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Problem Description Problem description Many software development organizations have launched public bug bounty programs, where users can submit bugs they discover, and be rewarded commensurate with the sever- ity of the bug. Bug bounties have been identified as a software security activity in the BSIMM, and there are several commercial operators that can provide a bug bounty pro- gram as a service. The candidate must survey the current state of the art in bug bounty programs, and identify organizations that have implemented such programs, and that are willing to be interviewed about their experiences. The assignment will also interview acknowledged security researches that have participated in bug bounty programs. The candidate should then design a new external or internal bug bounty program suitable for a Norwegian context that can be implemented with a partner organization that currently has no such program. The work will be carried out from Oslo, and weekly supervision meetings will be held over Skype. i ii Abstract In a world where hackers take companies’ computer systems as hostage in exchange for ransom, and authorities threaten with fines if personal information ever get into the wrong hands, more and more resources are spent on securing computer systems. Companies have begun to reserve more room in their budgets for information security. However, not all companies have the required resources to secure their system. Over 99% of all companies in Norway are small to medium-sized businesses (SMB), and these companies do not always have the required budget to pay for the standard security solutions that are available today. A potential alternative to standard security solutions that has had major growth in re- cent years is securing a company’s information systems through bug bounty programs (BBP). This is a process where companies invite hackers to research vulnerabilities on their system, with monetary rewards being given in exchange for these vulnerabilities. This master’s thesis aims to explore this alternative, as a cheaper but still effective way for Norwegian SMBs to increase the security of their information systems and services, and still remain a business that can make a profit. Limited research has been done on bug bounty programs as a viable method for secu- rity, and even less has been done with the Norwegian market in mind. In this project, a review was performed on research literature concerning bug bounty programs. There was not much research available, and the good attributes were found in existing bug bounty programs. Four semi-structured interviews were then held with with people from the bug bounty program community in Norway. Two Norwegian companies that host their own bug bounty programs, gave insight in how a successful bug bounty programs functions in Nor- way. Furthermore, two bug bounty hunters gave insight in expectations, experiences and impressions the people sitting on the other side has. The findings in this thesis indicate that if an SMB can afford traditional penetration testing, spending the money on that is most likely the best option, where as companies of a larger size can purchase Bug Bounty as a Service (BBaaS) reduce the expenses made for each vulnerability uncovered. However, the thesis also propose a structure for a bug bounty program that Norwegian SMBs can try to implement for their systems, if pene- tration testing is not an option. The thesis also uncovered some interesting details of the relationships between the hackers and the company, and the balance of power among them. iii iv Sammendrag I en verden hvor hackere tar datasystemer som gisler i bytte mot løsepenger, og myn- dighetene truer med bøter hvis personinformasjon kommer pa˚ avveie, blir det stadig vik- tigere a˚ sikre datasystemene sine mot trusler. Flere firmaer har begynt a˚ sette av mer plass i budsjettene deres for tiltak som fremmer informasjonssikkerhet. Likevel, er det ikke alle firmaer som har midlene det kreves til a˚ sikre systemene sine ordentlig, hvor det ofte er de sma˚ firmaene som sliter mest. Over 99% av alle firmaer i Norge faller under kategorien sma˚ til mellomstor bedrift (SMB), og det vil da være mange firmaer i Norge som vil slite med kjøpe sikkerhetsløsninger etter dagens standard. Et potensielt billigere alternativ til vanlige sikkerhetsløsninger, som har hat markant fremgang de siste arene,˚ er a˚ sikre bedriftens løsninger gjennom bug bounty programmer (BBP). Dette er en prosess hvor firmaer inviterer hackere til a˚ lete etter sikkerhetssvakheter i systemene sine, hvor penger blir belønnet i bytte mot rapporter om sarbarheter.˚ Denne masteroppgaven sikter pa˚ a˚ utforske dette alternativet som en billigere, men fortsatt effek- tivt fremgangsmate˚ for norske SMB-er. En fremgangsmate˚ som vil styrke informasjon- ssikkerheten til bedriften, samtidig som bedriften kan fortsette a˚ være lønnsom. Det er gjort lite forskning pa˚ om bug bounty programmer er en bærekraftig metode for a˚ bedre sikkerheten, og enda mindre med det norske markedet i tankene. Det ble i løpet av prosjektets gang utført en litteraturgjennomgang av disse forskningsartiklene. Mengden artikler var fa,˚ og informasjonen i dem var utdatert, eller tatt i bruk i eksisterende programmer. Fire delvis strukturerte intervjuer ble holdt med personer fra det norske bug bounty program-miljøet. To norske selskaper som har implementert deres egne bug bounty pro- grammer gav innsikt i hvordan et vellykket program fungerer i Norge. Videre gav two bug bounty-jegere innsyn i forventinger, erfaringer, og inntrykk personene som sitter pa˚ den motsatte siden har. Funnene i oppgaven indikerer at om en SMB har rad˚ til tradisjonell penetrasjonstest- ing, sa˚ burde pengene bli brukt her. Større bedrifter pa˚ den andre siden kjøper ofte Bug Bounty som en tjeneste, og reduserer slik kostnadene betraktelig for hver sarbarhet˚ som blir funnet. Oppgaven presenterer likevel et oppsett for et bug bounty program som norske SMBer kan ta i bruk hvis penetrasjonstesting ikke er en mulighet. Oppgaven avdekket ogsa˚ interessante detaljer om forholdet mellom bedrifter og hackerne, samt maktbalansen mellom dem. v vi Table of Contents Problem Descriptioni Abstract iii Sammendragv List of Tables xi Abbreviations xii 1 Introduction1 1.1 Target Group................................1 1.2 Methodology................................2 1.2.1 Literature review..........................2 1.2.2 Semi-Structured Interview.....................2 1.3 Limitations.................................3 1.4 Assumptions................................3 2 Basic Theory and Definitions5 2.1 Traditional Penetration Testing.......................5 2.1.1 Penetration Testing Execution Standard..............5 2.1.2 Security Vulnerability.......................6 2.1.3 OWASP Top Ten Project......................6 2.1.4 OWASP Risk Rating Methodology.................6 2.1.5 Hacker...............................6 2.2 Bug Bounty Programs............................6 2.2.1 Public Bug Bounty Program....................6 2.2.2 Private Bug Bounty Program....................7 2.2.3 Managed Bug Bounty Program..................7 2.2.4 Bug Bounty Hunter.........................7 2.2.5 Rules Of Engagement.......................7 vii 2.3 Additional Definitions...........................7 2.3.1 Security.txt.............................7 2.3.2 Crowdsourcing...........................7 2.3.3 Sandbox..............................8 2.3.4 Common Vulnerability Scoring System Version 3.0........8 2.3.5 Payload...............................8 2.3.6 Zero-day Vulnerability.......................8 2.3.7 Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) Notation.........8 3 Existing Bug Bounty Programs9 3.1 Bugcrowd..................................9 3.1.1 Programs..............................9 3.1.2 Vulnerability Rating Taxonomy (VRT)..............9 3.2 Hackerone.................................. 10 3.2.1 Programs.............................. 10 3.2.2 90 Day Leaderboard........................ 11 3.3 Google Vulnerability Reward Program................... 12 3.3.1 Scope................................ 12 3.3.2 Qualifying Vulnerabilities..................... 13 3.3.3 Non-qualifying Vulnerabilities................... 13 3.3.4 Rewards............................... 14 3.3.5 Investigating and reporting bugs.................. 15 3.3.6 Legal points............................. 15 3.3.7 Hall of Fame............................ 16 3.4 Facebook.................................. 16 3.4.1 Responsible Disclosure....................... 16 3.4.2 Bug Bounty Program Terms.................... 17 3.4.3 The Scope.............................. 18 3.4.4 Out of scope............................ 20 3.4.5 False positives........................... 21 3.4.6 List of researchers......................... 21 3.4.7 Report Vulnerability Form..................... 21 3.5 Verizon Media................................ 22 3.5.1 Rules of Engagement........................ 23 3.5.2 Responsible Disclosure of Vulnerabilities............. 24 3.5.3 Rewards............................... 27 3.6 Lime’s Bug Bounty Program........................ 29 3.6.1 Rewards............................... 30 3.6.2 Scope................................ 30 4 Semi Structured Interview 33 4.1 Visma.................................... 33 4.2 Bug Bounty Hunter One.......................... 35 4.3 Bug Bounty Hunter Two.......................... 38 4.4 Finn.no................................... 41 viii 5 Analysis 45 5.1 The Economic Impacts of Bug Bounty Programs............. 45 5.2 Public Or Private Bug Bounty Program.................
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