Critical

Ensure there is no unrestricted inbound access to TCP port 8888 (Cassandra)

Security & Compliance
Description

TCP port 8888 is commonly used by Cassandra, a distributed NoSQL database management system. Unrestricted inbound access to TCP port 8888 on a server running Apache Cassandra database can allow unauthorized access to the database, leading to potential data breaches and other security incidents. It is important to implement proper security measures to ensure that only authorized users and systems can access the database through this port.

Remediation

To ensure there is no unrestricted inbound access to TCP port 8888 (Cassandra), you should take the following remediation steps:

  1. Review your firewall rules and access control lists to identify if any rules are allowing unrestricted inbound access to port 8888.
  2. If such rules exist, modify them to restrict access to only the necessary IP addresses and ports. For example, you can limit access to specific IP addresses, subnets, or VPN connections.
  3. If the server is publicly accessible, consider implementing additional security measures such as two-factor authentication, SSL/TLS encryption, or a web application firewall.
  4. Regularly review and update your firewall rules and access control lists to ensure that they continue to meet your security needs and to address any new threats or vulnerabilities that may arise.
  5. Monitor your network traffic and logs for any suspicious activity related to port 8888 and investigate any anomalies promptly.
  6. Consider using network segmentation techniques to isolate the Cassandra servers from the rest of the network, and only allow access to the servers through authorized jump boxes or other secure gateways.
Enforced Resources
Note: Remediation steps provided by Lightlytics are meant to be suggestions and guidelines only. It is crucial to thoroughly verify and test any remediation steps before applying them to production environments. Each organization's infrastructure and security needs may differ, and blindly applying suggested remediation steps without proper testing could potentially cause unforeseen issues or vulnerabilities. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that you validate and customize any remediation steps to meet your organization's specific requirements and ensure that they align with your security policies and best practices.