Timeline Explorer (EZ Tools)

General Information

Technologies must be operated and maintained in accordance with Federal and Department security and privacy policies and guidelines. More information on the proper use of the TRM can be found on the TRM Proper Use Tab/Section.

Website:	Go to site
Description:	Timeline Explorer is a utility developed for viewing timeline data of different files including comma-separated values (CSV) and Excel files. This utility allows the conversion of bodyfile into CSVs and grants easy filtering, grouping and sorting excel files.
Technology/Standard Usage Requirements:	Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.
Section 508 Information:	This technology has been assessed by the Section 508 Office and found non-conformant. The Implementer of this technology has the responsibility to ensure the version deployed is 508-compliant. Section 508 compliance may be reviewed by the Section 508 Office and appropriate remedial action required if necessary. For additional information or assistance regarding Section 508, please contact the Section 508 Office at Section508@va.gov. Please see reference tab for more information concerning product versions..
Decision:	View Decisions

Decision Source:	TRM Mgmt Group
Decision Process:	One-VA TRM v22.10
Decision Date:	10/18/2022 at 16:18:14 UTC
Introduced By:	TRM Request
Vendor Name:	Eric Zimmerman

Vendor Release Information

The Vendor Release table provides the known releases for the TRM Technology, obtained from the vendor (or from the release source).

Version	Release Date	Vendor End of Life Date	Vendor Desupport Date
0.4.0	04/14/2017
0.5.0	05/19/2017
0.6.1.2	10/27/2017
0.8.x	03/21/2018
0.9.x	07/06/2019
1.3.x	04/01/2021
2.0.x	04/01/2021

Current Decision Matrix (10/14/2022)

Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.

The VA Decision Matrix displays the current and future VA IT position regarding different releases of a TRM entry. These decisions are based upon the best information available as of the most current date. The consumer of this information has the responsibility to consult the organizations responsible for the desktop, testing, and/or production environments to ensure that the target version of the technology will be supported. Any major.minor version that is not listed in the VA Decision Matrix is considered unapproved for use.

Legend:

White	Approved: The technology/standard has been approved for use.
Yellow	Approved w/Constraints: The technology/standard can be used within the specified constraints located below the decision matrix in the footnote[1] and on the General tab.
Gray	Unapproved: This technology or standard can be used only if a POA&M review is conducted and signed by the Authorizing Official Designated Representative (AODR) as designated by the Authorizing Official (AO) or designee and based upon a recommendation from the POA&M Compliance Enforcement, has been granted to the project team or organization that wishes to use the technology.
Orange	Divest: VA has decided to divest itself on the use of the technology/standard. As a result, all projects currently utilizing the technology/standard must plan to eliminate their use of the technology/standard. Additional information on when the entry is projected to become unapproved may be found on the Decision tab for the specific entry.
Black	Prohibited: The technology/standard is not (currently) permitted to be used under any circumstances.
Blue	Planning/Evaluation Constraint:The period of time this technology is currently being evaluated, reviewed, and tested in controlled environments. Use of this technology is strictly controlled and not available for use within the general population. If a customer would like to use this technology, please work with your local or Regional OI&T office and contact the appropriate evaluation office displayed in the notes below the decision matrix. The Local or Regional OI&T office should submit an inquiry to the TRM if they require further assistance or if the evaluating office is not listed in the notes below.

Release/Version Information:

VA decisions for specific versions may include a ‘.x’ wildcard, which denotes a decision that pertains to a range of multiple versions.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 7.x would cover any version of 7.(Anything) - 7.(Anything). However, a 7.4.x decision would cover any version of 7.4.(Anything), but would not cover any version of 7.5.x or 7.6.x on the TRM.

VA decisions for specific versions may include ‘+’ symbols; which denotes that the decision for the version specified also includes versions greater than what is specified but is not to exceed or affect previous decimal places.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 12.6.4+ would cover any version that is greater than 12.6.4, but would not exceed the .6 decimal ie: 12.6.401 is ok, 12.6.5 is ok, 12.6.9 is ok, however 12.7.0 or 13.0 is not.

<Past

CY2025

CY2026

CY2027

Future>

Release

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

0.4.0

Unapproved

0.5.0

Unapproved

0.6.1.2

Unapproved

0.8.x

Unapproved

0.9.x

Unapproved

1.3.x

Approved w/Constraints
[3, 6, 8, 9]

2.0.x

Approved w/Constraints
[3, 6, 8, 9]

Decision Constraints


[1]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Office (ISO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[2]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISO (Information Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[3]	Technology must remain patched and operated in accordance with Federal and Department security policies and guidelines in order to mitigate known and future security vulnerabilities.

[4]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISO (Information Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[5]	Users must ensure that Microsoft .NET Framework is implemented with VA-approved baselines. (refer to the ‘Category’ tab under ‘Runtime Dependencies’)

[6]	Per the Initial Product Review (IPR), users must abide by the following constraints: The use of EZ Tools must be limited only to Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) staff and shall be listed in the software baseline of the EnCase Endpoint Investigator (EEI) ATO boundary. System administrators must ensure that the latest approved version of Microsoft .NET Framework is used with EZ Tools that integrates with .NET Framework. Version 6.x is listed as Unapproved on the VA Technical Reference Model (TRM). The VA requires support for all software used on the VA network. Vendor or third-party support at an enterprise level is not free and must be acquired for any open-source product to be deployed on the VA network. Support for the EZ Tools can be provided through Eric Zimmerman. The use of EZ Tools should be limited only to experienced system information security staff performing tasks related to digital forensics investigations, incident response, and Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) detection. Due to the rapid releases and updates of these tools, the VA should closely monitor the vendor’s website for critical updates and new releases.

[7]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[8]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information System Security Officer (ISSO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[9]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with both VA Handbook 6500 and VA Directive 6500.

Note:

At the time of writing, version 1.3.0.0 is the most current version for .Net Framework 4.6.2 or newer and 2.0.0.0 for .Net Framework 6.0 or greater.

References

The following reference(s) are associated with this entry:
Type	Name	Source	Description

Technology Components

Note: This list may not be complete. No component, listed or unlisted, may be used outside of the technology in which it is released. The usage decision for a component is found in the Decision and Decision Constraints.
Name	Description
No components have been identified for this entry.

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Domain Area	Category	Customer Guidance	Category Locked By ELT Date
Information Management Technologies Business Intelligence and Data Warehouse Platforms	Web Reporting Tools

Open Source

This entry is available as an open source technology.

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Windows Client - Approved w/Constraints

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Microsoft .NET Framework

Comparable Technologies:

No comparable entries have been identified.

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

Comma-Separated Values (CSV) Format

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

This technology is available at no cost through open source licensing and supports VA`s open source initiative.
This is a mature technology.
The technology has a comprehensive set of documentation.
At the time of writing, no National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) vulnerabilities had been reported and no VA Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) bulletins had been issued for the latest versions of this technology.
There are a limited number of other VA-approved technologies that provide similar functionality.

Adoption Risks

The potential exists to store Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI) and/or VA Sensitive data and proper security standards must be followed in these cases.
The EZ Tools are command line tools designed for Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR). The product is freely available to users, which could result in unauthorized usage of these tools. Additionally, the WxTCmd component is turned on by default and requires one to explicitly disable the functionality if the user does not wish to have their actions recorded. If the activity history is enabled, it may include such details as: which file was viewed, edited, website visited, and the times all this occurred.
The EZ Tools is an open-source tool that do not come with enterprise level support.
Per the developer, the software requires at least Microsoft .net 4.6.2 or later. Errors can occur using the applications without at least 4.6.2. Developer also noted to make sure users get the Desktop runtime if end users are planning on using any of the GUI programs.
Digital forensic tools used for intrusion investigations have the capability to show a chronology of actions taken by the user. It allows incident responders to find specific past events from the items previously worked on, because it has a history from the most recent tasks up to 30 days ago. Activity collection can result in exposure of highly detailed data stored on Windows computers, including web page activities or caches.
These tools undergo frequent version changes and vendor updates.
Due to the rapid release schedule of this technology, the VA may be unable to update to the most recent patch and may require a deployment model requiring the use of specific versions.

Architectural Risks

This technology is not portable as it runs only on Windows platforms.

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Current Decision Matrix (10/14/2022)

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VA Technical Reference Model v 24.7

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Current Decision Matrix (10/14/2022)

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VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Open Source

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

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Architectural Risks

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