2023-02-15 - Version 2

Pandora FMS NG 768 RRR

This is a minor update with new functionalities and features. The latest version with maximum stability is Pandora FMS 767 HOPE LTS (Long Term Support).

Regular releases (RRR) are monthly releases that bring together many changes and new functionalities. They are ideal for those users who need to be up to date and are not afraid of finding some unpolished detail. The LTS versions are oriented to consolidate all the changes of the RRR versions and offer maximum stability.

New features and improvements

Improvement in credential store security

From this version onwards, Pandora FMS encrypts user password hashing using the algorithm CRYPT_BLOWFISH.

New application information display

With an “About” modal window that replaces the Web Console footer.

New network monitoring: SFlow

The possibility of obtaining monitoring through SFlow has been incorporated into our flow management.

New dashboard widget: Data Matrix

The new “Data Matrix” widget has been added. Through this widget you may represent the information of the requested modules in a decompressed way, taking into account the value of the requested interval.

New macro _group_contact_

Added new macro _group_contact_ in event responses.

Sound alerts in Command Center

Added the sound alert configuration feature in the Command Center, just like the one from the nodes.

New indicator in visual console: Orange box

We rescued a feature from version 6: the ability to display an orange box on visual certain console elements if the agent or module has a triggered alert, as well as recursive elements that reflect the status of the other visual console:

New pie charts

Pie charts have been modified for more accurate representation of their data.

LDAP
PLUGIN – ENTERPRISE

New parameters have been added, –module_prefix to add a prefix to modules and –tentacle_address and –tentacle_port to be able to send data by Tentacle and be able to see those in Pandora FMS before installing the plugin.

See in library →

Known changes and limitations

Due to the arrival of EOL from versions PHP 7.4, 7.3 and 7.2, version LTS 767 “Hope” will be the last one that will support said versions, PHP being Pandora FMS official version for the coming ones.

Fixed vulnerabilities

Case#	GitLab#	Description
N/A	8297	Improved Pandora FMS access management

Feature extinction

Deleted process transactional monitoring. This feature has nothing to do with WEB transaction monitoring or application monitoring (WUX, UX) that keep on working and being further developed in each version.

Changes and improvements

Case#	GitLab#	Description
N/A	9847	Improved remote inventory plugin for Windows for using pandorawmic binary.
14021	9325	Added the possibility of choosing the representation of the unit of a thousand.
14021	932	Added the possibility of choosing the power to represent full numerical data in reports.
N/A	9412	Made visual modifications to Satellite server remote configuration to make it easier to use.
13830	9292	Improved trap saving and representation in the SNMP view so as not to lose performance when increasing the number of elements to be viewed.
N/A	8558	The inventory feature becomes OpenSource.
N/A	9535	The cluster monitoring feature becomes OpenSource.
N/A	7386	Modified API call management in order to hide the access credentials to it.
N/A	9763	Improved asynchronous service performance and synchronization.
N/A	9624	Added the possibility of monitoring through SFlow.
N/A	9554	Changed pie chart representation.
N/A	9530	Reinstated triggered alert representation by orange boxes.
N/A	8619	Added new widget to dashboards: “Data matrix”.
N/A	9740	Added the mail configuration feature to the Command Center.
N/A	9675	Modified merging notices, so that they only fire in the strictly necessary cases.
N/A	8809	Added Custom SQL report type to the Command Center.
N/A	9709	Changed the admin user to be created as local by default.
14267	9557	Added private dashboard automatic removal when deleting the associated user.
13884	9246	Added new macro _group_contact_ in event responses.
N/A	9801	Added block in PDF/CSV/JSON file generation so as not to be able to generate more than one simultaneously and thus not affect the tool’s performance.
N/A	9286	Deleted the service forcing button for child services.
N/A	9120	Included the “not” button for a free text search in the events view.
13468	8849	Added the option to create a custom Link agent field.
13329	8770	Added the possibility of having bandwidth in absolute value in the network-bandwidth plugin.
N/A	8755	Modified the possibility of editing server plugins once they are deployed.
N/A	9135	Included the possibility of searching by name and user ID in events.
N/A	9516	Modified agent plugin editing in policies.
N/A	9447	Added entry control to the –create_event call of the CLI.
N/A	9152	Added the option to enable modules in bulk in agent views.
13786	8854	Included audible event alerts in the Command Center.
N/A	1270	Cascade automatic child, grandchild… module deletion.
N/A	7250	Visual enhancements in pandora_server.conf Web editor.
N/A	8535	Cluster monitoring from Enterprise version to the Open version.
N/A	9002	Transaction monitoring extinction (transaction server),
N/A	9059	Label and input visual correction in the agent group view.
N/A	9113	Added HTTPS support for API CHECKER.
13843	9196	Added service element edition into the Metaconsole.
N/A	9219	Deleted configuration file editing in collection or plugin ownership in policies with NMS license.
N/A	9463	Improved network map linking.
N/A	9878	Added server multiple selection in event filter editing (Metaconsole).
N/A	9903	Deleted the possibility of having different profiles with the same name.
N/A	9984	Corrected recon parameter order with SNMP v3.
N/A	9991	Renamed “skin” label by “theme” in user editing.
N/A	10037	Improvements in server auto-monitoring.
N/A	10082	Improved module double search tooltip in agent view.
N/A	10098	Better composer error control in PHP 7 when updating to Pandora 768 (it does not offer support for PHP 7).
N/A	10101	When changing from md5 to sha (access credentials) it is checked whether the table is varchar(60), if not it stays as md5.
N/A	1841	Added SO filtering to policies.
N/A	8538	Improve Azure monitoring.
N/A	9090	Added manual query to turn old plain-text “custom_data” into base64.
14021	9323	Enhanced 4-figure number display in reports to show the full number.
N/A	9587	Added double search in agent view to filter modules and alerts.
N/A	9643	Implemented pandora-exec for modern Windows (such as wmic).
N/A	9868	Deleted the footer and replaced by “About” section.
N/A	10025	Added option in the online installer to install the latest LTS version.
N/A	10096	Adapted snmp_remote.pl plugin to be able to execute it externally.
N/A	9618	Added the option to see the IP with which a remote module is being run from the agent view.

Bug fixes

Support#	GitLab#	Description
N/A	9684	Fixed connection error in NCM if the destination needs a prompt.
13394	8793	Fixed the deadlock in pandora_db when using Percona XtraDB cluster.
N/A	9995	Replaced the awk command by gawk for the AD plugin to avoid usage error.
N/A	9985	Fixed the use of the Deployment Center with PHP 8.
N/A	9983	Fixed error 500 in operations in bulk with PHP 8.
N/A	9982	Fixed bug in pandora-snmp-bandwith.pl plugin.
14484	9896/9275	Fixed the compilation of certain dependencies necessary for the correct use of NCM.
N/A	9833	Fixed user search in general search engine in the OpenSource version.
14523	9811	Fixed errors in reports that had availability type items.
N/A	9783	Fixed certain bugs in new network map refreshings.
14458	9780	Fixed the lack of information display in Discovery tasks.
N/A	9720	Fixed module histogram widget by not displaying state changes correctly.
14417	9706	Fixed the disappearance of drop-down menus in the module graphics view in dark mode.
N/A	9677	Fixed history database automatic partitioning.
N/A	9597	Fixed the default port in the integration with Ehorus.
N/A	9586	Modified the API call get_tree_agent, which displayed unnecessary information.
N/A	9548	Added certain fields in some database tables to avoid errors in the execution of pandora_db.
14180	9498	Fixed API call add_permission_user_to_group, which left the assigned profile group empty.
N/A	9483	Modified the correlation server to prevent its performance degradation.
14050	9349	Modified the tree view in the Command Center so that it does not show the agent hash when hovering over.
N/A	9978	Fixed enterprise ACLs to not allow configuration of a particular bulk operations page.
14580	9912	Fixed scheduled emails and report sending using Discovery tasks.
N/A	10000	Fixed error 500 in “tree_agents” API call with PHP 8.
N/A	9986	Fixed saving when creating an SNMP module that does not need a port, so that it is saved empty.
14571	9931	Fixed filtering in the event view when trying to select more than one server, where only the first one was selected.
N/A	9911	Fixed collection update when md5 is weight 0.
14569	9906	Fixed auto-refresh errors in Command Center event view.
14572	9873	Fixed custom images missing in visual console service elements.
14558	9851	Fixed wrong display of custom images on the login screen.
14463	9747	Solved the lack of some events when “Display all” is selected in filtering.
N/A	9721	Corrected the CLI call –add_event_comment that did not add the event ID into the comment.
N/A	9508	Fixed text overlay in dashboards when setting up a new widget.
14178	9496	Added input value validation in the creation of a new module using API.
12537	9221	Corrected module type’s default value when creating modules in “MySQL Server Advanced Plugin”.
12537	8950	Modified modules of the “MySQL Server Advanced Plugin” plugin that had erroneous data.
N/A	9061	Fixed Discovery section views.
N/A	9251	Added translation into sections that called to function ui_print_help_tip
N/A	9362	Modified tagent_data checking for big loads of data.
N/A	9440	Fixed “$bad_agents” counting.
14267	9556	Fixed counting and pagination in Dashboards view.
14349	9664	Removed modules in pendingdelete from the module selection view in scheduled downtimes.
N/A	9679	Fixed information sample in failed attempt register when obtaining a token.
14457	9738	Fixed node change in SQL reports after editing it (Metaconsole).
N/A	9759	Fixed common agent loading in module operations in bulk.
14480	9787	Fixed status update in the event information window in the General tab.
N/A	9817	Controlled profile duplication in agent creation.
N/A	9825	Fixed image upload through file manager in the Metaconsole.
N/A	9827	Fixed error related to external link without value as user home screen.
N/A	9831	Fixed password policy that only worked the first time.
N/A	9844	Fixed bug in alert filtering (it did not take into account “field content” in alert filter when selecting “mail to admin” in actions).
N/A	9908	Fixed failure in the Metaconsole event filter when modifying autorefresh.
N/A	9910	Fixed visual bug in template condition configuration/editing.
N/A	9922	Fixed the impossibility of filtering by tags in alert view.
N/A	9932	Fixed errors in SNMP browser.
N/A	9953	Fixed agent GIS information addition manually through PHP 8.
N/A	9966	Fixed issue with permissions from users created through API (user with manage users) of access to nodes in environments with Metaconsole.
14036	9969	Fixed errors when editing traps.
N/A	9972	Fixed typo in the log message when adding the bandwidth plugin module in Satellite.
14623	9973	Fixed error that did not allow to disable auto refresh in the Metaconsole.
N/A	9988	Fixed visual issue that did not allow to access the log view from the agent view.
N/A	9994	Fixed issue that did not allow to select “module group” when creating a modules.
N/A	9996	Fixed incorrect description in ssh module creation.
N/A	9997	Removed “using module component” from module editing.
N/A	9999	Fixed error in agent “full list of alerts” view.
N/A	10005	Fixed SQL errors when adding a new node o the Metaconsole.
N/A	10022	Fixed SQL error when adding inventory modules allowing to save without “Module” field.
N/A	10034	Fixed error that allowed to create empty/voisd ALC Enterprise profiles.
N/A	10036	Fixed visual error where the module legend overlapped with the circle graph in custom graphs.
N/A	10038	Fixed auto refreshing issue in event view (Metaconsole).
N/A	10041	Fixed error 500 in old correlation alerts.
N/A	10043	Fixed trap editing error that generated entities and did not allow editing.
N/A	10046	Fixed bug when deleting inventory modules individually.
N/A	10048	Fixed error in “Monitoring>Alert details” where when filtering by “mil to admin” it did not take into account the rest of the filters.
N/A	10049	Fixed error 500 when editing the cluster agent from the tree view (Metaconsole).
N/A	10074	Fixed error that did not allow to modify “content type” in SNMP alerts with “mail to admin” action.
14724	10075	Fixed error that did not show Compliance SLA percentage and Status in PDF reports.
N/A	10078	Fixed error 500 when deleting correlation alerts.
14706	10080	Fixed SQL error when creating external alert with action by default.
N/A	10104	Added Chrome to Ubuntu installation for proper execution in the console.
N/A	10119	Fixed alert view error in the Open version.
14783	10121	Fixed error 500 when creating custom MySQL.
N/A	10154	Fixed network map preview view with Discovery task performance.
N/A	9949	Fixed WUX widgets.
14544	10023	Fixed pandora_snmp_bandwidth.pl plugin.
N/A	10139	Fixed default visual consoles that used non-existent data.
N/A	8578	Fixed visual errors in integrations with eHorus.
N/A	9980	Fixed WUX executescript command when the response obtained 0.
N/A	10068	Fixed node collection synchronization when using PHP 8.
N/A	10040	Fixed connection error with AD in Command Center with PHP 8.
N/A	10114	Fixed error 500 in Command Center when using LDAP.
N/A	8047	fixed Kaspersky antivirus blocking to new WMIC version used by the Satellite server.
N/A	9633	Fixed typos in alert templates in french.
14650	10026	Fixed Command Center configuration order.
N/A	10123	Fixed warning due to a Js file being missing.
N/A	10052	Fixed network map calculation counting whew the mock node was taken into account.
N/A	10129	Fixed visual typo in the percentile time creation.
N/A	10088	Modified sample_agent query to improve its performance.
N/A	10131	Fixed error 500 in the module template view within an agent.
N/A	10135	Fixed error 500 in Command Center collection pagination.

Documentation update

Caso#	GitLab#	Descripción
N/A	10003	Fixed CLI call –create_event information.
N/A	10001	Added documentation of the tables used in the Command Center merging process.
N/A	9998	Added documentation of server plugin modification even if they are deployed.
N/A	9993	Added documentation about the use of email encryption in the Command Center.
N/A	9835	Updated Selinux documentation.
N/A	9803	Deleted transaction monitoring documentation.
N/A	9795	Added the documentation of the new “Data Matrix” widget.
N/A	9767	Updated information for installing software agents.
N/A	9743	Added documentation for the new event response macro _group_contact_.
14195	9533	Modified SQL report documentation to help perform correct queries.
N/A	9967	Updated information about visual console icons.
N/A	10113	Added cusom_data on base64 documentation.
N/A	10109	Added the new menu option “About”.
N/A	10145	Fixed support to Windows devices.
N/A	10060	Added documentation on dependencies included in ALT packages.
N/A	10128	Added IPAM documentation for importing through CSV.
N/A	10072	Updated new pie chart documentation.
N/A	10142	Updated server token “Dataserver_threads x” documentation.
N/A	9696	Added documentation to be able to use pmacct as alternate probe to that of Netflow.

Known bugs

This section presents some known bugs that will be fixed as soon as possible in upcoming versions.

Caso#	GitLab#	Descripción
14771	10156	The availability report content cannot be displayed without first clicking “Update Item”.
N/A	10152	It is not possible to add some groups to notifications.
14825	10146	The timestamp macro shows different date formats.
N/A	10147	There is some login slowdown in the node.
N/A	9866	Certain notifications are not fully displayed in descriptions.
N/A	10051	By setting a timeout to a module sometimes the module process is not stopped, therefore leaving a zombie process.
14803	10133	There are issues for Discovery IPAM task deletion.
14804	10136	pandora_manage does not modify the agent’s primary group from the Command Center.
14762	10132	There is an error in registration of a Windows machine when carrying out WMI requests.
N/A	9253	Failure in the usage of certain languages in the Command Center.
14800	10127	It is necessary to add the “id_nodo” field to the call to validate events from the API in the Command Center.
14417	9706	Menu display error in the module’s graph with dark mode.
N/A	9677	Failure in automatic partition creation in the history database.
N/A	10102	Visual typo in columns of service SLA reports.
N/A	10115	Login issues through LDAP when using special characters.
N/A	9924	Errors in visual console links.
14765	10112	Certain module types belonging to policies keep on running even if disabled from policies.
14735	10085	Lack of data time correspondence between graphs and serialized data.
N/A	9600	Server wrong status when there is a time zone difference between the server and the console.
N/A	9164	Process duplication creation in VMWare tasks.

About Version 2 Digital

Version 2 Digital is one of the most dynamic IT companies in Asia. The company distributes a wide range of IT products across various areas including cyber security, cloud, data protection, end points, infrastructures, system monitoring, storage, networking, business productivity and communication products.

Through an extensive network of channels, point of sales, resellers, and partnership companies, Version 2 offers quality products and services which are highly acclaimed in the market. Its customers cover a wide spectrum which include Global 1000 enterprises, regional listed companies, different vertical industries, public utilities, Government, a vast number of successful SMEs, and consumers in various Asian cities.

About PandoraFMS
Pandora FMS is a flexible monitoring system, capable of monitoring devices, infrastructures, applications, services and business processes.
Of course, one of the things that Pandora FMS can control is the hard disks of your computers.

Pandorafms 2023

Machine Identity Management Best Practices

Remote work and the adoption of cloud computing surfaced the concept of identity as a perimeter.
In this sense, although it is not new, identity security first gained urgency as malicious attackers began to use machine identity management and access to achieve their goals.

Currently, hackers have been successful in targeting Active Directory and identity infrastructure to move laterally on networks with vulnerabilities.

It is worth mentioning that the use of multifactor authentication (MFA) is growing, but it is still necessary to configure, maintain, and monitor the identity infrastructure properly.

In this article, we will explain everything about this subject. To facilitate your reading, we divided our text into topics. These are:

What is Machine Identity?
Importance of Machine Identity Management
Challenges in Machine Identity Management
Seven Best Practices in Machine Identity Management
Other Best Practices
About senhasegura
Conclusion

Enjoy the read!

What is Machine Identity?

Just as people use usernames and passwords to protect their identities, machines have their unique identifications protected by these credentials, as well as keys and certificates.

Without proper machine identity management, it becomes impossible to guarantee the confidentiality of data obtained by authorized devices and to prevent this information from being transferred to unauthorized machines.

In practice, a machine with a compromised identity can damage the company’s digital security. This is because hackers can use them to gain privileged access to data and resources from the organization’s networks.

Moreover, by stealing or forging a machine identity, an attacker is able to impersonate a legitimate machine and obtain sensitive data.

To account for the volume, variety, and speed of changes in machine identity, one needs to strategically manage a complex and rapidly changing data set.

Through appropriate policies and controls, machine identity management contributes to optimizing a corporation’s cybersecurity, reducing risks, and ensuring compliance with security requirements.

Importance of Machine Identity Management

Proper machine identity management is critical to preventing compromised credentials, keys, and certificates from being used to invade infrastructure, giving access to sensitive data, or being used to create fraudulent tunnels and hide malicious actions.

It also allows one to track the exponential growth in the number of machines to keep their identities secure and track the evolution of cloud services, which can expose machine identities to hacker action.

With the correct machine identity management, it is also possible to protect mobile devices, sensors, and robots, which can communicate and store sensitive information using encryption.

In addition, we live in a context where machines have increasingly intelligent functions, replacing people in activities that require logical reasoning and thinking, and machine identity management allows us to interact securely with this type of equipment.

Challenges in Machine Identity Management

In the previous topic, we showed the importance of machine identity management in data protection. However, we know efficient machine identity management can be quite challenging.

One of the reasons is the increase in IT and OT devices, which also increases the number of credentials, certificates, and keys.

Also, traditional practices are insufficient to meet the demands of machine identity management, which can cause cyberattacks and interruption of activities.
In this sense, the most common challenges are:

Visibility

With a large number of machine identities, it becomes difficult to keep track of existing credentials and know where they are. With this, hidden certificates can expire without anyone noticing, causing an interruption in activities.

Besides being difficult to locate all certificates on a company’s network, some of them are on devices outside the network perimeter, which can go unnoticed by audit processes.

Compliance

To ensure compliance with security requirements, it is essential to regulate the issuance, validity, security levels, and access. Thus, the lack of proper machine identity management, which contemplates TLS/SSL certificates and SSH keys, opens gaps for the action of malicious agents.

Storage

It is very common for certificates and keys to be stored in spreadsheets and distributed by email, however, as the number of machine identities increases, their control in spreadsheets is susceptible to errors.

Manual Management

Manual machine identity management is also a mistake, as it makes the process slow and error-prone.

In practice, applications and devices do not go online quickly after manually registering and provisioning certificates. In addition, manual renewal, revocation, and auditing may cause interruptions in activities.

Seven Best Practices in Machine Identity Management

Here are some practices you need to adopt in your organization’s machine identity management:

Identify This Type of Identity in the Infrastructure

Two hundred and sixty-seven thousand: this is the average number of internal certificates that an IT organization has, according to the Ponemon Institute. Many of these certificates are old, with the possibility of being encoded or hidden among other identities.

To get a sense of it, in a survey by Vanson Bourne, 61% of companies admitted they do not have full knowledge of their keys and certificates for devices. Of these, 96% claimed to suffer consequences such as violations, interruption of systems, and financial losses.

To ensure proper machine identity management, you need visibility into the devices your company uses. Therefore, it is essential to verify this type of identity in the infrastructure.

The good news is that you can count on the support of senhasegura for this: we were considered by Gartner as best in class for the discovery and integration of privileged credentials.

Periodically Rotate Machine Identities

Another indispensable measure is to rotate machine identities periodically to prevent their misuse by malicious users.

This is because when keys and certificates remain the same for a long time, they can be targeted by hackers, who use known API calls with a real certificate to gain access to critical resources and data.

To avoid this problem, organizations must have authorization from source machines, cloud connections, portable devices, application servers, and API interactions. Moreover, certificates should be updated frequently.

Implement Privileged Access Management solutions

To perform proper machine identity management, we also recommend the use of Privileged Access Management (PAM) tools. This type of solution prevents cyberattacks as it grants each user only the access necessary to perform their tasks.

We, from senhasegura, are leaders in this market and can help you protect the machine identities of your organization.

Implement Automation in the Environment Through RPA and PTA

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) consists of the use of technological tools to automate operational and transactional tasks, such as sending e-mails, checking financial data, preparing receipts, and managing payrolls.

Privileged Task Automation (PTA) automates an organization’s workflow tasks, ensuring they are completed at any time without stopping operations. These two mechanisms contribute to preventing violations motivated by human errors.

Nevertheless, it is necessary to manage the identities of software robots, starting with the definition of the best policies on how to integrate them.

Reduce Risk with Zero Trust Plans

To provide more security to machine identity management, it is advisable to adopt the concept of zero trust in equipment. That is, it is not enough for corporate users to be frequently authenticated, it is necessary to extend this standard to devices.

The problem is that, despite already adopting this people-focused work model, many companies still consider device authentication a challenge.

Include the Cloud in the Machine Identity Management Plan

With the digital transformation accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, many companies started operating in the remote work model, using cloud solutions.

Therefore, when we talk about machine identity management, it is necessary to think of solutions that contemplate cloud environments.

Ideally, one should apply an approach that centralizes functions and enables them to manage multiple cloud deployments.

Adopt Machine Identity Management Solutions

Companies need to have teams specifically responsible for machine identity management, preventing certificates and keys from remaining unmanaged.

And to optimize this work, it is advisable to adopt automated machine identity management solutions that manage the entire certificate lifecycle.

Automated solutions are very effective and allow scalability in organizations, following the implementation of new technologies. However, machine identities should not be implied but expressly assigned.

Other Best Practices

Here are some other best practices for you, who need to deal with machine identity management.

Ensure Visibility

For no machine to be left unmanaged, it is indispensable to make a scan of all certificates and keys. This search should include devices that are outside the network perimeter. In addition, it is important to know the location, CA, and expiration date of each certificate.

Count on Centralized Management

Centralizing machine identity management is a way to simplify its implementation across environments, devices, and workloads. It is also possible to group certificates, taking into account their type, level of criticality, and expiration date.

Proper machine identity management protects communication and prevents the action of malicious attackers.

Use Self-Service

It is possible to use self-service for the provision, renewal, and revocation of certificates, making machine identity management more efficient. In this sense, to keep identities well protected and limit the actions of teams, you just need to implement role-based access controls and privileges.

Store Certificates and Keys in Secure Locations

Digital certificates and SSH keys should be stored in centralized and secure locations, preferably on encrypted devices. Moreover, access to these devices should be limited to privileged users with the use of strong passwords and RBAC.

These measures ensure the security of the machine identity, even if the network is compromised.

Key Rotation

Many companies are vulnerable to the action of malicious former employees, who have access to old certificates, keys, and encrypted algorithms. To avoid this problem, we strongly recommend changing old keys to new ones.

Automation

As we have already suggested, automation is the solution to most cybersecurity issues. In the case of machine identity management, automating this process ensures keys and certificates are always up to date and allows you to avoid problems such as interruption of activities.

Perform Audits Frequently

Performing frequent audits on machine identities is important because this process allows one to detect and eliminate issues such as weak passwords, unauthorized or expiring certificates, and old and unused keys.

For this, you can use an audit solution provided by third parties. Thus, it is possible to avoid interruption of activities, prevent violations, and optimize machine identity management.

About senhasegura

We, from senhasegura, are part of the group of information security companies MT4 Tecnologia, founded in 2001, and we aim to provide digital sovereignty to our customers through the control of privileged actions and data.

With this, we prevent data leaks and theft, as we manage privileged permissions before, during, and after access through machine automation. We work to:

Optimizing the performance of companies, avoiding interruption of operations;
Performing automatic audits on the use of permissions;
Auditing privileged changes to detect abuse of privilege automatically;
Providing advanced solutions with the PAM Security Platform;
Reducing cyber threats; and
Bringing the organizations that hire us into compliance with audit requirements and standards such as PCI DSS, Sarbanes-Oxley, ISO 27001, and HIPAA.

Conclusion

In this article, you saw that:

Machines have their unique identities protected by keys and certificates;
The increase in IT and OT machines generates a significant growth in the number of certificates and keys;
Without proper machine identity management, it becomes impossible to guarantee the confidentiality of data obtained by authorized machines and to prevent this information from being transferred to unauthorized ones;
Malicious actors can use compromised machine identities to gain privileged access to data and resources from the organization’s networks;
Machine identity management contributes to optimizing the cybersecurity of a corporation;
It also allows one to keep up with the exponential growth in the number of machines and protect mobile devices, sensors, and robots;
The main challenges in machine identity management are: visibility, compliance, storage, and manual management;
Some of the best practices for this management are: recognizing machine identities, rotating these identities periodically, implementing Privileged Access Management solutions, implementing automation in the environment, reducing risks through the Zero Trust concept, including cloud solutions in machine identity management, and adopting automated machine identity management solutions;
It is also essential to ensure the visibility of devices, rely on centralized management, use self-service, store certificates and keys in secure places, and perform audits frequently;
senhasegura was considered by Gartner as best in class for discovery and integration of privileged credentials;
In addition, the company provides a PAM solution, which avoids cyberattacks through the Principle of Least Privilege.

Did you like our content on machine identity management? Then share it with someone who may be interested in the topic.

About Version 2 Digital

About Segura®
Segura® strive to ensure the sovereignty of companies over actions and privileged information. To this end, we work against data theft through traceability of administrator actions on networks, servers, databases and a multitude of devices. In addition, we pursue compliance with auditing requirements and the most demanding standards, including PCI DSS, Sarbanes-Oxley, ISO 27001 and HIPAA.

Segura 2023

NordPass Desktop App: Release Note

NordPass 4.37 (latest)

We’ve waved bye-bye to some pesky bugs and have also spruced up the place a touch – enjoy!

NordPass 4.36

We’re starting off 2023 on the right foot with a release that’s faster and more reliable. Stay tuned for some bigger announcements!

NordPass 4.35

No major updates this time, just a new and improved app release with some under-the-hood performance upgrades – enjoy!

NordPass 4.34

We’re happy to present you with a new release. Here’s what we’ve got this time:

DESIGN CHANGES TO ITEMS. We updated how your item details are displayed. Hope you’ll like it.

NordPass 4.33

Building good things takes time. So since the last release, we have mainly focused on catching and eliminating pesky bugs.

NordPass 4.32

This time we’ve waved bye-bye to some pesky bugs and have also spruced up the place a touch – enjoy.

NordPass 4.31

We’re happy to present you with a new release. Here’s what we’ve got this time:

AUTOFILL DISABLEMENT ON WEBSITES. You can now disable autofill on any page that you don’t want to fill your details. It won’t reset when you refresh the page but you can turn it back on at any time.
BUG FIXES.

NordPass 4.30

Here’s what you’ll see in the new NordPass release:

ONBOARDING UPDATE. New users will be greeted by a refreshed onboarding experience that will help them familiarize themselves with NordPass.

NordPass 4.29

No major updates this time, just a new and improved app release with some under-the-hood performance upgrades – enjoy!

NordPass 4.28

Building good things takes time. So since the last release, we have mainly focused on catching and eliminating pesky bugs.

NordPass 4.27

This time we’ve waved bye-bye to some pesky bugs and have also spruced up the place a touch – enjoy!

NordPass 4.26

No big announcements from us this time. However, we hope you’ll still enjoy an updated NordPass version with fewer bugs and better autofill.

NordPass 4.25

Our bug busters have been working hard since the last time you heard from us. That’s why today we can proudly present another NordPass release with even fewer bugs. We hope you’ll like it.

NordPass 4.24

Building good things takes time. So since the last release, we have mainly focused on catching and eliminating pesky bugs.

NordPass 4.23

We’re happy to present you with a new NordPass release. Here’s what we’ve got this time:

UPDATED PASSWORD INFO. Now you’ll get more guidance on making your passwords more secure. Open any of your passwords, and you’ll see whether it’s been reused on other accounts or it’s too old and needs changing.
BUG FIXES. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Therefore, we continuously aim to catch pesky bugs and provide you with the best password management experience.

NordPass 4.22

Here’s what you’ll see in the new NordPass release:

SWITCH ACCOUNT. A long-awaited feature is here! If you have a few NordPass accounts, like personal and business, switching between them will now be a breeze. Just click on your profile account and look for a “Switch Account” button.
LITHUANIAN LANGUAGE. For our Lithuanian friends out there, you can now use NordPass in your mother tongue. Simply head to Settings to change the language.
BUG FIXES.

NordPass 4.21

Our bug busters have been working hard since the last time you heard from us. That’s why today we can proudly present another NordPass release with even fewer bugs. We hope you’ll like it.

NordPass 4.20

We’re happy to present you with a new NordPass release. Here’s what we’ve got this week:

CARD PIN. From now on, you can also add your PIN when saving card details. Don’t worry; it won’t be autofilled. It’s for your reference only.
DELETE CLIPBOARD SETTING. When you copy your password or other item data, it’s normally saved in the clipboard. To avoid pasting it somewhere you didn’t intend; you can now choose the clipboard to clear after a set time.
BUG FIXES.

NordPass 4.19

It’s international women’s day! So we want to take this opportunity and say thank you to all the beautiful women who tirelessly work at NordPass. It wouldn’t be the same without you.

P.S. We mainly focused on fixing bugs this time, so we hope you like a better running app.

NordPass 4.18

Here’s what you’ll see in the new NordPass release:

SUBDOMAIN SORTING IMPROVEMENTS. From now on, if you have multiple items saved for one domain, the account with the matching subdomain will be shown first.
BUG FIXES.

NordPass 4.17

Did you know that January has a Blue Monday – the most depressing day of the year? The good news is it’s over. But if you’re still feeling a little bit blue, here’s a few things we’ve updated to hopefully cheer you up.

Safari import. You can now import passwords saved in Safari straight to NordPass.
Data Breach Report update. If your password appears in a Data Breach report and you update it on the website, select “Resolve” and the same details won’t appear next time you run the report.
Bug fixes. Caught many annoying bugs that hinder your experience.

Some write songs, some dedicate sonnets, some built monuments. We create release notes to honor each update of NordPass app for Windows, macOS and Linux. A single click of that magical “Update” button unlocks the newer, faster, better-performing world of stress-free password management.

NordPass 4.16

As Christmas is over, it’s time to make some New Year’s resolutions. But why wait? We want to become a better, smoother-running, and more user-friendly app now. We have strived for perfection since NordPass was launched, and this week is no exception. So we present you a new NordPass version with fewer bugs and more Autofill fixes.

NordPass 4.15

A good beginning makes a good ending, so why not start a week with a new NordPass release? Here’s what we’ve got this week:

BREACH SCANNER UPDATE. If your password was leaked in a data breach and you’ve reused it on other accounts, a new ‘Accounts at risk` tab will appear. There you’ll see a list of accounts that may be vulnerable. Don’t wait for a second and change their passwords to prevent cyber attacks.
AUTOFILL UPDATE. We’ve fixed a ton of autofill bugs so you’d have a smoother autofill experience on even more websites.

NordPass 4.14

We know that sometimes life throws challenges right at you. At those times, the last thing you want to think about is how and where to access your passwords.

That’s why from now on, you can give emergency access to your passwords and other items. Choose a person you really trust and invite them to be your emergency contact. Once they accept it, you can give them access immediately or wait for 7 days to be given automatically. Note: You can only give emergency access to another NordPass user with a Personal or Family plan.

NordPass 4.13

Trick or treat? Who are we kidding? It’s always just treated here at NordPass. So here’s our Halloween treat to you – a brand new NordPass release. Don’t worry, nothing to be scared of—just a smoother running version of your password manager.

NordPass 4.12

Tired of too many emails and banners? We get you, and we want to improve our communication with you. That’s why from now on, a lot of important information will appear as in-app notifications. So if you open the app and see a red dot next to a bell icon, just know that it’s something important from us to you.

P.S. We also solved a number of bugs.

NordPass 4.11

Getting your data stolen isn’t nice. But if that happens to you, it’s important to identify the stolen information and act quickly. That’s why with this release, Data Breach Scanner has gone even better. How?

If your data has ever appeared in any breach, you can now use the Breach Scanner to identify not just what type of data was leaked, but also see it in plain text. This includes passwords, your address, social security number, birth date, and other data types.

In addition to all this, we are continually working to improve one of our core features – Autofill. So expect to see more websites working flawlessly with NordPass.

NordPass 4.10

Can’t find tools to improve your password security? We got you. You’ll find security tools such as Password Generator, Data Breach Scanner, and Password Health in the sidebar from this release. More accessible to access and easier to use.

We also solved some pesky bugs to make your NordPass experience more enjoyable.

NordPass 4.9

What do you have in the box this time NordPass? Well, let me see…

Title and website address suggestion. That’s right, now when creating a new item, you only need to enter a few letters in the Title or Website address fields, and NordPass will suggest filling it with one of the thousand popular websites.
Spanish and Italian languages are now available on the NordPass extension.
Bug fixes, bug fixes, and more bug fixes.

NordPass 4.8

It’s August my friend. And you know what August is good for? Learning new languages.

Hablas español? Parli italiano? If you do, lucky you. Because you can now use NordPass in Spanish and Italian. Enjoy!

NordPass 4.7

Did you know that no one else has the same fingerprint as you? That’s why it’s the most unique password you can have. Dedicated Mac users, this release is for you. Yes, you can now sign in to your NordPass app with a fingerprint. Feeling like James Bond yet? We are!

P.S. We also solved a ton of pesky bugs to make your experience smoother than ever.

NordPass 4.6

Dear bugs, it’s time. Time to say goodbye. It won’t be the same without you. It will be better. The password managing experience will be much greater now.

NordPass 4.5

It’s officially summer, NordPass people! (Or winter, if you live in the southern hemisphere.) Wherever you are, we hope it’s sunny so that you can enjoy the brand new release. Here’s what we’ve got:

MULTIPLE ITEM SHARING. Sharing is caring, right? Well, now you can select multiple items and share them all at once. Easy peasy. Just always make sure you trust the people you share your credentials with.
PASSWORD GENERATOR HISTORY. You know that moment when you create a super-strong password with the NordPass Generator and forget to save it? Yeah, we’ve been there too. That’s why you’ll now see a little clock icon in your Generator where you can check your previously generated passwords.
BUG FIXES. And, of course, we won’t release a new NordPass version without getting rid of as many bugs as possible.

NordPass 4.4

“Speed” was the main keyword at NordPass this week. So what to expect in this release?

Updated designs so you could find your passwords or any other items at the speed of light.
Tons of bug fixes and maintenance work so that your app would work faster than ever and would be as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside.

NordPass 4.3

Don’t worry if you missed the chance to get NordPass Premium for less. The Summer Kick-Off Sale is here! Use this offer to get access to all the amazing Premium features.

Also, we have a little something for our Business users. From now on, all members who are added or removed from groups will be notified by email.

NordPass 4.2.18

Hello, world! We’ve prepared a nice little juicy pack of updates – just for you. Please give a warm welcome to:

Double EXTENSION-upgrade: from now on, not only it speaks German fluently but also is available in Dark Mode. Ready to give some rest for those sore eyes?
A new ge-ne-ra-tion for stronger passwords! Check out the PASSWORD GENERATOR to enjoy shiny new looks and (finally!) PASS-PHRASES for nice-and-strong-memorable-passwords.

NordPass 4.1

We are working hard on bringing Dark Mode to the NordPass extension. In the meantime, we are also doing some good old maintenance work. So expect to see some design changes in the browser extension and forget the existence of annoying bugs.

NordPass 4.0

Today is the day! You know what we are talking about. You asked for it; we delivered it. And oh boy, how good it looks! You’ll believe it once you see it.

OK, we recommend sitting down for this one. Then open your NordPass app, update it to the newest version and enjoy the shiny new DARK MODE.

And if that doesn’t impress you, well, then we have more news. You can now use NordPass in German. Whether it’s your mother tongue or just want to polish your German skills, you can now change your language preference in Settings.

NordPass 3.31

This time we’ve got many design changes to make your life easier. So let’s get to it. Here’s what you’ll see in this release.

TOAST MESSAGES UPDATE. Some of the success messages, such as when you import items or update your app, were outdated, so we made them easier to understand.
MULTISELECT REWORK. We noticed that the sorting option was missing when multiple items were selected. We introduced this option and changed long-winded buttons to visually pleasing icons.
BROWSER EXTENSION UPDATE. You can now access Tools from the NordPass extension, including the Password Health and the Data Breach Scanner.

NordPass 3.30

Are you ready to switch off the lights? Because Dark Mode is coming very very soon. We are working hard to make sure everything looks perfect for the release. A few more things, and we are done. Keep your eyes peeled.

In other news, we fixed some annoying bugs we found in Groups and took care of other bugs.

NordPass 3.29

Sometimes what we do is either too difficult to explain or too difficult to see. Yes, you guessed it. This week we put all our effort into finding and getting rid of bugs. We hope we’ll have something more exciting for you next week.

NordPass 2.34

NordPass has gone through some serious spring cleaning with this release. Why do we say so? Here’s what we did:

B2B GROUPS BUG FIXES. It’s new, fresh, and now with fewer bugs.
APP BUG FIXES. We’ll never give up on perfecting NordPass.
EXTENSION DESIGN REWORK. So much better looking now! You have to see it to believe it.

And something exciting is coming up very soon. So stay tuned. 😉

NordPass 2.33

This time, we’ve got good news for Business users. Let us introduce GROUPS. Admins and Owners can now assign members to groups and share passwords with a number of people instantly. Think, your finance department sharing login details every accountant needs to access.

Anything else? Of course, we got rid of more nasty bugs.

NordPass 2.32

Happy April Fool’s! Stay vigilant, and don’t get tricked by any hackers. Keep your passwords safe with an updated NordPass app. Here’s what we’ve got this time:

CHANGES TO MASTER PASSWORD CREATION. Now it’s easier to understand what that mysterious Master Password is and how it is different from your Nord Account password. BUG FIXES as usual.

NordPass 2.31

It’s spring! Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, and NordPass is releasing another update. In this release, you’ll find: KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS. You can now use CTRL + F to search your items and CTRL + L to lock your app instantly. BUG FIXES. No bugs allowed here.

NordPass 2.30

NordPass bug hunters strike again. Yes, you guessed it. We got rid of more pesky bugs so you could enjoy an even smoother experience with NordPass. That’s it for now!

NordPass 2.29

“Could NordPass be any better?” asks our team every single week. And the answer never changes. YES, it can!

But it’s not always about new features and crazy advancements. Sometimes it’s all about perfecting those nitty-gritty details. So this week, we say another goodbye to a bunch of bugs. Bye, we won’t miss you.

NordPass 2.28

Another week, another release of a better, faster, and more secure NordPass app. And for this we say a BIG thank you to our bug hunters (aka developers). You guys rock.

NordPass 2.27

If NordPass was a dog, what would he say to a flea?

Stop bugging me.

The good news NordPass doesn’t need to endure nasty bugs. Bye-bye, bugs. We don’t wanna see you no more.

NordPass 2.26

Ready, set, new release! What can you expect to see in the new and shiny NordPass 2.26?

EXTENSION REWORK. Updated, upgraded, and overall better-looking browser extension. But what did we actually do? Well, we just made it even more similar to your desktop app, meaning more functional and easier to use. Voila!

BUG FIXES. Can you tell we don’t like insects? No bugs are allowed in our app. Yuck.

NordPass 2.25

It’s a very special day today. We thought about it over and over again. We were constantly considering, overthinking, and having sleepless nights about it. We even visited a fortune teller to ask if you’ll like it, or not. Yet still, our developers were nervously (but carefully!) coding that code.

And here it comes. A sincere love letter. In PDF format. Containing your Recovery Code. Save it, delete it, save it again, print it – do whatever you want, but please, keep it safe. And don’t show to anyone else! It was created from the bottom of our hearts to express how much we LOVE YOU.

Take care!

And don’t forget to update the app to get those extra bug fixes.

NordPass 2.24

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a password manager named NordPass lived. His goal was to become the best password manager that there ever was. And he did it one release at a time.

He proudly presents his latest achievements:

AUTOSAVE AND PASSWORD EDIT UPDATES. Now it will be easier to understand when NordPass is prompting to update an old password or when it is offering to save a new one automatically.
HELP SECTION ADDED TO SETTINGS. If you need help using NordPass, head to Settings to be directed to the Help Center.
COPY CHANGES. Salvador Dali might have said not to fear perfection as we’ll never reach it, but we’ll still give it a good go.
BUG FIXES. No need to call the pest control officer; we got it fixed.

NordPass 2.23

AbraCadabra boom! No, it’s not magic. It’s just your passwords and personal information filling in quicker and smoother than ever before. Bye-bye, annoying bugs who tried to stop you. What else can you expect in this release?

ONLINE/OFFLINE INDICATOR appears in the NordPass extension.
COPY CHANGES to make the app easier to navigate.
MORE BUG FIXES.

NordPass 2.22

New Year, new NordPass release. Here’s what you’ll see in the latest version:

EASIER LOG IN WITH NORD ACCOUNT. We tweaked the steps you take logging in to NordPass for a smoother experience.
BUG FIXES, because no one likes bugs.
RECOVERY CODE PDF. You will now be able to download your Recovery Code in PDF. Keep it somewhere safe. 😉

NordPass 2.21

Yeah, Christmas will be different this year. But we’ve still got something to spread a little cheer.

In this release, you will see:

ICONLESS ITEMS STYLING. Your passwords that don’t have dedicated icons will light up in a variety of colors.
BUG FIXES. Well, it cannot be called a release without bug fixes, right?

NordPass 2.20

“You guys give up? Or are you thirsty for more?” – Kevin, Home Alone, 1990

That’s the NordPass spirit, Kevin! We’ve got more:

Design changes. Yes, the sky’s the limit for our designers, sorry.
Password Generator update. Did we mention that it’s important to have long and unique passwords?
Browser extension update. Easier to understand, prettier to look at.

NordPass 2.19

I don’t want a lot for Christmas
There is just one thing I need
I don’t care about the presents
Underneath the Christmas tree

Don’t want NordPass for my own
More than you could ever know
Making this wish come true
Giving a bug-free NordPass for you

P.S. Thanks Mariah Carey for inspiration.

NordPass 2.18

NordPass has turned 1 year old this week. Just on time for Thanksgiving, can you believe it? And we can honestly say this year we are the most grateful for YOU, our dear NordPass user. You, who believed in us and drove us to release one update after another.

So here’s one more. Full of even more design edits, bug fixes, and love:

LOGINS TURN TO PASSWORDS. Now all across the app, you’ll see the term “Password” instead of “Login” because it’s just easier to understand.
CHOOSE FOLDER WHEN AUTOSAVING to organize your passwords there and then.
RENEWED IMPORT. Importing passwords in bulk is now easier than ever.
MINOR DESIGN CHANGES because, let’s be honest, who doesn’t like a good-looking app.
NORD ACCOUNT DEEPLINK FIXES. No more accidental logouts when you use NordVPN and change your IP.

NordPass 2.17

Xmas is in less than 35 days. You’re welcome.

In other news, our designers, developers, and copywriters are presenting you with another brand new update. This time we fixed the annoying-forever-loading spinner, made minor changes to the way you see your items’ details, and updated the copy to make your app even more easier to navigate. Until next time 😉

NordPass 2.16

We know you have better things to do (like keep up with the news on the current presidential election. Yikes, so intense!). So we thought, ‘who are we to bombard you with more messages?’. Poof! Your login and logout messages are gone.

To make your day a little bit brighter, we also made some improvements to your items layout. And we can describe it with just one word – SLEEK. You’ll believe it when you see it 😉

And NordPass update wouldn’t be an update without bug fixes. We did the dirty work and crushed them once again.

NordPass 2.15

Trick or treat? Treat, always. We might be a few days late to any online Halloween party, but, to make up for it, we are bringing new treats to your desktop app:

ADD ITEM IN FOLDER. You can now add items straight from your folders. Easy, breazy, and all your items are organized.
ITEM DETAILS FIXES. “There is no limit to perfection!” screams the NordPass design team. Your items will now look more beautiful than ever.
OTHER LITTLE BUG FIXES. Little bugs and spiders might fit the Halloween theme, but they don’t look good in your NordPass app. We got rid of them to make your experience smoother and safer.

NordPass 2.14

Providing high-quality password-managing experience, routine maintenance and working under-the-hood is just as essential as releasing a new shiny feature. So nothing grand this time — just the usual bug-fixing and design-improving business. We’re packing and sending best wishes along with app improvements your way!

NordPass 2.13

BUG FIXES. Sometimes you couldn’t scroll down to the end of your passwords list. You simply couldn’t. The good news is that we did some magic tricks, so now you can.
BUG FIXES. We’ve also changed the font style, the button style, and the spacing style in the context menu of your passwords list (not exactly a bug, but we wanted to keep the release notes in style).
BUG FIXES for everyone.
BUG FIXES. Sometimes you couldn’t scroll down to the end of your passwords list. You simply couldn’t. The good news is that we did some magic tricks, so now you can.

NordPass 2.12

When life gives you Monday, we release the app update. Let’s see what we’ve got:

IN-APP NOTIFICATIONS sometimes were over-competitive and tried to overlap each other. Someone smart once said that the best way to kill competition is to partner it. So after some inspiring conversations about team spirit, the attitude was fixed – all notifications now act super friendly.
DESIGN BUG FIXES. Yes, sometimes bugs may look stylish. Even pretty. They are still bugs – and they are out now.
PASSWORD HEALTH IMPROVEMENTS. The development department was very excited about changing something with the algorithm. All I know is that the health of your passwords will be calculated even more accurately. I only write release notes – please don’t judge me. And have a nice day!

NordPass 2.11

Hey there! How are you? Ready for the update? Let’s go:

BREACH REPORT. This one feels like a lottery. By clicking a ‘Scan’ button, you can find out if any of your accounts were ever caught in data breaches. However, it probably is the first lottery where it’s better not to ‘win’ anything.
DESIGN IMPROVEMENTS. They see you scrollin’, they hatin’, – because scrolling with that new scroll bar has never felt so good. Just give it a go.

NordPass 2.1

Another week – another update. Let’s roll!

DESIGN IMPROVEMENTS. Yes, we did it again. We’ve played with UI, got lost in perfecting the details. Oh, baby baby. Yes, the item lists now look neat, the font is sent from above. It all looks perfect now!
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS. Let’s be honest – after entering your Master Password to unlock the vault, the app window was getting overexcited and moved all over the place. Not that it was a bad thing – but those moves really weren’t good. So, we’ve sent the app to some dancing classes. The result – the app learned some solid, stylish but still moves – more like JLo style.

NordPass 2.9

Faster than light.
Supersonic.
Fleet-footed.
Pronto.
Winged.

We’ve spent hours trying to find the right word to describe the improved speed of opening your passwords (and other items) in the vault, but none of them was good enough. They say that action speaks a thousand words, so enjoy viewing your items at full speed.

NordPass 2.8

Passwords are more human-natured than you could possibly think. They need a safe and cozy place to stay. Most of them eat well (cheat days included 😉 ) and constantly work out to become faster and stronger. However, sometimes they also may feel weak and unwell, so regular health check-ups are crucial. Luckily, we’ve found an easy way to maintain their well-being – set up a password health checker in the app. Take a chance to make your precious passwords happier (and accounts safer) without leaving the house.

Stay safe, everyone!

NordPass 2.7

The idea of throwing this party came out of thin air. Why not, we thought – work hard, party harder, right?

So we’ve ordered lots of food and drinks (everyone was curious seeing what new employees look like when they’re drunk), brought in a magical photo booth (making selfies was too mainstream), and prized trivia (to avoid awkward silences), and live music by our beloved DJ “Vibe Manager”.

Time flew, the party’s got in full swing (no one seemed to be running out of things to talk about – phew). Even NordVPN and NordLocker stopped by. After a not-work-related heated discussion about data privacy and online security, they promised to join our “Tools” department. Like, forever.

Autofill department surprised everyone with funky moves – those icons felt like dancin’ till the break of dawn. It was fun until the ‘fun’ went out of control – and out of login fields. Luckily, after taking a chill pill, everything’s got back in order.

By the way, some unwanted URL spaces were trying to crash both the party and the app. That’s kind of rude, so we’ve asked them to leave.

We’ve finished with a small team-building session with cleaning the office – it’s now nice and clean – and so is the app (we hope so).

That’s it – peace out!

NordPass 2.6

Our engineers are all about perfection. They literally were calculating coordinates for pixel-perfect autofill icons placement. However, some “wind of change” has happened, and those icons ended up finding their home OUTSIDE the login fields. Sorry for that – this unforgivable mistake was fixed.

Also, some sneaky, crawly, totally gross bugs were caught and removed. The app is much better without them – enjoy!

NordPass 2.5

This release contains some behind-the-scenes magic, usual tinkering-under-the-hood and minor design tweaks. By hitting the “Update” button, you will get one step closer to top-notch password-managing experience. Stay well!

NordPass 2.4

They say – small changes make a big difference. Behold – the update with a bunch of app upgrades is here. Let’s see what we’ve got here:

VISUAL IMPROVEMENTS. Mirror mirror on the wall, who is prettiest of them all? Well, our designer’s brush made some magic tweaks, so the answer is clear now – it’s those tiny cute little app icons. Lookin’ good!
APP LOADING FASTER. Need for speed? You’re welcome! Fasten your seatbelt and put the pedal to the metal – the project “Make the app faster” was completed successfully.
BUG FIXES. Dear sneaky bugs, thanks for visiting, farewell, let’s never meet again.

About Version 2 Digital

These days, cybercrime is rampant. It’s no longer a matter of “if” you’re going to suffer an attack but “when” it will happen. All companies want to be ready for any crisis. And this is where a business continuity plan comes into play.

But what is a business continuity plan exactly? Why is it important? What should one include? Today, we’re exploring all these questions in-depth.

What is a business continuity plan?

A business continuity plan (BCP) is a document that sets guidelines for how an organization will continue its operations in the event of a disruption, whether it’s a fire, flood, other natural disaster or a cybersecurity incident. A BCP aims to help organizations resume operations without significant downtime.

Unfortunately, according to a 2020 Mercer survey, 51% of businesses across the globe don’t have a business continuity plan in place.

What’s the difference between business continuity and disaster recovery plans?

We often confuse the terms business continuity plan and disaster recovery plan. The two overlap and often work together, but the disaster recovery plan focuses on containing, examining, and restoring operations after a cyber incident. On the other hand, BCP is a broader concept that considers the whole organization. A business continuity plan helps organizations stay prepared for dealing with a potential crisis and usually encompasses a disaster recovery plan.

Importance of business continuity planning

The number of news headlines announcing data breaches has numbed us to the fact that cybercrime is very real and frequent and poses an existential risk to companies of all sizes and industries.

Consider that in 2021, approximately 37% of global organizations fell victim to a ransomware attack. Then consider that business interruption and restoration costs account for 50% of cyberattack-related losses. Finally, take into account that most cyberattacks are financially motivated and the global cost of cybercrime topped $6 trillion last year. The picture is quite clear — cybercrime is a lucrative venture for bad actors and potentially disastrous for those on the receiving end.

To thrive in these unpredictable times, organizations go beyond conventional security measures. Many companies develop a business continuity plan parallel to secure infrastructure and consider the plan a critical part of the security ecosystem. The Purpose of a business continuity plan is to significantly reduce the downtime in an emergency and, in turn, reduce the potential reputational damage and — of course — revenue losses.

Business continuity plan template

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Business Continuity Plan Example

[Company Name]

[Date]

I. Introduction

Purpose of the Plan
Scope of the Plan
Budget
Timeline

The initial stage of developing a business continuity plan starts with a statement of the plan’s purpose, which explains the main objective of the plan, such as ensuring the organization’s ability to continue its operations during and after a disruptive event.

The Scope of the Plan outlines the areas or functions that the plan will cover, including business processes, personnel, equipment, and technology.

The Budget specifies the estimated financial resources required to implement and maintain the BCP. It includes costs related to technology, personnel, equipment, training, and other necessary expenses.

The Timeline provides a detailed schedule for developing, implementing, testing, and updating the BCP.

II. Risk Assessment

Identification of Risks
Prioritization of Risks
Mitigation Strategies

The Risk Assessment section of a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) is an essential part of the plan that identifies potential risks that could disrupt an organization’s critical functions.

The Identification of Risks involves identifying potential threats to the organization, such cybersecurity breaches, supply chain disruptions, power outages, and other potential risks. This step is critical to understand the risks and their potential impact on the organization.

Once the risks have been identified, the Prioritization of Risks follows, which helps determine which risks require the most attention and resources.

The final step in the Risk Assessment section is developing Mitigation Strategies to minimize the impact of identified risks. Mitigation strategies may include preventative measures, such as system redundancies, data backups, cybersecurity measures, as well as response and recovery measures, such as emergency protocols and employee training.

III. Emergency Response

Emergency Response Team
Communication Plan
Emergency Procedures

This section of the plan focuses on immediate actions that should be taken to ensure the safety and well-being of employees and minimize the impact of the event on the organization’s operations.

The Emergency Response Team is responsible for managing the response to an emergency or disaster situation. This team should be composed of individuals who are trained in emergency response procedures and can act quickly and decisively during an emergency. The team should also include a designated leader who is responsible for coordinating the emergency response efforts.

The Communication Plan outlines how information will be disseminated during an emergency situation. It includes contact information for employees, stakeholders, and emergency response personnel, as well as protocols for communicating with these individuals.

The Emergency Procedures detail the steps that should be taken during an emergency or disaster situation. The emergency procedures should be developed based on the potential risks identified in the Risk Assessment section and should be tested regularly to ensure that they are effective.

IV. Business Impact Analysis

The Business Impact Analysis (BIA) section of a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) is a critical step in identifying the potential impact of a disruption to an organization’s critical operations.

The Business Impact Analysis is typically conducted by a team of individuals who understand the organization’s critical functions and can assess the potential impact of a disruption to those functions. The team may include representatives from various departments, including finance, operations, IT, and human resources.

V. Recovery and Restoration

Procedures for recovery and restoration of critical processes
Prioritization of recovery efforts
Establishment of recovery time objectives

The Recovery and Restoration section of a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) outlines the procedures for recovering and restoring critical processes and functions following a disruption.

The Procedures for recovery and restoration of critical processes describe the steps required to restore critical processes and functions following a disruption. This may include steps such as relocating to alternate facilities, restoring data and systems, and re-establishing key business relationships.

The Prioritization section of the plan identifies the order in which critical processes will be restored, based on their importance to the organization’s operations and overall mission.

Recovery time objectives (RTOs) define the maximum amount of time that critical processes and functions can be unavailable following a disruption. Establishing RTOs ensures that recovery efforts are focused on restoring critical functions within a specific timeframe.

VI. Plan Activation

Plan Activation Procedures

The Plan Activation section is critical in ensuring that an organization can quickly and effectively activate the plan and respond to a potential emergency.

The Plan Activation Procedures describe the steps required to activate the BCP in response to a disruption. The procedures should be clear and concise, with specific instructions for each step to ensure a prompt and effective response.

VII. Testing and Maintenance

Testing Procedures
Maintenance Procedures
Review and Update Procedures

This section of the plan is critical to ensure that an organization can effectively respond to disruptions and quickly resume its essential functions.

Testing procedures may include scenarios such as natural disasters, cyber-attacks, and other potential risks. The testing procedures should include clear objectives, testing scenarios, roles and responsibilities, and evaluation criteria to assess the effectiveness of the plan.

The Maintenance Procedures detail the steps necessary to keep the BCP up-to-date and relevant.

The Review and Update Procedures describe how the BCP will be reviewed and updated regularly to ensure its continued effectiveness. This may involve conducting a review of the plan on a regular basis or after significant changes to the organization’s operations or threats.

What should a business continuity plan checklist include?

Organizations looking to develop a BCP have more than a few things to think through and consider. Variables such as the size of the organization, its IT infrastructure, personnel, and resources all play a significant role in developing a continuity plan. Remember, each crisis is different, and each organization will have a view on handling it according to all the variables in play. However, all business continuity plans will include a few elements in one way or another.

Clearly defined areas of responsibility

A BCP should define specific roles and responsibilities for cases of emergency. Detail who is responsible for what tasks and clarify what course of action a person in a specific position should take. Clearly defined roles and responsibilities in an emergency event allow you to act quickly and decisively and minimize potential damage.
Crisis communication plan

In an emergency, communication is vital. It is the determining factor when it comes to crisis handling. For communication to be effective, it is critical to establish clear communication pipelines. Furthermore, it is crucial to understand that alternative communication channels should not be overlooked and outlined in a business continuity plan.
Recovery teams

A recovery team is a collective of different professionals who ensure that business operations are restored as soon as possible after the organization confronts a crisis.
Alternative site of operations

Today, when we think of an incident in a business environment, we usually think of something related to cybersecurity. However, as discussed earlier, a BCP covers many possible disasters. In a natural disaster, determine potential alternate sites where the company could continue to operate.
Backup power and data backups

Whether a cyber event or a real-life physical event, ensuring that you have access to power is crucial if you wish to continue operations. In a BCP, you can often come across lists of alternative power sources such as generators, where such tools are located, and who should oversee them. The same applies to data. Regularly scheduled data backups can significantly reduce potential losses incurred by a crisis event.
Recovery guidelines

If a crisis is significant, a comprehensive business continuity plan usually includes detailed guidelines on how the recovery process will be carried out.

Business continuity planning steps

Here are some general guidelines that an organization looking to develop a BCP should consider:

Analysis

A business continuity plan should include an in-depth analysis of everything that could negatively affect the overall organizational infrastructure and operations. Assessing different levels of risk should also be a part of the analysis phase.

Design and development

Once you have a clear overview of potential risks your company could face, start developing a plan. Create a draft and reassess it to see if it takes into account even the smallest of details.

Implementation

Implement BCP within the organization by providing training sessions for the staff to get familiar with the plan. Getting everyone on the same page regarding crisis management is critical.

Testing

Rigorously test the plan. Play out a variety of scenarios in training sessions to learn the overall effectiveness of the continuity plan. By doing so, everyone on the team will be closely familiar with the business continuity plan’s guidelines.

Maintenance and updating

Because the threat landscape constantly changes and evolves, you should regularly reassess your BCP and take steps to update it. By making your continuity plan in tune with the times, you will be able to stay a step ahead of a crisis.

Level up your company’s security with NordPass Business

A comprehensive business continuity plan is vital for the entire organization’s security posture. However, in a perfect world, you wouldn’t have to use it. This is where NordPass Business can help.

Remember, weak, reused, or compromised passwords are often cited as one of the top contributing factors in data breaches. It’s not surprising, considering that an average user has around 100 passwords. Password fatigue is real and significantly affects how people treat their credentials. NordPass Business counters these issues.

With NordPass Business, your team will have a single secure place to store all work-related passwords, credit cards, and other sensitive information. Accessing all the data stored in NordPass is quick and easy, which allows your employees not to be distracted by the task of finding the correct passwords for the correct account.

In cyber incidents, NordPass Business ensures that company credentials remain secure at all times. Everything stored in the NordPass vault is secured with advanced encryption algorithms, which would take hundreds of years to brute force.

If you are interested in learning more about NordPass Business and how it can fortify corporate security, do not hesitate to book a demo with our representative.

About Version 2 Digital

About NordPass
NordPass is developed by Nord Security, a company leading the global market of cybersecurity products.

The web has become a chaotic space where safety and trust have been compromised by cybercrime and data protection issues. Therefore, our team has a global mission to shape a more trusted and peaceful online future for people everywhere.

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