Create custom Situation elements

You can create custom Situation elements in addition to using the predefined ones.

Before you begin

Creating new Situation elements requires detailed knowledge of the protocols that you want to inspect and the traffic patterns related to their use.

You can create a Situation element to detect individual events or a Correlation Situation element to detect a group of related events.

A Situation element collects together the related elements and settings and sets the severity value for the Situation. The severity value can be set between Info (the least severe) to Critical (the most severe). You can use the severity value to restrict which Situations added to the Situations cell are considered in Inspection Exceptions and Alert Policies. For example, if a rule matches a large range of Situations you can create separate rules for less severe and more severe Situations.

Note: Avoid defining the same pattern in different Situation elements. Duplicate situations in the policy can create unintended results and makes the policies difficult to manage.

The predefined Situation elements are updated through dynamic update packages. You can also create new Situation elements to fine-tune the patterns that the engines look for in the traffic.

For more details about the product and how to configure features, click Help or press F1.

Steps

Select Configuration.
Browse to Other Elements > Situations.
Right-click Situations, then select New > Situation or New > Correlation Situation.
In the Name field, enter a unique name.
(Optional) Click Select and select the Situation Type with which to associate this Situation.
You can only select one Situation Type for each Situation. The Situation Type specifies the branch of the Rules tree under which the Situation is included.
In the Description field, enter a description of the traffic pattern that the Situation represents.
This description is shown in log entries and other places where statistics related to the Situation appear.
In the Severity drop-down list, select the severity value for the Situation.
The Severity is shown in the logs and can be used in Alert Policies as a criterion for alert escalation.
(Optional) In the Attacker and Target drop-down lists, select how the attacker and target are determined when the Situation matches.
This information is used for blacklisting and in log entries.

Situation Properties dialog box

Use this dialog box to configure a Situation element.

Note: We recommend that you use only the predefined Situation elements included in dynamic update packages. The use of custom Situations is an advanced feature that requires technical expertise.

Option	Definition
General tab
Name	Specifies a unique name for the Situation.
Comment	An optional comment for your own reference.
Vulnerability	Lists the known vulnerabilities associated with the Situation, if available.
Situation Type	Shows the Situation Type with which to associate this Situation.
Select	Opens the Select Element dialog box. You can only select one Situation Type for each Situation. The Situation Type specifies the branch of the Rules tree under which the Situation is included.
Description	Use the Description field to describe the traffic pattern that the Situation represents. This description is shown, for example, in log entries.
Severity	Select a Severity for the Situation. The Severity is shown in the logs and can be used in Alert Policies as a criterion for alert escalation.
Attacker	Select how the Attacker is determined when the Situation matches. This information is used for blacklisting and in log entries. None — Does not define the Attacker and Target information, so blacklisting entries cannot be created using the Attacker and Target options. IP Source or IP Destination— The IP addresses of the (last) packet that triggers the Situation. Because the packet can be a request or a reply, make sure to select the option correctly based on the pattern that the situation detects to avoid reversed labeling. Connection Source or Connection Destination — IP addresses depend on which host opened the connection and provide a constant point of reference to the client and server in the communications.
Target	Select how the Target is determined when the Situation matches. This information is used for blacklisting and in log entries. None — Does not define the Attacker and Target information, so blacklisting entries cannot be created using the Attacker and Target options. IP Source or IP Destination— The IP addresses of the (last) packet that triggers the Situation. Since the packet can be a request or a reply, make sure to select the option correctly based on the pattern that the situation detects to avoid reversed labeling. Connection Source or Connection Destination — IP addresses depend on which host opened the connection and provide a constant point of reference to the client and server in the communications.
Last Update in	Shows the dynamic update package number that the Situation was included in or changed in.
Supported Engine Versions	Specifies the supported engine versions for the Situation.
Category	Includes the Situation in predefined categories.
Select	Opens the Category Selection dialog box.

Option	Definition
Context tab
Context	Shows the selected Context for this Situation.
Select	Opens the Select Context dialog box. Note: These contexts are updated dynamically and can change.

Option	Definition
Tags tab
Name	Shows the name of the tag.
Comment	Shows the comment associated with the tag.
Type	Shows the type of tag.
Add Tags	Opens the dialog box to add a tag. Select from the available options: Hardware Operating System Situation Tag Software

Correlation Situation Properties dialog box

Use this dialog box to configure a Correlation Situation.

Note: We recommend that you use only the predefined Correlation Situation elements included in dynamic update packages. The use of custom Correlation Situations is an advanced feature that requires technical expertise.

Option	Definition
General tab
Name	Specifies a unique name for the Situation.
Comment	An optional comment for your own reference.
Vulnerability	Lists the known vulnerabilities associated with the Situation, if available.
Situation Type	Shows the Situation Type with which to associate this Situation.
Select	Opens the Select Element dialog box. You can only select one Situation Type for each Situation. The Situation Type specifies the branch of the Rules tree under which the Situation is included.
Description	Use the Description field to describe the traffic pattern that the Situation represents. This description is shown, for example, in log entries.
Severity	Select a Severity for the Situation. The Severity is shown in the logs and can be used in Alert Policies as a criterion for alert escalation.
Attacker	Select how the Attacker is determined when the Situation matches. This information is used for blacklisting and in log entries. None — Does not define the Attacker and Target information, so blacklisting entries cannot be created using the Attacker and Target options. IP Source or IP Destination— The IP addresses of the (last) packet that triggers the Situation. Because the packet can be a request or a reply, make sure to select the option correctly based on the pattern that the Situation detects to avoid reversed labeling. Connection Source or Connection Destination — IP addresses depend on which host opened the connection and provide a constant point of reference to the client and server in the communications.
Target	Select how the Target is determined when the Situation matches. This information is used for blacklisting and in log entries. None — Does not define the Attacker and Target information, so blacklisting entries cannot be created using the Attacker and Target options. IP Source or IP Destination— The IP addresses of the (last) packet that triggers the Situation. Since the packet can be a request or a reply, make sure to select the option correctly based on the pattern that the Situation detects to avoid reversed labeling. Connection Source or Connection Destination — IP addresses depend on which host opened the connection and provide a constant point of reference to the client and server in the communications.
Last Update in	Shows the dynamic update package number that the Situation was included in or changed in.
Supported Engine Versions	Specifies the supported engine versions for the Situation.
Category	Includes the Situation in predefined categories.
Select	Opens the Category Selection dialog box.

Option	Definition
Context tab
Select	Opens the Select Context dialog box. Select the Context you want to associate with this Correlation Situation: Compress — Combines repeated similar events into the same log entry, reducing the amount of data that is sent to the Log Server. Count — Finds recurring patterns in traffic by counting the times certain Situations occur within a defined time period. The Situation matches if the threshold values you set are exceeded. Group — Finds patterns in traffic by following if all events in the defined set of Situations match at least once in any order within the defined time period. Match — Allows filtering event data using filters. Sequence — Finds patterns in traffic by following if all events in the defined set of Situations match in a specific order within a defined time period. Note: These contexts are updated dynamically and can change.

Option

Definition

Context tab

Select

Opens the Select Context dialog box. Select the Context you want to associate with this Correlation Situation:

Compress — Combines repeated similar events into the same log entry, reducing the amount of data that is sent to the Log Server.
Count — Finds recurring patterns in traffic by counting the times certain Situations occur within a defined time period. The Situation matches if the threshold values you set are exceeded.
Group — Finds patterns in traffic by following if all events in the defined set of Situations match at least once in any order within the defined time period.
Match — Allows filtering event data using filters.
Sequence — Finds patterns in traffic by following if all events in the defined set of Situations match in a specific order within a defined time period.

Note: These contexts are updated dynamically and can change.

Option	Definition
Tags tab
Name	Shows the name of the tag.
Comment	Shows the comment associated with the tag.
Type	Shows the type of tag.
Add Tags	Opens the dialog box to add a tag. Select from the available options: Hardware Operating System Situation Tag Software

Event Binding Properties dialog box

Use this dialog box to view the properties of Event Binding elements.

CAUTION:

Do not create Event Binding elements. Use the predefined Event Binding elements instead. The main options are explained here.

Option	Definition
Name	Specifies a unique name for the event binding.
Comment	An optional comment for your own reference.
Resources	Shows a list of log fields.
Search	Opens a search field for the selected element list.
Up (Backspace)	Returns to the previous folder.
Tools	Show Deleted Elements — Shows elements that have been moved to the Trash. Refresh View — Refreshes the list of elements.
Bindings table
First binding	The first set of logs to use in Correlation Situations to bind together different types of events in traffic.
Second binding	The second set of logs to use in a sequence when using Correlation Situations to bind together different types of events in traffic.