Chapter 8

Information Systems Controls for System Reliability Part 1: Information Security

8-1
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Learning Objectives
Discuss how the COBIT framework can be used to
develop sound internal control over an organizations
information systems.
Explain the factors that influence information systems
reliability.
Describe how a combination of preventive, detective,
and corrective controls can be employed to provide
reasonable assurance about information security.

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8-2

AIS Controls
COSO and COSO-ERM address general internal control
COBIT addresses information technology internal control

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Information for Management Should

Be:
Effectiveness
Information must be relevant
and timely.

Availability
Information must be available
whenever needed.

Efficiency
Information must be produced
in a cost-effective manner.

Compliance
Controls must ensure
compliance with internal
policies and with external legal
and regulatory requirements.

Confidentiality
Sensitive information must be
protected from unauthorized
disclosure.
Integrity
Information must be accurate,
complete, and valid.

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Reliability
Management must have
access to appropriate
information needed to
conduct daily activities and to
exercise its fiduciary and
governance responsibilities.

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COBIT Framework

Information
Criteria

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COBIT Cycle
Management develops plans to organize information
resources to provide the information it needs.
Management authorizes and oversees efforts to acquire (or
build internally) the desired functionality.
Management ensures that the resulting system actually
delivers the desired information.
Management monitors and evaluates system performance
against the established criteria.
Cycle constantly repeats, as management modifies existing
plans and procedures or develops new ones to respond to
changes in business objectives and new developments in
information technology.

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8-6

COBIT Controls
210 controls for ensuring information integrity
Subset is relevant for external auditors
IT control objectives for Sarbanes-Oxley, 2nd Edition

AICPA and CICA information systems controls

Controls for system and financial statement reliability

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8-7

Trust Services Framework

Security
Access to the system and its data is controlled and restricted to legitimate
users.

Confidentiality
Sensitive organizational information (e.g., marketing plans, trade secrets) is
protected from unauthorized disclosure.

Privacy
Personal information about customers is collected, used, disclosed, and
maintained only in compliance with internal policies and external regulatory
requirements and is protected from unauthorized disclosure.

Processing Integrity
Data are processed accurately, completely, in a timely manner, and only with
proper authorization.

Availability
The system and its information are available to meet operational and
contractual obligations.

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8-8

Trust Services Framework

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8-9

Security / Systems Reliability

Foundation of the Trust Services Framework
Management issue, not a technology issue
SOX 302 states:
CEO and the CFO responsible to certify that the
financial statements fairly present the results of the
companys activities.
The accuracy of an organizations financial
statements depends upon the reliability of its
information systems.
Defense-in-depth and the time-based model of information
security
Have multiple layers of control

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8-10

Managements Role in IS Security

Create security aware culture
Inventory and value company information resources
Assess risk, select risk response
Develop and communicate security:
Plans, policies, and procedures

Acquire and deploy IT security resources

Monitor and evaluate effectiveness

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8-11

Time-Based Model
Combination of detective and corrective controls
P = the time it takes an attacker to break through the
organizations preventive controls
D = the time it takes to detect that an attack is in progress
C = the time it takes to respond to the attack
For an effective information security system:
P > D + C

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8-12

Steps in an IS System Attack

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8-13

Mitigate Risk of Attack

Preventive Control
Detective Control
Corrective Control

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8-14

Preventive Control
Training
User access controls (authentication and authorization)
Physical access controls (locks, guards, etc.)
Network access controls (firewalls, intrusion prevention
systems, etc.)
Device and software hardening controls (configuration
options)

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Authentication vs.
Authorization
Authenticationverifies who a person is
1. Something person knows
2. Something person has
3. Some biometric characteristic
4. Combination of all three

Authorizationdetermines what a person can access

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8-16

Network Access Control

(Perimeter Defense)
Border router
Connects an organizations information system to the Internet

Firewall
Software or hardware used to filter information

Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

Separate network that permits controlled access from the
Internet to selected resources

Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)

Monitors patterns in the traffic flow, rather than only inspecting
individual packets, to identify and automatically block attacks

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Internet Information Protocols

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Device and Software

Hardening (Internal Defense)
End-Point Configuration
Disable unnecessary features that may be vulnerable to
attack on:
Servers, printers, workstations

User Account Management

Software Design
Programmers must be trained to treat all input from external
users as untrustworthy and to carefully check it before
performing further actions.

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8-19

Detective Controls
Log Analysis
Process of examining logs to identify evidence of possible
attacks

Intrusion Detection
Sensors and a central monitoring unit that create logs of
network traffic that was permitted to pass the firewall and
then analyze those logs for signs of attempted or successful
intrusions

Managerial Reports
Security Testing

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Corrective Controls
Computer Incident Response Team
Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Independent responsibility for information security assigned
to someone at an appropriate senior level

Patch Management
Fix known vulnerabilities by installing the latest updates
Security programs
Operating systems
Applications programs

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Computer Incident Response

Team
Recognize that a problem exists
Containment of the problem
Recovery
Follow-up

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8-22

New Considerations
Virtualization
Multiple systems are
run on one computer

Cloud Computing
Remotely accessed
resources
Software
applications
Data storage
Hardware

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Risks
Increased exposure if
breach occurs
Reduced
authentication
standards
Opportunities
Implementing strong
access controls in the
cloud or over the server
that hosts a virtual
network provides good
security over all the
systems contained
therein
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