Information Notice 2019-04, Effective Cyber Security Practices to Protect Digital Assets of Byproduct Materials Licensees

Effective Cyber Security Practices to Protect Digital Assets of Byproduct Materials Licensees

ML18044A350
Person / Time
Issue date:	08/14/2019
From:	Andrea Kock, Chris Miller Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:
Lukes K
References
IN-19-004
Download: ML18044A350 (9)

ML18044A350

UNITED STATES

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY AND SAFEGUARDS

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION

WASHINGTON, DC 20555-001

August 14, 2019

NRC INFORMATION NOTICE 2019-04:

EFFECTIVE CYBER SECURITY PRACTICES

TO PROTECT DIGITAL ASSETS OF

BYPRODUCT MATERIALS LICENSEES

ADDRESSEES

All U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) byproduct materials licensees that possess

risk-significant quantities of radioactive material and NRC master materials licensees. All

Agreement State Radiation Control Program Directors and State Liaison Officers.

PURPOSE

The NRC is issuing this information notice (IN) to inform licensees of the results of an

assessment conducted by the NRC staff on the potential need for cyber security requirements

for byproduct materials licensees and to communicate effective cyber security practices to

protect digital assets.

The information in this IN is not an NRC requirement; therefore, the NRC requires no specific

action or written response. The NRC is providing this IN to the Agreement States for their

information and for distribution to their applicable licensees, as appropriate.

BACKGROUND

In 2013, the NRC staff assessed the need for cyber security requirements for byproduct

materials licensees as part of its overall strategy to ensure that both reactor and nonreactor

licensees are providing adequate protection against cyber security threats. In 2014, the

Radiation Source Protection and Security Task Force, chaired by the NRC, recommended the

U.S. Government agencies assess the adequacy of and coordinate strategies for preventing

and mitigating cybersecurity vulnerabilities related to Category 1 and Category 2 radioactive

sources. The 2018 Radiation Source Protection and Security Task Force Report (ADAMS

Accession No. ML18235A370 (package)) reported on the NRCs assessment.

DISCUSSION

In the assessment, the NRC staff considered the need for protection from cyber threats to digital

assets in the following four usage categories: digital devices that support the physical security of

licensees facilities; equipment with software-based control, operation, and automation features;

computers used to maintain source inventories, audit data, and records necessary for

compliance with security requirements; and digital technology used to support incident response

communications and coordination.

The NRC staff concluded that the categories of licensees evaluated in this assessment do not

solely rely on digital systems to ensure safety or security. Generally, licensees apply a defense-in-depth approach to safety and security by using measures that include nondigital

features such as doors, locks, barriers, human resources, and operational processes in addition

to any digital assets. In addition, computers used to maintain source inventories, audit data, and records necessary for compliance with security requirements often use encryption, password protection, and other methods of limiting access to digital records to those who have

a need to know. As a result, the NRC staff determined that a compromise of the digital assets

used in these applications would not cause a direct dispersal of risk-significant quantities of

radioactive material1 or exposure of individuals to radiation without a concurrent and targeted

breach of the safety, security, and physical protection measures in force for these licensees.

The NRC staff also determined that the current cyber security threat that these licensees face

does not warrant the development of new regulations related to the protection of risk-significant

quantities of radioactive material against cyber security threats.

Although changes to the regulations are not necessary, the NRC staff concluded that

awareness of mechanisms and practices that can provide protection against cyber security

threats may be valuable to licensee operations and procedures. As a result, the enclosure to

this IN contains effective practices for licensee awareness. The NRC staff also determined that

providing a means to share relevant information resources with licensees would be prudent

because the cyber security threat landscape is constantly evolving. The Conclusion section of

this IN provides information on how to access these resources.

CONCLUSION

Implementation of the requirements found in 10 CFR Part 37 provides reasonable assurance of

adequate protection of public health and safety when considering the potential consequences of

a wide array of attack modes, including cyber. The enclosure to this IN provides additional

effective practices related to cyber security issues licensees may use as applicable.

Previously, the NRC staff provided additional details and examples of applicable effective

practices in guidance developed by the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation for nonpower

reactors, Cyber Security: Effective Practices for the Establishment and Maintenance of

Adequate Cyber Security at Non-Power (Research and Test) Reactor Facilities, dated

January 8, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15252A236 (package)).

In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the manufacturers of

medical devices. Additional information on the FDAs activities, role, and expectations for

continued cyber security of medical devices can be found at

https://www.fda.gov/downloads/medicaldevices/digitalhealth/ucm544684.pdf.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800 Series is a set of

documents that provides U.S. Federal Government computer security policies, procedures, and

guidelines. These publications, available at https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/sp800, may be

useful to licensees by providing guidelines for workable and cost-effective methods for

optimizing the security of information technology (IT) systems and networks in a proactive

manner. The publications cover all procedures and criteria recommended by the National

1 Risk-significant quantities of radioactive material are defined as those that meet the thresholds for Category 1 and

Category 2 as included in Appendix A, Category 1 and Category 2 Radioactive Materials, of Title 10 of the Code of

Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 37, Physical Protection of Category 1 and Category 2 Quantities of Radioactive

Material. Institute of Standards and Technology for assessing and documenting threats and

vulnerabilities and for implementing security measures to minimize the risk of adverse events.

CONTACT

This IN requires no specific action or written response. Please direct any questions about this

matter to the technical contacts listed below.

/RA/

/RA/

Christopher G. Miller, Director

Andrea L. Kock, Director

Division of Inspection

Division of Materials Safety, Security, State, and Regional Support

and Tribal Programs

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Office of Nuclear Material Safety

and Safeguards

Technical Contacts: Kim Lukes, NMSS

Paul Goldberg, NMSS

(301) 415-6701

(301) 415-7842 E-mail: Kim.Lukes@nrc.gov

E-mail: Paul.Goldberg@nrc.gov

Note: NRC generic communications may be found on the NRC public Web site, http://www.nrc.gov, under NRC Library/Document Collections. NRC INFORMATION NOTICE 2019-04: EFFECTIVE CYBER SECURITY PRACTICES TO

PROTECT DIGITAL ASSETS OF BYPRODUCT MATERIALS LICENSEES

ADAMS Accession No.: ML18044A350

CAC/EPID: A11017/L-2019-GEN-0000

• - via email

OFFICE

NMSS/SMPB/TR

NMSS/SMPB/TR

QTE

NMSS/SMPB/BC

NMSS/ASPB/BC

NAME

PGoldberg

KLukes

JDougherty*

ZCruzPerez*

PMichalak*

DATE

03/19/19

03/19/19

03/28/19

05/22/19

05/29/19 OFFICE

NRR/DIRS/IRGB/PM

NRR/DIRS/IRGB/OLA

NRR/DIRS/IRGB/ BC

NMSS/MSST/D

NRR/DIRS/D

NAME

TGovan*

IBetts*

TInverso*

AKock

CMiller

DATE

06/03/19

06/06/19

06/11/19

08/13/19

08/14/19 Official Record Copy

Enclosure

EFFECTIVE CYBER SECURITY PRACTICES TO PROTECT DIGITAL ASSETS OF

BYPRODUCT MATERIALS LICENSEES

EFFECTIVE PRACTICES

Personnel

Define Roles and Responsibilities

Effective practices include instituting role-based access controls to network resources based on

personnel job functions. Limiting permissions through access controls can reduce the risk of

compromise to systems and facilitate better tracking of network intrusions and suspicious

activities. In addition, restricting the number of personnel granted administrative (i.e., super

user or root) rights or accounts on each digital asset and ensuring that all such personnel

have the applicable training and experience in administrative functions for those digital assets is

an effective practice.

Implement Staff Cyber Security Training

One of the best means of preventing cyberattacks is to educate personnel who perform

administrative functions or use digital assets about the mechanisms by which cyberattacks may

be carried out and strategies to protect them. Effective initial and periodic cyber security

training may include information on social engineering methods that malicious actors might use

to attempt to entice employees into providing sensitive personal or corporate information

through phishing, phone calls, or other types of personal interactions; smart browsing practices

such as awareness of malware, updating systems, and installing patches; password policies;

use of portable electronic media and devices; use of wireless communications; appropriate

incident response and reporting; and awareness of relevant information technology (IT) policies

and procedures related to the employees job activities.

Physical Protection

Physical Security

Part of the effort to protect digital assets against cyberattacks involves ensuring that physical

security is in place. Devices containing risk-significant radioactive materials that have digital

components to their operations, such as panoramic irradiators and stereotactic radiosurgery

devices, are typically located within security zones that are already subject to Title 10 of the

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 37, Physical Protection of Category 1 and Category 2 Quantities of Radioactive Material. Effective practices include physical security measures such

as using locked rooms and enclosures for other types of digital assets, such as computers that

house sensitive security-related information.

Some facilities use radiofrequency identification (RFID) personnel badges as part of their

access control systems. Licensees could consider whether their facilities could be susceptible

to badge-cloning attempts. Multifactor authentication measures, such as using a unique

passcode or biometric in association with use of the badge, can augment the secure use of

RFID badges. In addition, a cover or carrier used to shield an RFID personnel badge can

prevent badge-cloning attempts.

2

Beyond physical controls for protecting digital assets, other types of controls, which may be

technical (e.g., firewalls, account passwords, antivirus software) or administrative (e.g., policies, procedures, guidelines, training), can reduce the pathways available for a cyberattack.

Security Information Technology Infrastructure

Maintain an Accurate Inventory of Digital Assets and Eliminate Exposure to External

Networks

Maintaining an inventory of the facilitys digital assets and specifying which, if any, of those

devices are connected to other business networks or the Internet is considered an effective

practice for determining where pathways may exist for cyber threat access. Such an

assessment could be done by mapping out all interconnectivities and dependencies, including

perimeters and connections to other systems. Removing any unnecessary software or services

could eliminate any unnecessary routes for possible cyberattacks.

Implement Local Networks or Network Segmentation and Apply Firewalls

Keeping digital assets isolated from one another (no communications connectivity, or creation of

an isolated local area network (LAN)), when possible, is an effective practice. For example, licensees could maintain boundaries to isolate digital components related to operations

(e.g., panoramic irradiators and gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units) from the digital

components of the physical security systems (e.g., the intrusion detection devices/systems).

This concept also applies in large radioactive material licensee settings (e.g., hospitals and

college campuses) where there is mass interconnectivity of LANs.

As another practice, network segmentation, divides a computer network into subnetworks or

network segments, and it entails classifying and categorizing IT assets, data, and personnel into

specific groups and then restricting access to these groups. Through network segmentation, a

compromise of one device or sector cannot translate into the exploitation of an entire system.

Access to network areas can be restricted by isolating them entirely from each other or by

implementing firewalls or similar security features. A firewall is a software program or hardware

device that filters the inbound and outbound traffic between different parts of a network or

between a network and the Internet. Firewalls can be used to block malware delivery and

attempts at the remote exploitation of various systems and to provide notification of all such

attempts.

Disabling wireless interfaces when they are not needed and avoiding the use of wireless

communications for certain functions is an effective practice. In an automated system, avoiding

the use of wireless communications for any signal or control that is essential for a safety

function is an effective practice. When communicating between remote sites (i.e., sites that are

not part of the internal data communications), the licensee could consider encrypting data

communications, as appropriate and commensurate with the sensitivity of the data being

transmitted.

3

Use Secure Remote Access Methods

If remote access is necessary, a higher level of security can be achieved through a secure

access method, such as use of a virtual private network (VPN). A VPN is an encrypted data

channel for securely sending and receiving data through public IT infrastructure, like the

Internet. This remote access can be further hardened by reducing the number of Internet

Protocol (IP) addresses that can access it (i.e., by limiting access to only a specific set of IP

addresses through a firewall). A VPN is only as secure as the devices connected to it. For

example, a laptop infected with malware can introduce vulnerabilities into the network, which

can lead to additional infections and negate the security of the VPN.

Another practice is to disconnect and remove telephone modems and phone lines used for

temporary remote access when they are not in use.

Implement Measures for Network Port Access

All open network ports on switches, routers, and firewalls could be access points that enable

cyber criminals to gain physical access to licensee networks and computer systems. Licensees

may consider disabling all open and unused network ports. Disabling any ports that will not be

used for an extended period (e.g., when an employee goes on extended leave) is an effective

practice.

Cyber Security Policies

Use Strong Passwords, Change Default Passwords, and Consider Other Access Controls

Strong passwords and the use of different passwords for different accounts can keep systems

and information secure. Password policies that define how complex passwords need to be

generated and how often or under what condition they need to be changed are good preventive

measures. The following techniques are useful in creating unique passwords: (1) avoid using

passwords that are based on personal information that can be easily guessed, (2) use a

combination of capital and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters, and (3) develop

mnemonics such as passphrases for remembering complex passwords. In addition, using

password managers and implementing policies of not reusing passwords across accounts are

effective practices, as well as changing all default passwords upon installation of new software

and using account lockout controls that activate when too many incorrect passwords have been

entered. Multifactor authentication, under which users must verify their identities whenever they

attempt to sign in, is an effective practice.

Providing temporary accounts for vendor or contractor support and updating password and user

account policies to identify events that would trigger a need to remove an account are effective

practices.

Maintain Awareness of Vulnerabilities and Implement Necessary Patches and Updates

Installing patches is an effective practice. Whenever a new flaw is discovered, the typical

protocol is to alert the software developer immediately so that it can issue a patch. Automatic

updating of software and handheld devices provides the simplest means of protecting against

cyber vulnerabilities. Limiting upgrades such that only authorized administrators complete the

upgrades and that patches and firmware are obtained only from authorized and reputable

vendors can prevent hackers from using flaws to their advantage. Maintaining a list of security

4

patches and software updates can help ensure that systems are up to date as cyber threats and

vulnerabilities are identified.

Develop and Enforce Policies on Mobile Devices

Establishing reasonable limitations for employees and contractors on the use of mobile devices

(e.g., laptops, tablets, and smartphones) in the conduct of business in the office or at an offsite

workplace is an effective practice.

Enhancing the security of mobile devices by configuring them with a password feature that only

enables access upon entry of a specific password and locks the device after repeated incorrect

password entry attempts is an effective practice. The regulations in 10 CFR Part 37 do not

prohibit the storage of sensitive, security-related information on mobile devices. Encryption, remote wipe capability (which allows licensees or device providers to remotely delete all data on

the devices if they are lost or stolen), and routine antivirus software use and update are

additional effective practices for mobile devices, as well as securely deleting all stored

information on devices before discarding them.

Enabling full-disk or folder encryption (i.e., the encryption of all files in a directory and its

subdirectories) can protect the sensitive or security-related information in a laptop or mobile

device, even if the hard drive is removed and reinstalled in a different system. Most modern

operating systems (such as Microsoft Windows) have built-in encrypted file system functionality.

It is an effective practice to avoid joining unknown Wi-Fi networks or using public Wi-Fi hotspots, as adversaries could create fake Wi-Fi hotspots designed to attack mobile devices and may

patrol public Wi-Fi networks for unsecured devices. In addition, limiting the use of the hot-spot

functionality on cell phones is effective practice because they can be used as an entry point for

tampering.

Develop and Enforce Policies on Electronic Media and Device Handling

Electronic media can be either active (i.e., items can be edited, such as hard drives, secure

digital memory cards, subscriber identity module cards, and USB memory sticks) or passive

(i.e., the item simply provides a container for electronic information storage and cannot be

edited, such as compact disks, digital versatile disks, and magnetic tapes). Regardless of the

type, protection of electronic media is an effective practice.

Labeling and controlling all electronic media and devices according to the highest sensitivity of

information being stored on the media and devices is an effective practice. Tracking these

media and devices and documenting the individuals that have access to them is effective at

preventing cyber attacks.

Whether active or passive media are used to transfer information to a system, the content of the

data container on the media can be a vehicle for viruses, malware, or other malicious code.

When loading or copying information onto a digital asset, an antivirus scan can be conducted on

the media used for the transfer.

Purging of all residual data on components that are no longer needed is an effective practice.

5

Implement Measures for Detecting Compromises and Develop a Cyber Security Incident

Response Plan

Implementing measures such as intrusion detection systems (IDSs) and intrusion prevention

systems (IPSs),2 antivirus software, and logs can help to detect compromises in their earliest

stages. Most IDSs and IPSs use signatures to detect port scans, malware, and other abnormal

network communications.

Cyber security incident response plans can limit damage and reduce recovery time and costs in

the event of a cyber security incident. Plans may include measures for reacting to malware and

being prepared to operate manually, if needed.

Develop and Enforce Policies on Maintenance and Testing

Cyber security testingparticularly before deploying new componentscan verify that

applicable software, systems, and devices do not contain any known, exploitable cyber security

vulnerabilities and that they perform all the specified functions. The functionality of digital and

software-based systems and assets after performing maintenance can be verified. Testing, updating, and patching digital and software-based systems and assets on a routine basis will

make the compromise of systems and devices more difficult.

If the maintenance and support of digital assets is outsourced to vendors, it is an effective

practice to establish a means of confirming that the remote support from vendors or IT

organizations is secure and that vendor support personnel can handle cyber security-related

issues.

2 An IDS is a device or software application that monitors a network or systems for malicious activity or policy

violations. An IPS is a network security and threat prevention technology that examines network traffic flows

to detect and prevent the exploitation of vulnerabilities.