Al-Jasser: work is underway to restructure and develop aviation infrastructure    Diriyah to host third IMFC Deputies meeting under Saudi chairmanship    15,135 decisions taken to penalize Saudis and expats for violations    Saudi-European Parliamentary Friendship Committee discusses cooperation during Strasbourg visit    Saudi stock market loses half a trillion riyals, with Aramco's losses amounting to SR340 billion Tariff turmoil rattles Gulf markets    KAU to host Digital Communication Conference in Jeddah from April 29 to May 1    TGA: Riyadh tops with 45% of 290 million orders delivered in 2024    Aja and Salma mountains draw nature lovers to Hail's rugged landscapes    US revokes all visas for South Sudanese nationals over deportation dispute    Death toll from Myanmar earthquake rises to 3,471    Macron to hold Gaza summit with Egypt and Jordan in Cairo    Benzema rescues Al Ittihad with stoppage-time equalizer in thrilling Jeddah Derby    Al Qadsiah and Al Ettifaq share spoils in tense Eastern Derby stalemate    Moussa Diaby praises Al Ittihad's resilience after Jeddah Derby draw "When you can't win, you take a point"    Saudi assistant referee Iman Al Madani joins AFC elite list for 2025    Riyadh Art Week launches with over 50 galleries showcasing global artistic dialogue    Turki Al-Sheikh announces five new Saudi film projects to be produced in Riyadh    Saudi Ministry of Education to showcase innovations at 2025 Geneva International Exhibition    Ed Sheeran weaves Persian music into new song, Azizam    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



SANS Institute Identifies 30% Increase in attacker Interest in RDP during March
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 15 - 04 - 2020

SANS Institute, the global leader in cyber security training and certifications, has identified a 30% increase in attacker interest in Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) servers during the month of March 2020.
This increase coincides with a significant increase in exposed RDP servers, as measured by Shodan, the search engine that allows users to search the Internet for connected devices.
The findings for March are concerning, as they also coincide with the massive surge in companies worldwide that needed to close offices and quickly enable employees to work from home to comply with social distancing restrictions due to the rapid spread of COVID-19.
The concern is that, in order to quickly and inexpensively enable employees to work from home, some organizations have implemented RDP, which can expose confidential systems to the public Internet.
Dr. Johannes Ullrich, SANS fellow and dean of research at the SANS Technology Institute, explains further: "The number of source IP addresses attackers used to scan the Internet for RDP increased by about 30% during March, from an average of 2,600 attacking IP addresses to around 3,540 each day in March.
"RDP is not a protocol that is robust enough to be exposed to the Internet. Consequently, we are now seeing attackers actively trading weak credentials which they have identified for these RDP servers. A compromised RDP server can lead to a complete compromise of the exposed system and will likely be used to attack and exploit additional systems inside the network."
Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) is a protocol developed by Microsoft, which provides users with a graphical interface to connect to another computer over a network connection. It is an inexpensive and simple way for companies to enable remote working for employees. The user employs RDP client software for this purpose, while the other computer must run RDP server software.
For companies that have implemented RDP, Ullrich advises: "Use unique, long, and random passwords to secure your RDP servers, and if possible, only provide access via a VPN. Microsoft also offers RDP Gateway, which can be used to implement strong authentication policies.
"You may attempt to limit access to RDP from specific IP addresses if you are not able to implement a VPN right now, but this may be difficult if your administrators are currently working from home with dynamic IP addresses.
"Another option is to use a cloud server as a jump-off point," Ullrich continued. "Whitelist the cloud server and use secure protocols like SSH to connect to the cloud server. This technique may work as a quick fix if you do not want to risk downtime while everybody is working remotely.
"Many organizations are currently not willing to risk a loss of access to business-critical systems. Modifying remote access and firewall rules may lead to a loss of access that, in some cases, can only be restored by on-site personnel."
Recognizing that coronavirus has caused organizations around the world to transition their workforce away from an office to work-from-home environment, and that many organizations lack the policies, resources, or training to enable their people to do so securely, SANS released the "Securely Working from Home" Deployment Kit on March 16.
This free kit provides organisations with a step-by-step guide on how to rapidly deploy a training program for their remote staff. All training materials and resources necessary to secure a remote, multi-lingual workforce are included in the kit. — SG


Clic here to read the story from its source.