Breach Attack Simulation: Why is it Important?

 

Hi everyone. Today I would like to walk through with you about what is Breach Attack Simulation (BAS) and the importance of having BAS tool in place.

 

WHAT IS BREACH ATTACK SIMULATION

 

Breach Attack Simulation (BAS) is an advanced cybersecurity assessment that tries to force its way into security systems to look for vulnerabilities and possible attack routes that threat actors could use by simulating real-world cyber attacks and generating actionable results. 

 

By simulating various attack vectors, BAS helps organizations identify vulnerabilities and potential weaknesses in their systems before the real attackers can exploit them. This simulation generates detailed reports which provide insight on security gaps which allows organizations to prioritize remediation efforts based on risk level.

 

HOW BAS WORKS?

 

BAS works by simulating the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by actual threat actors to identify vulnerabilities and assess the effectiveness of an organization's security controls. The selection of a BAS scenario could be based on:

• Emerging threats
• Custom-defined situations
• Known attack patterns leveraged in the wild
• Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups which particularly target specific industry

 

BAS can simulate the breaches or attacks based on:

1. Network-based Simulations : To test the organization’s network security controls, BAS tools are used for the Network-based simulations. All the security firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention systems, and all other devices that monitor and control network traffic are tested for the various types of attacks. Network-based simulations include port scanning, denial-of-service attacks, vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, and other network-based attacks.
2. Endpoint-based Simulations : These simulations are designed in a way to test the endpoint security controls. They include antivirus software, host-based intrusion detection, and prevention systems, and other endpoint security technologies. They simulate attacks on all the endpoints, such as IOT devices, laptops, desktops, and mobile devices associated with the company’s network.
3. Email-based Simulations : These simulations will make sure that the organization’s network is spam-free and that they are well-mannered when it comes to phishing attacks. These simulations include phishing attacks, malware attacks, and other email-based attacks to test the organization’s anti-spam filters, anti-phishing measures, and other email security technologies.
4. Cloud-based Simulations : Cloud-based simulations are intended for testing the cloud infrastructure security controls. They include cloud access controls, virtual machine security, and other cloud-based security measures. It includes simulating an attack on cloud-based services, such as virtual machines and cloud storage. 

 

Because implementing automated BAS tool comes with a number of advantages, many security teams depend on automated BAS tool in order to perform continuous security validation on their system. Among the many advantages of a computer-generated Breach Attack Simulation are the following:

1. Documentation : Due to the rapid nature of manual penetration attack simulation, there is frequently insufficient documentation regarding the test's specifics.
2. Time : Automation saves time in most aspects of technology, including security posture testing. Breach Attack Simulations also improve collaboration between the Red and Blue teams. Furthermore, Red Team members are frequently very talented and could be better focusing on the complicated Red Teaming tasks.
3. Safety : Because it is scheduled, expected, and monitored, automated BAS is safer than manually attacking a security team's posture.

 

CONCLUSION

 

Breach and attack simulations can help secure vital organizational assets by simulating expected attack strategies across all attack channels and then offering prioritized remedial guidance.

 

Breach simulations provide non-stop protection and allow defenders to adopt a more aggressive approach to maintaining security across all parts of a security environment by doing so in an automated, continuous approach.