Security, IT
Jason MIller
EDR Testing and Evaluation is a PITA
General, Security
Jason MIller
If you don’t have IAM(Identity Access ...

IAM (Identity and Access Management) is important because it helps organizations control who has access to their resources, and what actions those users can perform. This is essential for maintaining the security and integrity of sensitive data, and for complying with regulatory requirements. IAM also makes it easier for organizations to manage user access across multiple systems and services, and to quickly revoke access when necessary. Additionally, IAM enables organizations to implement a "least privilege" model, where users only have the permissions they need to do their jobs, which can help prevent accidental or malicious breaches.

If you don’t have IAM(Identity Access Management system) get one!
Culture
Jason MIller
Angry, hurt, and sad

Black lives matter and these are a few of my thoughts

Image credit:[George Floyd’s Death At The Hands Of Police Is A Terrible Echo Of The Past: Code Switch: NPR](https://www.npr.org/2020/05/29/865261916/a-decade-of-watching-black-people-die)

Angry, hurt, and sad
Recaps, General
Jason MIller
2018 A year in review

A 2018 review of my year.

General
Jason MIller
Be wary when traveling

JNUC

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JNUC 2015 - Day 3

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On Thursday was the last day of the JNUC 2015. There were quite a few talks lined up along with a couple of panels. The talks that grabbed my attention were:

  • Integrating & Automating Your Help Desk Ticketing
  • Security Matters: Making Infosec Your Friend
  • Simplifying Complex Management Infrastructures
  • Security Panel/VPP & DEP Panel

There were a multitude of other talks that grabbed my attention but alas I can only be in one place at a time. Integrating & Automating Your Help Desk Ticketing was an interesting talk. The takeaways from this talk were:

  • Develop Automation
  • Automation is proactive when done right
  • Use APIs from Casper and your Ticketing system

I had a few conversations with people about this talk and some have done this an automated even further. They assign the ticket to an technician with all the appropriate information, so there is no need to decide who will complete each newly created task.

The infosec talk caused many users to think differently about how you deal with your infosec team. At times Macadamias only think of things in terms of what we need to do in order to patch or repair a machine. If you talk or create a relationship with your infosec team you will learn about their worries or concerns on OS X.

  • Spotlight EULA, which sends results to Microsoft BING
  • Bluetooth Vulnerabilities
  • Setting EFI Password to protect machines
  • Using FileVault
  • Adobe FLASH
  • Web Browsers, keeping them up to date
  • Network Layer Attacks

By having open conversations with your infosec team you can collaborate, reduce frustrations, and provide a more secure environment for your users and employer.

Simplifying Complex Management Infrastructure provided great examples of how you can take your environment no matter the size and manage it using the Casper Suite. That is management of OS X servers and knowing all the information about what is installed, Software Updates, or updating software. OS X admins have servers located in many locations and sometimes basic updates from OS X server are not enough. The Casper Suite can provide inventory information and can automate server management tasks.

I hoped between both panels but they provided great information about each particular topic. People were able to submit questions via JAMFNation, Twitter, or in person via a JAMFer. The twitter hash tags are:

  • JNUCSecurity
  • JNUCVPP
  • JNUCDEP

Lastly, the conference ended with a wrap up session where people talked shop, said their goodbyes, and finished their conference questions for speakers. It was a great time in Minneapolis for the JNUC. Can't wait for next 2016.

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JNUC 2015 - Day 2

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Today, the JNUC was filled with very entertaining talks. The day started off with a talk from the team at IBM, discussion the integration of 30,000K Macs. It was quite impressive to see a deployment at such scale. During the talk IBM talked about Workstation-as-a-Service (WaaS), which is an interesting approach to defining your workstation infrastructure. IBM is deploying 1,900 Macs a week, with a support staff of 24, and still growing. 98.7% of their Mac tickets are solved on first call in attempt. The folks who are working on the Mac deployment at IBM are very passionate about the product and the people they serve. IBM is leveraging DEP for their OS X clients which gives them the ability to:

  • Printed Welcome Insert (inside of Macbook Boxes)
  • Self Service (Only location for Mac Applications)
  • Users are ADMINS on their workstations
  • NO Active Directory

Check out the article about their presentation:

Mac@IBM, Zero to 30,000 in 6 months

This was a great presentation about Culture and how Macs work at IBM, think user first and build backward.

A highly entertaining and informative talk was Ben Toms, Let's Talk About Certificates. Ben reviewed:

  • PKI
  • SCEP
  • CSR
  • APNS
  • Root and Intermediary CAs

It was quite informative and even had the appearance of a few plumbers. Watch the video when it is released.

Lastly, I went to a talk about Make Your JSS Feel New with the Help of API. It was a great talk and provided great examples of why you want to start over with a new JSS and how to automate the process of migrating JSS framework in under 30 minutes.

Day two was great and I will share more on day three later.

JNUC 2015 - Day 1

I am writing today from JNUC 2015, in Minneapolis, MN. JNUC stands for Jamf Nation User Conference. It's a 3-day conference centered around everything Casper Suite. JAMF Software model is "Helping the enterprise succeed with the Apple platform." This motto greatly aligns with my personal vision for helping an IT organization. Over 1,500 people have come from all over the world to share the experiences with Casper Suite, Casper Focus, and Composer. I am excited to be afforded the opportunity to share, explore, and learn about new ways to utilize the software. Today there were talks on System Integrity Protection, by Rich Trouton, JAMF Software Security, and Vulnerability Assessments, by Daniel Mayer, and Novel Solutions with JAMF IT, by Byron Terrell of JAMF Software. The agenda had plenty of other talks, but those were the three that caught my eye and attention. For a complete listing of talks navigate to the JNUC 2015 Sessions schedule.

One final note, I attended a talked "Culture Matters: Casper Suite for People Who Fear Going Corporate." This was an interesting talk because it centered around the idea of managing a people who aren't used to be being managed. It is an interesting idea of how to get everyone "on board" while ensuring IT is ensuring a safe environment. Four statements stood out from the talk:

  • Things they'll be able to do
  • Things we'll be able to do
  • Things we won't be able to do
  • What will they say at lunch?

These are all value points to consider when dealing with any users/staff/engineers etc...When managing or providing services to client devices ensure you explain the top three items and think about what people are saying about your service during lunch because it may not be the right thing.

Lastly, Macbrained threw an awesome, or what I think was awesome, event at Day Block Brewery. Well Over 140 people showed up to have beers, food, and great conversation centered around tech and life. As a disclaimer I do help organize the Macbrained events. Overall it was a great day and I look forward to all the sessions and conversations on day 2.

I Survived Conference Season

The last half of the year for me is conference season. Normally, I have four conferences that I attend:

They are all quite interesting and amazing in their own way. I am constantly asked, "Is it really worth your time?" I always tell people that it depends on what you are trying to accomplish by going to a conference. When I attend the conference I intend to:

  • Network

  • Discover new topics

  • Learn new methods to solve current and new problems

  • Obtain a mental refresh

During conferences I am able to do accomplish a lot of things including meeting some of the brightest people in the industry, meeting people who encounter the same issues as me and learning about new software or hardware. Attending these conferences also allows me to recharge my batteries and gain different insight. People can develop lifelong friendships and career opportunities while attending a conference.

If you are unable to attend any of these conferences the hosts usually posts videos via Youtube. You can spend a day or two watching the videos and obtain a lot of the same information.

YouTube Channels:

However, not all conferences allow their content to be posted. Mactech and Defcon do not post their sessions on YouTube but, you can order the sessions from MacTech and torrent the Defcon sessions and presentations. Another great resource tech's can utilize are other technicians blogs. Many times there will be a few wrap up posts on tech's blogs that will detail the conference experience. Which conferences did you attend? Did you find them worthwhile?

Here are some images from some of the conferences I attended this year.