Case Study Zero-Day Patch Response

A globally recognized consumer packaged goods company faced production and safety problems when a severe vulnerability was identified in Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). When Microsoft identified this vulnerability, they issued a zero-day patch to resolve the problem. The BlueKeep patch had to be implemented as soon as possible due to imminent malware exploits.

Achieving Real Results

Avoid safety risks and loss of production which prevented downstream supply chain disruption

Track the patch’s adoption across all vulnerable machines with the custom dashboard

Gain full visibility across the system

A Swift, Safe Response

The client needed help to respond to this security vulnerability in its RDP. With several thousand devices affected, its sites across the globe were susceptible to a dire loss of production from shutdowns due to exploitation or prevention measures. The safety of site personnel was also at risk, as some of the affected devices managed safety procedures.

Interstates helped the client build a custom enterprise dashboard to track patch adoption, RDP service status, and firewall access rules. Because of Interstates’ mastery of cybersecurity data environments, the vulnerability was solved, the real-time dashboard was created in only one day, and the client kept its sites secure.

Close-up image of hands pressing on a tablet.

Challenges

There were no known malware exploits across machines, so the client did not know their risk. However, discovering the vulnerability meant an attack was imminent. The client tracked the patch’s adoption across its vulnerable machines. If Interstates did not implement the BlueKeep patch quickly, hackers could take the machines hostage which would greatly impact production at every client site worldwide. An attack would also abruptly stop safety procedures, causing damage and potentially putting plant employees at risk. The client’s quick reaction to this vulnerability was critical.

Microsoft’s RDP application is widely used in manufacturing operational technology systems. With sites across the globe, the client stood to lose a lot if the Bluekeep security problem wasn’t rectified. “Zero-day” is the highest level of priority for Microsoft security patches, so the clock was ticking on finding a solution.

Solution

The client contacted Interstates because of its fluency in cybersecurity data. The client wanted a dashboard created to track the adoption of the BlueKeep patch across its affected machines. Interstates quickly created a custom enterprise dashboard to track patch adoption. The dashboard also checked the RDP service status to see if there had been any exploits and made sure that the firewall had not been compromised.

Each site’s cybersecurity and corporate engineering personnel were granted permission to ensure the right people had visibility into which devices were patched.

This real-time dashboard took only one day to create because of Interstates’ experience of cybersecurity data environments. The client received site-by-site comparisons of the adoption of the BlueKeep patch from the data every ten minutes.

Cybersecurity expert monitoring activity.

Return on Investment

The enterprise dashboard enabled the complete adoption of the patch within one week, taking the client’s machines from vulnerable to secure. The value of this service lies in the rapid development of full visibility into the client’s pain point. The client would have had a large responsibility to respond and implement it without a custom solution. Instead, the client could rely on Interstates’ experience and knowledge of their cybersecurity system. The client had a solution in one day and avoided a massive loss of production.

The client’s feedback has been extremely positive. Of the vendors who run cybersecurity for the client, Interstates was the first and fastest response to this critical issue. The result was a complete adoption of the patch across several thousand machines in short order.

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