Interface Monitoring provides the answer to one of the most vexing questions in SAP security: where are our vulnerable cross-system connections and how do we monitor them to ensure they’re not abused by attackers?
Although Interface Monitoring, also known as Interface Channel Monitoring or ICMon, has been available in SAP Solution Manager since version 7.10 SP05, the application has been completely overhauled in version 7.2, especially in SP05, which has been in general availability since June.
ICMon in SolMan 7.2 includes an SAPUI5 graphical display that automatically maps the entire landscape topology in a single screen (see below). Topologies are generated by ICMon based on so-called monitoring scenarios configured in Integration Monitoring within SolMan configuration.
During scenario creation, you specify the systems and channels to monitor in each scenario. Multiple scenarios can be created to monitor different channels, systems, environments or other variables. Scenarios can also be landscape-wide to include all available systems and even cross-landscape to monitor systems located in different SAP landscapes.
Unlike some third party security tools that focus exclusively on RFC communications, ICMon can support monitoring for any SAP-supported protocol. This includes not only RFC, but HTTP, HTTPS, IDoc and Web Services.
Once the scenarios are configured, you can select from the list of available scenarios from Scope Selection in ICMon to monitor the scenario.
ICMon’s ability to automatically generate a graphical topology of cross-system connections enables users to discover vulnerable interfaces between systems including trust RFC relationships between systems in different environments. Trust relationships and stored credentials in RFC destinations could be exploited by attackers to, for example, pivot from vulnerable development or test systems to productive systems.
However, ICMon doesn’t just generate a static topology of system interfaces. It also continuously collects metrics and usage data for each channel to monitor availability, configuration and performance errors. Errors and warnings are displayed in both the ICMon dashboard (see below) and the topology. Connections with errors or warnings are displayed in red in the topology. Successful connections are displayed in green.
Usage data includes destinations and function modules called through each RFC channel with timestamps.
Alerts configured for metrics and thresholds including security-related scenarios can be viewed in the Alert Ticker from the ICMon home screen. The alerts can also be viewed in the Alert Inbox of SAP Solution Manager. In common with alerts for other application areas, ICMon uses the Monitoring and Alerting Infrastructure (MAI). Therefore, the Guided Procedure Framework can be used to apply standard operating procedures and best practices for incident management and alert handing.
How does Solution Manager detect threats and vulnerabilities in SAP systems? What specific applications in SolMan are used for vulnerability, patch and threat management? What are the requirements for using these areas? How long does it take to configure? What are the differences between monitoring using SolMan 7.1 and 7.2? What are the benefits of using SolMan versus third party tools? Why should you partner with Layer Seven Security to help you leverage the cybersecurity capabilities of SAP Solution Manager?
Discover the answers to these and many other questions in the new Q&A section and learn how you can immediately protect your SAP systems from advanced threats using tools you already own and an approach recommended by SAP.
Remember to bookmark the page since we will be updating the questions and answers periodically. Also, feel free to submit your questions for our experts in the comments below.
Q: What is SAP Solution Manager?
A: Solution Manager is the most widely deployed SAP product after ECC. It’s installed in almost all SAP landscapes and is used for application lifecycle activities such as system patching and upgrades, change management, incident management, and system monitoring.
Q: How is Solution Manager licensed? A: Usage rights for Solution Manager are bundled with SAP support and maintenance agreements. SAP Enterprise Support customers can manage their whole IT infrastructure with Solution Manager. Customers with Standard Support can manage SAP products within their IT landscapes with Solution Manager. Licensing for SAP HANA is included with the usage rights for SAP Solution Manager 7.2.
Q: What security tools are available in Solution Manager?
A: There are several applications in Solution Manger that should be used for advanced security monitoring. We recommend Service Level Reporting, Security Dashboards, System Recommendations, Interface Monitoring and Security Alerting.
Q: Why doesn’t Layer Seven Security recommend the EWA and SOS reports?
E: There are drawbacks with both reports. The EarlyWatch Alert (EWA) performs some security checks but is not specifically a security report. Therefore, the range and volume of checks performed by EWA for security is low. The Security Optimization Service (SOS) provides better coverage but is not fully automated. You must submit a service request to run SOS for ABAP systems. Service requests to run SOS for Java systems must be submitted to SAP.
Q: What are Service Level Reports?
A: Service Level Reports (SLR) automate vulnerability reporting for SAP systems. They perform scheduled checks for hundreds of security weaknesses for ABAP, HANA and Java systems and automatically distribute the results via email, SFTP or the Enterprise Portal. SLRs include detailed descriptions for findings, risk ratings, links to relevant SAP Notes and guidance at the SAP Help Portal and compliance scorecards for frameworks such as NIST, PCI DSS and IT-SOX.
Q: How do SLRs work? A: SLRs read the results of automated daily vulnerability scans performed by Solution Manager for SAP systems. The results are checked against security KPIs during runtime. SLRs are typically scheduled to run on a weekly or monthly schedule.
Q: Are SLRs available in multiple languages?
A: Yes, SLRs can be run in any language including French, German, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese, and Mandarin.
Q: Are SLRs customizable?
A: Yes, you can customize every aspect of service level reports including the design, layout, security checks, and KPI metrics and thresholds.
Q: Can you provide a sample Service Level Report?
A: Yes, submit your request here.
Q: What is System Recommendations?
A: System Recommendations is an application in Solution Manger that performs automated patch management for SAP systems. It connects directly to SAP Support to download required security notes and monitor the status of notes implemented in systems through regular background jobs.
Q: Does System Recommendations also download and apply corrections?
A: Yes, System Recommendations downloads corrections from SAP Support to target systems. The user is automatically directed to SNOTE in the target systems once the corrections are downloaded.
Q: Does System Recommendations identify the impact of security patches?
A: Yes, System Recommendations integrates with applications in Solution Manager to perform change impact analysis and discover programs, function modules, transactions, reports and business processes effected by notes.
Q: Does System Recommendations integrate with Change Request Management (ChaRM)?
A: Yes, System Recommendations includes the option to automatically generate a change request for required notes.
Q: What are Security Dashboards?
A: Security Dashboards monitor critical key performance indicators to track vulnerabilities and threats across SAP landscapes in real-time.
Q: What type of metrics are monitored by Security Dashboards?
A: The Dashboards connect to data stores in Solution Manager for event-driven alerts and system and user level vulnerabilities. Users can drilldown from aggregated results to detailed values.
Q: What type of data visualizations are available in the Security Dashboards?
Users can select from column, line, pie, scatter and other charts and Fiori tiles and tables.
Q: What is Interface Monitoring?
A: Interface Monitoring is used to map and track system interfaces in SAP landscapes including RFC, HTTP, IDoc and Web Service connections. It automatically creates a topology of system interfaces and monitors the usage of the interfaces in real-time. Alerts can be generated for channel metrics including availability, configuration and performance.
Q: What is Security Alerting?
A: Security Alerting is based on the Monitoring and Alerting Infrastructure (MAI) of Solution Manager. MAI connects to data providers including event logs to monitor for security vulnerabilities and incidents. MAI generates automatic notifications for security incidents including emails and text messages.
Q: What type of security vulnerabilities and events are monitored by MAI?
A: MAI monitors system-level vulnerabilities such as the enabling of the invoker servlet in Java systems, insecure entries in access control lists for gateway servers, vulnerable RFC destinations, missing security notes, and many other areas. It also monitors KPIs for user-level security including users with dangerous profiles such as SAP_ALL and unlocked standard users.
Q: Can you perform threat detection using MAI in Solution Manager?
A: Yes, MAI includes file and database connectors for real-time monitoring of event data captured in SAP logs. This includes the security audit log, HANA log, UME log, HTTP log, gateway server log, and the Read Access Log.
Q: Can you integrate MAI alerts with Security Information Event Management (SIEM) and incident management systems? A: Yes, MAI alerts can be automatically forwarded to SIEM systems such as Splunk, ArcSight, and QRadar for event correlation and forensic analysis. Alerts can also be forwarded to incident management systems such as BMC Remedy and ServiceNow.
Q: Does Solution Manager provide best practices for alert handling?
A: Yes, the Guided Procedure (GP) Framework in Solution Manager provides best practices and standard operating procedures for investigating and resolving security alerts. This standardizes and improves incident management procedures and reduces response times. The guided procedures include automated steps to further improve incident handling.
Q: What are the main differences between SAP Enterprise Threat Detection (ETD) and threat detection using SAP Solution Manager? A: SAP ETD provides more advanced capabilities for event correlation and forensic analysis. However, Solution Manager can forward event data to SIEM systems that can correlate and analyze data on a wider scale than ETD by combining data from SAP and non-SAP sources. Also, ETD does not monitor for system-level vulnerabilities or provide guided procedures for alert handling.
Q: What are the requirements for using the security applications in Solution Manager? A: The security applications are available in any SP level of Solution Manager versions 7.1 and 7.2. The only requirements are the completion of the SOLMAN_SETUP procedures for the relevant version.
Q: What are the differences between Solution Manager 7.1 ad 7.2 for security monitoring?
A: The main difference is the user-experience. Solution Manager 7.2 provides the improved Fiori interface including a launchpad for direct access to applications. Some functions such as automatic download of SAP corrections in System Recommendations are only available in Solution Manager 7.2. Also, the dashboarding and interface monitoring capabilities are more advanced in the latest version of Solution Manager.
Q: How many environments and systems can you monitor with Solution Manager?
A: There are no limits on the number of environments or systems that can be monitored by Solution Manager. However, Solution Manager must be appropriately sized to monitor large landscapes.
Q: How long does it take to configure the security applications?
A: Typical implementation timeframes are between 2-4 weeks for mid-sized landscapes.
Q: If security applications are available in standard installations of Solution Manager, why do we need to work with SAP Partners such as Layer Seven Security to configure these components?
A: Solution Manager provides the framework and the tools to perform advanced security monitoring. However, the standard installation of Solution Manager does not provide sufficient content for security monitoring. The content is developed, maintained and supported by Layer Seven Security. This includes patent-pending custom security policies, BW infoproviders, service level reports, monitoring objects and guided procedures. The content is licensed by SAP customers from Layer Seven Security and imported or transported into Solution Manager.
Q: What are the benefits of using Solution Manager for security monitoring versus third party tools ?
A: There are many advantages for using Solution Manager over third party tools. The most significant is lower cost: licensing and importing content for Solution Manager is less expensive than licensing entire platforms and solutions for SAP security monitoring. Solution Manager is also more flexible and customizable. It’s also recommended by SAP and supported and maintained directly by SAP. For further information, download the comparison chart.
Q: Does Layer Seven Security provide online demos for security monitoring using Solution Manager?
A: Yes, you can request a demo here.
Q: Does Layer Seven Security provide free readiness checks and trials for security monitoring using Solution Manager?
A: Yes, we offer free readiness checks to discover and remove any configuration gaps in Solution Manager to support security monitoring. We also provide free trials for Layer Seven’s custom security content. The trials can be performed remotely or on-site for up to 5 systems.
Q: Who shall I contact for further information? A: Please call Layer Seven Security at 1-647-964-7370 or email info@layersevensecurity.com
Service Level Reporting (SLR) in SAP Solution Manager performs regular checks against key performance indicators using information available from the EarlyWatch Alert (EWA), Business Warehouse (BW) and the Computer Center Management System (CCMS). The checks can be for single systems or systems grouped into solutions. Reports run automatically on a weekly or monthly schedule but can also be triggered manually for on-demand reporting. SLRs can be displayed in HTML or Microsoft Word. SAP Solution Manger automatically distributes SLRs by email to recipients maintained in distribution lists.
Security-related metrics stored in internal or external BW systems can be read by SLR to create dynamic, detailed and user friendly vulnerability reports. This includes areas such as settings for profile parameters, access control lists in gateway security files, trusted RFC connections or destinations with stored logon credentials, unlocked standard users and standard users with default passwords, active ICF services, filter settings in the security audit log, missing security notes, and users with critical authorizations, profiles or transactions. For HANA systems, it includes database parameters, audit policies, the SYSTEM user, and users with critical SQL privileges. For Java systems, it includes properties for the UME and the invoker servlet. Furthermore, since event data from monitored systems is stored in BW and CCMS, SLR can also report on metrics for events in audit logs including the security audit log and syslog. The latter is particularly relevant for HANA systems which can write logs to operating system files.
SLRs are created and customized in the area for SAP Engagement and Service Delivery in the Fiori Launchpad.
Variants need to be maintained for each report including relevant systems, solutions, data sources, metrics, thresholds and schedule (weekly or monthly).
Once activated, the reports are executed by a regular automated job and accessed through the tile for Service Level Reports.
Comments can be included in SLRs before the reports are automatically distributed by email. SLRs include details of each vulnerability check, risk ratings, and links to relevant SAP Notes and documentation at the SAP Help Portal. Reports also include a gap assessment against compliance frameworks such NIST, PCI-DSS and IT-SOX. SLRs are archived by Solution Manager for trend analysis.
Cyber attacks are at epidemic levels. According to research performed by 360 Security, there were over 85 billion attacks in 2015, equivalent to 2000 attacks per second. The cost of data breaches continues to grow, year after year, and reached record levels in 2016. Juniper Research estimate that average costs will exceed $150M within three years.
Introduced in 2014, the SAP Cybersecurity Framework provides the most comprehensive benchmark for securing SAP systems against advanced persistent threats. It presents a roadmap for hardening, patching and monitoring SAP solutions using standard SAP-delivered tools. The newly released fourth edition of the Framework includes important updates in the areas of transport layer security, network segmentation in virtualized environments, and security settings applied through application level gateways.
The Framework no longer recommends the use of the EarlyWatch Alert (EWA) for security monitoring. This is due to concerns related to the updated rating scale used to grade security risks in the EWA. However, the Framework includes an expanded section for security monitoring using SAP Solution Manager including an overview of security-related tools bundled within Solution Manager such as Configuration Validation, System Recommendations, Monitoring and Alerting Infrastructure (MAI), Service Level Reports, Interface Monitoring, and Dashboards.
Despite the $75 billion spent by organizations on security software in 2015, average times to detection for cyber attacks are an astounding 170 days (DBIR, 2016). Most attacks therefore go undetected for almost six months.
An incident response strategy can address this gap by enabling organizations to proactively discover and contain security incidents that could lead to data breaches if left unchecked. The cornerstone of effective incident response is detection. This involves collecting and analyzing information from a variety of sources to identify signs of abnormal events that could include potential malicious actions. SAP systems capture a variety of security-relevant events across multiple logs. The most significant is the Security Audit Log.
The Security Audit Log should be configured to log successful and unsuccessful logon attempts by privileged and standard users, RFC calls, changes to user records, report and transaction starts, and other critical events. This is performed through filters defined in each system. Log data is stored in local or central files that are read by the Security Monitor of the CCMS. This data is available to Solution Manager for centralized alerting.
Solution Manager should be configured to monitor not just events in the Security Audit Log, but also security-relevant events in logs for the gateway server, message server, SAProuter, Web Dispatcher, system log, UME log and, for HANA systems, syslog servers. This captures critical events such as external programs started through the gateway server, external programs registered with the gateway, HTTP requests from remote or unrecognized IPs, and successful/ unsuccessful connections through application gateways.
The Event Calculation Engine (ECE) within Solution Manager continuously monitors event data recorded in such logs to identify potential attacks based on metrics configured for each log source. This is performed using existing data providers such as Diagnostics Agents and sapstartsrv. Both are automatically installed with SAP systems. The monitoring interval for log sources can be customized but the recommended interval is 60 seconds. The ECE can be configured to perform event correlation for sophisticated pattern analysis.
Alerts are triggered by ECE for events that match a defined pattern or exceed thresholds for specific metrics. The alerts are displayed in the Alert Monitor for Solution Manager. Priority levels can be set for each alert based on a High-Medium-Low scale. Alert data also be transferred to Business Warehouse for detailed reporting and analysis using real-time dashboards.
Solution Manager also channels notifications for alerts to designated Incident Responders through email and text message. Notifications can be grouped to avoid alert flooding. Each notification provides a URL to the relevant alert or alert group within Solution Manager. Incident Responders can add comments to the alert in the Alert Monitor, follow guided procedures for handling alerts, and create and assign tickets for incident management within Solution Manager.
The example below displays the alert details and notifications generated by Solution Manager for a failed logon by the standard SAP* user in a monitored system.
1. Attempted logon using SAP* user in client 001 of system PM1.
2. Event summary in the Security Audit log.
.
3. Event details in the Security Audit Log.
4. Email notification of event.
5. The email attachment for the alert notification.
US-CERT published an alert yesterday to warn SAP customers of the dangers posed by the invoker servlet vulnerability in AS Java systems. According to the alert, there is evidence to suggest that SAP systems at 36 organizations have been exploited by the vulnerability. The organizations are based in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, China, India, Japan, and South Korea, and operate in industries that include oil & gas, telecommunications, utilities, retail, automotive and the pubic sector.
The invoker servlet vulnerability arises when servlets can be called directly either by servlet name or by fully-qualified class name. This can be exploited to bypass authentication and authorization rules defined in the web.xml files of Java applications. In the cases referenced by the US-CERT alert, attackers appeared to have exploited the invoker servlet to call a Java component that enabled them to execute OS commands and create user accounts in SAP systems.
The vulnerability was patched by SAP in 2010. SAP also modified the default configuration of AS Java to disable the invoker servlet in versions 7.20 and later. Corrections were provided in Notes 1445998 and 1467771. The evidence of the active exploitation of the invoker servlet vulnerability five years after the underlying flaw was patched by SAP demonstrates that the greatest risk posed to SAP systems is the exploit of known weaknesses rather than so-called zero-day vulnerabilities.
The invoker servlet should be disabled at a global level by setting the EnableInvokerServletGlobally key to false. The key is located in the global properties of each J2EE instance. You can follow the three steps below to discover systems in your landscape vulnerable to the exploit using SAP Solution Manager.
1. Create a target system in Configuration Validation to check the value of the key for all systems using the servlet_jsp store. See below.
2. Edit the target system by removing all parameters in the servlet_jsp store except EnableInvokerServletGlobally. Set the value for the key to true and maintain the weight/ info. See below.
3. Run the weighted validation report for all Java systems and review the results of systems with the EnableInvokerServletGlobally set to true. See below.
The invoker servlet vulnerability is one of the 500+ checks performed by security rulesets provided by Layer Seven for ABAP, Java, HANA, and database systems. The rulesets can be imported into your Solution Manager systems in seconds to perform daily automated scans for vulnerabilities in SAP systems. To learn more, contact Layer Seven Security.
SAP Lumira can be used to access, visualize and explore data of any size from virtually any source. It enables users to build and share powerful interactive data visualizations using a simple user-friendly interface. Since Lumira can acquire data and enable users to create customized reports through self-service, it removes the need for programming, scripting and any other form of development.
This article demonstrates how you can use Lumira to visualize security vulnerabilities in your SAP systems and overcome limitations with standard Business Warehouse (BW) reports. The demonstration is based on the Standard Edition of Lumira, available at the SAP Store. This edition will operate with minimal hardware requirements from any system with a Windows 7 or higher operating system.
After Lumira is installed, you will need to add the BW data connector using the Extension Manager since the data source is underlying BW reports in Solution Manager (SolMan). The reports store the results of automated security reviews performed by SolMan. The next step is to set the connection to the BW server in SolMan under Network in the Preferences section. This includes the server URL, hostname, instance and user credentials required for the connection.
Once the connection is established, you can define the variables including reference systems, comparison systems, stores, items and fields. This covers the security policies setup in SolMan, the systems that are mapped for monitoring, and the containers that store the results of the security reviews. We recommend creating a separate Lumira report for each security policy based on different system types (ABAP, Java, HANA, etc.).
You can begin building your visualization and exploring security vulnerabilities as soon as the data is acquired by Lumira. In the report below, we have created charts and tables that convey security vulnerabilities discovered using SolMan by area, system and risk level.
The results can be filtered by any of these elements. The tables provide details of each finding including the objectives of every check, recommendations to remove vulnerabilities, links to relevant SAP Security Notes, and information available at the SAP Help Portal. The reports can be exported to PDF, CSV or Excel. They can also be shared via URLs with users or groups defined in Lumira.
SAP Lumira can be used to visualize not only security vulnerabilities discovered by Solution Manager but also unapplied Security Notes in SAP systems. See below.
To learn more or to discuss how we can assist your organization leverage the full capabilities of SAP Lumira for dynamic, cost-effective and real-time security monitoring, contact Layer Seven Security.
Exploiting weak password hashes is one of the most common and successful attack scenarios used against SAP systems. The availability of open-source programs such as Hashcat and John the Ripper enables even novice hackers to perform attacks against SAP passwords. In fact, Hashcat is capable of breaking any SAP password encoded using the BCODE hash algorithm in a maximum of 20 hours, regardless of the length and complexity of the password.
SAP systems support a variety of cryptographic algorithms to convert passwords into hash values. These values are stored in table URS02. This is designed to prevent the storage of passwords in clear-text. During the logon procedure, passwords entered by users are converted to a hash value and compared to the value stored for the user in table USR02. The logon is successful if there is match between the two values.
Since hash algorithms are one-way, it is not possible to calculate passwords from hash values. However, it is possible to compare values generated by tools such as Hashcat to the values stored in SAP tables to break passwords providing both are encoded using the identical algorithm.
Therefore, it is critical to restrict the ability to read and extract password hash values in table USR02. This can be achieved by controlling direct access to database tables through SQL statements using firewall rules. The ability to read tables using generic table browsing tools accessible through transactions SE16, SE17 and SE11 should also be restricted and monitored.
Note that USR02 is not the only table containing password hash values. In some releases, hashes can also be found in tables USH02, USH02_ARC_TMP, VUSER001 and VUSR02_PWD. Such tables should be assigned to the authorization group SPWD (refer to Note 1484692). Access to table USRPWDHISTORY should also be restricted since attackers are often able to guess current passwords based on former passwords if users employ variations of the same password.
There should be similar restrictions on debugging and transport authorizations since these can also be used to access or export SAP tables containing password hashes.
Users with access to multiple systems or systems in different environments should be required to use different passwords for each system and environment. Passwords for productive systems should not be identical to those used to access development or test systems.
SAP password code versions A-E are based on the MD5 hashing algorithm. The hash values generated through this mechanism are stored in the table column BCODE. All MD5 hashes are susceptible to brute force and other password attacks. Code versions F and G use the SHA1 algorithm. SHA1 hashes are stored in the PASSCODE column. They are less vulnerable than MD5 hashes but can be broken if passwords are short and relatively non-complex. The most secure hashing algorithm supported by SAP systems is iterated salted SHA-1 in code version H. This mechanism uses random salts and a higher number of iterations to mitigate password attacks. Iterated salted SHA-1 hash values are stored in PWDSALTEDHASH.
SAP kernels should be upgraded to 7.02 or higher to support PWDSALTEDHASH hash values. For added security, default iterations and salt sizes can be increased using the login/password_hash_algorithm parameter.
Once this is performed, the profile parameter login/password_downwards_compatibility should be set to 0 to ensure only the strongest possible hash values are generated. CUA systems can be excluded from this requirement if they are connected to systems that do not support PWDSALTEDHASH.
The report CLEANUP_PASSWORD_HASH_VALUES should then be run to discover and remove redundant password hashes. There is a clear security risk if this is not performed. Attackers may be able to use passwords encoded in BCODE and PASSCODE hashes if users employ identical or similar passwords encoded in PWDSALTEDHASH.
Enforcing single sign-on (SSO) for all dialog users provides the optimal level of protection against password attacks by removing the need to store hashes altogether. However, once SSO is enabled, direct logons should be blocked through the parameter snc/accept_insecure_gui=U and by ensuring users are not exempted from SSO through settings in user records maintained in the SNC tab of SU01.
Taken together, these countermeasures should safeguard systems from dangerous password attacks aided by well-known and easily accessible tools that can be leveraged to take full control of SAP systems.
Update: A new version of Hashcat capable of cracking SAP code version H password hashes encoded using SHA-1 is currently in beta testing. You can learn more at http://hashcat.net/forum/thread-3804.html
With SAP solutions deployed by 85 percent of Forbes 500 companies, they are a prized target for cyber attackers. Watch our Webinar playback to discover how to secure your SAP systems against targeted cyber attacks that could lead to denial of service, financial fraud or intellectual property theft. The Webinar is hosted by John Corvin, a Senior SAP Security Architect at Layer Seven Security. The insights delivered during the Webinar are based on lessons learned from hundreds of front-line engagements, aligned with leading practices and SAP recommendations and delivered by experienced SAP security consultants. Learn how to:More…
Secure SAP networks and communications
Protect remote function calls
Control critical user authorizations
Build log forensics
Configure security-relevant parameters
The Webinar will also enable you to identify opportunities for your organization to continuously monitor the security of SAP systems using standard tools and components available in SAP Solution Manager without licensing costly third party software. This will empower your organization to unlock the potential of SAP software and maximize the ROI of SAP licensing, while minimizing software-related capex and opex.
You’ve read the data sheet. You’ve listened to the sales spin. You’ve even seen the demo. But before you fire off the PO, ask yourself one question: Is there an alternative?
In recent years, there have emerged a wide number of third party security tools for SAP systems. Such tools perform vulnerability checks for SAP systems and enable customers to detect and remove security weaknesses primarily within the NetWeaver application server layer. Most, if not all, are capable of reviewing areas such as default ICF services, security-relevant profile parameters, password policies, RFC trust relationships and destinations with stored logon credentials.
The need to secure and continuously monitor such areas for changes that expose SAP systems to cyber threats is clear and well-documented. However, the real question is do organisations really need such solutions? In 2012, the answer was a resounding yes. In 2013, the argument for such solutions began to waiver and was, at best, an unsure yes with many caveats. By 2014, the case for licensing third party tools has virtually disappeared. There are convincing reasons to believe that such tools no longer offer the most effective and cost-efficient solution to the security needs of SAP customers.
The trigger for this change has been the rapid evolution of standard SAP components capable of detecting misconfigurations that lead to potential security risks. The most prominent of these components is Configuration Validation, packaged in SAP Solution Manager 7.0 and above and delivered to SAP customers with standard license agreements. Configuration Validation continuously monitors critical security settings within SAP systems and automatically generates alerts for changes that may expose systems to cyber attack. Since third party scanners are typically priced based on number of target IPs, Configuration Validation can directly save customers hundreds of thousands of dollars per year in large landscapes. The standard Solution Manager setup process will meet most of the prerequisites for using the component. For customers that choose to engage professional services to enable and configure security monitoring using Solution Manager, the cost of such one-off services is far less than the annual licenses and maintenance fees for third party tools.
The second reason for the decline in the appeal of non-SAP delivered security solutions is a lack of support for custom security checks. Most checks are hard-coded, meaning customers are unable to modify validation rules to match their specific security policies. In reality, it is impossible to apply a vanilla security standard to all SAP systems. Configuration standards can differ by the environment, the applications supported by the target systems, whether the systems are internal or external facing and a variety of other factors. Therefore, it is critical to leverage a security tool capable of supporting multiple security policies. This requirement is currently only fully met by Configuration Validation.
The third reason is security alerting. While some third party solutions support automated scheduled checks, none can match native capabilities in Solution Manager capable of the near-instant alerting through channels such as email and SMS.
The fourth and fifth reasons are shortcomings in reporting and product support when compared to the powerful analytical capabilities available through SAP Business Warehouse integrated within Solution Manager and the reach of SAP Active Global Support.
More information is available in the Solutions section including a short introductory video and a detailed Solution Brief that summarizes the benefits of Configuration Validation and professional services delivered by Layer Seven to enable the solution in your landscape. To schedule a demo, contact us at info@layersevensecurity.com.
