Collect Cisco Firepower NGFW logs

This document explains how to ingest Cisco Firepower Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane. The parser extracts the logs from various formats (syslog, JSON, and combinations thereof), normalizes the timestamp, and maps relevant fields to the Unified Data Model (UDM). It handles both conventional syslog messages and JSON-formatted payloads within the logs, leveraging grok patterns and conditional logic to extract fields like event ID, severity, and client IP, then enriches the data with labels based on HTTP Hostname and URI.

Before you begin

Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• Google SecOps instance
• Windows 2016 or later, or a Linux host with systemd
• If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open
• Privileged access to a Cisco Firepower device

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 ID from the Organization Details section.

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 Prompt or PowerShell as 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 the installation guide.

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

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

2. Edit the config.yaml file as follows:

   receivers:
       udplog:
           # Replace the port and IP address as required
           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: <customer_id>
           endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
           # Add optional ingestion labels for better organization
           log_type: 'CISCO_FIREPOWER_FIREWALL'
           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 Services console or enter the following command:

  net stop BindPlaneAgent && net start BindPlaneAgent
  

Configure Syslog on Cisco FirePower Device

1. Sign in to the Firepower Device Manager web UI.
2. Go to System Settings > Logging Settings.
3. Switch to Enable the Data Logging toggle.
4. Click the + icon under Syslog Servers.
5. Click Create new Syslog Server. (Alternatively, you can create the Syslog Server in Objects > Syslog Servers).
6. Provide the following configuration details:
   • IP Address: Enter the Bindplane agent IP address.
   • Protocol Type: Select UDP.
   • Port Number: Enter the Bindplane agent port number.
   • Select Data Interface or Management Interface.
7. Click OK.
8. Select the newly created Syslog server from the list and click OK.
9. Click Severity level for filtering all events and select Informational logging level from the list.
10. Click Save.
11. Click the Deploy New Settings icon > Deploy Now.
12. Click Policies at the top of the screen.
13. Hover over the right side of the ACP rule and click edit Edit.
14. Go to the Logging tab.
15. Select At End of Connection.
16. Open the Select a Syslog Alert Configuration list.
17. select the Bindplane Syslog Server.
18. Click OK.
19. Click the Deploy New Settings icon > Deploy Now.

UDM mapping table

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