Assignment 2 Incident Report Value: 30% Due date: 04-May-2017 Length: 2500 words Submission method options EASTS (online) Task The second most valuable skill for an incident handler is being able to author clear incident reports. Within an organisation, these reports are powerful and garner support for security remediation. The task for Assessment 2 is to write an incident report based on the Target Corporation data breach. More details on the Target Corp. incident will be provided in the Resources section of Interact in Week 1. The report should be written as if informing and guiding senior management within an organisation. Rationale This assignment is designed to: • Assess the skills needed during incident investigation to gather a clear understanding of what occurred during an incident. • Assess your ability to write an incident report that clearly explains an incident as a whole, the sequences of events, associated risks, actions taken to resolve an incident and recommendations to protect against the threat. • Assess your technical knowledge and understanding of common attack scenarios and threat vectors. • Enhance your skills in report writing to a standard that would be acceptable within a professional organisation. Marking criteria Criteria Marks Comprehensive capturing of incident details - Submission covers all relevant details of the incident. - Evidence that research has been conducted to draw conclusions about the incident. - Demonstrated understanding of the incident. /20 Executive Summary - The executive summary should capture the key points of the incident and provide a high level description of the incident as a whole. /20 Incident Timeline - Accurate incident timeline. /15 Articulation of Risks - Clear description of threat actor, asset at risk and negative impact. /15 Selection of recommendations - The recommendations included in the submission should be technically valid and address the risks outlined in the risks section. /20 Presentation - Grammar & spelling - Report format - Overall presentation /5 Referencing /5 Total /100 Rubric Criteria HD DI CR PS FL Investigate and document the data breach experienced by Target Corp. in the USA. The Incident Report must include the following: - An easy to understand executive summary - An accurate incident timeline - Robust analysis of key factors of the incident - Clear articulation of potential risks - Selection of applicable short-term and long-term recommendations The incident report has captured the key details of the subject incident and is presented in a concise and easily readable format. The timeline contains an accurate record of key events that occurred during the incident and subsequent handling of the incident. There is insightful discussion of the key factors of the incident and associated risks are well articulated and intuitive. The short-term recommendations are excellent and appropriate for immediate implementation with minimal budget requirements and address the identified risks. The long-term recommendations are excellent and address the identified risks at a strategic level. The report is of a high quality and presents as an enterprise-level report. The incident report has captured the key details of the subject incident and is presented in an easily readable format. The timeline contains an accurate record of key events that occurred during the incident and subsequent handling of the incident. There is thorough discussion of the key factors of the incident and associated risks are well articulated. The short-term recommendations are appropriate for immediate implementation with minimal budget requirements and address the identified risks. The long-term recommendations address the identified risks at a strategic level. The report presents as an enterprise-level report. The incident report has captured the key details of the subject incident. A thorough and completed timeline has been documented. There is good discussion of the key factors of the incident and associated risks. The short-term and long-term recommendations are appropriate for the organisation and would address most of the identified risks. The report is at a level expected within an enterprise environment. The incident report has captured the basic details of the subject incident. A rudimentary timeline has been articulated. There is some basic discussion of the key factors of the incident and associated risks. Recommendations only partially address the major risks. However, the incident report indicates gaps in the understanding of the incident. The report is not at a level expected within a professional environment. The incident report has not captured the subject incident and does not demonstrate an understanding of associated risks and appropriate recommendations. Selection of a range of material which is relevant to the topic. Integration of material sourced from literature to support the ideas expressed in the essay. Minimum of 8 references 4 of which must be relevant, refereed, journal articles located by the student. Excellent independent identification of an extensive range of literature which is: relevant; current; authoritative; and which includes multiple publication types. Substantially exceeds the minimum number of required references, demonstrating excellent skills in searching for relevant and credible literature. Excellent linkage and integration. Has developed and justified using own ideas based on publications which have been thoroughly analysed, applied and discussed to illustrate and justify the discussion. Good independent identification of an extensive range of literature which is: relevant; current; authoritative; and which includes multiple publication types. Substantially exceeds the minimum number of required references, demonstrating excellent skills in searching for relevant and credible literature. Good linkage and integration. Has developed and justified using own ideas based on publications which have been thoroughly analysed, applied and discussed to illustrate and justify the discussion. Minimum of 8 references including at least 4 refereed journal articles located by the student have been used. Some (but not all) of the literature is not: relevant; current; or authoritative; and may not include multiple publication types. Some evidence of application of readings relevant to the subject. Some attempt to integrate information from publications with own writing. Some content from publications is presented uncritically, in a purely descriptive way and indicates limitations of understanding or a limited ability to compare and link information from several sources. Minimum of 5 references including at least 2 refereed journal articles located by the student have been used. Some of the literature is not: relevant; current; or authoritative; and may not include multiple publication types. Student has attempted to apply or integrate information from publications into own writing. Most content from publications is presented uncritically, in a purely descriptive way and indicates limitations of understanding or a limited ability to compare and link information from some sources. Little of no evidence of attempt to search for and independently identify relevant, current or authoritative literature. Less than 8 overall references have been used. Little or no attempt to compare or link information from several sources. Content from publications is listed without integration with student writing and without identifying similarities or differences. A successful Masters student must write clearly and purposefully in English using vocabulary and language that suits the writing task and addresses their intended audience. Writing demonstrates clarity of intention, purpose, insight, and approach to the topic. Written expression is clear, fluent and well-structured: · Sentences are well structured, with excellent use of vocabulary, and with minimal or no grammatical and punctuation errors. · Paragraphs are structured to present a flow of ideas. · The written piece is well-formatted with minimal or no spelling or proofreading errors. · Language is used to convey a clear meaning to the intended audience. Writing style conveys a clear and meaningful interpretation of the task, based on confidence in knowledge and ability to clearly communicate complex concepts and ideas. Presented in 1.5 line spacing, with wide margins, page numbers and suitable type-size. Writing demonstrates clarity of intention, purpose, and approach to the topic. Written expression is clear, fluent and well-structured: · Sentences are well structured, with good use of vocabulary, and with minimal or no grammatical and punctuation errors. · Paragraphs are structured to present a flow of ideas. · The written piece is well-formatted with minimal or no spelling or proofreading errors. · Language is used to convey a clear meaning to the intended audience. Writing style conveys a clear and meaningful interpretation of the task, based on confidence in knowledge and ability to clearly communicate complex concepts and ideas. Presented in 1.5 line spacing, with wide margins, page numbers and suitable type-size. Written expression is clear, well-structured and understandable: · Sentences are well structured, with good use of vocabulary, and contain few grammatical and punctuation errors. · Paragraphs are well structured and assist in presenting a flow of ideas, despite a small amount of repetition. · Formatting has been considered and contains few spelling or proofreading errors. · The purpose of the writing is identified and explained. The language used has meaning to both themselves and their intended audience. Writing style is well suited to the purpose of the task and the intended audience. Writing conveys the intended meaning and required level of detail of knowledge Some issues with submission or formatting. Written expression is clear, well-structured and understandable: · Sentence structure could use some work, with some grammatical errors present. · Paragraphs are mostly well structured and assist in presenting a flow of ideas, despite some repetition. · The written piece is adequately formatted but contains some spelling or proofreading errors. · The purpose of the writing is identified and explained. Writing style is suited to the purpose of the task and the intended audience. Writing conveys the intended meaning but requires more detail and evidence of knowledge. Some issues with submission or formatting. Writing lacks clarity of expression, structure or purpose: · Sentences are poorly structured, with inappropriate vocabulary and frequent grammatical and punctuation errors. · Paragraphs do not assist in presenting a flow of ideas. · The written piece is poorly formatted with frequent spelling or proofreading errors. · The language used does little to convey meaning Writing style is focused on information without conveying a meaningful interpretation of the topic. Deviates significantly from the required in the submission format Presentation Use an appropriate report format, with correct grammatical protocols and accurate spelling, punctuation and word count. Feel free to use headings and bullet-lists where you think this is appropriate. APA referencing should be used unless students have made prior arrangements with the subject mentor. Requirements Word count for this assignment is taken seriously. The word count reflects the level of detail you are required to put into your assignment. Students who exceed the word count by more than 10% will be penalised, and students who exceed wordcounts by an excessive amount may not have their assignment marked beyond a certain point to ensure fairness to other students who have completed the assignment within the guidelines given. Administrative sections of your assignment such as headings, table of contents, reference list and other diagrams & figures are not included in the word count. In text citations are included as part of your word count. Students who submit in PDF form should include a word count on their cover page.