IT Baseline Protection Manual - The Information Warfare Site

IT Baseline Protection of Generic Components
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themselves, the various communications links must now be considered. In this analysis, the following
communications links should be regarded as critical:
- Communication links to the outside world, i.e. which lead into or through uncontrolled areas (e.g.
to the Internet or over land to which the public have access). These links are potentially exposed to
the threat of attempts to penetrate the system to be protected from outside and the danger of
computer viruses or Trojan horses being imported. Moreover, an internal perpetrator could pass
confidential information to the outside world over such connection.
- Communications links over which information which has a high protection requirement is
transmitted. The information concerned may have a high protection requirement as regards either
one or more of the basic parameters of confidentiality, integrity and availability. These links could
be targeted for wilful bugging or tampering. Moreover, failure of such a link could have a
detrimental effect on the operational capability of significant numbers of IT assets.
- Communications links over which certain highly sensitive information may not be transmitted.
Here the primary concern is the transmission of confidential information. If any network switching
elements are configured inappropriately or incorrectly, it could be possible for precisely this
information which should not be transmitted over such a connection to nevertheless be transmitted
and as a result become vulnerable to attack.
One approach to gathering information about critical communications links is as follows. Initially all
"external connections" are identified and recorded as critical connections. All the connections which
lead from an IT system with a high or very high protection requirement are then investigated. In this
way the connections over which information having a high protection requirement is transmitted are
identified. The connections over which this sensitive data is transmitted downstream are then
investigated. Finally the communication links over which such information is not supposed to be
transmitted must be identified. The information collected should include:
- the communications routes;
- whether the connection has an outside link;
- whether information having a high protection requirements is transmitted and whether this
protection requirement is related to confidentiality, integrity or availability;
- whether information having a high protection requirement is not allowed to be transmitted over the
line.
The data collected during this exercise can either be documented in tabular form or else highlighted
graphically on the network plan.
Bundesamt für Organisation und Verwaltung (Federal Agency for Organisation and
Administration, BOV) - Part 6
In our fictitious example of the BOC, there are the following critical connections:
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IT-Baseline Protection Manual: Otober 2000