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Designing Network Security
Weighing in at a hefty 745 pages, Designing Network Security is a concise and authoritative guide to the sometimes daunting task of designing secure networks - with a special emphasis placed on Cisco solutions, of course. The book is divided into three major sections:basic theory and essentials; policy design and best practices; and implementation with Cisco hardware. In my opinion this book is best suited as a reference book for those who already have a firm foundation in security and networking, but could also be of value to beginner level techs with a bit of patience. While the topics that are covered have all pertinent information discussed, some might wish that there were a bit more explanation of the Hows and Whys.
The first section, "Security Fundamentals," is an especially valuable part of the book in that it provides a great desk reference to the building blocks of secure networks. The first chapter deals with the basics of encryption technologies - symmetrical/asymmetrical cryptography, digital hashes, public key systems, etc. From there the book moves into what is probably its meatiest chapter, covering the application of encryption to security technologies which range from TACACS+ authorization to TLS encryption. Building on previous chapters, the third chapter deals with the application of these security technologies in protecting real world installations. I was especially impressed with the attention paid to wireless and VoIP technologies in this chapter - this is one of the first discussions of VoIP security I have seen in a general reference book. The first section winds up with a fairly exhaustive discussion on routing protocol security which I also thought was excellent.
The second section, "The Corporate Security Policy," is a good reference to infosec management. Many topics covered in this section are applicable to the CISSP exam - so if that is a career goal for you, this can act as one of your study guides. The section begins with a discussion of threats in the enterprise environment. Types of threats as well as common protocol vulnerabilites are discussed. I felt that some of the material in this chapter was a bit dated, in particular the sections on TCP sequence number attacks (most recent OSes have improved their sequence generation routines to make it nearly impossible to do this) and the ping of death (which I don't remember working on anything after Windows 95 or Linux 2.0.23). The next chapter is a bit more valuable in its discussion of the basics of risk assessment and management. This leads into a discussion of actual design and implementation of security policy. Sample topics include physical/logical controls, data confidentiality, and policies/procedures for staff. And finally this section concludes with a good chapter on incident handling and response.
The final section, "Practical Implementation," is the Cisco-centric third of the book. Many parts of this section are a good reference to points covered on the CCSP exams, especially the SECUR test. The first chapter deals with configuring access controls and audit on Cisco devices from the PIX to switches and routers. A brief discussion of intrusion detection implementations is also included. The next chapter consists of primarily information dealing with firewall/screening router construction - content filtering, packet screening, and the various types of IOS filters. Several implementation examples are included to walk you through the process of configuring CBAC (content-based access control) and the Cisco PIX. From there the section moves to remote access security, with good sections on all Cisco based AAA (authentication, authorization, and accounting) features including lock-and-key and accounting-based billing. Finally, the book wraps up with a chapter on securing VPN, Wireless, and VOIP networks which focuses more on design than implementation, although there are still some Cisco (PIX) based examples. The book's appedices cover DDOS attacks, well-known port numbers, and guidelines for reporting and preventing intrusions.
Overall, I felt this was an excellent book which clearly fufilled its purpose. For the intermediate to advanced network security engineer this could act as an excellent desktop reference, while still being accessible enough to teach to the beginner. The writing style is clear and precise, and I found no technical errors in the material presented. As I mentioned, the book could act as an additional study aid for several security certifications, including the CISSP or the CCSP. I look forward to the next volume by Ms. Kaeo.
You can purchase Designing Network Security, 2nd Ed. from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
Honestly, unless you are selling a book, I heave heard that the only real problem with Linux network security involves the fact the patches for it's many security flaws are often themselves compromised and infected with trojans, etc. On the other hand, the patches I get from Microsoft use a FIPS certified level 3 SSL connection so that the new code is certified by the source. Although I don't think I have needed any... been running Windows Server 2003 for about 2 years now and have never been without problems for a single day.
Sincerely
Bill Toms
MCSD, MCSE
SoftoTex Software
Am the only one who sees some irony in that statement?
SCO.com uses Linux
concise ( P ) Pronunciation Key (kn-ss)
adj.
Expressing much in few words; clear and succinct.
Last time i checked 745 pages was not "concise".
Designing network security is easy, I already learned about this in movies and books by Gibson. First, you need to cyberjack a killer ICE. If you use a BLACK ICE, you can actually kill the jackers that are cracking into your mainframe by overloading their neural interfaces.
Something else you might do is write defensive viruses that sit on your router and can be deployed against attackers.
Another thing that has good success is having circuit breakers hooked to your network interface that can channel all the power from your corporate reactor straight into the network. This will cause any attackers machine to burst into flame.
Artificial intelligence bots can be a cheap way to get good security, but keep in mind that they can go rogue, so also keep a stable of CircuitRunners, basically AI Bounty Hunters that can track down your security AIs and terminate them if they go rogue. Symantec makes good CircuitRunners, I hear.
Oh, be sure to hire a network administrator that 'knows linux'. It's probably best to hire someone young who has the dexterity to use the 3d flythrough administration interface.
Good luck, and be secure in the knowledge that you can now jack into your iron in safety!
Books that I also want now.
The hand book of lottery ticket and sports winners for 2004-2010.
The worst security holes of win98/winXP and their solutions for "Open MS Lic." fifth edition 2015.
IP6 Now! how to painless update legacy IP4 appa. (2030)
And my personal future favorite:
The source to votedote used to mod your government up or down.