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Containing a Server Breach for a vCISO Client

 

Customer:

A long-term vCISO client in the nonprofit sector.

Challenge:

The client detected suspicious activity on an internet-facing Confluence server shortly after it was migrated to Microsoft Azure. The internal IT team quickly alerted Defensible for incident response support. With potential lateral movement and unknown exposure risks, the client needed immediate clarity, containment, and assurance.

 

Containing a Server Breach for a vCISO Client

Why Defensible:

As the organization’s trusted vCISO partner, Defensible was already familiar with the environment and security controls. Our team could act quickly, conduct targeted forensic analysis, and coordinate closely with internal staff to validate the scope of the incident and confirm containment.

Our Approach:

Defensible launched a multi-step incident investigation in collaboration with the client's internal IT security team:

Firewall and Exposure Analysis:

Reviewed Cisco ASA firewall ACLs and confirmed that, prior to Azure migration, internet exposure to the Confluence server had been limited to specific public IP addresses. This would have prevented widespread access to the known vulnerability.

Historical DNS and Shodan Review:

Searched archived DNS records and the Shodan.io platform for signs of earlier exposure. No indicators of prior public access were found before July 2023, supporting the theory that exposure was introduced during the cloud migration.

IOC Search and Threat Hunting:

Used SentinelOne to search for indicators of compromise (IOCs) and signs of lateral movement. No evidence of successful propagation to other systems was found.

Network Traffic Review:

Analyzed traffic originating from the compromised server. While scans for additional targets were observed, no successful connections or infections were identified.

The Outcome:

Defensible confirmed that the incident was limited in scope and the compromise had been contained. There were no signs of attacker persistence or spread beyond the affected server. Immediate remediation steps were taken to reinforce Azure security configurations and validate firewall rules.

Ongoing Partnership:

The incident reinforced the importance of rigorous post-migration validation and continuous monitoring. Defensible continues to provide vCISO guidance, helping the client:

  • Strengthen cloud deployment security reviews
  • Fine-tune firewall and access control policies
  • Conduct proactive threat hunting using SentinelOne

 

 

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