2-Lecture : Modern threats to
network security.
Plan
Why is Network Security Critical today?�
Cost of breaches by industry.
Cost of a breach = the total damage (money, time, reputation, legal impact) a company suffers after a cyberattack or data leak.
Types of Threats Covered:�
AI-powered Cyber-Attacks�
Deepfake Technology�
Malware �
Viruses and Worms
Viruses and worms are some of the oldest types of malware but remain highly effective due to their evolving mechanisms. Viruses attach themselves to clean files and infect other clean files, which can spread uncontrollably, damaging the system’s core functionality and corrupting data. Worms, on the other hand, self-replicate without human intervention and typically exploit vulnerabilities within the system’s network. Recent variations have seen worms that can evade detection by mimicking benign network traffic
Ransomware (Encrypting viruses)
Your computer or all data on your network will be locked and a payment will be demanded to unlock it.
In 2021 the Colonial Pipeline company was attacked. The system stopped working, fuel delivery halted. They paid $4.4 million to retrieve their data.
How can you protect yourself?✅ Back up important files✅ Use antivirus programs✅ Be cautious of fake emails and links
Social engineering
Baiting and Pretexting�
Network and Application Attacks�
Denial-of-Service (DoS) and �Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Attacks
Defending against network and application attacks requires a multi-faceted approach:�
Digital Infrastructure Threats�
Internet of Things Attacks
The Internet of Things encompasses a vast array of devices — from household appliances to industrial equipment — all connected online. These devices often lack robust security features, making them susceptible to attacks. Common vulnerabilities include insecure firmware, weak authentication protocols and unsecured network services. Statista projects IoT devices will nearly double from 19.8 billion in 2025 to more than 40.6 billion by 2045.
For example, IoT devices can be compromised to create botnets that launch massive DDoS attacks. As the IoT continues to grow, securing these devices becomes increasingly critical, necessitating the development of new security frameworks and the adoption of rigorous security practices at the development stage.
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Supply Chain Attacks
Supply chain attacks exploit the interconnected systems of organizations, leveraging trusted relationships to breach multiple entities in a single attack. These attacks are on the rise, with one report noting that one in three organizations experienced increased cyber incidents targeting their supply chains over the past six months.
Cloud Security
As businesses increasingly rely on cloud computing, vulnerabilities in cloud infrastructure have become more apparent. Misconfigurations and inadequate access controls are the most common issues that lead to unauthorized access and data breaches. For instance, improperly configured S3 buckets — a fundamental storage resource in Amazon Web Services (AWS) — have led to significant data losses for even major corporations.
Preventive measures include:
Preventive measures include:�
State-sponsored and Insider Threats�
Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)
APTs are complex cyberattacks aimed primarily at stealing information or sabotaging operations, often targeting national governments, infrastructure and large corporations. These threats are executed over extended periods, making them discreet and particularly dangerous due to the strategic planning that underpins them.
Characteristics of APTs
APTs distinguish themselves through their sophistication and persistence, with attackers focusing on achieving their long-term objective by avoiding detection. Here are some defining characteristics of APTs:
�
internet.
Clients
Servers
TE
Clients
Servers
Open external network
Protected internal network
1. Traffic control and filtering
The main function of a firewall is to manage the flow of data passing through the network. This includes the following:
2. Ensuring security and protecting the network
Inter-network firewall protects the network from internal and external threats:
Example: Only connections via HTTPS (encrypted) protocol are allowed to the company's internal network, all other connections are blocked.
3. Separating network boundaries and segmentation
Inter‑network firewall establishes security boundaries between internal, external, and intermediate (DMZ – demilitarized zone) networks.
4. Traffic analysis and logging
Network overview:
Example: If an external user attempts to log into the network multiple times with an incorrect password, this event is logged and reported to the administrator.
5. Implementing network rules
The following rules can be implemented using the inter-network firewall:
Example: Only connections to the company's email server are allowed, while other services (e.g., video streaming) are restricted.
6. Detecting Various Types of Attacks
The inter-network screen works effectively in detecting various attacks and combating them:
Protected virtual network (Virtual Private Network, VPN)
VPN connects the user's device to the internet through a special encrypted tunnel. This process works in three stages:
The VPN server sends the data to the internet and receives the response data, re‑encrypting it before sending it back to the user's device.
VPN technology is defined by a special set called protocols to ensure secure and efficient data processing. VPN protocols encrypt data, authenticate, and manage processes on the network.
1. PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunnel Protocol)
PPTP is one of the oldest types of VPN protocols, developed by Microsoft in the 1990s.
2. L2TP/IPSec (Layer 2 Tunnel Protocol)
L2TP tunneling protocol and IPSec (Internet Protocol Security) speed test.
3. OpenVPN
One of the open-source and most reliable VPN protocols. OpenVPN technology can operate on TCP and UDP ports.
4. WireGuard
A modern, high-speed, VPN-providing new protocol.
5. IKEv2/IPSec (Internet Key Exchange 2 version)
IKEv2, together with IPSec, is a fast protocol developed by BlackBerry and Microsoft.
6. SSTP (Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol)
Developed by Microsoft and a secure protocol on the HTTPS port.
7. SoftEther
A university project from Japan, a lightweight VPN technology supporting many protocols.
ACTIVE & VULNERABILITY
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Organization's assets
identification can be a long and complex process. This process is one of the most important steps in vulnerability assessment.
IF THE ORGANIZATION DOESN’T KNOW WHAT
TO PROTECT, HOW TO ORGANIZE PROTECTION
IS POSSIBLE???
ASSET
VULNERABILITY
Vulnerability assessment – a systematic and methodological evaluation of the damage that assets may incur from attackers, natural forces, or any other hazards. Vulnerability assessment determines what needs to be protected (identifying assets), how much impact it may have (assessing threats), how weak the current protection is (evaluating vulnerabilities), what damage could result from threats (risk assessment), and what measures are necessary (reducing risk level).
bo‘lgan zararning tizimli va uslubiy bahosi. Zaiflikni baholash nimani himoyalash zarur (aktivlarni identifikatsiyalash), qanchalik taʼsir etishi (tahdidlarni baholash), joriy himoya qanchalik zaif (zaifliklarni baholash), tahdid natijasida qanday zarar yetishi mumkin (riskni baholash) va qanday chora ko‘rish zarur (risk darajasini pasaytirish).
Vulnerability scanner
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Vulnerability scanners are designed to detect vulnerabilities in the organization’s network and alert system administrators about them. Most scanners support a vulnerability database.
Detect application breaches;
Specifically which
ports and services for each system
confidential
Which applications and servers
determine what they are transmitting;
Operating system type of all active systems
detect in passive mode
monitoring
Finding vulnerabilities of all client
kuzatib
ilovalarining zaifliklarini borish.
Main threat sources
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Threat type | Examples |
Natural disasters | Fire, flood or earthquake destroys data |
Intellectual property infringement | Software product unlicensed or copyright violated |
Espionage | Stealing the product manufacturing schedule |
Eavesdropping | Mail employee illegally reading letters |
Failure or errors in hardware devices | Firewall blocks the entire network traffic |
Human errors | Employee suddenly drops the organization’s laptop in the hallway |
Sabotage or vandalism | Attacker installs a worm that deletes files |
Software attacks | Virus, worm or DoS attack disrupts software or hardware |
Program malfunction or bugs | The error hinders the program’s loading |
Obsolescence due to technical requirements | The software cannot run with the new version of the operating system |
Theft | Employee’s computer being stolen |
Power grid outage | Loss of electrical power |
Penetration Testing
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Penetration testing
Black box.
White box.
Gray box.
In the Black‑box method
the tester has no knowledge about the network infrastructure being tested.
Before conducting real attacks, the tester must determine the type and location of systems and devices.
This allows the organization to simulate real external attacks.
imitatsiyalashga imkon beradi.
The opposite of the Black‑box method
in the White‑box approach
the tester has important information about the network and system being tested, such as network topology, IP addresses, even
users
and the current source code of applications.
Gray box is a method between Black‑box and White‑box, providing the tester with
a limited amount of information.
Unlike vulnerability scanning, penetration testing (also called a pentest) is intended to exploit any weak points in the system.
Penetration testing relies on the tester’s knowledge, skills, and ingenuity rather than on automated tools.
Suqilib kirishga testlashda jarayon avtomatlashgan dasturiy vositalar o‘rniga testlovchi mutaxassisning bilim, ko‘nikma va uddaburonligiga asoslanadi.
Attack objects
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71%
20%
Legal entities
1% 1% 2%
5%
Computers,
servers and network devices
Web resources
Users
Mobile devices
IoT
32%
9%
31%
26%
2%
Individuals
Computers,
servers and network devices
Web resources
Users
Mobile devices
IoT
Attack methods
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2
5
9
2
51
58
6
8
14
14
63
66
0
10
Legal entity
40
50
60
70
Others
Acquisition of personal
Hacking
Web vulnerabilities exploitation
Social engineering
Malicious applications use
20 30
Physical person
Impact Scope of Vulnerabilities
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Impact | Description | Examples |
No impact | This vulnerability does not affect the organization’s operations qilmaydi | The theft of a mouse from a workstation does not affect the organization’s operations o‘g‘irlanishi tashkilot faoliyatiga taʼsir qilmaydi |
Small impact | Small‑impact vulnerabilities may cause inconveniences and partial changes to work processes | Additional disks or testing may be required for certain types of hard‑drive devices to function |
Significant | Threats that cause work suspension leading to a decline in employee productivity pasayishiga olib keluvchi tahdidlar | Malware installed on the network |
Major | Vulnerabilities that have a significant impact on the organization’s revenue | Stealing the organization’s product‑development technology and scientific foundations via backdoors texnologiyasi va ilmiy asoslarini o‘g‘irlash |
Catastrophic | Critical‑type vulnerabilities that cause the organization’s operations to halt or be severely disrupted qolishigan yoki sezilarli darajada buzilishiga sabab bo‘luvchi o‘ta muhim turiga kiruvchi zaifliklar | Examples from students!!! |
PORT & PORT NUMBERS
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IP addresses are the primary form of address identification in a TCP/IP network and are used to uniquely identify each network device.
TCP/IP uses numeric values as identifiers for programs and services in this system. They are known as port numbers. Each packet contains the source and destination IP addresses, as well as the source port identifying the originating service on the local system and the destination port identifying the corresponding service on the remote system.
Port
Port numbers
Because port numbers are 16 bits long, they can have decimal values ranging from 0 to 65,535. TCP/IP categorizes port numbers into three classes:
Port operation statuses
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Open
the program or service associated with the port is
listening for any instructions. The host system returns a response to the scanner about the service's availability and listening
returns
Closed
no process
is listening. Host
system returns a response that the service is not present and that connection attempts are rejected
Blocked
the host system for this port
means it does not answer any request concerning this port number
Because port numbers are linked to services, if an attacker knows that a specific port is reachable, they can indicate which services are being used. For example, if port 20 is present, the attacker may assume FTP
is being used on the network. Consequently, they can direct their attacks to that service.
Ports scanning
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Name | Scanning process | Description |
TCP connect scanning | This scanning attempts to connect to each existing port. If the port is open, the operating system completes a three‑way handshake with TCP and the port scanner closes the connection; otherwise an error code is returned. | This type of scanning does not require special privileges; because it works slowly, the scanner can be detected. |
TCP SYN scanning | Instead of using operating system functions, the scanner generates its own IP packets and monitors the responses. The scanner generates a SYN packet and if the target port is open, this port responds with a SYN+ACK packet; after that the scanner terminates the connection until the “handshake” process is complete. Skaner SYN-paketni generatsiyalaydi va agar ko‘zlangan port ochiq bo‘lsa, ushbu port SYN + ACK paketi orqali javob qaytaradi, undan so‘ng skaner xosti "qo‘l siqish“ jarayoni tugaguncha aloqani uzadi | SYN scanning is the most popular type of TCP scanning, and most sites do not log these actions; this scanning is also called “half‑open scanning” because a full TCP connection is never established. |
TCP FIN scanning | The scanner sends a finishing packet (FIN) without first sending a SYN start packet; a closed port responds, but an open port does not accept the packet. | The FIN packet may pass through a firewall as part of a regular handshake process and go undetected. |
Stealth scans | In hidden scanning, various methods are used to avoid detection. Since a port scan is an unsolicited incoming connection, it is usually logged as an error; covert scanning attempts to “trick” logging services. | First method – slow scanning over several days to avoid detection; second method – presenting a different target, scanning from an entirely different real address. boshqacha ko‘rsatib, umuman boshqa real manzildan skanerlashni amalga oshirish |
Xmas Tree port scan | Xmas tree packet – a packet with all parameters enabled for any protocol in use. For scanning the TCP packet header, the FIN (finish), URG (urgent), and PSH (push) flags are set. | Since all bits in the packet header are set, it can be said that the packet is “decorated like a New Year’s tree”. to‘ldirilganligidan «Paket yangi yil archasi» kabi bezatilgan deyish mumkin |
Penetration testing and vulnerability scanner capabilities
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Capability | Vulnerability scanner | Penetration testing |
Frequency | When new devices are installed and thereafter at least once per month | Once a year |
Purpose | Identify existing and new vulnerabilities | Identify unknown factors affecting the business process omillarni aniqlash |
Tester | Internal staff | External independent tester |
Location | Used internally | Used externally |
Disruption | Passive assessment without errors | Active attack via potential disruptions |
Instrument | Automated software tools | Tester’s knowledge and skills |
Cost | Cheap (around $1500 with staff salaries) | Expensive (around $12,500) |
Report | Comparison of current vulnerability with existing vulnerabilities solishtirish | Brief analysis of the attack execution and the damage inflicted zarar haqida qisqa tahlil |
Value | Identifies weak points of software and hardware tools nuqtalarini aniqlaydi | Preventive measures to reduce impacts on business processes profilaktik chora tadbirlar |
Thank you for your attention