Have you recently experienced a server infiltration at your company? Do you have an existing process to remediate active threats on your server? If you experienced a catastrophic server breach, how would you recover? No server owner wants to be asked these questions. If the recent string of data breaches in the news is any indication, cybercriminals are becoming more cunning.
Server infiltration is a constantly evolving landscape that is becoming increasingly complex, causing havoc on businesses all over the world. One positive thing is that when it comes to planning an assault, cybercriminals take a methodical approach. You would be better prepared and able to remain one step ahead if you understand their process and know your network.
5 Phases of Server Infiltration and How to Prevent Them
Phase 1: Reconnaissance – Attackers meticulously prepare their attack strategy. They conduct research, classify, and choose targets that will help them achieve their goals. They will also search the target network, utilities, and software for bugs that can be manipulated.
Prevention:
- Detect and avoid port scans and host sweeps by continuously inspecting network traffic flows.
- Implement security awareness training so that users are aware of what should and should not be shared, such as confidential information, client lists, event visitors, job duties and responsibilities, and so on.
Phase 2: Exploitation – The hacker attempts to infiltrate the corporate perimeter and establish a permanent foothold in the environment during this stage. They may have obtained credentials by spear-phishing the organization, then used legitimate credentials to access the corporate infrastructure and downloaded additional tools to gain access to the environment. This is almost impossible to trace.
Prevention:
- Protect against perimeter infiltration by using URL filtering to block malicious websites.
- Gain complete visibility into all traffic, including SSL, and prevent high-risk applications from running. Extend such safeguards to phones and remote computers.
- Users should be educated on spear-phishing links, unknown emails, dangerous websites, and other topics on a regular basis.
Phase 3: Installation – After gaining a foothold, attackers will install malware necessary to undertake additional operations such as access maintenance, persistence, and privilege escalation.
Prevention:
- Establish safe zones with strict user access controls, and inspect all traffic between zones on a regular basis (Zero Trust model).
- Prevent malware installation on endpoints, networks, and cloud providers, whether known or unknown.
- Users should be taught how to recognize the signs of a malware infection and what to do if it exists.
Phase 4: Command and control – Both sides of the connection are now in the hands of the attackers: their malicious framework and the infected computer. Attackers can set up a command channel between the compromised computers and their own networks to communicate and transfer data back and forth.
Prevention:
- Create a malicious domains database to maintain global awareness and prevention through DNS monitoring.
- Implement strict access control to allow only approved applications, limiting attackers’ freedom to navigate laterally with unknown tools and scripts.
- Outbound command-and-control communications, as well as uploads of files and data patterns, should be blocked.
Phase 5: Exfiltration – Attacker’s focus: get in, get out. Your server has already been infiltrated into. They steal user information, corrupt critical infrastructure, and cause business disruption. Then, using ransomware, they erase all documentation.
Prevention:
- Using threat intelligence software, look for signs of server infiltration before they happen.
- All traffic between zones remains monitored and inspected, and protected zones should require user access controls.
- Constantly improve your defense systems by implementing policies and procedures.
Not only does technology play a role in disrupting the attack cycle, but so do people and processes. To reduce the chances of an assault continuing beyond the first level, people must undergo ongoing security awareness training and be trained in best practices. Also, infiltration testing on a regular basis is important because it helps you to be proactive in identifying weak points and repairing them before a breach occurs. Find out more about how to protect your servers against cyber threats by contacting Expert IT Solutions now.
