...The Current Problems with Network Security and How We Can Fix Them Abstract Network Security has come a long way from the times when their wasn’t a need to worry about networks being attacked, and now to the current evolution of people where it’s not if your network will be attacked, it is when. The Current Problems with Network Security and How We Can Fix Them Network Security is defined by Sans Institute as the process of taking physical and software preventative measures to protect the underlying networking infrastructure from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, modification, destruction, or improper disclosure, thereby creating a secure platform for computers, users and programs to perform their permitted critical functions within a secure environment (SANS, 2014). As you can see with that definition the meaning can interpreted many different ways, so with this paper I will describe what network security is and how we can fix the ongoing problems. Current State of Network Security Before you fix or document any problems with network security you must first evaluate the current state of the problems we face. Most networks are somewhat secure, meaning they have the resources to make them nearly “bullet-proof”, but due to current policies within organizations, the information technology team is unable to enforce maximum security due to employees needing to plug their IPod’s in, charge their cell phones, and access social media sites, etc. the list could go...
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...Risk Assessment in Information Technology Risk Assessment in Information Technology This paper will address risk assessment in Information Technology and discuss factors used to identify all kinds of risks in company network diagram. It will also assess the risk factors that are inclusive for the Company and give the assumptions related to the security data as well as regulatory issues surrounding risk assessment. In addressing the global implications, the paper will propose network security vulnerabilities and recommend the mitigation measures for the vulnerabilities. Cryptography recommendations based on data driven decision-making will be assessed, and develop risk assessment methodologies. Risk assessment in Information Technology Risk assessment is one of the mitigation methods for the Networks design. The scanners or vulnerability tools are used to identify the risks or vulnerabilities within the network design. The risks can be identified by these tools as they extend beyond software detects to incorporate other easily vulnerabilities including mis-configurations (Rouse, 2010). The shareware assessment tools are accessible online and can be used to supplement commercial scanners. Framework of risk assessment * Step 1 – categorizing information and information systems. Here unique department traits are highlighted and assigned impact levels (high, medium or low) in line with the security FISMA’s security objectives (confidentiality, integrity and availability)...
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...Security Threats & Vulnerabilities As information technology grows also does the need to protect technology or information on the system. Before we can protect the information on a system we need to know what to protect and how to protect them. First must decide what a threat to our system is. A Security threat is anything or anyone that comprise data integrity, confidentiality, and availability of a system. Another security issue for systems is Vulnerabilities in software that can be exploited by people that want to do harm to a system. It’s up to the personnel or team that’s in charge of protecting the system from threats and vulnerabilities. The personnel that secure information technology systems are known as (ISO) Information Security Officer, (IASO) Information Assurance Security Officer, (ISM) Information Security Manager ect. No matter what name the personnel there job is the same to protect information systems. Security Officers will have to set policies that govern the system and create plan on how to handle security threat and vulnerabilities. Security threats can consist of any number issues ranging from physical attack, spoofing, password attacks, identity theft, virus attacks, and Denial of Service attacks, Social Threats, Espionage, malware, spyware, Careless Employees, and hackers. We will disuse all of these threats and ways to prevent them later in the report. In 2010 Kevin Prince, CTO, Perimeter E-Security "As these security threats are becoming more...
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...A REPORT ON ICT ARCHITECTURE AND SECURITY Prepared for: Justin Debuse Submitted: 31. October 2008 Prepared by: André Nordal Sylte University of the Sunshine Coast Word count: 1665 Executive summary This report, authorised by Justin Debuse in Introduction to ICT, BUS108, looks at ICT architecture and security in an organisation. This report found that the major security threats within an organisation’s ICT are; Cracking into an organisation’s wireless intranet in search for vital corporate information; Former employees accessing wireless intranets and extranets without authorization; Information sent via an extranet could be intercepted in its transit; Viruses and Trojans accidentally downloaded by employees and been spread around the LAN. Solutions to these threats are; WiFi protected access (WPA) password and hide the network; ICTs should be protected with a login screen for the users; To secure an extranet, organisations should use a virtual private network (VPN); Any organisation should provide basic training in how to detect viruses and Trojans. This is a proactive way to prevent an infection in a whole organisation’s LAN. This report also found that the major legal and ethical issues within an organisation’s ICT are; Employee monitored by computer technology and in the building; Privacy on e-mail stored on an organisation’s computer; Illegal and offensive use of an organisation’s...
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...For over the past several decades, information technology companies have been striving to figure out new and more effective ways to ensure that their computers and associative equipment, as well as, their clients’ devices are secure from unwanted intrusions. As computers and other electronic devices become more sophisticated and start storing more and more personal information, which includes, but is not limited to the development of technologies such as the fiber-optics, satellite communications, Bluetooth and the innovation of cloud storage, users are attempting to ensure their personal items are safe. However, while device users are trying to ensure their items are secure, there are the opposing parties that are constantly attacking and attempting to infiltrate any and all defenses posed by a target computer. An attacker can gain personal information, such as finance data, including credit card information as well as account numbers, and other important information relevant to your life. These attempts can eventually lead to success and jeopardize the people being attacked. These attacks are becoming more sophisticated and complex as well, meaning not only that technologies need to be evolved and enhanced, but also that the user needs to be more conscious than ever of exactly what they are doing on their systems. According to Dictionary.com Network security is “The protection of a computer network and its services from unauthorized modification, destruction, or disclosure”...
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...4Department of Information Technology Ministry of Communications and Information Technology Government of India Electronics Niketan, Lodhi Road New Delhi – 110003 Discussion draft on National Cyber Security Policy “For secure computing environment and adequate trust & confidence in electronic transactions ” Your comments/feedback on this document are most welcome. Please send your valuable comments/feedback by 15 May 2011 to Dr Gulshan Rai, Director General, CERT-In, at the at the above address or on email id ‘grai@mit.gov.in’ Discussion draft Department Of Information Technology National Cyber Security Policy “For secure computing environment and adequate trust & confidence in electronic transactions ” Contents 1.0 Security of Cyber Space – Strategic perspective 1.1 IT as an engine for economic growth and prosperity 1.2 Security of cyber space - Need for action 1.3 Target audience 1.4 Securing cyber space – Key policy considerations 2.0 Cyber space – Nature of threat 2.1 Threat landscape 2.2 International cooperation 2.3 Securing cyber space – Scope of action 2.3.1 Cyber security and cyber defense 2.3.2 Cyber intelligence and cyber defense 2.4 Priorities for action 2.5 Partnership and collaborative efforts 3.0 Enabling processes 3.1 Security threat and vulnerability management 3.2 Security threat early warning and response 3.3 Security best practices - compliance and assurance 3.4 Security crisis management plan for countering cyber attacks and cyber terrorism...
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...Implementing Network Security Your Name here ISSC361: Final American Military University Implementing Network Security Network design teams have several aspects that need to be considered when presented with the task of building a network for an organization. These things range from how many devices to put on the network, what kinds of devices, location of devices, and even how the cable will be connected to the devices. The one item that should always be at the forefront of every network design team, is how the network will be secured. This security should be very in depth and go into more than just technical aspects of security, it should also cover physical security of the network such as the building and sensitive rooms. Organizations are only as successful as the information they have, they will want all sensitive or proprietary information protected to the utmost. In order for most network teams to accomplish this, they themselves need to attempt to break into or hack the network in order to identify the weakest points and secure them properly. Essentially, you can build a great and fast network but if you can’t protect it then it will provide no usability to the client and this is why network security should be a priority at all times of the process. As stated above, the security implementations and considerations must be vast and include all aspects of the network. The first thing to take into consideration is the physical security of the area the network will be...
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...company invested in the network designed it to be fault tolerant and resilient from any other network failures. However, although the company’s financial status has matured and its network has expanded at a rapid pace, its network security has not kept up with company growth (NIST, 2012). GFI’s network is fairly stable as it has not experienced many outages due to network failures. Global Finance Inc. has hired three network engineers to keep up with the network growth and bandwidth demand by the company employees and the clients. However, this company has not hired any security personnel who can take care of the operational security responsibility. The trusted computing base internal network in the Global Finance Inc. hosts the company’s mission critical systems without which the company’s operation and financial situation would suffer. The Oracle database and email systems are among the most intensively used application servers in the company. Global Finance Inc. cannot afford system outages because its cash flow and financial systems heavily depend on the network stability. This company has experienced denial of service attacks (DOS) twice this year and its Oracle database and email servers has been down at one point for over a week. Concern at hand is the recovery process required Global Finance Inc. to use $25,000 to restore its operations back to normal. Global Finance Inc. estimated the loss from these network attacks at more than $100...
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...Bradford Network and Fortinet Solution Overview Most organizations realize that one solution can no longer provide adequate network protection. Organizations now need a “security village” composed of multiple best-of-breed technologies. The Fortinet and Bradford Networks partnership combines the SIEM, switch or firewall benefits of Fortinet, with the visibility, network access control and automated threat response of Network Sentry. By combining these technologies, organizations achieve superior threat detection for mobile, IoT and network devices. Network Sentry provides visibility and control of all wired and wireless infrastructures to extend the Fortinet Fabric to all equipment. By combining Fortinet solutions with Network Sentry, Fortinet provides security hardware and/or intelligence management, while...
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...Cyber Security by American Military University Professor Derrick Thomas June 22, 2014 Cyber security is a difficulty that everyone faces in today’s society. It is defined in a variety of ways by many. One definition is that cyber security focuses on protecting computer networks, systems, data, and programs from unwanted access. Cyber security is sometimes referred to as information security, information network security, cyberspace security, or even computer security. There are many viewpoints by highly educated people on cyber security but the purpose of this paper is to tell my viewpoint on the subject. Every aspect of a persons life has some sort of cyber dimension. People paying for bills online, cloud computing, and even online gaming. This year in 2014, everyone is bombarded with news headlines that say cyber threats are up. Many of these headlines always include some kind of phishing attack trying to steal someones identity, a hacker that breached the network of a company, a new technique that attacks mobile devices like smart phones, or a government trying to monitor and take secrets from another government!!br0ken!! The concern for cyber security is now a real-world concern globally. The concern over cyber security is what is driving the governments worldwide to make it priority one on their list's now. This is so, because technology is growing at a very fast and continuous pace. The technology field itself is very vast and has much variety. Cyber security in...
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...Security in the Smart Grid introduction Present and future battlefronts of electronic terrorism includes the state of readiness and resilience of the computer equipment protecting America's energy distribution networks and industrial control systems. According to a Pike research report [1] published March 1st of this year, it is projected that investments in smart grid cyber security will total $14 billion through 2018. First, what is a power grid? A power grid consists of several networks that carry electricity from the power plants where it is generated to consumers, and includes wires, substations, transformers, switches, software, and other hardware. The grid in the past used a centralized one-way communication distribution concept that consisted of limited automation, limited situational awareness, and did not provide the capability for consumers to manage their energy use. “Smart Grid” generally refers to a class of technology designed to upgrade the current utility grid infrastructure to improve the efficiency on the power network and in energy users’ homes and businesses. Much of the legacy power plant infrastructure is now over 30 years old with electrical transmission and distribution system components (i.e. power transformers) averaging over 40 years old and 70% of transmission lines being 25 years or older [2]. In December 2007, Title XIII of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 became an official...
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...Case Study 1: Advanced Persistent Threats Keyth Lee Strayer University Online CIS 502 Dr. Emmanuel Nyeanchi January 22, 2014 Abstract This paper analyzes the 2011 APT Summit findings and the 2012 RSA Security Brief. It summarizes the findings of both of the aforementioned documents, examines several popular cyber attack methodologies, and describes various ways to respond to these attacks. It is interesting that both documents allude to the fact that persistence on the part of humans to “wreak havoc” is the root of most security threats. Additionally, both documents unambiguously assert that the most effective way to combat unwanted activity on networks is to share any data regarding network attacks and/or attempts to hack a system. Apparently, organizations are averse to such collaboration for fear of divulging unrelated, sensitive information or because of legal concerns. Not to mention that organizations are generally unenthusiastic about publicizing a network breech. Advanced Persistent Threats If you have ever had a pest infestation in the attic of your home, you will find the concept of “advanced persistent threats” easy to understand. Can you remember how the whole thing started with an intermittent “scratching” noise? Well, that was a persistent pest trying to gain access to your attic. Can you remember how the “scratching noise” gradually morphed into multiple “scratching noises”? Well, that was probably the pest inviting all of his friends after having...
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...wireless local area network (WLAN) many users find it very flexible to move laptops from one place to another within the office while maintaining connectivity with the network, sharing data and applications with network system and other users with compatible devices without been tied to printer cables and other peripheral device connection. This is very important in a doctor’s office because patients and doctors move from room to room depends on the type of test they are doing. Having mobile device makes it easier for them to do their jobs easier and it can even help cut wiring costs (Patricia & Donna, 2008). In the other hand there are many risks inherent in using wireless and mobile technologies. Wireless networks face the same threats as conventional wired network because intruders who gain access to information systems via wireless communication can bypass firewall protection and expose patient’s information and data. Besides lunching denial of service attacks, insert viruses or malicious code, disable operations, most importantly they can violate the privacy of patients and even steal their identities. Risk of using wireless or mobile technology makes it easier to come up with a plan is place to try preventing further actions. This open connectivity brings with it risks, however, some of which are similar to those in wired networks, while others are unique and increased on wireless networks. Poor security standards, coupled with immature technologies, flawed implementations...
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...Abstract Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has become the backbone of many organizations. Particularly, the internet has become an important aspect through which education institutions use to carry out research, communicate and innovate. Even through this evolution has brought many benefits but also it has also brought serious threats such as cyber-attacks that has been demonstrated over the past few years through acts of cyber espionage and cyber-crime through the virtual space. In this context, the University of Dar es Salaam needs to develop policies towards cyber threats even through this has often be clustered and fragmented. Using theoretical and conceptual models this paper provides an informed understanding and critical assessment of the University of Dar es Salaam cyber security policy through addressing the following research questions: What are the IT risk management policy and systems that can be developed for the University of Dar es salaam? The primary data is collected through surveys, and interviews that are open ended and close ended. The results of the paper demonstrated that colleges and universities have been a target for cyber-attacks due to the fact that of the vast amount of computing power they possess, and they provide open access to their constituents and to the public. The research also showed that University of Dar es Salaam doesn’t have a comprehensive IT security risk management policy or guidelines that will guide the business process...
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...Recently the Chief Information Officer of our company Celtic Gamers Frontier Inc. (CGF) has read of an increase in the threat space regarding the electronic game industry and he is concerned with regards to our Companies overall architecture, and the risks to our Research and Development efforts and other Intellectual Property. He has tasked the company’s corporate information technology group to produce an information paper detailing the types of cyber threats and malware are being reported on the internet. They would also like the security group to give the company’s executive leadership a detailed report regarding the threats, vulnerabilities and the overall risks that may be present in our current corporate infrastructure. The security department for the organization is relatively small and short on resources so this task has been given to me to do the research and create an executive report detailing the current vulnerabilities, risks and threats and potential impact to our network should we have any security incidents. “Unfortunately, there are inherent risks to computer usage — hackers, viruses, worms, spyware, malware, unethical use of stolen passwords and credentials, unauthorized data removal by employees with USB flash drives, or servers crashing and bringing productivity to a halt” ("Cybersecurity," 2013) . The CGF network is a typical office network composed of an external firewall with an external DMZ with public use servers, and internal firewall protecting...
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