The Internet Positive and Negative:

Technological Age
In our technological age the majority of us use the internet on a daily basis in our homes, the workplace, and even our mobile devices as we travel locally and internationally. Obviously our access to the World Wide Web makes our lives easier, since information is quickly accessed by our fingertips, but this luxury is also afforded to criminals who also gain easy access to information for illegal uses. To get a more clear understanding of the positives and negatives of the internet, we must first understood how we communicate through it, and its major building blocks and functions. Once we have reached a proper understanding on those basics, we can expand into the vulnerabilities of software application, giving us a real insight and understanding into how criminals can conduct their illegal activities.
Internet Communication
Communication via the internet today of course is common place and is truly the main means of how we converse. The World Wide Web for the most part has replaces the telephone and fax with the convenience of the email. The game of phone tag has been eliminated along with staying at your home, while your wait for an important call. This technological emergence has allowed the consuming a means of buying and selling goods in practically every sector of the marketplace. Banks and other financial institutions now use its convenience with online statements, and means to conduct electronic transactions as you move and click your mouse. The major building blocks that cause the internet to function, thus carrying out our online communications are networking technology, the interconnecting of computers, communication protocols, transmission control protocol or internet protocol, the addressing system, the service that offers domain names, and the client-server paradigm, your internet application.1
1.KNU. “Internet Building blocks” Internet Technology.
Networking technology, the interconnecting of computers, is the foundation for the World Wide Web computer systems have a recursive type of structure that stores and processes elements that are connected to one another to build larger elements.
Architecture
The architecture consist of: units that are functional connecting themselves to registers and on-chip cache, numerous processors and caches linked to main memories, computing nodes linked by the passing of messages via a LAN, LAN’s bridged together to form larger extended LANs, and networks that are connected in a WAN.2 Communication protocols, such as the TCP’s and IP’s are the heart of the internet protocols. Their two primary functions consist of providing the best delivery of connectionless data through and internetwork that supports data links with different transmission zizes.3 The Addressing system, the service that offers domain names to the user, is needed in order for a computer to the user, is needed in order for a computer to establish and identity. Without an identifier the machine cannot connect to the internet. This addressing system consist of a series of servers containing addresses that are need to obtain an IP address, thus accessing information to that particular host.4 The last building block is the client server paradigm, which is a program that send messages to a server asking for the information from the host system that you are looking for. This connection is accomplished through a communication protocol TCP/IP.5
2. Butler Thompson.”Interconnecting Computers: Architecture, Technology, and Economics 1994.
3. CISCO”Internet Protocols”
4. MIT Information Systems and Technology”IP Addresses, Host Names, and Domain Names”.
5.Purdue.edu”Client Server Paradigm”.
Cyber Criminals
Now that we have thoroughly established how one communicates via the internet and the architecture of tis major building blocks and functions, we can now peer into the negative aspects of World Wide Web that makes this technology although wonderful and convenient it simeltanusely leaves us susceptible to criminal acts. These criminal acts can be referred to us (CNE) Computer Network Exploitation. This definition refers to exploitation of information gathered on your target for personal purposes.6 One fascinating criminal Max Ray Butler, also known as the Iceman is a great example of an individual who exploits susceptibilities in computer networks for his own personal gains. Iceman who began a career as a security researcher was sentenced in 2010 for a total of 13 years the longest prison stay handed down over computer hacking. In addition upon payroll he will be supervised for 5 years and force to pay his victims restitution in close to 30 million dollars. In the beginning as a security researcher, he was a regular consultant for the FBI. As he turned to a life of cybercrime he began to use his talents to hack into carder forum websites for credit card numbers are bought and sold and forced the members to be routed to his personal site cardersmarket.com making money by having fake credit and debit card numbers made to steal goods, services, and currency. The Iceman was also well known for his writing of malicious code that allowed him to explain computer network by opening up a backdoor giving him inside access.7
6. Andress, Jason, and Steve Winterfeld. Cyber Warfare: Techniques, Tactics and Tools for Security Practitioners. Second ed. Syngress, 2011. Ch.8 page 1.
7. Robert McMillan.”Criminal Hacker Iceman gets 13 years”Computerworld.2010.

Software Vulnerabilities The way this criminal interred through software application vulnerabilities through web browsers is what must be focused on order to combat such activities. Vulnerability in software is also simply known as a bug or defects allowing the third party their unauthorized access. Malicious programs that are written use vulnerabilities through web browsers are what must be focused on in order to combat such activities. Vulnerability in software is also simply known as a bug or detects allowing the third party their unauthorized access. Malicious programs that are written use vulnerabilities within a computer’s operating system and cause internal damage. Although this is an extreme negative factor in working with an online environment there are countermeasures that one can see in order to fight off this criminal activity. Virus scan software can be purchased for systems to find such activities occurring and need little maintenance other that occasional updates and full scans activated at least once a week. Other make sure keep security patches for software updated . Insure you are out on the mailing list for all updates that the company puts out, and if possible sign up for automatic updates. Only allowing approved software to be installed on your systems could also prove to be a big help . Although I may involve keeping the user from installing programs on their own, the benefits from such a practiced far outweigh the inconvenience. Limiting the user’s amount of service to the servers could also prove effective in security measures. One last good countermeasure is running vulnerability scanners inside and outside the network this practice will help in finding vulnerabilities and help in discovering what need is to be patched.
Countering Attacks
The countermeasures are very important in securing your computer networks, but unfortunately cyber criminals are always pursuing new avenues and find new ways to exploit software vulnerabilities. More and more efforts are being made to target computers to get ahold of source code and property of an intellectual nature. These strategies are going beyond petty theft of one's finances. These are targeted malware and phishing endeavors committed on specific individual, not just netted activity casted out to whoever may bite out there in cyber land. Information and account access to Facebook, Twitter, and other similar social media websites are one the prime collections that these criminals want to get their hands on. Once they have control of such account why can pretend they are the user and reach out to friends and coworkers in an attempt to gain personal and corporate information. Obviously all of us should be on guard concerning cyber criminality, but the main victims are the banks, credit unions, government entities, and large commercial type organizations. What a lot of people fail to recognize is that a lot of these hackers are phishing a lot of webbrowsers that do not contain information of a monetary value in order to gain passwords and other PII that can be used to access sites of monetary value. Once the criminal has a password damage can be enormous since the average person uses the same password for numerous sites. If the individual has a hold of intelligence that can be gathered is unfathomable.
Law Enforcement Difficulties
Since cyber criminals are constantly exploiting new avenues for personal gain it has been extremely difficult for law enforcement agencies to keep up. When some of these crimes are committed there becomes conflicts of coordination between agencies on a global scale. In a lot of countries there still does not exist any sort of legislation that deals with these activities, and even if policies are created the criminal can quickly move to a new geographical location. High-tech tools are used for their crimes and purchasing them or renting services to help them in their endeavor is increasingly becoming and easy practice, and high end cyber criminals are staying up to date consistently alongside the software company’s elites. They are also seeking to recruit software engineering students in their activities. These criminal organizations now possess the sort of talent that allows them to discreetly get their hands on data without leaving behind any sort of trace that users can recognize. This dilemma that plagues us all though is not going on unrecognized. The issue is of such importance that the Homeland Security Presidential 7 Directive was enacted to require that the (DHS) Department of Homeland Security put together a plan to protect the infrastructures of our nation. Once this directive was implemented two different reports came on the “ Interim National Infrastructure Plan” and “The National Plan for Research and Development in Support of Critical Infrastructure Protection” The government came to terms with what was taking place in our technological age. Action of course must take place to protect our nation and the government who puts in place its defense mchanisms.8
Conclusion
In conclusion in our highly technological society we all benefit from the internet, but with its benefits we also deal with attacks from cyber criminals. We now know how communications take place on the internet, and their major building blocks and functions, and understand software application vulnerabilities that we have to combat in order to secure our computer networks. These vulnerabilities that we have to combat these criminals and keep our networks as safe as possible. The internet of course I a wonderful resource and despite its some of the dangers that exist with its usage it well worth their risk. As a society we must come together more in educating one another on the security methods, and help push new legislations that help in the prosecution of individuals using the World Wide Web for their criminal acts.
8. Clay Wise.”Botnets,Cybercrime, and Cyberterrorism;”Vulnerabilites and Policy Issues for Congress”CRS Report for Congress.2008.
Bibliography
Andress, Jason, and Steve Winterfeld. Cyber Warfare: Techniques, Tactics and Tools for Security Practitioners. Second ed. Syngress, 2011. Ch.8 page 1.
CISCO”Internet Protocols” http://docwiki.cisco.com/wiki/Internet_Protocols
Congress”CRS Report for Congress.2008.
KNU. “Internet Building blocks” Internet Technology.
McMillan,Robert”Criminal Hacker Iceman gets 13 years”Computerworld.2010. http://www.computerworld.com/article/2520891/security0/criminal-hacker--iceman--gets-13-years.html
MIT Information Systems and Technology”IP Addresses, Host Names, and Domain https://ist.mit.edu/network/ip Names”.Purdue.edu”Client Server Paradigm”.
Thompson,Butler.”Interconnecting Computers: Architecture, Technology, and Economics 1994.
Wise, Clay ”Botnets, Cybercrime, and Cyber terrorism; “vulnerabilities and Policy Issues”.