Collect Entrust nShield HSM audit logs

This document explains how to ingest Entrust nShield HSM audit logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane.

Before you begin

Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• A Google SecOps instance
• A Windows 2016 or later or Linux host with systemd
• If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
• Privileged access to the Entrust nShield HSM management console
• An initialized Security World with audit logging capability

Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agents.
3. Download the Ingestion Authentication File. Save the file securely on the system where Bindplane will be installed.

Get Google SecOps customer ID

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.
3. Copy and save the Customer IDfrom the Organization Detailssection.

Install the Bindplane agent

Install the Bindplane agent on your Windows or Linux operating system according to the following instructions.

Windows installation

1. Open the Command Promptor PowerShellas an administrator.

2. Run the following command:

     msiexec 
     
    / 
    i 
     
    "https://github.com/observIQ/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/observiq-otel-collector.msi" 
     
    / 
    quiet 
    
   

Linux installation

1. Open a terminal with root or sudo privileges.

2. Run the following command:

    sudo  
   sh  
   -c  
    " 
    $( 
   curl  
   -fsSlL  
   https://github.com/observiq/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/install_unix.sh ) 
    " 
     
   install_unix.sh 
   

Additional installation resources

• For additional installation options, consult this installation guide .

Configure the Bindplane agent to ingest Syslog and send to Google SecOps

1. Access the configuration file:

   1. Locate the config.yaml file. Typically, it's in the /etc/bindplane-agent/ directory on Linux or in the installation directory on Windows.
   2. Open the file using a text editor (for example, nano , vi , or Notepad).

2. Edit the config.yaml file as follows:

     receivers 
    : 
     
    udplog 
    : 
     
    # nShield HSM only supports UDP for audit logs 
     
    listen_address 
    : 
     
    "0.0.0.0:514" 
    exporters 
    : 
     
    chronicle/chronicle_w_labels 
    : 
     
    compression 
    : 
     
    gzip 
     
    # Adjust the path to the credentials file you downloaded in Step 1 
     
    creds_file_path 
    : 
     
    '/path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json' 
     
    # Replace with your actual customer ID from Step 2 
     
    customer_id 
    : 
     
    YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID 
     
    endpoint 
    : 
     
    malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com 
     
    # Use ENTRUST_HSM as the log type 
     
    log_type 
    : 
     
    'ENTRUST_HSM' 
     
    raw_log_field 
    : 
     
    body 
     
    ingestion_labels 
    : 
    service 
    : 
     
    pipelines 
    : 
     
    logs/source0__chronicle_w_labels-0 
    : 
     
    receivers 
    : 
     
    - 
     
    udplog 
     
    exporters 
    : 
     
    - 
     
    chronicle/chronicle_w_labels 
    
   

   • Replace the port and IP address as required in your infrastructure.
   • Replace <customer_id> with the actual customer ID.
   • Update /path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json to the path where the authentication file was saved in the Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file section.

Restart the Bindplane agent to apply the changes

• To restart the Bindplane agent in Linux, run the following command:

   sudo  
  systemctl  
  restart  
  bindplane-agent 
  

• To restart the Bindplane agent in Windows, you can either use the Servicesconsole or enter the following command:

   net stop BindPlaneAgent && net start BindPlaneAgent 
  

Configure Syslog forwarding on Entrust nShield HSM

The configuration method depends on your nShield HSM deployment model. Audit logging must be enabled at Security World creation or when indoctrinating an HSM into an existing Security World.

Option 1: Configure using config-auditlogging utility (recommended)

1. On the client computer with the Security World Softwareinstalled, run the following command:

    config-auditlogging  
   --server  
   <BINDPLANE_IP>  
   --port  
    514 
     
   --enable-syslog 
   

   • Replace <BINDPLANE_IP> with the IP address of your Bindplane agent host.

   The configuration changes are written to the hardserver configuration file.

2. Restart the hardserver to apply the changes:

   • Linux: /opt/nfast/sbin/init.d-ncipher restart
   • Windows: net stop "nfast server" && net start "nfast server"

Option 2: Configure via hardserver configuration file

1. Edit the hardserver configuration file:
   • Linux: /opt/nfast/kmdata/config/config
   • Windows: %NFAST_KMDATA%\config\config

2. Add or modify the following entries in the configuration file:

    auditlog_addr=<BINDPLANE_IP>
   auditlog_port=514 
   

   • Replace <BINDPLANE_IP> with the IP address of your Bindplane agent host.

3. Save the configuration file.

4. Restart the hardserver to apply the changes:

   • Linux: /opt/nfast/sbin/init.d-ncipher restart
   • Windows: net stop "nfast server" && net start "nfast server"

Option 3: Configure for network-attached HSMs (nShield Connect)

For network-attached HSMs, you can push the configuration remotely:

1. Ensure config push is enabled on the RFS (Remote File System).

2. Copy the HSM configuration file:

    cp  
   /opt/nfast/kmdata/hsm-ESN/config/config  
   /opt/nfast/kmdata/hsm-ESN/config/config.new 
   

3. Edit config.new to add the audit logging configuration:

    [audit_logging]
   auditlog_addr=<BINDPLANE_IP>
   auditlog_port=514 
   

4. Push the configuration to the HSM:

    cfg-pushnethsm  
   --address = 
   <HSM_IP>  
   /opt/nfast/kmdata/hsm-ESN/config/config.new 
   

   • Replace <HSM_IP> with the IP address of your nShield Connect HSM.

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