Term Paper: Managing An IT Infrastructure Audit Due W 113996

Term Paper Managing An It Infrastructure Auditdue Week 10 And Worth 2

This assignment consists of four (4) sections: an internal IT audit policy, a management plan, a project plan, and a disaster recovery plan. You must submit all four (4) sections as separate files, each labeled according to its section. Assume all necessary factors for completing the assignment. Imagine you are an Information Security Manager for a large national retailer responsible for planning and overseeing IT audits. Develop a comprehensive plan for conducting regular IT infrastructure audits, covering the organization's networking, cloud environment, security, and other critical systems. Your task includes creating a policy document, a management plan, a detailed project plan for a two-week audit, and a disaster recovery plan ensuring organizational resilience and compliance.

Paper For Above instruction

Internal IT Audit Policy

The internal IT audit policy provides a formal framework guiding the organization's approach to evaluating the effectiveness, security, and compliance of its IT infrastructure. It establishes the scope, goals, responsibilities, and audit schedules to ensure consistent and thorough assessments aligned with organizational objectives and regulatory requirements.

The scope of the policy encompasses all critical IT assets, including networking hardware, servers, cloud services, virtualization platforms, wireless networks, and security systems. It ensures coverage across all organizational locations, including the main office and retail outlets. The policy aims to safeguard data integrity, ensure regulatory compliance (such as PCI-DSS, GDPR, HIPAA), and promote operational efficiency.

The goals and objectives focus on identifying vulnerabilities, verifying controls, assessing compliance, and guiding continuous improvement. The audits aim to detect unauthorized access, data breaches, vulnerabilities in system configurations, and lapses in process adherence.

Management oversight involves designated senior IT leaders and compliance officers responsible for planning, executing, and reviewing audit activities. The policy delineates roles, accountability, documentation standards, and reporting procedures.

The areas covered include network infrastructure, cloud services, application security, data management, physical security controls, and user access management. The audit frequency is set based on risk assessment, with critical systems audited quarterly and less sensitive systems semi-annually.

Adherence to applicable laws and regulations such as GDPR, PCI-DSS, and federal/state cybersecurity mandates is integrated into the audit standards. Continuous review of the policy ensures alignment with evolving legal, technological, and organizational changes.

References:

• Jones, M. (2020). Information Security Audit and Assurance. CRC Press.
• Whitman, M. E., & Mattord, H. J. (2018). Principles of Information Security. Cengage Learning.

Management Plan

The management plan outlines the strategic approach for executing IT audits across the organization's infrastructure, considering risk assessment and mitigation strategies. It addresses key areas such as system software, wireless networking, cloud computing, virtualization, cybersecurity, and business continuity.

Risk management involves identifying, analyzing, and prioritizing vulnerabilities and threats within the IT environment. This includes setting risk thresholds and deploying controls to mitigate identified risks, such as implementing intrusion detection systems and regular patch management.

System software and applications are continuously audited for security vulnerabilities, compliance, and performance. This includes assessing vendor updates, configuration settings, and change management processes to prevent unauthorized modifications.

Wireless networking management involves securing Wi-Fi access points, enforcing strong encryption standards, and monitoring for unauthorized devices or rogue access points to prevent potential breaches.

Cloud computing oversight ensures secure configuration, access controls, and compliance with data protection regulations. The plan emphasizes regular audits of cloud service provider compliance, data encryption practices, and access logs.

Virtualization efforts focus on isolating virtual environments, controlling access, and auditing resource allocation to prevent data leaks and unauthorized manipulations.

Cybersecurity and privacy measures are integrated into all audit activities, including penetration testing, vulnerability scans, and data privacy assessments. The management plan stresses employee training, incident response protocols, and audit trails for traceability.

Business continuity planning (BCP) and disaster recovery planning (DRP) are tightly coupled with audit activities to verify system redundancy, backup integrity, and recovery procedures. Regular testing of DRP ensures organizational resilience in face of disruptions.

Network security audits include evaluating firewalls, IDS/IPS systems, and VPN configurations to secure data transmission and restrict unauthorized network access.

References:

• Stallings, W. (2018). Network Security Essentials. Pearson.
• Rittinghouse, J. W., & Ransome, J. F. (2017). Cloud Computing: Implementation, Management, and Security. CRC Press.
• Tipton, H. F., & Krause, M. (2019). Information Security Management Handbook. CRC Press.

Project Plan

The project plan delineates the sequence, duration, and resources for executing a comprehensive two-week IT audit. Utilizing project management tools like Microsoft Project or OpenProject, the plan segments tasks into major categories aligned with the audit areas.

For risk management, the project schedules initial risk assessments, vulnerability scans, and control testing, allocating sufficient time for each phase. Tasks include inventorying assets, defining audit scope, and preparing audit checklists.

System software and applications audits involve scheduled reviews of system configurations, patch status, and access controls. Key tasks include conducting vulnerability assessments, reviewing updates, and verifying compliance with security policies.

Wireless networking tasks include auditing Wi-Fi configurations, scanning for rogue devices, and assessing encryption standards across all sites.

For cloud computing, the project schedules activities like reviewing data access logs, security configurations, and compliance reports from cloud providers.

Virtualization audits focus on hypervisor security configurations, resource allocation policies, and virtual machine access controls.

Cybersecurity and privacy assessments include penetration tests, vulnerability scans, and employee security awareness evaluations, scheduled throughout the two-week window.

Network security audits include firewall configuration reviews, VPN security checks, and intrusion detection system analyses.

Each task incorporates dependencies, resource assignments, and milestones for completion, ensuring the audit is comprehensive and completed within the planned two-week period.

Disaster Recovery Plan

The disaster recovery plan (DRP) delineates procedures for restoring organizational operations after a major incident with zero data loss, immediate access to critical data, and system functionality within 48 hours. The plan emphasizes resilience, rapid response, and continuous testing.

Critical elements include daily data backups, real-time replication, and off-site storage to prevent data loss. Backup integrity and restoration procedures are regularly tested to confirm effectiveness.

Immediate access to organizational data is facilitated through redundant data centers, cloud storage solutions, and secure remote access channels. Role-based access controls prevent unauthorized data exposure.

Systems critical to business operations are prioritized for rapid recovery. This includes foundational IT infrastructure, POS systems, and cloud services hosting key applications.

The DRP integrates audit activities such as conducting regular disaster simulations, verifying backup restoration processes, and reviewing recovery time objectives (RTOs) and recovery point objectives (RPOs). This ensures compliance with recovery goals.

A comprehensive incident response team is established with predefined roles, communication protocols, and escalation processes. These procedures are tested periodically through tabletop exercises and live drills.

Remote access, data integrity, and system availability are continuously monitored, with real-time alerts for anomalies or breaches. The DRP emphasizes minimizing downtime and guaranteeing data fidelity during recovery.

Regulatory compliance, including security standards for payment card transactions and data privacy, is embedded within the DRP to ensure legal adherence during recovery activities.

References:

• Curry, E. (2019). Disaster Recovery, Crisis Response, and Business Continuity. Pearson.
• Wallace, M., & Webber, L. (2018). The Disaster Recovery Toolkit. Syngress.
• Tipton, H. F., & Krause, M. (2019). Information Security Management Handbook. CRC Press.

References

• Jones, M. (2020). Information Security Audit and Assurance. CRC Press.
• Whitman, M. E., & Mattord, H. J. (2018). Principles of Information Security. Cengage Learning.
• Stallings, W. (2018). Network Security Essentials. Pearson.
• Rittinghouse, J. W., & Ransome, J. F. (2017). Cloud Computing: Implementation, Management, and Security. CRC Press.
• Tipton, H. F., & Krause, M. (2019). Information Security Management Handbook. CRC Press.
• Curry, E. (2019). Disaster Recovery, Crisis Response, and Business Continuity. Pearson.
• Wallace, M., & Webber, L. (2018). The Disaster Recovery Toolkit. Syngress.
• Stallings, W. (2018). Information Security: Principles and Practice. Pearson.
• Rittinghouse, J. W., & Ransome, J. F. (2017). Cloud Computing: Implementation, Management, and Security. CRC Press.
• Whitman, M. E., & Mattord, H. J. (2018). Principles of Information Security. Cengage Learning.