IT baseline protection

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The IT baseline protection (German : IT-Grundschutz) approach from the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) is a methodology to identify and implement computer security measures in an organization. The aim is the achievement of an adequate and appropriate level of security for IT systems. To reach this goal the BSI recommends "well-proven technical, organizational, personnel, and infrastructural safeguards". [1] Organizations and federal agencies show their systematic approach to secure their IT systems (e.g. Information Security Management System) by obtaining an ISO/IEC 27001 Certificate on the basis of IT-Grundschutz.

Contents

Overview baseline security

The term baseline security signifies standard security measures for typical IT systems. It is used in various contexts with somewhat different meanings. For example:

BSI IT baseline protection

The foundation of an IT baseline protection concept is initially not a detailed risk analysis. It proceeds from overall hazards. Consequently, sophisticated classification according to damage extent and probability of occurrence is ignored. Three protection needs categories are established. With their help, the protection needs of the object under investigation can be determined. Based on these, appropriate personnel, technical, organizational and infrastructural security measures are selected from the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs.

The Federal Office for Security in Information Technology's IT Baseline Protection Catalogs offer a "cookbook recipe" for a normal level of protection. Besides probability of occurrence and potential damage extents, implementation costs are also considered. By using the Baseline Protection Catalogs, costly security analyses requiring expert knowledge are dispensed with, since overall hazards are worked with in the beginning. It is possible for the relative layman to identify measures to be taken and to implement them in cooperation with professionals.

The BSI grants a baseline protection certificate as confirmation for the successful implementation of baseline protection. In stages 1 and 2, this is based on self declaration. In stage 3, an independent, BSI-licensed auditor completes an audit. Certification process internationalization has been possible since 2006. ISO/IEC 27001 certification can occur simultaneously with IT baseline protection certification. (The ISO/IEC 27001 standard is the successor of BS 7799-2). This process is based on the new BSI security standards. This process carries a development price which has prevailed for some time. Corporations having themselves certified under the BS 7799-2 standard are obliged to carry out a risk assessment. To make it more comfortable, most deviate from the protection needs analysis pursuant to the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs. The advantage is not only conformity with the strict BSI, but also attainment of BS 7799-2 certification. Beyond this, the BSI offers a few help aids like the policy template and the GSTOOL.

One data protection component is available, which was produced in cooperation with the German Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information and the state data protection authorities and integrated into the IT Baseline Protection Catalog. This component is not considered, however, in the certification process.

Baseline protection process

The following steps are taken pursuant to the baseline protection process during structure analysis and protection needs analysis:

Creation occurs in the following steps:

IT structure analysis

An IT network includes the totality of infrastructural, organizational, personnel, and technical components serving the fulfillment of a task in a particular information processing application area. An IT network can thereby encompass the entire IT character of an institution or individual division, which is partitioned by organizational structures as, for example, a departmental network, or as shared IT applications, for example, a personnel information system. It is necessary to analyze and document the information technological structure in question to generate an IT security concept and especially to apply the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs. Due to today's usually heavily networked IT systems, a network topology plan offers a starting point for the analysis. The following aspects must be taken into consideration:

Protection needs determination

The purpose of the protection needs determination is to investigate what protection is sufficient and appropriate for the information and information technology in use. In this connection, the damage to each application and the processed information, which could result from a breach of confidentiality, integrity or availability, is considered. Important in this context is a realistic assessment of the possible follow-on damages. A division into the three protection needs categories "low to medium", "high" and "very high" has proved itself of value. "Public", "internal" and "secret" are often used for confidentiality.

Modelling

Heavily networked IT systems typically characterize information technology in government and business these days. As a rule, therefore, it is advantageous to consider the entire IT system and not just individual systems within the scope of an IT security analysis and concept. To be able to manage this task, it makes sense to logically partition the entire IT system into parts and to separately consider each part or even an IT network. Detailed documentation about its structure is prerequisite for the use of the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs on an IT network. This can be achieved, for example, via the IT structure analysis described above. The IT Baseline Protection Catalog’s' components must ultimately be mapped onto the components of the IT network in question in a modelling step.

Baseline security check

The baseline security check is an organisational instrument offering a quick overview of the prevailing IT security level. With the help of interviews, the status quo of an existing IT network (as modelled by IT baseline protection) relative to the number of security measures implemented from the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs are investigated. The result is a catalog in which the implementation status "dispensable", "yes", "partly", or "no" is entered for each relevant measure. By identifying not yet, or only partially, implemented measures, improvement options for the security of the information technology in question are highlighted.

The baseline security check gives information about measures, which are still missing (nominal vs. actual comparison). From this follows what remains to be done to achieve baseline protection through security. Not all measures suggested by this baseline check need to be implemented. Peculiarities are to be taken into account! It could be that several more or less unimportant applications are running on a server, which have lesser protection needs. In their totality, however, these applications are to be provided with a higher level of protection. This is called the (cumulation effect).

The applications running on a server determine its need for protection. Several IT applications can run on an IT system. When this occurs, the application with the greatest need for protection determines the IT system’s protection category.

Conversely, it is conceivable that an IT application with great protection needs does not automatically transfer this to the IT system. This may happen because the IT system is configured redundantly, or because only an inconsequential part is running on it. This is called the (distribution effect). This is the case, for example, with clusters.

The baseline security check maps baseline protection measures. This level suffices for low to medium protection needs. This comprises about 80% of all IT systems according to BSI estimates. For systems with high to very high protection needs, risk analysis-based information security concepts, like for example ISO/IEC 27000-series standards, are usually used.

IT Baseline Protection Catalog and standards

During its 2005 restructuring and expansion of the IT Baseline Protection Catalogs, the BSI separated methodology from the IT Baseline Protection Catalog. The BSI 100-1, BSI 100-2, and BSI 100-3 standards contain information about construction of an information security management system (ISMS), the methodology or basic protection approach, and the creation of a security analysis for elevated and very elevated protection needs building on a completed baseline protection investigation.

BSI 100-4, the "Emergency management" standard, is currently in preparation. It contains elements from BS 25999, ITIL Service Continuity Management combined with the relevant IT Baseline Protection Catalog components, and essential aspects for appropriate Business Continuity Management (BCM). Implementing these standards renders certification is possible pursuant to BS 25999-2. The BSI has submitted the BSI 100-4 standards design for online commentary under. [5]

The BSI brings its standards into line with international norms like the ISO/IEC 27001 this way.

Literature

Related Research Articles

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BS 7799 was a standard originally published by BSI Group (BSI) in 1995. It was written by the United Kingdom Government's Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and consisted of several parts.

ISO/IEC 20000 is the first international standard for IT service management. It was developed in 2005 by ISO/IEC JTC1/SC7 and revised in 2011 and 2018. It was originally based on the earlier BS 15000 that was developed by BSI Group.

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ISO/IEC 27000 is part of a growing family of ISO/IEC Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) standards, the 'ISO/IEC 27000 series'. ISO/IEC 27000 is an international standard entitled: Information technology — Security techniques — Information security management systems — Overview and vocabulary.

BSI Group The non-profit body issuing standards for the UK

BSI Group, also known as the British Standards Institution, is the national standards body of the United Kingdom. BSI produces technical standards on a wide range of products and services and also supplies certification and standards-related services to businesses.

Information security management (ISM) describes controls that an organization needs to implement to ensure that it is sensibly protecting the confidentiality, availability, and integrity of assets from threats and vulnerabilities. By extension, ISM includes information risk management, a process which involves the assessment of the risks an organization must deal with in the management and protection of assets, as well as the dissemination of the risks to all appropriate stakeholders. This requires proper asset identification and valuation steps, including evaluating the value of confidentiality, integrity, availability, and replacement of assets. As part of information security management, an organization may implement an information security management system and other best practices found in the ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27002, and ISO/IEC 27035 standards on information security.

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Information technology risk, IT risk, IT-related risk, or cyber risk is any risk related to information technology. While information has long been appreciated as a valuable and important asset, the rise of the knowledge economy and the Digital Revolution has led to organizations becoming increasingly dependent on information, information processing and especially IT. Various events or incidents that compromise IT in some way can therefore cause adverse impacts on the organization's business processes or mission, ranging from inconsequential to catastrophic in scale.

IT risk management application of risk management methods to information technology in order to manage IT risk

IT Risk Management is the application of risk management methods to information technology in order to manage IT risk, i.e.:

ISO/IEC 27001 is an information security standard, part of the ISO/IEC 27000 family of standards, of which the last version was published in 2017, with a few minor updates since then. It is published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) under the joint ISO and IEC subcommittee, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 27.

ISO/IEC 27701:2019 is a privacy extension to ISO/IEC 27001. The design goal is to enhance the existing Information Security Management System (ISMS) with additional requirements in order to establish, implement, maintain, and continually improve a Privacy Information Management System (PIMS). The standard outlines a framework for Personally Identifiable Information (PII) Controllers and PII Processors to manage privacy controls to reduce the risk to the privacy rights of individuals.

ISO/IEC 27017 is a security standard developed for cloud service providers and users for make a safer cloud-based environment and reducing the risk of a security problem. It was published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) under the joint ISO and IEC subcommittee, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 27. It is part of the ISO/IEC 27000 family of standards, standards which provides best practice recommendations on information security management. This standard was built from ISO/IEC 27002, suggesting additional security controls for the cloud which were not completely defined in ISO/IEC 27002.

References

  1. ↑ "IT-Grundschutz". bsi.bund.de. BSI. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  2. ↑ "Department Baseline Security Policy and End User Agreement" (PDF). Purdue University. Retrieved 17 December 2009.[ permanent dead link ]
  3. ↑ "D16 Baseline Security Requirements for Information Systems". Kent Police. Archived from the original on 15 December 2009. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  4. ↑ "Mapping ISO 27000 to baseline security" (PDF). BSI. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  5. ↑ Entwurf BSI 100-4 [ permanent dead link ] (pdf)
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