Biblio

In this paper we investigate deceptive defense strategies for web servers. Web servers are widely exploited resources in the modern cyber threat landscape. Often these servers are exposed in the Internet and accessible for a broad range of valid as well as malicious users. Common security strategies like firewalls are not sufficient to protect web servers. Deception based Information Security enables a large set of counter measures to decrease the efficiency of intrusions. In this work we depict several techniques out of the reconnaissance process of an attacker. We match these with deceptive counter measures. All proposed measures are implemented in an experimental web server with deceptive counter measure abilities. We also conducted an experiment with honeytokens and evaluated delay strategies against automated scanner tools.

Distributed and parallel applications are critical information technology systems in multiple industries, including academia, military, government, financial, medical, and transportation. These applications present target rich environments for malicious attackers seeking to disrupt the confidentiality, integrity and availability of these systems. Applying the military concept of defense cyber maneuver to these systems can provide protection and defense mechanisms that allow survivability and operational continuity. Understanding the tradeoffs between information systems security and operational performance when applying maneuver principles is of interest to administrators, users, and researchers. To this end, we present a model of a defensive maneuver cyber platform using Stochastic Petri Nets. This model enables the understanding and evaluation of the costs and benefits of maneuverability in a distributed application environment, specifically focusing on moving target defense and deceptive defense strategies.