The Paella of Cybersecurity Assessment
Few Spanish dishes are as iconic as paella, deeply rooted in the region of Valencia. Originally a farmer’s meal, it was prepared in the fields with local ingredients and whatever the land provided. Just as society has evolved, so has this dish, becoming a true symbol of Spanish cuisine and a delicacy cherished by locals and visitors alike.
We’ll leave for another time the passionate debates paella generates about its preparation: the right type of rice, the “allowed” ingredients, with or without “socarrat” (toasted rice at the bottom), and so on. Let’s focus on what matters: paella brings together various ingredients to create something delicious. What does that have to do with us? Here’s the point: the cybersecurity assessment process also combines multiple elements to protect the IT infrastructure.
We approach this analogy based on nine recurring friction points between technical teams and clients, identified through our experience in the field. These frictions appear wherever services like vulnerability scans and pentests are carried out. They often result from communication gaps, leading to mutual misunderstandings and slower workflows. These challenges are inherent not only to our work but also to the broader cybersecurity and compliance sector. Today, we’ll bridge this client-provider disconnect with something as Spanish—and universal—as paella.
A proper paella is usually enjoyed at family gatherings and celebrations—it’s a dish that fosters community and sharing. It’s the perfect occasion for open, friendly conversation around a shared culinary project. Similarly, that same type of communication is essential between client and provider teams to promote collaboration and efficiency in their tasks. It also stems from a shared project mindset: working together to secure and strengthen an organization’s technological infrastructure.
At BOTECH, we’ve developed a set of prerequisites we share with our clients at the start of every security assessment. To explain it in simpler terms, we’ve turned those nine friction points into the ingredients of our special paella. Let’s see which nine ingredients will make us true cybersecurity assessment chefs.
The first friction point between departments involves clearly defining the systems, applications, networks, devices, and other technological resources to be tested. It’s crucial to specify which assets are included in the assessment, their location, and how they interconnect to ensure complete and effective test coverage.
In our analogy, rice is the base of the paella, just as the scope and asset inventory are the foundation of any security assessment, supporting and influencing all other components.
No assessment should begin without a visual representation of the organization’s network, highlighting how devices communicate, data flow, and ports used. This diagram is essential to understand network structure and plan the security tests.
The equivalent in paella is the broth—it gives flavor and binds all the ingredients together, just as the network diagram connects and contextualizes all components of the IT infrastructure.
These rules define the set of policies configured in firewalls and routers that regulate allowed or blocked traffic through the network. Understanding them is essential to evaluate network security and identify potential vulnerabilities.
In paella, saffron is essential for its distinctive color and flavor, just as firewall and router rules define the “color” and safety of the network.
This friction point refers to the ability to connect and interact with the systems being tested, including user account creation, MFA implementation, VPN configuration, etc. Proper access is necessary to perform effective assessments.
Speaking of effectiveness, chicken is one of the main ingredients that gives the dish substance, just as proper access is essential for effective testing.
A Jump Box is a secure system acting as an intermediary between the user and the target network assets, while a VPN provides a secure communication channel through a public network such as the Internet for remote access. When performing assessments, technical teams should be fully aware of such systems.
In paella, the added layer of flavor and complexity—analogous to the added layer of security and connectivity—is represented by the rabbit.
This questionnaire consists of specific checks to assess compliance with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) requirements in environments hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS). It’s not always applicable, but when it is, the technical team must be aware of it.
A PCI questionnaire on AWS ensures adherence to “fresh and relevant” industry standards, much like how green beans add freshness and color.
The Credit Data Environment (CDE) includes the systems, networks, and applications that process, store, and transmit credit card data, focusing on the protection of such data.
They’re critically important (though not always addressed early in client-provider communication), as they stand out and must capture attention—exactly like shrimp in a paella.
Red pepper decorates and visually distinguishes the paella, just as environment distinction helps visualize and organize the IT infrastructure.
By “distinction” we mean the clear separation between PCI and non-PCI environments, as well as between production and pre-production, ensuring that security measures are appropriate for each.
This involves defining and documenting the IP address ranges and other network identifiers within the IT infrastructure, including ranges assigned to network segments such as development, production, and administration subnets.
In paella, lemon is added at the end and can adjust the flavor to taste—just as range identification allows final tuning and customization in the security assessment.
Ready to dig in? Now that we know which ingredients to use, it’s time to fire up the stove and follow this recipe step by step.
After these steps, reflecting the critical components of a security assessment, we achieve a true “cybersecurity paella”—authentic, complete, and effective. A guarantee of protection for the organization’s IT infrastructure.
All that’s left is to sit down, fill your glass to taste, and toast to a safer, more efficient experience.