Cybersecurity First Principles: A Reboot of Strategy and Tactics

The first expert discussion of the foundations of cybersecurity

In Cybersecurity First Principles, Rick Howard, the Chief Security Officer, Chief Analyst, and Senior fellow at The Cyberwire, challenges the conventional wisdom of current cybersecurity best practices, strategy, and tactics and makes the case that the profession needs to get back to first principles. The author convincingly lays out the arguments for the absolute cybersecurity first principle and then discusses the strategies and tactics required to achieve it.

In the book, you'll explore:

• Infosec history from the 1960s until the early 2020s and why it has largely failed
• What the infosec community should be trying to achieve instead
• The arguments for the absolute and atomic cybersecurity first principle
• The strategies and tactics to adopt that will have the greatest impact in pursuing the ultimate first principle
• Case studies through a first principle lens of the 2015 OPM hack, the 2016 DNC Hack, the 2019 Colonial Pipeline hack, and the Netflix Chaos Monkey resilience program
• A top to bottom explanation of how to calculate cyber risk for two different kinds of companies

This book is perfect for cybersecurity professionals at all levels: business executives and senior security professionals, mid-level practitioner veterans, newbies coming out of school as well as career-changers seeking better career opportunities, teachers, and students.

Who We Are xxi

Introduction 1

Who Is This Book For?

What the Book Covers

Writing Conventions

Road Map

1 First Principles 9

Overview

What Are First Principles?

What Is the Atomic Cybersecurity First Principle?

Conclusion

2 Strategies 41

Overview

Strategies vs. Tactics

What Are the Essential Strategies Required for a First

Principle Infosec Program?

Zero Trust Strategy Overview-

Intrusion Kill Chain Prevention Strategy Overview

Resilience Strategy Overview

Risk Forecasting Strategy Overview

Automation Strategy Overview

Conclusion

3 Zero Trust 57

Overview

The Use Case for Zero Trust: Edward Snowden

Zero Trust: Overhyped in the Market but.

Cyber Hygiene, Defense in Depth, and Perimeter Defense:

Zero Trust Before We Had Zero Trust

Zero Trust Is Born

Zero Trust Is a Philosophy, Not a Product

Meat- and- Potatoes Zero Trust

Logical and Micro Segmentation

Vulnerability Management: A Zero Trust Tactic

Software Bill of Materials: A Zero Trust Tactic

Identity Management: A Tactic for Zero Trust

Single Sign- On: A Zero Trust Tactic

Two- Factor Authentication: A Tactic for Zero Trust

Software- Defined Perimeter: A Tactic for Zero Trust

Why Zero Trust Projects Fail

Conclusion

4 Intrusion Kill Chain Prevention 121

Overview

The Beginnings of a New Idea

The Lockheed Martin Kill Chain Paper

Kill Chain Models

Cyber Threat Intelligence Operations as a Journey

Red/Blue/Purple Team Operations: A Tactic for Intrusion

Kill Chain Prevention

Intelligence Sharing: A Tactic for Intrusion Kill Chain

Prevention

Conclusion

5 Resilience 203

Overview

What Is Resilience?

Crisis Handling: A Tactic for Resilience

Backups: A Tactic for Resilience

Encryption: A Tactic for Resilience

Incident Response: A Tactic for Resilience

Conclusion

6 Risk Forecasting 255

Overview

Superforecasting, Fermi Estimates, and Black Swans

Bayes Rule: A Different Way to Think About

Cybersecurity Risk

Risk Forecasting with the Bayes Rule: A Practical

Example

Conclusion

7 Automation 307

Overview

Why Security Automation Is Essential

Early History of Software Development Philosophies

DevSecOps: An Essential Tactic for Automation

Compliance: A First Principle Tactic That Cuts Across

All Strategies

Chaos Engineering for Automation and Resilience

Conclusion

8 Summation 341

Overview

Zero Trust

Conclusion

Index 351

RICK HOWARD is the Chief Analyst and Senior Fellow at The CyberWire, the world’s largest cybersecurity podcast network, and the CSO of N2K (The CyberWire’s parent company). He’s been a CSO for Palo Alto Networks, TASC, and a former Commander for the U.S. Army’s Computer Emergency Response Team. He helped found the Cyber Threat Alliance (an ISAO for security vendors) and the Cybersecurity Canon Project (a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for cybersecurity books).

“I often tell individuals just starting in cyber that if they want to understand what is going on, go listen to Rick.”
— Mark McLaughlin, Former President, CEO and Chairman of the Board, Palo Alto Networks

“Rick Howard has been at the forefront of cybersecurity since it existed as a profession. In Cybersecurity First Principles, he not only educates but also entertains; something only the truly accomplished can achieve.”
— Jack Freund, Co-Author of “Measuring and Managing Information Risk: A Fair Approach”

“Strategic thinking is critical to our success in securing our organizations. This book is an invaluable roadmap for how to approach cybersecurity strategically by an absolute legend in our industry.”
— George Finney, author of “Project Zero Trust: A Story about a Strategy for Aligning Security and the Business”

Since the 1970s, infosec practitioners have been incrementally improving the overall security landscape without ever taking a moment to consider if they were going in the right strategic direction in the first place. The author makes the case that they weren’t. The general direction wasn’t wrong per se, but the thought leaders in the space never got to the root of the problem. Retracing the footsteps of scientific thought leaders like Descartes and Elon Musk, this book makes the case for the ultimate cybersecurity first principle and outlines the strategies and tactics necessary to pursue it.

A reboot of infosec strategy and tactics, this book explains:

• Why a first principle approach is necessary
• Five strategies that emerge because of it: Zero Trust, Intrusion Kill Chain Prevention, Resilience, Automation and Risk Forecasting
• Hands-on tactics to achieve each strategy