Elastic Stack SIEM Management and Configuration

This project will take you on an adventurous journey of setting up a powerful Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution. Let's dive into the action and uncover the secrets of securing systems like a pro!!

---

Quick Overview

Step	Description
1. Set Up Linux VM	Install and configure a Linux-based virtual machine.
2. Elastic Cloud Setup	Create an account and log in to Elastic Cloud.
3. Configure Elastic Defend	Install the Elastic Agent to collect logs and gain visibility.
4. Collect Logs Using Nmap	Run Nmap scans and forward logs to Elastic Stack.
5. Visualize Events	Create dashboards for better insights.
6. Configure Security Alerts	Set up alerts to detect and monitor Nmap activities.

---

Detailed Steps

1. Set Up a Linux Virtual Machine

The Linux VM will serve as the target machine for log collection.

1. Install and configure a Linux-based VM using VMware or VirtualBox.
2. Update and secure your Linux VM as necessary.

2. Elastic Cloud Setup

1. Create an account in Elastic Cloud.
2. Log in to your Elastic Cloud account.

3. Configure Elastic Defend Integration

Elastic Defend provides detection, prevention, and response capabilities with deep visibility for SIEM and EDR use cases across Windows, Linux, and macOS platforms.

Steps:

1. Navigate to Integrations in Elastic Cloud.

2. Search for and select Elastic Defend.

3. Follow the installation steps:

   • Copy the provided configuration code.
   • Paste the code into your Linux VM terminal.

4. Wait a few minutes for the Elastic Agent to install. Once installed, you should see:

5. Verify the installation using the following command:

   sudo systemctl status elastic-agent.service

4. Collect Logs Using Nmap

1. Run Nmap on the Linux VM to generate logs:

   nmap -Pn -A <ip>

   Nmap, a network scanning tool, generates logs for port scans and services, simulating security incidents.

2. Go to Observability > Logs in Elastic Cloud.

3. Search for:

   process.args: "nmap"
   

4. Observe the generated events.

5. Visualize Events

1. Navigate to Analytics > Dashboards.
2. Click Create Dashboard.
3. Add visualizations based on the logs collected.

6. Configure Security Alerts

Since our focus is on security, we will configure alerts for detecting Nmap scan activities.

1. Go to Security > Alerts.

2. Click Manage Rules and select Create New Rule.

3. Configure a Custom Query rule:

   • Custom Query:

     event.action: "nmap_scan"
     

   • Rule Name: Detect Nmap Scan
   • Description: Detects events related to Nmap scanning activities.
   • Severity Level: Set based on importance (e.g., Medium, High).
   • Leave default settings under Schedule Rule.

4. Click Continue and then Create and Enable Rule.

7. Monitor Alerts

1. Go to the Alerts section under Security.
2. If an Nmap scan event is detected, it will appear in the alerts dashboard.

---

Key Features

• Elastic Defend Integration: Provides SIEM and EDR capabilities.
• Nmap Log Collection: Demonstrates log collection and event creation for security incidents.
• Custom Alerts: Enables monitoring of specific activities like Nmap scans.

---

Conclusion

This project demonstrates how to set up Elastic Stack for SIEM, configure Elastic Defend, and create security alerts to monitor and visualize events.

---

Keep hacking, learning, and protecting!