What is Zero Trust? Essentially, it is a model. A security model. Alternatively, you could call it an approach, framework, or architecture. Different people refer to it in different ways, but I prefer the term model, by reference to the “scientific model” as Zero Trust is first and foremost a conceptual representation of a system of ideas, events, or processes.

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The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has introduced its latest set of requirements for the Cyber Essentials scheme. Any new assessments going forward must adhere to the new format called Evendine. This scheme was launched in 2014 and this is by far the biggest update to be made since. The Cyber Essentials update is in…

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How To Keep Your Passwords Safe In the Workplace If you save passwords on your browser, you are exposing yourself (and potentially your company) to unnecessary risks. In both cases, someone who has compromised your system probably already has either your PIN or password, which is what is needed to “uncover” those passwords. And that…

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I have been thinking of the easiest way to deal with the InstallerFileTakeOver payload that takes advantage of CVE-2021-41379 – an active zero-day vulnerability. This blog is a limited Proof of Concept (PoC) which makes several assumptions and aims at providing insights into what can be achieved using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. Disclaimer This approach assumes you are already…

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Attack Surface Reduction (ASR): a very familiar scenario So, you’re deep into project planning and you need to assess which Attack Surface Reduction (ASR) rules to action. Most of all, you re hesitant to even look into implementing ASR because you are not sure about the productivity impact.  At the same time, the option of using audit mode to evaluate the impact doesn’t “cut…

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Conditional Access is one of those great features in the Microsoft Security ecosystem that makes it possible for organisations to control the modern security perimeter efficiently.  If designed and implemented correctly, a business can reap the benefits of a powerful and granular access control solution, which can significantly increase security. On the other hand, an implementation…

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Security vs functionality; an unnecessary battle that we see far too often. IT and ops teams that don’t think security is an integral part of infrastructure or solution design are normally the first ones that end up in trouble down the line. It’s only a matter of time until someone screams “we’ve been hacked!” and people will quickly revert to finger-pointing, trying to…

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When it comes to evaluating security choices, analysis paralysis can be a real thing. Especially when the need for a new capability or solution must “confront” the rationale around the need to secure it.  If you run a business and you are not sure why you should secure (and maintain the security of) your new business application / identity system / service / network etc. then getting answers from your IT partner as to how you should do this may help you feel in control. It can…

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