TN-963: Windows Security Automation with PowerShell

Course Overview:

PowerShell is made for Security Operations (SecOps) automation on Windows. SecOps requires automation in order to scale out security changes and monitoring beyond a handful of hosts. For example, when a vulnerability must be remediated but there is no patch for it yet, automation is needed to quickly and consistently enact the changes necessary. PowerShell “remoting” is encrypted remote command execution of PowerShell scripts in a way that can scale to thousands of endpoints and servers.

Imagine being able to hunt for indicators of compromise across thousands of machines with just a few lines of PowerShell code. Or imagine having the local Administrator account password reset every night on thousands of endpoints in a secure way, and being able to retrieve that password securely too.

We will show you to do these tasks and more. Transcription logging for forensics, strong encryption code signing, application whitelisting of scripts, IPSec port control, and Just Enough Admin (JEA).

As more and more of our systems are moved up to the cloud, PowerShell will become even more important. Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Office 365, Hyper-V and VMware already support PowerShell administration for many tasks.

Attendees to TN-963: Windows Security Automation with PowerShell will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 3 days

Course Objectives:

Day One
PowerShell Overview and Tips

    • Getting started running commands
    • Using and updating the built-in help
    • Execution policies
    • Fun tricks with the ISE graphical editor
    • Piping .NET and COM objects, not text
    • Using properties and methods of objects
    • Helping Linux admins feel more at home
    • Aliases, cmdlets, functions, modules, etc.
    • Customizing your profile script

What Can We Do With PowerShell

    • PowerShell remote command execution
    • Fan-out remoting and security
    • File copy via PowerShell remoting
    • Capturing the output of commands
    • Parsing text files and logs with regex patterns
    • Searching remote event logs faster with XPath
    • Mounting the registry as a drive
    • Exporting data to CSV, HTML and JSON files
    • Parsing and mining nmap port scanner XML output
    • Running scripts as scheduled jobs
    • Pushing out scripts through Group Policy
    • Importing modules and dot-sourcing functions
    • http://www.PowerShellGallery.com

Write your own scripts

    • Writing your own functions
    • Passing arguments into your scripts
    • Function parameters and returning output
    • Flow control: if-then, do-while, foreach, switch
    • The .NET Framework class library: a playground
    • How to pipe data in/out of your scripts

Day Two
Continuous Secure Configuration Enforcement

    • How to use Group Policy and PowerShell together
    • Automate with INF security templates
    • How to customize INF templates
    • Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM)
    • SECEDIT.EXE scripting
    • Building an in-house security repository for SecOps/DevOps
    • NSA’s Secure Host Baseline GPOs

Group Policy Precision Targeting

    • Managing Group Policy Objects (GPOs) with PowerShell
    • LSDOU, Block Inheritance, Enforced GPOs
    • Group Policy permissions for targeting changes
    • ADMX templates for mass registry editing
    • Deploying PowerShell startup and logon scripts
    • WMI item-level targeting of GPO preferences
    • GPO scheduled tasks to run PowerShell scripts
    • Remote command execution via GPO (not remoting)
    • Empowering the Hunt Team to fight back!

Server Hardening for SecOps/DevOps

    • Server Manager scripting with PowerShell
    • Adding and removing roles and feature
    • Remotely inventory roles, features, and apps
    • Why Server Nano or Server Core
    • Running PowerShell automatically after service failure
    • Service account identities, passwords, and risks
    • Tools to reset service account passwords securely

Day Three
PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC)

    • DSC is Configuration Management built in for free
    • Using DSC for continuous reinforcement of settings
    • Writing your own DSC configuration scripts
    • Free DSC resource modules: www.PowerShellGallery.com
    • How to push DSC configurations to many targets
    • DSC background job processing in push mode
    • Examples: sync files, install roles, manage groups
    • Auditing a remote target against a DSC MOF template
    • “ApplyAndAutoCorrect” mode for continuous enforcement

PowerShell Just Enough Admin (JEA)

    • JEA is Windows sudo, like on Linux
    • JEA is Windows setuid root, like on Linux
    • Restricting commands and arguments
    • Verbose transcription logging
    • How to set up and configure JEA
    • Privilege Access Workstations (PAWs)

PowerShell and WMI

    • Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) service
    • What is WMI and why do hackers abuse it so much?
    • Using PowerShell to query WMI CIM classes
    • WMI authentication and traffic encryption
    • Inventory operating system versions and installed software
    • WMI remote command execution versus PowerShell remoting
    • PowerShell security best practices
    • PowerShell transcription logging to catch hackers

Prerequisites:

  • GSEC or equivalent experience
  • UNIX, Windows, Networking, and Security Experience
  • This is a hands-on skill course requiring comfort with command line interaction and network communications

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PA-232: Palo Alto Networks Panorama Manage Multiple Firewalls (EDU-221)

  

 

Course Overview:  PA-232: Palo Alto Networks Panorama Manage Multiple Firewalls (EDU-221) Training Class is a two-day course.  Students attending this course will gain an in-depth knowledge of how to configure and manage their Palo Alto Networks Panorama Management Server.  Upon completion of this course, administrators will understand the Panorama server’s role in managing and securing their overall network.  Network professionals will learn to use Panorama’s aggregated reporting to provide them with a holistic view of a network of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls.  This is not a virtualized theoretical course.  This is hands-on, real world instruction, directly relevant to the DoD and Commercial implementations of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls.

Each student is issued a physical Palo Alto firewall and a Cisco layer 3 switch at their desk.  Real hardware per student for real experience and real skill development.

TechNow provides a very comprehensive client infrastructure that includes Windows, Linux, and multiple packet sniffer agents.  The instructor for this course has been a lead in Unix kernel development to implement firewall and intrusion detection technologies.  Additionally, the instructor has taught several security appliance products and carries several SANS, ISC2, ISACA, Cisco, Unix, and Windows certifications.

Attendees to the PA-232: Palo Alto Networks Panorama Manage Multiple Firewalls (EDU-221) Training Course will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

 

Dates/Locations: No Events

Duration: 2 days

Course Objectives:   Students attending this foundational-level training course will gain an in-depth knowledge of how to configure and manage their Palo Alto Networks Panorama Management Server.

Day 1

  • Module 0 – Introduction & Overview
  • Mod 1: Overview
    • Panorama Solution
    • Deployment Design
  • Mod 2: Initial Configuration
    • Interface Configuration
    • Setup Configurations
    • Device Deployment
    • Configuration Management
  • Mod 3: Templates
    • Templates Overview
    • Common Organization
    • Strategies
    • Configuring Templates
  • Mod 4: Device Groups
    • Device Groups
    • Objects
    • Policies
    • Device Group Commit

 

Day 2

  • Mod 5: Administration
    • Admin Roles and Access
    • Control
    • Commit Procedure
  • Mod 6: Logging and
    • Reporting
    • Logging
    • Application Command
    • Center
    • App-Scope
    • Correlation Objects
    • Reports
  • Mod 7: Log Collectors
    • Plan a Log Collection
    • Deployment
    • Distributed Data Collection
    • Log Deployment
    • Configure Dedicated Log
    • Collector
    • Managed Collector Groups
  • Mod 8: Business Continuity
    • Panorama High Availability
    • Collector Group
    • Redundancy
    • Export Configuration
    • Disk Installation

 

Prerequisites:

This course is in no way associated with Palo Alto Networks, Inc.

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C-225: C++ Object Oriented Programming

 

Course Overview:

C-225: C++ Object Oriented Programming is a hands-on course that provides a complete introduction to the ANSI Standard C++ programming language, focusing on quickly developing the practical skills needed to create real-world solutions.  Our hands-on labs are designed to promote retention and challenge students to apply their skills to new situations.

C++ is more than just C with classes.  It is a whole new language with a structure similar to C, but with significant differences to warrant a complete course to cover its features.

Attendees to C-225: C++ Oriented Programming will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Dates/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 5 Days

Course Objectives:

  • Classes
  • Casting in C++
  • Constructors & Destructors
  • Class Methods & Data
  • Inheritance
  • Overloaded Functions
  • Virtual Functions
  • Overloaded Operators
  • Pure Virtual Functions
  • Exception Handling
  • References & Constants
  • Standard Template Library
  • New and Delete
  • STL Containers

Prerequisites:

 

Comments

Latest comments from students

User: christinehejnal

Instructor comments: The material was made clear, however I don't agree that she shouldn't have catered towards the people not taking the exam.

Facilities comments: The facilities were cold and very noisy, I found it hard to concentrate.

User: mamacker1

Instructor comments: Informative instructor. Definitely not monotone. I'd recommend it to my sister if I had one.

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TN-939: Hacker Techniques, Exploits, and Incident Handling Course

Course Overview:

A skills focus enables the student to better absorb the subject matter and perform successfully on the exam.   This is not death by power point. The course is aligned with information assurance operators and executing hands-on labs. Lecture and labs walk the student through the knowledge required to truly understand the mechanics of the attacks and the effectiveness.  Students then gain network experience and use sniffing to help exemplify the benefit of learning wired and wireless security configurations. The course concludes with exercising real attack strategies to demonstrate the techniques acquired throughout the course.

Attendees to TN-939:  Hacker Techniques, Exploits, and Incident Handling will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 9 days

Course Objectives:

  • Backdoors & Trojan Horses
  • Buffer Overflows
  • Covering Tracks: Networks
  • Covering Tracks: Systems
  • Denial of Service Attacks
  • Exploiting Systems Using Netcat
  • Format String Attacks
  • Incident Handling Overview and Preparation
  • Incident Handling Phase 2: Identification
  • Incident Handling Phase 3: Containment
  • Incident Handling: Recovering and Improving Capabilities
  • IP Address Spoofing
  • Network Sniffing
  • Password Attacks
  • Reconnaissance
  • Rootkits
  • Scanning: Host Discovery
  • Scanning: Network and Application Vulnerability scanning and tools
  • Scanning: Network Devices (Firewall rules determination, fragmentation, and IDS/IPS evasion)
  • Scanning: Service Discovery
  • Session Hijacking, Tools and Defenses
  • Types of Incidents
  • Virtual Machine Attacks
  • Web Application Attacks
  • Worms, Bots & Bot-Nets

Prerequisites:

  • GSEC or equivalent experience
  • UNIX, Windows, Networking, and Security Experience
  • This is a hands-on skill course requiring comfort with command line interaction and network communications

Comments

Latest comments from students

User: m_jurrens

Instructor comments: Both instructors Mr. Askey and Mr. Hackney, were very good. the open learning environment was extremely productive and I felt we all learned far more that we ever would out of a structured rote memorization course.

User: natebonds

Instructor comments: Both Mr. Askey and Hackney were extremely knowledgeable. They were also extremely interested in helping each student learn. I was particularly impressed with the way they tailored the course to optimize our time since we weren't testing. I feel like I know much much more than I did when the class started.

Facilities comments: The facilities were fine. I would have preferred it be closer to Lackland.

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