Test and Development Zone C Security Technical Implementation Guide

Test systems, to include hardware and software, and/or development systems are not typically secured in accordance with appropriate practices, therefore if they are connected to a production network it is possible to infect or degrade production devices.Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

It is imperative that communications used for administrative access to test and development components is limited to emergency situations or where out-of-band management would hinder daily operational requirements. In-band management introduces the risk of an attacker gaining access to the network internally or even externally.Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

In order to ensure a system or application will work efficiently and securely once deployed into a DoD production environment, development must occur on secure platforms. Otherwise, potentially misguided developers may inject code or incorrectly configure an application that could lead to denial of service once deployed into a production environment. In addition, a system or application must be able to run in a STIG compliant environment once fielded. Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

As systems in a lab or test environment are rarely secure, the network devices supporting the test and development zones must be properly secured IAW STIGs to avoid any test traffic from entering DoD network space or from possibility of compromise. If a tester is working to identify malicious code on a system within a test lab, and that system inadvertently communicates with the DoD production networks or systems, it puts the DoD systems at risk. Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

Configuration management to include hardware and software inventory control is a key security requirement. There are many reasons to document and baseline the systems/applications within the infrastructure to include: bugs which were fixed find their way back into the system, changes were made that were never documented nor audited so it was overwritten, code fixes being made to an incorrect version of software, etc. Information Assurance OfficerDCPR-1

As lab systems are seldom, if ever, in a STIG compliant, secure state, there must be additional security controls in place to protect DoD networks, DoD user communities, and production infrastructures.Information Assurance OfficerDCCT-1

During the installation of an operating system, the system is most vulnerable to attack because no security controls have been put in place to protect the system. It is very important to block all access to a system while the operating system is being installed and configured until such time that security controls can be implemented. Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

Virtual Machine clients provide a means for remote access into a separate enclave infrastructure using the same hardware the production client/OS resides on. As T&D environments are not always secure, this poses additional risk to the DoD desktop client or device if that device is utilizing such an architecture for remote access. Virtual machine technology permits multiple operating systems to reside on a single hardware platform, yet act as logically separate instances. In this environment, the guest operating system acts completely independent of the host operating system, however, in reality it is simulated in a contained software environment by the host system. The guest on a host system has the ability to be wholly contained and communicate independently of the host OS. Network traffic can be restricted on the guest OS and can be logically separated from any other guest or host OS on the platform. Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

Zone C T&D environments are specific in nature to those facilities that have a mission to communicate with another testing facility (e.g., DISA JITC). In Zone C, the network may be completed closed and isolated or connected only to another testing facility or to another subnet with a point-to-point network (dedicated circuit) or end-to-end VPN tunnel. Traffic is isolated and restricted via source and destination IP addresses or host names. If an external testing facility is not required, these networks may also be totally contained in racks physically located within a lab environment. There are no direct external (DoD or Internet) connections to these networks. The network connectivity to another testing facility may be accomplished via tunneling mechanisms such as VPNs, private circuit (preferred method), TACLANE, MPLS, or other means of complete traffic isolation. At no time will the Zone C system data be commingled with the General Business Enclave LAN or with DoD network traffic. Security requirements of Zone C systems are at the discretion of the Testing Facility IAM. If the IAM deems that testing requires STIG compliance, than the systems will be assessed, loaded into VMS, and any discrepancies will be corrected. The requirement for STIG compliancy on development systems remains. This does not imply that, although the systems may be STIG compliant, they are permitted to have external connectivity to a DoD network. The very nature of the Closed Network Test environment precludes network connectivity to any other network outside of the secondary testing facility. Information Assurance OfficerECSC-1

Up-to-date documentation is essential in assisting with the management, auditing, and security of the network infrastructure used to support the test and development environment. Network diagrams are important because they show the overall layout where devices are physically located within the network infrastructure. Diagrams also show the relationship and connectivity between devices where possible intrusive attacks could take place. Having up-to-date network diagrams will also help show what the security, traffic, and physical impact of adding a system will be on the network.Information Assurance OfficerInformation Assurance ManagerDCHW-1

Prior to connecting to a live operational network, such as the DISN, systems, at minimum, receive an IATO. A system without an IATO does not show adequate effort to meet IA controls and security requirements and may pose a risk to other computers or systems connecting to the operational network.Information Assurance OfficerInformation Assurance ManagerEBCR-1

An asset management system is used to send out notifications on vulnerabilities in commercial and military information infrastructures as they are discovered. If the organization's assets are not registered with an asset management system, administrators will not be notified of important vulnerabilities such as viruses, denial of service attacks, system weaknesses, back doors, and other potentially harmful situations. Additionally, there will be no way to enter, track, or resolve findings during a review.VIVM-1

It is important to restrict administrative access to the supporting network infrastructure and systems in the test and development environment, as it reduces the risk of data theft or interception from an attacker on the operational network.ECSC-1

An impersistent connection is any temporary connection needed to another test and development environment or DoD operational network where testing is not feasible. As any unvetted connection or device will create additional risk and compromise the entire environment, it is up to the Authorizing Official for the organization to accept the risk of an impersistent connection.EBCR-1, ECSD-1

A HIDS or HIPS application is a secondary line of defense behind the antivirus. The application will monitor all ports and the dynamic state of a development system. If the application detects irregularities on the system, it will block incoming traffic that may potentially compromise the development system that can lead to a DoS or data theft.ECID-1, ECSC-1

A firewall provides a line of defense against malicious attacks. To be effective, it must be enabled and properly configured.ECSC-1

Major software vendors release security patches and hotfixes to their products when security vulnerabilities are discovered. It is essential that these updates be applied in a timely manner to prevent unauthorized individuals from exploiting identified vulnerabilities.ECSC-1, VIVM-1

Change management is the formal review process that ensures that all changes made to a system or application receives formal review and approval. Change management reduces impacts from proposed changes that could possibly have interruptions to the services provided. Recording all changes for applications will be accomplished by a configuration management policy. The configuration management policy will capture the actual changes to software code and anything else affected by the change.DCII-1, DCPR-1

Without the approval of the Change Control Authority, data moved from the test and development network into an operational network could pose a risk of containing malicious code or cause other unintended consequences to live operational data. Data moving into operational networks from final stage preparation must always be vetted and approved.ECSC-1, ECSD-1, ECSD-2

Prior to release of the application receiving an IATO for deployment into a DoD operational network, the application will have a thorough code review. Along with the proper testing, the code review will specify flaws causing security, compatibility, or reliability concerns that may compromise the operational network.DCSQ-1, ECSC-1, ECSD-1, ECSD-2

Restricting access to source code and the application to authorized users will limit the risk of source code theft or other potential compromise.ECAN-1, ECCD-1, ECLP-1

Permitted activities in test and development environments include, but are not limited to, extensive testing using tools not otherwise permitted, working with potential malicious code, and working with ports, protocols, and services that are otherwise restricted via DoD policy. Infrastructure devices are not required to adhere to PPS regulations, as the network traffic does not access or traverse any operational DoD network. Unacceptable activities include network access to DoD operational systems or networks.ECSC-1

Systems or devices used for test data that do not meet minimum IA standards for accreditation are a risk to a DoD operational network if allowed to communicate between environments. Data that has not been fully tested and finalized for use in an operational network may cause unintended consequences, such as data loss or corruption. Unvetted data allowed into a DoD operational network from non-IA-compliant machines may also contain malicious code that could be used to steal or damage live data.ECSC-1

The use of encryption at the appropriate level to secure the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive information is imperative to ensure a data breach does not occur when transiting a transport network. If the information shared between interconnecting sites is marked for anything other than public release or is need to know, then it must use encryption correlating with the classification of the data in transit. Unclassified/FOUO will need to use a FIPS 140-2 validated cryptographic module. Classified traffic needs to use an NSA approved encryption standard.ECCT-1, ECCT-2, ECIC-1

Attacks on virtual machines from other VMs through denial of service and other attacks potentially stealing sensitive data such as source code used in application development. It is imperative to keep DoD operational virtual machines on physically separate platforms from test and development virtual machines.ECSC-1

Prior to establishing a connection with another organization, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), and/or Service Level Agreement (SLA) must be established between the two organizations. This documentation, along with diagrams of the network topology, is required to be submitted to the DAAs for approval to connect to each other. The policy must ensure that all connections to external networks conform equally.DCID-1, EBCR-1, ECSC-1

It is mandatory that data from an untrusted network or website that is to be used in a testing and development environment be downloaded through a secure perimeter. Bringing data directly from an untrusted network or downloaded from a personal computer or home Internet connection must be prohibited. Scanning data is crucial to ensure the integrity of the information prior to deployment for T&D processes. While not an all-inclusive list, data in this situation includes OS patches, application updates, operating systems, development tools, and test data. In the T&D environment, there will typically be one or more IA-compliant systems accessing a secure Internet connection. If a secure Internet connection is not available, such as in Zone D, a connection in another zone can be used and the data moved by approved physical media into the zone. Scanning the data with an anti-virus program will reduce the risk of exploits and of having vulnerable systems in the T&D environment taken over. Downloading data from a single workstation for all zone environments is acceptable. Organizations with NIPRNet connections must download all data through their NIPR connection for scanning at the IAPs. Contractors or other DoD organizations without any direct NIPRNet connectivity will need to use a secure Internet connection following all applicable DoD IA policy and STIG requirements.

Without policies and procedures in place, the organization will not have the authority to hold personnel accountable for improperly handling or transporting data into the test and development environment. The documents need to include guidance for both physical and electronic data migration.