The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has recently released the RMM Cyber Defense Plan [2] [8], a comprehensive strategy developed in collaboration with industry and government partners through the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) [4] [5]. This plan aims to enhance cybersecurity measures and reduce supply chain risks for small to medium-sized critical infrastructure enterprises [7].
Description
The RMM Cyber Defense Plan focuses on two main pillars: operational collaboration and cyber defense guidance [2]. Under the first pillar, the plan emphasizes the importance of enhancing information sharing about threats and vulnerabilities within the RMM community. It aims to create a lasting operational community for RMM users to collaborate and address common challenges, enabling organizations to respond more effectively to threats against their remote monitoring systems. This includes cooperation with RMM vendors [7], managed service providers (MSPs) [1] [4] [5] [7] [8], and managed security service providers (MSSPs) [4] [5] [7] [8], such as ConnectWise, Kaseya [7], N-able [7], NinjaOne [7], Synchro [7], and others [2] [3] [6] [7] [8]. The plan also addresses the risks of RMM software being used by cyber threat actors to gain access to MSPs/MSSPs servers, which can have cascading impacts on small and medium-sized organizations that are customers of MSPs/MSSPs [4] [5].
The second pillar provides valuable guidance on educating RMM end-users and promoting best practices to mitigate the exploitation of remote monitoring systems [2]. By educating MSPs on running secure operations and assisting their customers [1], the plan addresses the long-standing weakness of remote management systems [1]. CISA also encourages organizations to review JCDC’s RMM Strategic Cyber Defense Plan and 2023 Planning Agenda webpages to ensure comprehensive cyber defense strategies.
The RMM Cyber Defense Plan builds upon the JCDC 2023 Planning Agenda, aligning with the core functions of the JCDC [3], including the development of comprehensive cyber defense strategies and disseminating cybersecurity guidance [3]. With the collaboration between public and private sectors [1], this plan has the potential to achieve great success in strengthening the security of remote monitoring and management systems. The plan released by the JCDC works with end users and the broader community to enhance cybersecurity in this area.
Conclusion
The RMM Cyber Defense Plan has significant implications for the cybersecurity of small to medium-sized critical infrastructure enterprises. By promoting operational collaboration and providing cyber defense guidance [2] [3], the plan aims to enhance information sharing, address common challenges, and mitigate the risks associated with remote monitoring systems. It emphasizes the importance of educating end-users and promoting best practices to strengthen the security of these systems. With the support of the JCDC and the collaboration between public and private sectors, this plan has the potential to make a substantial impact in reducing supply chain risks and enhancing cybersecurity measures.
References
[1] https://www.darkreading.com/vulnerabilities-threats/cisa-committee-tackles-remote-monitoring-and-management-protections
[2] https://executivegov.com/2023/08/cisa-releases-joint-cyber-defense-collaboratives-remote-monitoring-defense-plan/
[3] https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cisa-joint-initiative-secure-rmm/
[4] https://www.redpacketsecurity.com/cisa-cisa-releases-jcdc-remote-monitoring-and-management-rmm-cyber-defense-plan-20-08-2023/
[5] https://www.waterisac.org/portal/cyber-resilience-cisa-releases-jcdc-remote-monitoring-and-management-rmm-cyber-defense-plan
[6] https://insidecybersecurity.com/daily-news/cisa-publishes-jcdc-plan-remote-monitoring-and-management
[7] https://www.channele2e.com/news/comptia-joins-with-jcdc-rmm-cyber-defense-plan
[8] https://thecyberwire.com/newsletters/policy-briefing/5/157
