Network scanning is the process of building an inventory of IT infrastructure assets by identifying an active host on a network. Similar methods can be used by an attacker or network administrator to assess security. This procedure plays a vital role in risk assessment programs and the preparation of a security plan for your organization.Practical Network Scanning starts with the concept of network scanning and how organizations can benefit from it. Then, going forward, we delve into the different steps involved in scanning, such as service detection, firewall detection, TCP/IP port detection, and OS detection. We also implement these concepts using a few of the most prominent tools on the market, such as Nessus and Nmap. In the concluding chapters, we prepare a complete vulnerability assessment plan for your organization. By the end of this book, you will have hands-on experience of performing network scanning using different tools and in choosing the best tools of your system.
If you are a network and security professional who is responsible for securing an organization's network infrastructure, then this book is for you.
Chapter 1, Fundamental Security Concepts, explains the necessity for network security and covers a step-by-step approach to keep in mind for securing a network. You will also learn how to identify the need for security and the factors involved in network security.
Chapter 2, Secure Network Design, explains the security threats that exist in modern networks and how to design a secure network by keeping them in mind. It also explains network segmentation, defining a network boundary, and the importance of encryption, things to consider, and the benefits of implementing security on different network layers.
Chapter 3, Server-Level Security, gives us a basic understanding of protecting a server's infrastructure, including aspects such as hardening the server, the use of various authentication methods, password policies, and protection against viruses and malware.
Chapter 4, Cloud Security Design, explains the security aspects that you will need to keep in mind before migrating your critical data information to the cloud.
Chapter 5, Application Security Design, explains how to identify the common risks involved in designing and launching an application. You will also learn common safeguard methods from a user's point of view to surf an application in a secure way.
Chapter 6, Threat Detection and Response, explains various aspects of security IT infrastructure, from monitoring to responding to incidents and diverting attackers.
Chapter 7, Vulnerability Assessment, explains the vulnerability assessment methodology and generating reports based on assessment metrics for scoring.
Chapter 8, Remote OS Detection, explains methods for detecting a target's operating system with an Nmap application.
Chapter 9, Public Key Infrastructure – SSL, explains PKI and the implementation steps for securing an application using SSL.
Chapter 10, Firewall Placement and Detection Techniques, explains the aspects of designing a firewall to build secure network. It also explains the techniques and tools to detect firewall.
Chapter 11, VPN and WAN Encryption, explains how to design and secure a WAN infrastructure.
Chapter 12, Summary and Scope of Security Technologies, explains security trends and possible future security technologies.
To understand the content of this book, it is recommended that you have basic knowledge of computer networks. If you are certified with CCNA network and security, that will be a good foundation for you to advance your knowledge about computer networks by reading this book.
As you know, it does not make sense to learn about computer networks without doing any practical work. Therefore, it is suggested that you practice TCP/IP, IP Packet Flow, Basic network design and setting up a LAN with at least a Cisco switch and router. Download emulators and simulators such as PuTTY and Tera Term, Packet Tracer and GNS3, Wireshark, Nmap, Nessus. All of the download links are included in the book.
We also provide a PDF file that has color images of the screenshots/diagrams used in this book. You can download it from https://www.packtpub.com/sites/default/files/downloads/PracticalNetworkScanning_ColorImages.pdf.
There are a number of text conventions used throughout this book.
CodeInText: Indicates code words in text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and Twitter handles. Here is an example: "For Linux, sudo iptables -L lists your current rules in iptables."
Any command-line input or output is written as follows:
netstat -antp | grep "LISTEN"Bold: Indicates a new term, an important word, or words that you see onscreen. For example, words in menus or dialog boxes appear in the text like this. Here is an example:
Most of us share our personal information on many web portals by clicking I Agree or I Accept the Terms and Conditions
Feedback from our readers is always welcome.
General feedback: Email [email protected] and mention the book title in the subject of your message. If you have questions about any aspect of this book, please email us at [email protected].
Errata: Although we have taken every care to ensure the accuracy of our content, mistakes do happen. If you have found a mistake in this book, we would be grateful if you would report this to us. Please visit www.packtpub.com/submit-errata, selecting your book, clicking on the Errata Submission Form link, and entering the details.
Piracy: If you come across any illegal copies of our works in any form on the Internet, we would be grateful if you would provide us with the location address or website name. Please contact us at [email protected] with a link to the material.
If you are interested in becoming an author: If there is a topic that you have expertise in and you are interested in either writing or contributing to a book, please visit authors.packtpub.com.
Please leave a review. Once you have read and used this book, why not leave a review on the site that you purchased it from? Potential readers can then see and use your unbiased opinion to make purchase decisions, we at Packt can understand what you think about our products, and our authors can see your feedback on their book. Thank you!
For more information about Packt, please visit packtpub.com.