How can you securely deploy patches?

Securing your digital fortress with patches is a bit like maintaining a shield—it's all about strategic reinforcement. When a vulnerability appears, it's akin to a crack in the armor. Deploying patches is like fortifying those weak spots, ensuring your defenses stay robust. It's not just about slapping on fixes; it's a thoughtful, proactive approach. Imagine your system as a medieval castle; patches are the skilled blacksmith's work, strengthening walls and gates to thwart potential invaders. This way, your digital stronghold stays resilient, warding off cyber threats effectively.

Use WSUS and have that server deploy the patches and have it only go online to get updates at a certain hour or hours and through a vpn then keep it offline.

Plan de sauvegarde : Avant d'appliquer des correctifs, assurez-vous de disposer de sauvegardes récentes de vos systèmes. En cas de problème pendant le processus de mise à jour, vous pourrez restaurer vos systèmes à un état antérieur.

Started: Windows / VMware / Linux / Hardware parts should run with up-to-date patch/firmware to avoid encountering viruses/malware/phishing. as Patch provide one layer of protection. Best Practice Tips: - Always Test before Deploy the patches on Production - Navigate the Microsoft catalog portal for any Known issue / Bug - Build Test infra test the patch Issues: - App Bind with specific AD server for the LDAP / Authentication method, try to keep details ready - Track Certificate expiry as any expired certificate always throws the issue post restart and during patching most of the devices get restarted. Tips: - create separate patch band for Critical app - Add more Health checks - build script to track patch status, services state, etc.

Bueno, la forma de aplicar los parches dependerá del tama?o y necesidades de la empresa. Para una peque?a empresa con un único DC y entre 3 y 5 equipos, podríamos simplificar el proceso sin comprometer la seguridad, asegurando que las actualizaciones automáticas estén habilitadas en todos los equipos, programando las actualizaciones para que se realicen por la noche, por ejemplo, o fuera del horario laboral o durante periodos de inactividad (festivos / vacas), haciendo una sencilla verificación de parches y de compatibilidad desde el WSUS (Win) o SUS (Unix) y asegurando un backup de los datos de los usuarios (esto ya con Microsoft365 lo podrías tener cubierto). Es mi humilde opinión. Saludos!

Bueno, pues sobre el inventario de parches, igual que dije anteriormente, para una peque?a empresa sería algo más sencillo, podríamos simplificar este proceso manteniendo un registro sencillo de los sistemas que haya en la empresa, incluyendo hardware y software esencial. También utilizaría OpenVAS o Nessus Essentials (ambas gratis) que son herramientas automáticas de escaneo de vulnerabilidades para identificar las brechas de seguridad y determinar qué parches son necesarios. Priorizaría en los parches críticos para mitigar las amenazas más importantes, asegurando siempre la compatibilidad y por último dejaría un registro de los parches aplicados y las fechas correspondientes para facilitar la auditoría y la resolución de problemas. Easy.

Once you've pulled your inventory report. - Filter your inventory by oldest OS versions. - Filter by OS types. - Filter by Env. - Filter by region.

While testing all the updates in isolated environments has benefits, it is a very time-consuming process and may not be practical in some scenarios. Another practice which is gaining popularity is a ring-based deployment. Here you can divide your users or devices into different groups, called rings and install updates to each ring in a sequential manner. This allows you to quickly detect any issues and mitigate them before moving on to the next ring. Hence you can test the updates on a smaller subset of users and devices before a broad deployment reducing risks, improving availability and user experience. For Windows 10/11 this can be achieved using Windows Update for Business and creating update ring policies in Microsoft Intune.

always have a test enviroment to deploy your patches in before massive rollout to other users . This will you to examine the impact of the deployed patches to the organization

Pues mi versión para PYME de nuevo: 1. Montar un entorno de prueba básico que imite las características clave de la red de producción (Oracle VM Virtualbox por ejemplo que también es gratis). 2. Verificar que las funciones esenciales de los sistemas y aplicaciones sigan operando como se espera. 3. Identificar y probar los escenarios de uso críticos del negocio. 4. Observar el rendimiento del sistema durante y después de aplicar los parches para asegurarte de que no haya impacto significativo en la velocidad o eficiencia. 5. Copia de seguridad antes de pasar a prod. 6. Si te sobra tiempo piensa en la automatización de pruebas para el futuro. That's all.

Even with a meticulously designed and well thought out patch policy and process, an otherwise not well implemented patch deployment strategy can cause much unnecessary heartache. A well designed patch strategy will eliminate any configuration or data loss however a solid deploymemt method will ensure its provision through the last mile.

The patches should be deployed in 3 circles: 1. The inner circle - members of the IT team, sysadmins, desktop admins, server admins. These are the most experienced IT users in the company who can test and troubleshoot patch issues in a professional manner. 2. The outer circle - experienced and knowledgeable IT users from different departments. They can report any issues that may occur in the systems and applications they work on. 3. Everybody else - once the patch has been tested by the inner and the outer circle and it has been verified that it causes no issues, the patch can be applied to the rest of the machines.

Also prepare a manual patch to install or to push as delta deployment on those clients that fail to patch for some reason. It's always safe to have a backup plan in case the patch fails

Once the deployment script has finished deploying. Validations are essential to successful deployments. The deployment script should have a validation check that outputs the current running OS version of the updated server/machine/host. Generally patch verification requires 2 specific validations. 1. Confirmation of installation: this can be done via reviewing logs. CLI commands to output OS version. Pulling an updated inventory report which lists software/OS components. 2. Functionality Testing: Validate server functionality hasn't degraded post patch deployment. Functional tests should be done to confirm critical services are working. Regression testing, performance benchmark testing and security scanning should follow.

After deploying a patch, I include in my documentation the process of informing my analysts about the update, along with a link to the patch notes. In these documented communications, I emphasize key changes they should be aware of. For patches affecting end users, I document my efforts to communicate important information to them prior to the patch deployment, focusing on any significant changes in technology usage. This approach ensures that all relevant parties are informed and that every step of communication is systematically recorded as part of our comprehensive patch management strategy.

What is the patch is for and where it come from is the first for security Test it in testing environment first. Compile updated list of assets to which it is to be deployed Notate each step and what when where and how and time for deployment Send out in increments if organization is large just in case of a fail can pin point it faster

Let me stress this first: where did the patch come from? Did you verify a SHA256 or MD5 of the patch from an out-of-band reputable source? Or are you going to blindly install the Trojan that was succesfully introduced somewhere else across all your systems? Secondly, approach patch testing with caution; it’s a task for specialized security teams or reputable external experts, not a routine check. Avoid superficial measures like basic virus scans or mere policy adherence; remember, patches are a major vector for cyber threats. Lastly: why are you patching? At least split patches into security and functional patches. Patches often break things, often in ways no amount of testing will reveal, is the risk worth the gain?

Deploying patches securely is a critical part of maintaining the security and integrity of software systems. Here are some steps to consider: 1. Patch Testing. 2. Backup. 3. Use Secure and Trusted Sources. 4. Authentication and Integrity Checks. 5. Least Privilege Principle. 6. Automation. 7. Monitoring and Logging. 8. Incident Response Plan. 9. Communication. 10. Regular Audits. Remember, patch deployment is a crucial part of a broader cybersecurity strategy and should be integrated with other security practices and procedures.