PRAGMATIC Security Metrics

Other books on information security metrics discuss number theory and statistics in academic terms. Light on mathematics and heavy on utility, PRAGMATIC Security Metrics: Applying Metametrics to Information Security breaks the mold. This is the ultimate how-to-do-it guide for security metrics.

Packed with time-saving tips, the book offers easy-to-follow guidance for those struggling with security metrics. Step by step, it clearly explains how to specify, develop, use, and maintain an information security measurement system (a comprehensive suite of metrics) to help:

• Security professionals systematically improve information security, demonstrate the value they are adding, and gain management support for the things that need to be done
• Management address previously unsolvable problems rationally, making critical decisions such as resource allocation and prioritization of security relative to other business activities
• Stakeholders, both within and outside the organization, be assured that information security is being competently managed

The PRAGMATIC approach lets you home-in on your problem areas and identify the few metrics that will generate real business value. The book:

• Helps you figure out exactly what needs to be measured, how to measure it, and most importantly, why it needs to be measured
• Describes, scores and ranks more than 150 potential security metrics to demonstrate the value of the PRAGMATIC method
• Highlights security metrics that are widely used and recommended, yet turn out to be rather poor in practice
• Describes innovative and flexible measurement approaches such as maturity metrics with continuous scales
• Explains how to minimize both measurement and security risks using complementary metrics for greater assurance in critical areas such as governance and compliance

In addition to its obvious utility in the information security realm, the PRAGMATIC approach, introduced for the first time in this book, has broader application across diverse fields of management including finance, human resources, engineering, and production–in fact any area that suffers a surplus of data but a deficit of useful information.

Visit SecurityMetametrics.com supporting the global community of professionals adopting the innovative techniques laid out in PRAGMATIC Security Metrics. If you, too, are struggling to make much sense of security metrics, or searching for better metrics to manage and improve information security, Security Metametrics is the place for you.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 – Introduction
Chapter 2 – Why Measure Information Security?
Chapter 3 – The Art and Science of Security Metrics
Chapter 4 – Audiences for Security Metrics
Chapter 5 – Finding Candidate Metrics
Chapter 6 – Metametrics and the PRAGMATIC Approach
Chapter 7 – 150+ Example Security Metrics
Chapter 8 – Designing PRAGMATIC Security Measurement System
Chapter 9 – Advanced Information Security Metrics
Chapter 10 – Downsides of Metrics
Chapter 11 – Using PRAGMATIC Metrics in Practice
Chapter 12 – Case Study
Chapter 13 – Conclusions

Appendix A: PRAGMATIC Criteria
Appendix B: Business Model of Information Security (BMIS)
Appendix C: Capability Maturity Model (CMM)
Appendix D: Example Opinion Survey Form
Appendix E: SABSA Security Attributes Table
Appendix F: Prototype Metrics Catalog
Appendix G: Effect of Weighting the PRAGMATIC Criteria
Appendix H: ISO27k Maturity Scale Metrics
Appendix I: Sample Management Survey
Appendix J: Observer Bias
Appendix K: Observer Calibration
Appendix L: Bibliography