| Guidelines
for Securing An Internet Services Device
Help
Guidelines
for Securing a Device to be Attached to the Georgia State Network and
the Internet:
- Protect
the device before it is attached to the network.
Devices can be compromised or infected with a virus within minutes
of connection to the network. Do the following before attaching
the device to the network:
- Install current
security patches for the device
- Install anti-virus
software
- Use
Antivirus software.
Antivirus software is a necessity for windows operating system devices.
Configure it to:
- Scan for
viruses in real time
- Daily automatically
update of virus signatures
- Periodically
perform a full virus scan of the device
- Shut
down unnecessary services.
Disable services that are not required for the desired function
of the device. Devices often come with many services enabled by
default that are not necessary. Services that are not running cannot
be used to penetrate the device.
- Install
and configure a firewall.
A device may be protected by either an internal host based firewall
or an external stand alone firewall. A firewall stance of "everything
that is not explicitly denied is not allowed" is the industry
best practice.
- Enable
and enforce password standards.
Configure the device to require strong passwords. Enable as many
of the following standards as possible:
- Length of
6 characters or more
- No word that
can be found in a dictionary
- A mixture
of upper case, lower case, numerals and special characters
- Password
must be changed every 90 days
- Passwords
may not be reused
- Enable
and configuring logging.
Typically, very little logging is enabled by default. Logging is
extremely useful for detecting and unsuccessful and successful attempted
penetrations.
- Stay
up to date on security patches.
Security is an ongoing process. Apply security patches or workarounds
promptly.
- Keep
informed on security issues.
There are many security mailing lists and web pages available on
the Internet. At a minimum, you should join the security alert mailing
from the manufacturer of the network device if one is available.
Here are links to sites for some major vendors as well as general
security and antivirus information web sites. Many of these sites
have mailing lists you may join to alert you to new security vulnerabilities
and patches.
Help:
If you have questions,
or need assistance, please contact the Help Center (404-651-4507 or
help@gsu.edu).
|