Day: March 12, 2021

Nations around the world are adding cyber warfare to their arsenal, employing highly skilled teams to launch attacks against other countries. These adversaries are also called the ‘advanced persistent threat,’ or APT, because they possess the tools and resources to pursue their objectives repeatedly over an extended period, adapting to defenders’ efforts to resist them. Vulnerable data includes the sensitive but unclassified information managed by government, industry and academia in support of various federal programs. Now, a finalized publication from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides guidance to protect such ‘controlled unclassified information’ (CUI) from the APT. NIST’s Special Publication (SP) 800-172, Enhanced Security Requirements for Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information: A Supplement to NIST SP 800-171, offers a set of tools designed to counter the efforts of state-sponsored hackers and complements another NIST publication aimed at protecting CUI. “Cyberattacks are conducted with silent weapons, and in some situations those weapons are undetectable,” said Ron Ross, a Computer Scientist and a NIST Fellow, “Because you may not ‘feel’ the direct effects of the next hack yet, you may think it is coming someday down the road; but in reality, it’s happening right now.” The federal government relies heavily on nonfederal service providers to help carry out a wide range of missions using information systems – a term that includes computers, but also a range of other specialized technologies such as industrial control systems and the Internet of Things. The protection of sensitive federal information that resides in nonfederal systems – such as those used by state and local governments, colleges and universities, and independent research organizations – is of paramount importance, as it can directly impact the federal government’s ability to carry out its operations. A hack in 2018 that compromised sensitive information directly inspired the NIST team’s work on SP 800-172. Formerly numbered SP 800-171B during its draft stages, SP 800-172 offers additional recommendations for handling CUI in situations where that information runs a higher than usual risk of exposure. CUI includes a wide variety of information types, from individuals’ names or social security numbers to critical defense information. “We developed SP 800-171 in response to major cyberattacks on U.S. critical infrastructure, and its companion document SP 800-172 is designed to mitigate attacks from advanced cyber threats such as the APT,” Ross said, “Implementing the cyber safeguards in SP 800-172 will help system owners protect what state-level hackers have considered to be particularly high-value targets – sensitive information about people, technologies, innovation and intellectual property, the revelation of which could compromise our economy and national security.” The enhanced security requirements are to be implemented in addition to those in SP 800-171, since that publication is not designed to address the APT. The requirements in SP 800-172 apply to the components of nonfederal systems that process, store or transmit CUI or that provide protection for such components. To further narrow the scope, the requirements are applied only when the designated CUI is associated with a critical program or high-value asset – the highest priority for protection. Developed primarily for administrators such as program managers, CIOs and system auditors, the publication addresses the protection of CUI for system components by promoting penetration-resistant architecture, damage-limiting operations, and designs to achieve cyber resiliency and survivability. Its tools, divided into 14 families, are not intended to be implemented en masse, but selected according to the needs of the organization. “Most likely an organization implementing this guidance will not want to use all of the enhanced security requirements we offer here,” Ross said, “The decision to select a particular set of enhanced security requirements will be based on your mission and business needs – and then guided and informed by ongoing risk assessments.” In response to feedback received during the public comment period, the final draft includes updated scoping and applicability guidance and a more flexible requirements selection approach to allow organizations to customize their security solutions. Ross said that the tools in the new publication should offer hope to anyone seeking to defend against hacks, even by as intimidating a threat as the APT. “The adversaries are bringing their ‘A-game’ in these cyberattacks 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” he said, “You can start making sure the damage is minimized if you use SP 800-172’s cyber safeguards.”  

Eagle Eye Networks, a leading global player in cloud video surveillance, and Sitasys, the leading cloud alarm management platform have now integrated the Eagle Eye Cloud VMS and its analytics functionality into the evalink alarm monitoring platform allowing service operations centers to more efficiently and effectively manage an unlimited number of cameras without additional human resources. This development builds on the existing partnership between Sitasys and Eagle Eye Networks to create an enhanced security monitoring platform by implementing a cloud-to-cloud integration of video surveillance and alarm monitoring. This integration allows users to immediately connect Eagle Eye Networks VMS into the revolutionary cloud based evalink alarm management platform from Sitasys. Sitasys used Eagle Eye Networks RESTful API platform and Big Data Video Framework™ to rapidly develop and deliver a unique cyber secured integration between its alarm management evalink platform and the Eagle Eye Networks cloud-based video surveillance platform. The integrated system allows users to connect video analytics with smart workflows to automate operational processes. In addition, the user can index, search, retrieve, and analyze video based on alarms from the Sitasys system. The integration and verification process saves time, reduces operations to a minimum, and prevents unnecessary intervention costs. “Our true cloud environment, open platform and advances analytics are not only changing the video surveillance industry, but cloud-to-cloud integration with partners like Sitasys is extending the capabilities of the alarm monitoring industry creating a safer, more secure environment and providing business intelligence than can improve operations,” said Rishi Lodhia, Managing Director, Eagle Eye Networks in EMEA, “This form of automated monitoring is a first in the industry and will give businesses the opportunity to outsource their video monitoring at a lower cost with better accuracy creating benefits for everyone involved. This is an example of how AI can optimize the whole value chain within the security industry. We’re proud to join with Sitasys in pushing the boundaries of technology and client experience.” Working closely together the engineering teams at Eagle Eye Networks and Sitasys completed development and quality assurance in two weeks. The functionality meets an often requested need for service operation centres that want to scale their business, add additional remote monitoring services and manage more cameras without adding additional resources. “With evalink, we help companies automate processes and create additional value for their customers,” added Peter Monte, CEO and Founder of Sitasys AG, “Seamless integration of true cloud systems results in a fantastic ecosystem with best-in-class experiences and services for its users. The integration with a cloud video surveillance partner was something we didn’t have, and we were keen on creating this to show how simple and intuitive systems can be embedded nowadays, while adding exceptional value to the client.”