Welcome Rakan Sarawak May 2004

Rangkaian Khidmat Awam Negeri Sarawak

A MONTHLY SUPPLEMENT OF RAKAN SARAWAK BULLETIN

(People, events, activities and programmes which make for a total quality-managed Sarawak Civil Service)

ISSN 1394-5726

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RED ALERT! Strange Actions from Your Files: Behaviour-Based Security Network

The panel consisting of Mr. Raymond Chu of Cisco (left), Ir. Allen Liew of SAINS (centre) and Mr. Teo Kiang Hong of SAINS (right)

It is a known fact that each of us has encountered nightmares with malicious viruses attacking our computer system, sometime or other. Just mention the names, My Doom or Worm,and we get the jitters. Will I be the next victim when I surfed the internet or insert a diskette (or handy drive) into my computer?

Besides watching out for viruses, there is also the need to watch out for hackers who just want to peep into your computer system, searching for information without permission or your knowledge.

These rising fears and concerns about protecting the computer systems or networks from viruses or security attacks in a technologically advanced world we live in today were answered at a recent one-day seminar on “Network Security & Wireless Technology”. The seminar was a joint effort of the Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (SAINS) and Cisco Systems.

“Security need to be integrated into the network itself. It is not a separate issue,” explained Mr. Raymond Chu, Cisco Systems Hong Kong, during his presentation on “Key Trends, Threats & Technology of Network Security”. Imagine the network as a human body, there is then the need to create a self-defending network that is smart enough to isolate or limit the virus from spreading throughout the network.

Some of the white knights of such a network are provided by Cisco through its Network Admission Control Program and Security Agent. The Cisco Network Admission Control Program works by eliminating the risk of a page from being infected by isolating the virus, in effect, putting the virus in quarantine. On the other hand, the Cisco Security Agent (CSA) sits on top of the computer or server to protect it from viruses. This software is a guard against malicious behaviours from viruses or hackers who want to change the registry of your computer system. The CSA uses a behaviour-based line of defense as compared to the conventional signature-based defense.

How does it work? For example, if an unknown e-mail wants to access or copy a file in your computer, CSA leaps into action by alerting you to the strange behaviours of the particular file. CSA does not care what name the virus is disguised under, be it My Doom or My Doom 2 or 3 (signature-based), instead the security software will stop the virus-infected file by monitoring its questionable actions (behaviour-based).

Mr. Teo Kiang Hong, one of the speakers from SAINS, conceded that the best solution for network security is by a holistic approach that includes prevention (by creating a wireless security policy), identification (to monitor any security breach), and response (what to do in the case of a security breach).

Given the importance of network security for the success and revenue of a company or organization, SAINS is prudent in establishing a smart partnership with Cisco Systems to enhance the security of various wireless networks in the state.