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Security Through Network Fundamentals

Chapter Description

In this sample chapter from Practical Cisco Unified Communications Security, you will explore the dependencies that Unified Communications (UC) systems have on a network while also highlighting the security features that can be implemented to provide additional security to the UC environment.

Continuous Monitoring

Continuous monitoring of the network and its security controls for effectiveness is key to the overall health and security of the network. NIST has released publication 800-137 on this topic of continuous monitoring and establishing the practice of monitoring. MITRE provides Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), which are the industry standard for identifying common vulnerability and exposure identifiers. Lastly, there is a Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) provided by the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST). CVSS is a published standard that is used by organizations worldwide. In principle, the CVSS captures the severity of a vulnerability by associating a numerical score to it.

For new vulnerabilities, the Cisco Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) creates and maintains publications, commonly referred to as PSIRT Advisories, for security-related issues in Cisco products. The method used for communication of less severe issues is the Cisco Security Response.

To get access to Cisco PSIRT information, you have these different options:

  • ▪ Visit the Cisco PSIRT website.

  • ▪ Subscribe to RSS feeds.

  • ▪ Integrate with the Cisco PSIRT’s openVuln API, which can be used for programmability and automation of security functionality.

To learn more about accessing and using the openVuln API, visit the Cisco PSIRT page on the Cisco DevNet website: https://developer.cisco.com/site/PSIRT.

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