SEC280 Week 6 Assignment – Joseph Ercole
Case Study: Creating an IDS Policy.

As the need to secure corporate networks continually increases, the task of ensuring the security of sensitive company data so that it is not compromised becomes increasingly difficult with each day. Gem Infosys, a small software company, has decided to secure their computer systems. The organization uses ten PCs and a broadband connection to the Internet. The management at Gem needs to formulate an IDS policy. We need to identify the steps to be performed when formulating the IDS policy.
One of the best ways to protect company networks and data from attackers is to have an Intrusion Detection System in place. Today, IDS’s are an integral part of many organizations’ network infrastructure. But having the IDS in place and not understanding why it’s in place, how it works or who will deploy and run it or how to respond in the event of an attack is counter-productive to its existence. This is why we need to formulate the IDS policy. Before the IDS is deployed, we will create a basic outline of what we are trying to accomplish with the IDS and from there, devise a strategy. So, what are we protecting the network from and how strict will we make accessibility? Sometimes beginning with the end in mind is a good way to execute the first step of any plan or strategy. Knowing how tightly or loosely you want to allow traffic to flow on the network in order to have better control over it is a good start. We obviously know that we do not want intrusions of any kind. Who will write the policy and deploy it? With that question being posed, I would assign a project leader to the task of formulating the IDS policy and letting that person put a small team together for assistance. The leader should be someone from the company who already has had exposure to network security deployment, if possible, but