RE: VISA/Mastercard PCI Vendor Scanning requirements

From: Craig Wright (cwright@bdosyd.com.au)
Date: Fri Mar 03 2006 - 16:05:46 EST


Hello,
Real testing. Nothing in the VISA statement of terms includes BLIND. Never is the word mentioned. It is ONLYmentioned when vendors seek an excuse (ie Cable and Wireless and last years little incident).
 
How do we get to the idea that an external test must be blind?
 
This is just the please tie my hands behind my back type of thinking that leaves holes. The issue is NOT "what will a average hacker see". The issue is to ensure that the site is configured to a statndard and that all KNOWN vulnerabilities are patched/mitigated. VISA does not want to test the site as iut may be seen from the internet by hackers, this is just wrong for all those who believe this.
 
For all those companies doing this. Think liability. Force of law comes into effect this year in Australia to the auditing standards and has already in the US and UK. This means that there are criminal sanctions for conducting audits without following approved process.
 
So to what we do.
 
We get copies of the system config. The firewall config. The firmware versions. Dumps of the OS. Rules. Logs. Basically everything that you could possibly consider.
 
This information is analysed. A combination of Spectral analysis for systems design and Time Series analysis for the logs is used amongst other things.
 
A pen Test is used to verify findings.
 
Regards
Craig

        -----Original Message-----
        From: Derek Nash [mailto:ddnash@gmail.com]
        Sent: Fri 3/03/2006 1:52 PM
        To: pen-test@securityfocus.com
        Cc:
        Subject: VISA/Mastercard PCI Vendor Scanning requirements
        
        

        For those of you who are providing PCI certified scanning how are you
        complying with the requirement that "The vendor should ensure that it
        has an unfiltered communication path to the customer's environment."
        in order to avoid "Internet Service Provider Blocked Ports" that could
        "result in misleading report conclusions."
        
        Mastercard eludes to scanning over a VPN tunnel, but that seems
        excessive and a potential logistical nightmare depending on volume of
        business and technical know-how at the client's end.
        
        I am just wonder what other providers are doing to comply. Thanks in
        advance for your posts.
        
        
        --
        Best Regards,
        
        ddnash
        
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