[IS&T Security-FYI] SFYI Newsletter, April 14, 2014

[Monique Buchanan]

In this (Heartbleed) issue:

1. Status of Heartbleed at MIT
2. Lessons Learned from Heartbleed
3. Seven Heartbleed Myths Debunked
4. For Fun: XKCD on Heartbleed


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1. Status of Heartbleed at MIT
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Last week after the OpenSSL issue was discovered, IS&T took measures to protect systems at MIT affected by the vulnerability. What exactly has happened or is still happening?

This article lays it out in detail.<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/x/5lMYCQ> You may also find answers to some of your questions at the first KB article that recorded the vulnerability<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/x/g1MYCQ>.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please contact the Help Desk at helpdesk at mit.edu<mailto:helpdesk at mit.edu>.

If you need assistance with finding a vulnerable host on the MIT domain, please contact security at mit.edu<mailto:security at mit.edu>.


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2. Lessons Learned from Heartbleed
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Now that the world is aware of the Heartbleed Bug, and scrambling to fix servers, routers, virtual machines and VPNs, what are some lessons we, as web surfers, can take away from this security disaster?


  1.  Don’t use your passwords in multiple places. When setting strong passwords<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/x/3wNt>, it might be tempting to use that strong password in multiple places. But if one of the web sites where it is used gets compromised, then all the accounts that use that password become vulnerable to exposure.
  2.  Change your password at least once a year. Even when you’ve set a strong password, if an event like the Heartbleed Bug happens, where captured data from an affected site includes your log in credentials, your password is now potentially exposed. If you change your password<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/x/X5A7> on a regular basis, the password that a thief has stolen from the affected site becomes outdated and useless.
  3.  Use multi-factor authentication where available. A password can be guessed if it’s not strong enough, or hacked using tools and computers that can crack thousands of password possibilities in seconds. But when a site offers two-factor or multi-factor authentication<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-factor_authentication> for logging in, then just having your log in name and password isn’t enough. The thief would need another item, a key that is usually a one-time number, to access your account. You can set up a preference on the account to have the key sent to your mobile phone. Without that key, your user name and password are useless.
  4.  Password managers can be our friends. A tool such as LastPass or KeePass manages your passwords for you<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/display/istcontrib/Strong+Passwords#StrongPasswords-Arepasswordmanagersagoodidea%3F>, so you don’t have to remember them. When you don’t have to remember a password, you can make it as complex as you like and can access it as needed. In addition, tools such as LastPass have security features built in<https://lastpass.com/features_free.php>, so that if there is any vulnerability regarding a password, you will be notified.
  5.  Be very, very suspicious of emails asking you to verify an account. Because cyber thieves now know that people are concerned about this vulnerability, they are going to take advantage of people’s fears. They will try to trick you via a phishing email<http://kb.mit.edu/confluence/x/SBhB> by telling you your account is at risk if you don’t take action, then suggesting you click a link that goes to an affected or bogus site where they can capture your login information.

Safe computing is all about knowledge and changing behavior. If this disaster has taught us anything, I hope it has been that we are more aware of the risks and will change some of the ways we use a computer and the Internet.


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3. Seven Heartbleed Myths Debunked
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An article by readwrite.com<http://readwrite.com/2014/04/14/heartbleed-myths-debunked-fact-fiction> debunks 7 of the major myths going around about the Heartbleed Bug.

The top 7 myths:


  1.  Heartbleed is a virus
  2.  The bug only affects web sites
  3.  Hackers use it to remote control your phones
  4.  Windows XP users are screwed because Microsoft abandoned them
  5.  All of our banks are open for heart bleeding
  6.  My site/service isn’t at risk, or I patched, so I’m safe now
  7.  The NSA has been using Heartbleed to spy on us

Much of this misinformation is going around as news reports come out. Learn about what is true and what isn’t<http://readwrite.com/2014/04/14/heartbleed-myths-debunked-fact-fiction>.


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4. For Fun: XKCD on Heartbleed
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Heartbleed<http://xkcd.com/1353/> and How the Heartbleed Bug Works<http://xkcd.com/1354/>


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Monique Buchanan
IT Security Communications Consultant
Information Systems & Technology (IS&T)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
http://ist.mit.edu/secure
tel: 617.253.2715



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