Reference no: EM133774023

Network Security Concepts

Assessment item - Report & Presentation

Objectives
This assessment item is designed to test your understanding of network security fundamentals, administering a secure network, mobile security, access control, identity management and wireless network security relating to the contents of the whole unit.

Assessment task

Assessment task contains two parts; part A is writing a report on the given topic (weighting: 35%) and part B is the presentation on the written report.

Part A: The report must focus on the case study scenario related questions given in the assessment task section. Any answers provided that do not address the case study scenario and the given questions may be awarded 0 (zero) marks. Your report should include the following sections (detailed marking criteria is given at the end):
Executive summary including assumptions.
Discussion (on the given tasks).
List of Reference (please use at least four sources for your discussion).
Reflection on the assessment task.

Reference list is not included in the word count. Some other parts, such as Table of contents, Introduction, and Conclusion may be included.

Part B: Part B of this assessment task is the presentation of your work. Your presentation should include:

Introduction.
Brief description of your proposed solution with justification (referring to the unit material as appropriate).
In-depth demonstration of one chosen topic on the given tasks in the report discussion.
Note: You may include your reflection as well as the list of references in your presentation.

Case scenario:
Aussie Mining Corporation (AMC) is planning to establish a new coal mining site in the west-north region of Queensland, situated 100 km west of Mount Isa City. The new mining site covers an area of 5 km by 5 km, where heavy-duty mining machinery will be in operation. Additionally, AMC intends to construct a single 5-story office building located 1 km away from the mining site.
The anticipated workforce at the mining site comprises approximately 100 employees across various roles: 10% executives, 10% marketing professionals, 10% financial and human resource personnel, and 70% engineers and technicians. This workforce may be expanded up to 300 employees in the next 10 years.

To address the diverse needs of the business, AMC aims for a hybrid infrastructure that incorporates both on- premises networks and cloud computing solutions. The local network will connect local servers, workstations, laptops, and mobile devices for all staff and visitors. Simultaneously, the cloud computing platform will host important servers, including company websites and trading information, store critical data, and manage authentication, authorization, and permission controls. To ensure data integrity and confidentiality, a secure VPN is desired.

However, in consideration of the security of company employees and assets, CCTV systems will be deployed. Video footage from CCTV cameras will be stored on a local server and can only be accessed from the computers inside the office build. A dedicated local control system will be implemented to monitor all mining machines and vehicles, which requires a robust firewall to protect against cyber threats. Private IP addresses will be employed within the mining site, a few public IP addresses will be purchased from Internet Service Provider (ISP) for mapping purposes.

To establish a robust connectivity backbone, the company plans to install a dedicated fibre optic network connecting to Mount Isa City, leveraging the NBN network infrastructure node for access to the public Internet. This fibre optic network will link to major routers located in the office build communication closet. Within the office building and mining site, cost-effective solutions like general Ethernet cables and mesh wireless networks are preferred. The network is expected to be operational 24/7, ensuring continuous communication and monitoring of the whole mining site.

AMC is currently in the network planning and design stage. However, cybersecurity considerations must be integrated at this stage. As a cybersecurity expert, you are approached to provide the network designers with comprehensive strategies for securing their network, applications, and data/information.

Identify two types of potential attacks you have studied from the unit lecture materials that might occur in the above-mentioned scenario. Describe each of them and explain how these attacks could occur in the given case (explain with a diagram or list the possible steps if applicable).

Propose at least three networking technologies/methods/protocols that could have been used to enhance the network (wired and/or wireless) security in the above case. Explain in detail how these technologies that you proposed would enhance this company's network security (justify your answer). You could describe them within the OSI model.

Various hardware devices should be used to protect the company's network, such as firewall or AP device with VLANs. Explain the use of such secure devices and how they can improve network security and maybe the network performance. Explain with a simple diagram where you would put the firewall/s in this company's network. Firewalls for both on-premises and cloud platforms must be considered. For the cloud-based firewall, you should include at least three screenshots from your tutorial activities (Azure Firewall) in your report to demonstrate your ability to configure a firewall on the cloud.

The company executive needs to utilize role-based access control (RBAC) to manage permissions and access to company resources, which should be implemented via a cloud platform. Elaborate on the advantages and disadvantages of this access control technique and its possible implementation. Please include at least two screenshots from your tutorial activities (Role-Based Access Control) to demonstrate your ability in configuring such an access control model, its implementation, and the related policy in your report.

Name two of the authentication methods/techniques that you recommend for this company (choose any two you studied from the unit lecture materials). Do some research and explain those two techniques. Your explanation should include brief description of the techniques, advantages, and disadvantages (if any) of those two techniques and the justification of your choice.