Change Management and File Integrity Monitoring – Demystifying the Modifications in Your Environment

When outsourcing the IT department was first introduced, many business owners hailed it as the solution to all their technology problems. The promise of reduced headcount, less overhead and sunk costs, as well as reduced management responsibilities, seemed like a gift that would boost profits. When cloud computing entered the business world, the same promises were realized. However, shifting responsibility to an outside administrator brought new risks to the organizations. Modifications to an environment could be made with little oversight or traceability.

The lack of oversight can be devastating in the event of a cyber-attack (confidentiality), even uptime (availability), or unwanted changes (integrity). In some cases, an organization will seek a solution to the problem while attempting to conceal that the catalyst was a compromise to their systems.

Whether the compromise was the result of a malicious insider or a well-intentioned configuration change that unwittingly introduced the risk, the discovery of the lack of full control is an added shock to an already stressful situation. Regardless of the motivation, change detection is a vital component in all environments.

Tripwire Enterprise is the best solution for managing an environment, no matter where that environment is located or what type of devices are needed to run your business.

Even in the event of a change that doesn't create a cybersecurity risk, an alteration to an environment can cause unintended disruptions. The absence of a good change management system can create a cascade of misguided troubleshooting steps that could make the problem worse. Change management creates the trail that enables quick resolutions to unintended consequences.

Along with change management, file integrity monitoring offers the ability to trace unexpected problems. It also alerts the organization if a particular alteration causes a compliance violation. The ability to maintain compliance is also useful to detect fraud.

For example, an insurance company could process a claim, and if a malicious insider makes a change to redirect the payment, it would be traceable through a file integrity management system.

Operationally, change management can also be used for accountability, that is, knowing who logged in to make a particular change. When coupled with file integrity monitoring, this becomes an incredibly powerful tool.

For instance, when you look at the configuration file for a router or switch or even Windows or Linux, that configuration change can affect operational status. Change detection will easily show the difference between the configuration from its previous baseline to its current state. From a PCI perspective, it's a robust tool.

This is also true for those who must comply with CIS or NIST guidelines, such as government entities. System owners want their custodians and administrators to manage their systems with optimal uptime.

They want all changes to be planned and run through a methodical approval process. Administrators put in change tickets, get the approvals, make the updates, and check the system status.

Knowing that your systems have a planned change can also be mapped to the actual change. Was it done outside of the approved change window? Were there additional changes to other applications, files, settings, registry keys, tables, stored procedures, or other critical elements? You should know not only the plan for the change but what actually was changed.

The best part about the Tripwire solution is that it can be used as a suite or as separate components. Whether you need only secure configuration management or the file integrity monitoring piece, you can have either.

To enhance that, Fortra's Tripwire ExpertOps managed services can provide additional guidance to help you mature your file integrity and secure configuration management states. Using bidirectional integration with your change management software, you can match your planned changes with actual changes.

This quickly helps surface the unauthorized changes that have occurred in your environment. Tripwire ExpertOps can also help build a mature vulnerability management program throughout your organization as well. Tripwire's VM service adds leading-edge Tripwire experts and vulnerability management tools to your security team.

Tripwire's Vulnerability and Exposure Research Team (VERT) is continually tracking down new vulnerabilities, which are combined with granular risk scoring so you can properly prioritize your remediation efforts. 

System administration and network management have always been challenging tasks. Many business owners saw outsourcing and cloud computing as the magic solutions to all of the problems. What they did not see was how these solutions introduced new risks.

Along with the loss of control, new attack methods compounded these risks. With Tripwire, your organization can gain better visibility and accountability, enabling you to increase your security and maintain compliance with the highest security requirements.