceptible to evasion by attackers using passive or directional
wireless attacks.
❖ Advantages
➢ Capable of detecting unknown and emerging threats through anomaly
analysis.
➢ Does not require access to payload data, allowing it to work even with
encrypted traffic.
➢ Effective for internal network monitoring, especially for insider threats or
misconfigurations.
➢ Works well in large-scale environments where packet-based analysis is
impractical.
❖ Disadvantages
➢ False positives can occur due to natural traffic variability.
➢ Requires time to build a reliable baseline of normal behavior.
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❖ Advantages
➢ Provides deep visibility into system-level activities that network devices
cannot observe.
➢ Can detect insider threats, local exploits, and unauthorized access
attempts.
➢ Works effectively on encrypted sessions, since analysis occurs after
decryption.
➢ Useful for compliance monitoring and protecting sensitive assets on
critical hosts.
❖ Disadvantages
➢ Requires individual installation and configuration on each host,
increasing administrative overhead.
➢ Consumes system resources, potentially impacting performance.
➢ Vulnerable to host-level tampering or attacks that disable the agent.
➢ Cannot detect threats outside its host environment (e.g., lateral
movement across the network).
➢ May produce high volumes of logs and false alerts if not tuned correctly.
V. Detection Methods
1. Signature-Based Detection
2. Anomaly-Based Detection
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over a period of time known as the training period. Once the baseline is
established, the IDPS periodically samples network activity and uses
statistical methods to compare the sampled activity to the baseline.
A log file monitor (LFM) IDPS is similar to an NIDPS. An LFM reviews the log
files generated by servers, network devices, and even other IDPSs, looking for
patterns and signatures that may indicate an attack or intrusion is in process or
has already occurred. This attack detection is enhanced by the fact that the
LFM can look at multiple log files from different systems, even if they use
different operating systems or log formats. The patterns that signify an attack
can be subtle and difficult to distinguish when one system is examined in
isolation, but they may be more identifiable when the events recorded for the
entire network and each of its component systems can be viewed as a whole.
SIEM’s roots are in the UNIX syslog approach to log file aggregation; for years,
organizations and security professionals have sought ways to leverage existing
systems and have them work together to maintain situation awareness, identify
noteworthy issues, and enable response to adverse events.
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1. Based on Deployment:
● Research Honeypots:
- Used by researchers to study cyberattack strategies and develop
prevention techniques. These honeypots are not part of a
production environment but are valuable for academic and
security research.
● Production Honeypots:
- Deployed within operational networks, they act as decoys
containing false information to lure attackers away from actual
systems. This provides system administrators time to patch
vulnerabilities and enhance defenses.
2. Based on Interaction:
● Diversion:
- Redirect attackers from genuine targets, wasting their time and
resources.
● Prevent:
- Trigger alerts upon unauthorized access, enabling rapid response to
threats.
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Advantages Disadvantages
Detect threats even when encrypted Have a narrow scope, detecting only
communication is used. direct attacks.
III. Honeynets
and more realistic platform for observing sophisticated intrusions. Honeynets may
contain different types of decoy systems, such as web servers, databases, and
applications, to entice attackers with a variety of targets. This setup provides a deeper
V. Trap-And-Trace Systems
Key Components:
● Traps (often in the form of honeypots or honeynets): These are decoy
systems or services intentionally left vulnerable or exposed to attract
attackers.
● Data Collection: Every interaction with the trap is logged for further
analysis, including IP addresses, payloads, tools used, and patterns of
behavior.
Primary Goals:
● Attribution - Identify who the attacker is or where they are coming from.
Limitations:
● Attackers may detect the trap and avoid it.
● Legal and ethical concerns may arise when interacting with attackers in
certain jurisdictions.
A cybersecurity mechanism that not only detects malicious activity but actively
takes real-time action to prevent or mitigate attacks on a network or
system. Unlike passive systems that simply monitor and alert, AIPS can block
traffic, isolate compromised systems, redirect attackers, or modify system
configurations in response to threats, helping to stop intrusions before they
cause damage.
● Dynamic Reconfiguration:
- Changes firewall rules or access policies in response to a threat.
● Traffic Redirection:
- Redirects malicious traffic to controlled environments for observation.
● Fake Services:
- Presents attackers with false but realistic-looking data to distract and
gather information.
LaBrea is an early and widely recognized tool in active defense, specifically designed
to slow down and trap malicious traffic, rather than simply blocking it.
➔ LaBrea listens for unused IP addresses in a network (i.e., IPs not assigned to
any real machine).
➔ When an attacker or worm tries to scan these unused addresses, LaBrea
responds as if a machine is present.
➔ It then opens a connection and intentionally stalls it, sending responses that
keep the connection alive but unproductive.
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Scanning and analysis tools are critical components of a security professional’s toolkit,
designed to examine systems, networks, and applications for vulnerabilities,
anomalies, and misconfigurations. These tools are used to discover and analyze
potential attack surfaces, detect unauthorized services, and collect forensic evidence
in case of a security incident.
A. Port Scanners
Port scanners probe target systems to identify open, closed, or filtered ports
and determine what services are running on them. They send packets to
specified ports on a host and analyze the response to learn which services are
accessible.
They are often used during network reconnaissance to map potential points of
entry. In defensive contexts, they help administrators audit their networks,
disable unnecessary services, and harden systems against unauthorized
access.
B. Vulnerability Scanners
These tools capture and analyze data packets traversing the network, providing
detailed insights into the structure, content, and flow of communications. They
Used heavily in network diagnostics and security analysis, they help uncover
unauthorized data transfers, detect malware communication, and troubleshoot
performance issues. Their visibility into raw traffic is invaluable during
investigations of data breaches or suspicious behavior.
Application protocol analyzers are specialized tools that examine the behavior
of high-level protocols like HTTP, FTP, DNS, and SMTP to detect misuse or
protocol-specific attacks. They analyze how data is transmitted at the
application layer and whether any deviation from expected behavior occurs.
They are crucial for detecting attacks such as DNS spoofing, HTTP flooding,
and command injection that target vulnerabilities within legitimate services. By
focusing on application-layer interactions, these tools can identify sophisticated
threats that bypass lower-level filters.
NBA tools monitor traffic flows and behavior over time to identify anomalies that
deviate from normal usage patterns. They use statistical and heuristic analysis
to flag issues such as bandwidth spikes, protocol misuse, and unexpected
communications.
These tools are effective at detecting zero-day threats, worms, and insider
threats that signature-based systems may miss. They are especially useful in
environments with high data throughput or encrypted traffic where payload
inspection is limited.
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Function Description
Vulnerability Detection Scans for security flaws, missing patches, and exploitable
configurations.
Protocol Inspection Analyzes the use and behavior of network and application
protocols.
● Skilled analysts are needed to configure, interpret, and act on data produced by
scanning and analysis tools.
CASE EXERCISES
References
● Balbix. (2020, January 24). What is Vulnerability Scanning. Balbix.
https://www.balbix.com/insights/what-is-vulnerability-scanning/
● Hossain, Md. A., & Islam, Md. S. (2023). Ensuring network security with a
robust intrusion detection system using ensemble-based machine learning.
Array, 19, 100306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.array.2023.100306
honeynets-and-padded-cells/introduction-to-honeypots-honeynets-and-padded-
cells.html
● Scarfone, K., Mell, P., Stavroulakis, P., & Stamp, M. (2010). Intrusion Detection
and Prevention Systems. Csrc.nist.gov; Springer.
https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/book-section/2010/10/intrusion-detection-and-
prevention-systems/final