Analyze Desktop Security with SSA

Earlier, there was no common standard for detecting vulnerabilities on a

Windows desktop. Things are however changing. There is a standard called OVAL,

which is aimed at promoting open security content. The Open Vulnerability and

Assessment Language (OVAL) aims to regulate transfer of information across all

security related services and applications. It has standardized the

configuration of systems for testing, assessment and reporting.

In OVAL, technical details of how to detect a particular vulnerability are publically shared and its definition database is built by collaboration amongst

vendors, security companies and consultants. Moreover, OVAL allows sharing of

technical details regarding identification of the presence or absence of

vulnerabilities on a computer system. Earlier OVAL could be only used through a

command line tool from 'mitre.org,' but now the process has been eased with

System Security Analyzer (SSA). It has a simple GUI and also provides easy to

understand reports. Currently, the software runs on Windows Vista, XP and 2000.

How to use



Installation of the System Security Analyzer is simple. After installation,

when it is launched for the first time, it will automatically update its

definition database. Once database is updated, go to the 'Configuration' tab on

the Menu bar to open its configuration window. Choose the OVAL definition as per

the operating system you are using. By default four definitions are available

for Windows Vista, XP and 2000, alongwith a default OVAL definition. Now, click

on the 'scan' button to start scanning for vulnerabilities. Once the scan is

finished, SSA will show you all the detected vulnerabilities along with its OVAL

ID as well as their CVE number. To see more details from the report menu, click

on 'View HTML Report' tab. In this report you can see all the detected

vulnerabilities with a brief description about them. To find further details

about the vulnerability and how to fix it, click on the 'vulnerability and CVE

ID' link, which takes you to its online database, where you find vulnerabilities

analysis from various security agencies and the vendors.

Reports generated by SSA provide a brief description of detected vulnerabilities and online links to get a detailed description