Cyber Security
It seems like everyone in today’s society has access to a computer, a cell phone, or some other type of technology that allows information to be passed from one person to another through space. With your private information out there in cyberspace, clever thieves are finding ways to access your personal informational and to steal from you without you even knowing about it until it is too late. The thieves are taking your personal data and using it to gain access to your accounts. In fact, there are many different ways thieves are threatening your safety in cyberspace. Each of these threats is serious in nature and one should act upon it immediately before more damage is done.
One type of threat people have to deal with is the annoying malevolent code, better known to most of us as malware and spyware. This type of threat goes through the security system of the individual when that person accesses a website or opens an email that is infected. Malware and spyware are capable of finding ways to get into your computer by loopholes and cement themselves in your system which allows them to copy personal information and worm their way into other computers by emails that you send. These threats can be quite sneaky as they say they will do one thing but instead do a totally opposite thing and in return infects the computer without your knowledge. Malevolent codes can also classified as viruses and worms which are just as capable of producing more harm to you and your computer.
Not only do people need to be aware of malevolent codes but of hackers that attack your computer when you are not looking. Hackers are people that know how to get your personal information from your computer and use it to benefit them. Some ha...
... middle of paper ...
...he Department of Homeland Security is not trying to invade privacy but trying to protect the government’s network from malicious threats and use that information to address the issue.
DHS (Department of Homeland Security) is not the enemy but should be looked at as the big brother trying to protect his little sister or brother. DHS is doing this by working together with companies such as financial institutions, utility companies, and many other companies. They are sending out alerts that let the public know of known malevolent codes, spyware, worms, and Trojan horses. DHS just doesn’t stop there; they are investing criminals and making arrest of people who are infecting cyberspace and privacy. Big brother, DHS, would not be doing a complete job if they did not inform the public how they can protect themselves when they are online from fraud and identity theft.
In reality, most hackers are ordinary people with a great deal of curiosity, above-average skills with a computer, a good understanding of human nature, and plenty of time to kill. Hackers have no distinguishing characteristics. Your next-door neighbor could be a hacker, as could your niece or nephew, one of your co-workers, or even the kid who serves you coffee in the morning. Not all hackers are dangerous and out to destroy business or damage lives. The view of the general public toward hackers is mixed. A recent CNN-poll shows 33% of respondents labeling hackers as "useful," 17% seeing them "as a menace," and the majority (45%) seeing hackers as "both" useful and a menace (CNN, 1999).
The DHS has demonstrated great leadership but lacked the necessity to create effective affiliations in communicating and utilizing information, which like seen in 9/11 dramatically affected the outcome and security of the country. “The Department of Homeland Security, has poorly positioned themselves to receive intelligence from the intelligence community agencies because it does not do intelligence collection on its own and hence will have nothing to trade” (DHS, 2016). Since then, DOJ. FBI, DNI, CIA, and other federal agencies like the DHS have increased their channels of intelligence and their means of communication with one another. This has led to an increase of arrests made towards Americans on terrorism related
This sharing made communication better between the agencies and may have been the cause of finding and destroying numerous terroristic acts. After the Department of Homeland security was created, stiffer punishments were created in order to deter those who work for the government from informing anyone other than government employees of privy information. The creation of the department allowed for the department to have meetings that did not have to go on record. The act also states that those with information in relation to the safety of the United States keep that information confidential until it can be revealed. The homeland security bill allocated the right of the United States government to obtain arms to offset bio terror attacks on the country. An example of acquiring weapons or a means to neutralize bio threats was when the U.S. got a hold of a large amount of the measles vaccine. Overall, the Department of Homeland Security seems to create more positive than negative attributes to America’s safety and
Homeland security entities are proactive in the fight against terrorism on American soil. Their mandate is to collect information relating to potential attacks and analyze it to find a solution to the danger. With this in mind, these entities employ numerous spying techniques to collect intelligence for safeguarding of the nation. Homeland security entities have spies in almost all the countries in the world, especially those that show aggression towards America. The main aim of these spies is to carry out espionage to determine threat levels and find ways of neutralizing threats (Randol, 2009). This involves deployment of secret agents to areas or countries that exhibit terrorism activity in a bid to collect information. The spies interact with local people and members of terrorist groups using aliases that enable them conceal their identities.
Over the course of the history of the United States of America, the country has had struggles with its own borders and the protection of those borders. Illegal immigration is a big problem and the smuggling of drugs, weapons, and cash over our borders into our country has evolved into a bigger problem. The United States has over seven-thousand miles of border to cover each day. That is quite a bit of land, but the only problem with this is there is a lack of manpower to cover every single mile of border. The US shares its borders with Canada and Mexico. All along these borders are small communities and cities that are occupied by US citizens. This means that these cities and communities require the protection of our Homeland Security Agency.
While many people don’t realize it, there is always a risk when you use the internet. You must be able to know how to defend yourself against these attacks, or you risk losing it all. References Denholm, Martin. The. The Number One Threat to America's National Security."
The ability to conduct warfare through technological methods has increased information security awareness and the need to protect an entities infrastructure. Subsequently, cyber warfare produces increased risk to security practitioners that employ technology and other methods to mitigate risks to information and the various systems that hold or transmit data. A significant risk to information lies in the conduct of electronic commerce, hereinafter called e-commerce. E-commerce is the purchasing or selling of goods and/or services through the internet or other electronic means (Liu, Chen, Huang, & Yang, 2013). In this article, the researcher will discuss cyber warfare risks, present an evaluation on established security measures, identify potential victims of identity theft, and present an examina...
In today’s society technology is used for everything. With the invention of computers and the internet this open doors to the cyber world. Today you can do almost anything without having to leave your home. The internet gives us the opportunity of shopping online, ordering food online, working from home and video chatting with friends and family across the world. Everyone has a computer and internet access in their homes. While the internet is really convenient it also opens doors for cybercrimes, loss of privacy and the need for computer security.
In today's society, many aspects of crime committed on a regular basis. Civilians take advantage of people all the time using online resources such as a fraudulent website requiring credit card information to get a free monthly trial. Other examples of cyber crimes are online chatting website, full of predators or websites needing a downloadable program that contains a hacking virus. Sadly, there are many cases of cyber crime all over the internet. The acts of cyber crimes are considered violent acts like any other. Every day citizens are constantly losing money and being victimized due to these fraudulent activities. Cyber crime, including fraud, identity theft, stalking, and hacking, is a growing problem which can be prevented by taking the proper precautions.
Malicious code is a real danger to modern systems. Most systems nowadays do not work in isolation; they are more likely to be connected to other systems and sometimes they can even be dependent on them. Therefore an attack on one of the systems in the network is a potential attacking attempt to any other systems, with which it is interacting. Therefore, it is inevitable for any networked or Internet-connected computers to deal with malicious code attacks at some point. Businesses lose billions of dollars each year because of malicious code attacks. Responding to the attack and restoring all the data on the computers is a time-consuming and expensive task. It is a much better practice to try preventing it through organizing and maintaining effective defenses. However, it is important to keep in mind that there is no one general solution that can help to prevent all the attacks. Attackers are constantly looking for new ways to take advantage of systems’ vulnerabilities and find new ones. That’s why organizations have to not only defend themselves against existing attack methods, but also try to predict and prevent new attacking techniques. It means that computer and network security is a never-ending challenge and expense.
The Internet is a connection of computers across the world through a network. Its origin dates back to the 1960s when the U.S Military used it for research, but it became more available to the public from the late 1980s. The World Wide Web was created in 1989 and browsers began appearing in the early 1990s. Over the last 24 years, the Internet has enabled people to shop, play, do research, communicate and conduct business online. It has also become cheaper and faster in performing different tasks. As much as the Internet has done immeasurable good to society, it has also dominated people’s lives and brought with it an array of cybercrimes. According to Nicholas Carr in his book The Shallows: How the Internet is Changing the Way we Think, Read and Remember (Carr, 2010). He debates on whether the Internet has done more harm than good. People use the Internet daily to exchange accurate information and constantly personal data such as credit cards, passwords and Social Security numbers are travelling through the network from one computer to another. With security measures put in place on the Internet, personal information remains confidential. But unfortunately, criminals have adapted to innovations in technology, and today, more people are increasingly becoming victims of cybercrime. The Internet has had profound effects on the public, both positive and negative. In this paper we will examine how access to personal information has led to an increase in online and offline crimes. The essay will particularly focus on ecommerce and hacking.
...ntial information from a user. Luckily, there are reliable ways of defending against them. The most reliable way is to install strong security software that has the capacity to defend against the multifaceted forms of threats. Avoiding P2P file sharing sites and scanning email attachments before downloading them are also a surefire way of protecting a computer against malware threats. Basic acts like using an updated browser and allowing Windows updates to install and update themselves are also necessary to keep a machine safe. Furthermore, checking validity of individual website addresses and installing authenticated software can also help a computer user remain safe from potential data theft and possible damage of useful programs. It may also pay good dividends to backup files. In case of a lethal malware attack, backed-up files can always be recovered easily.
With each of these purposes come responsibilities for the Department of Homeland Security. First, DHS is responsible for overseeing the protection of the government domain. Second, DHS use intrusion detection tools to monitor government network traffic for malicious activity and uses this resulting data to address cyber vulnerabilities. Third, DHS ensure the security and resiliency of government networks.
Millions of people around the world use computers and the internet every day. We all use it in school, work even at home, computers have made us life easier, it has brought so many benefits to the society but it has also brought some problems and cybercrimes is one of them. “The times have really changed,” said Greg Garcia, the department’s assistant secretary for cyber security and communications. “We’re seeing now phishing, farming, botnets … war dialing and domain server spoofing. And we’re seeing coordinated cyber-attacks against nation states.” (Fowler 5) Cybercrime is one of the most prevalent and most popular rising crimes being committed today. This is criminal activity done using computers and the Internet. There are millions victims around the world everyday who face these problems. Most people become victims of these at one time or another, but there are ways to avoid or deal with cybercrime by protecting yourself appropriately. I also was one of those victims who faced a similar problem. This unfortunate truth forces me to understand that computers and the Internet have made our lives easier in many ways. However, it is unfortunate that people also use these technologies to take advantage of others through identity theft, hacking attempts, and malicious use of software.
There are different groups, from law enforcement agencies to the U.S. Secret Service, that are attempting to combat the problem through cooperation and preemptive efforts. If these groups combined with the public to protect themselves and the country from criminals that commit cybercrime, the nation’s network and technology servers would be much safer for technology users. Clearly, cybercrime is a problem because it puts internet users at risk of being taken advantage of or harmed. The advantages of technology and the internet have led more criminals to use cyberspace to commit crimes. The threat of cybercrime is increasing as globalization continues to spread across the world.