nanog mailing list archives
Re: misunderstanding scale
From: William Herrin <bill () herrin us>
Date: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 13:37:06 -0400
On Mon, Mar 24, 2014 at 9:25 AM, Joe Greco <jgreco () ns sol net> wrote:
I say this with the utmost respect, but you must understand the principle of defense in depth in order to make competent security decisions for your organization. Smart people disagree on the details but the principle is not only iron clad, it applies to all forms of security, not just IP network security.The problem here is that what's actually going on is that you're now enshrining as a "security" device a hacky, ill-conceived workaround for a lack of flexibility/space/etc in IPv4. NAT was not designed to act as a security feature.
Hi Joe, That would be one of those "details" on which smart people disagree. In this case, I think you're wrong. Modern NAT superseded the transparent proxies and bastion hosts of the '90s because it does the same security job a little more smoothly. And proxies WERE designed to act as a security feature.
You'd expect folks to give up two layers of security at exactly the same time as they're absorbing a new network protocol with which they're yet unskilled? Does that make sense to you from a risk-management standpoint?Actually, yes, it does. Using the product as intended is substantially less risky than trying to figure out how to use some sort of proxy or gateway functionality to emulate NAT, and then screwing that up.
What sort of traction are you getting from that argument when you speak with enterprise security folks? Regards, Bill Herrin -- William D. Herrin ................ herrin () dirtside com bill () herrin us 3005 Crane Dr. ...................... Web: <http://bill.herrin.us/> Falls Church, VA 22042-3004
Current thread:
- Re: misunderstanding scale (was: Ipv4 end, its fake.), (continued)
- Re: misunderstanding scale (was: Ipv4 end, its fake.) Cb B (Mar 23)
- Re: misunderstanding scale (was: Ipv4 end, its fake.) Mark Tinka (Mar 23)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Denis Fondras (Mar 23)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Mark Tinka (Mar 23)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Karl Auer (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Mark Tinka (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale William Herrin (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Michael Thomas (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale William Herrin (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Joe Greco (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale William Herrin (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Lee Howard (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale William Herrin (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Lee Howard (Mar 25)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Timothy Morizot (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Timothy Morizot (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Joe Greco (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Michael Thomas (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Joe Greco (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale William Herrin (Mar 24)
- Re: misunderstanding scale Joe Greco (Mar 24)