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A honeypot can take the form of folders or SharePoint sites with sensitive-looking data, fake Active Directory groups that offer privileged access, and Microsoft Teams channels with fake conversations. They allow researchers to observe how hackers attack and identify vulnerabilities.
What is a honeypot?
A honeypot is a decoy system that acts as an entrance into your network and networks, and it attracts malicious actors by mimicking the services they might need to access sensitive data. The more an attacker interacts with the honeypot, the more detailed cybersecurity intelligence can be gathered on their intentions, communication and exploits to help mitigate vulnerabilities.
A honeypot can take the form of a fake server or even a folder or SharePoint site with sensitive-looking files. It can also be a fake Active Directory group that grants privileged access, a Microsoft Teams channel with conversations or an executive email box.
A good honeypot should be easy to hack but not too hard or the attacker will lose interest or realize it is not a real production system. Varonis can set up custom real-time alerts for any activity on a honeypot, giving your Incident Response team a heads up and the ability to investigate whether it is innocuous or concerning so they can act accordingly.
What is a honeynet?
A honeynet is a network of instrumented decoy systems to lure cybercriminals. This enables organizations to monitor and study attacks without affecting their production infrastructure.
A typical honeynet consists of one or more decoy systems, designed to mimic vulnerable apps, APIs, and services. This entices attackers to target them, which gives cybersecurity professionals insights into attack patterns and new malware variants.
A decoy system could be as simple as a folder or SharePoint site that contains sensitive-looking data, or something as elaborate as a fake Active Directory group with “privileged access” and an executive email box. These traps will record an attacker’s attempts to breach the system, such as GET requests, file reads, processes executed and log pattern recognition. Honeypots can also be based on applications, such as a fake database that resembles real data to lure threat actors and observe their behavior. This helps organizations better understand attacker methods and motivations to improve their security protocols.
How do I set up a honeypot?
Creating a honeypot involves setting up and testing a virtual machine with realistic-looking data. This includes a variety of web applications with different vulnerabilities. It’s also important to choose a location for the honeypot to minimize risk.
Ideally, the honeypot should be placed inside a secure network that’s isolated from the rest of the environment. This helps ensure that attackers can’t use the honeypot to access real data and avoid detection.
It’s also important to consider privacy and legal issues when setting up a honeypot. For example, if sensitive information is found in the honeypot, it can expose the organization to security and privacy-related lawsuits. It’s best to have someone in-house who is familiar with the legal implications of using honeypots or to work with a third-party provider who is experienced in this area. Regardless of how you set up a honeypot, it’s crucial to monitor it closely and review the results regularly. This will help you detect attacks quickly and respond before they have a chance to spread into your network.
How do I use a honeypot?
Because honeypots mimic real systems, they are a tempting target for cyber criminals. As attackers attempt to break into the system, IT teams can observe their progress and gather valuable intelligence on attacks.
A honeypot can also be populated with decoy data, such as credit card information, to lure attackers in. Then, as the attackers break into the system, IT teams can take note of their methods and identify vulnerabilities that can be closed. Find out more about honeypot checker now!
There are two main types of honeypots: research and production. Production honeypots focus on identifying attacks and fooling the attacker, while research honeypots gather information about how threats act in your environment and the wider world. This can inform preventative defenses and patch priority.
The more time an attacker spends attacking the fake threat in a honeypot, the less time they have available to attack live systems and cause real damage to your business. To learn how StrongDM’s secure infrastructure access platform can help protect your organization against these threats, contact us today.
