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Sekchek
Initial release	2006; 19 years ago
Type	Computer Security
License	Proprietary
Website	sekchek.com
As of	November 2018

SekChek security audit and benchmarking toolset dating from 1996.

History

SekChek was formed by two former auditors from Deloitte and Touche in 1996.^[1]^[2] The toolset was a set of automated processes to analyse the logical security profile of a computer.^[3]

The concept and initial version of SekChek was brought to Deloitte South Africa by Gordon Docherty and Jose Masson, who collaborated on the product design and deliverables with Chris Little CISA, CISSP from Deloitte's Computer Assurance Services Division in Sandton, South Africa. The first version analysed the control parameters for AS/400 systems. While the concept was good, the main concerns at the time were that (a) the clients had to send their operating system security files off-premise to SekChek for processing, and (b) the generated reports highlighted every parameter that wasn't in line with SekChek's world view of best practice. This led to reports of hundreds of pages being produced, with minimal prioritisation of the parameters to fix. Over time, these reports became more concise and user-friendly.

On 20 March 2018 SekCheck's website gave notice operations would cease on 31 May 2018. Reasons cited included SekCheks' business model being less relevant to the business environment in 2018, a surge in compliance and regulatory requirements including GDPR and monetary difficulties due to losses with the insolvency of a credit-card processor.^[4]

Products

The SekChek Classic product gathered information on a host which would then be sent encrypted to SekChek for report processing and enable checking security policies had been correctly configured.^[5]^[6] This originally worked on AS/400 but the number of platforms were extended in the next two years to encompass ed to Windows, Netware and Unix.^[2] Reports anonymously compared machines against the average from similar industry computers.^[5]^[7] The company introduced the Local version of its product in 2008 which avoided the need send data off-site.^[2]^[8] For windows there was a utility to specifically audit the Active Directory (AD) at domain level rather that at server level which was analyzed by the SAM tool.^[9]^[10]

Reception

The product was initially marketed as a security evaluator and was noted for providing comprehensive reports of the security vulnerability of a computer system.^[11]

References

^ ^a ^b Bosavage, Jennifer (June 7, 2006). "New Service Seeks Out Security Gaps". Dark Reading. United Business Media. TechWeb. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c "A Brief History". SekChek. Archived from the original on 3 March 2017. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
^ "IT Security Review Services - SekChek". Deloitte. Archived from the original on February 4, 2007.
^ "Notice of SekChek's closure on 31 May 2018". SekChek. Archived from the original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
^ ^a ^b "SekChek Provides Independent Reality Check of OS Security" (Press release). Tippit Inc. 27 June 2006. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Independent, objective, and reliable evaluation of a company's computer security is the key deliverable of SekChek
^ "Computer Security Evaluator SekChek Announces Compatibility with Microsoft Windows Vista" (Press release). DABCC. 5 October 2007. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
^ "SekChek Marks 10-Year Anniversary, Providing Unique Security Assessment Tools" (Press release). SpecialNoise. 26 June 2007. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016.
^ "Compare Classic Software" (PDF). SekChek Classic. Archived from the original on 3 March 2017.
^ "AD Product Specifications" (PDF). SekChek Local. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 March 2017.
^ "SAM Product Specifications" (PDF). SekChek Local. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 March 2017.
^ Kearns, Dave (10 May 2006). "SekChek evaluates security". Network World. International Data Group. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2009.

"Audit Programs & ICQs". isaca.org. Archived from the original (Fee required) on 2007-07-11. Retrieved 2018-12-13.
"Annual Specialist IT Audit Activity Report 2004/5" (PDF). LB Bromley Internal Audit Report. November 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-08-27. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
Carroll, Mariana (November 2006). "An Information Systems Auditor's Profile" (PDF). UNISA Dissertation. These reports can be used to identify weaknesses as well as risk ratings and suggested corrective actions. These statements are supported by Mookhey (2004) when he asserts that "the use of these tools for security auditing is prevalentand driven mainly by the inherent complexity within information systems.^{[dead link‍]}