High-Granular Micro-Segmentation in Campus Networks based on Downloadable Access Control Lists

Micro-segmentation of local networks is an important element of network security. The main goal of micro-segmentation of network is to reduce a risk of compromising hosts during a cyber-attack. In micro-segmented networks, if one of the hosts has been compromised, the malicious code or attacker will be limited in the "horizontal" actions by the micro-segment to which the compromised host belongs. Existing methods of micro-segmentation of networks have operational drawbacks that impede their effective practical application. This article presents a new method of micro-segmentation of local wired and wireless networks based on downloadable and wireless access control lists, which allows to achieve a high level of granularity of network access policies by minimizing the microsegment, along with high operational characteristics.

Carpooling as an Immediate Strategy to Post-Lockdown Mobility: A Case Study in University Campuses

Carpooling is a mobility concept that has been showing promising results in reducing single occupancy use of private cars, which prompted many institutions, namely universities, to implement carpooling platforms to improve their networks sustainability. Nowadays, currently under a pandemic crisis, public transportation must be used with limitations regarding the number of occupants to prevent the spread of the virus and commuters are turning even more to private cars to perform their daily trips. Carpooling under a set of precaution rules is a potential solution to help commuters perform their daily trips while respecting COVID-19 safety recommendations. This research aimed to develop an analysis of the road traffic and emission impacts of implementing carpooling, with social distancing measures, in three university campus networks through microscopic traffic simulation modeling and microscopic vehicular exhaust emissions estimation. Results indicate that employing carpooling for groups of up to three people to safely commute from their residence area to the university campus has the potential to significantly reduce pollutant emissions (reductions of 5% and 7% in carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides can be obtained, respectively) within the network while significantly improving road traffic performance (average speed increased by 7% and travel time reduced by 8%).

Assessing the Security of Campus Networks: The Case of Seven Universities

The network security situation of campus networks on CERNET (China Education and Research Network) has received great concern. However, most network managers have no complete picture of the network security because of its special management and the rapid growth of network assets. In this investigation, the security of campus networks belonging to seven universities in Wuhan was investigated. A tool called “WebHunt” was designed for campus networks, and with its help, the network security risks were found. Differently from existing tools for network probing, WebHunt can adopt the network scale and special rules of the campus network. According to the characteristics of campus websites, a series of functions were integrated into WebHunt, including reverse resolution of domain names, active network detection and fingerprint identification for software assets. Besides, WebHunt builds its vulnerability intelligence database with a knowledge graph structure and locates the vulnerabilities through matching knowledge graph information. Security assessments of seven universities presents WebHunt’s applicability for campus networks. Besides, it also shows that many security risks are concealed in campus networks, such as non-compliance IP addresses and domain names, system vulnerabilities and so on. The security reports containing risks have been sent to the relevant universities, and positive feedback was received.