Network Security
1. What is network security?
Network security has changed significantly over the past years. There is more and more data to monitor and analyze in order to detect the activity of your data and systems. Securing a network has many variables. Password authentication, network access, patches, anti-virus protection, intrusion detection, firewall and network monitoring tools are just a few of the things you can do to protect yourself.
Threats to your network is becoming more complex and it is requiring lots of money, time and sacrifices to keep up with the growing amount of potential attacks. Companies cannot protect themselves with just a firewall anymore. Now it's requiring a full security department that monitors the network activity 24/7. It also limits the activity that companies can do because of the added security to the network, prevent invasions or viruses or hackers.
Why do we need network security?
Network security can be used under many different scenarios. For example, it can be used to keep company servers protected from the different departments. When putting access level restrictions on each department like HR and Engineering, you can control what they can and can't have access to. You wouldn't want someone from Engineering to see everyone's personal information. In another example, network security is used to protect the money you have at your bank. More and more things are being tracked on computers, it's essential to understand how to protect it from getting into the wrong hands.
Who are we protecting ourselves from?
It's an unfortunate thing to think about but we are protecting ourselves from ourselves. Although it seems like this is all new, we have always protecte...
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...nd more data is being saved onto it. Technology has made information accessible, but it has also increased its vulnerability. Without appropriate security measures, information is susceptible to attack and severe misuse.
5. Glossary of terms
Node - a network connection point, typically a computer
Sniffer - program to capture data across a computer network
6. References
Jaques, R. (2004). vnunet.com. retrieved Nov. 20, 2004, from Strong network security sales driven by fear Web site: http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159503
Culp, S. (2000). retrieved Nov. 20, 2004, Microsoft, 10 Immutable Laws of Security Administration Web site: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/archive/community/columns/security/essays/10salaws.mspx.
Hacker. (2004). Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online, Merriam-Webster,
.http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=Hacker
and their use. In Committee on Deterring Cyber attacks: Informing Strategies and Developing Options (Ed.), Proceedings of a Workshop on Deterring Cyber attacks: Informing Strategies and Developing Options for U.S. Policy. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press.
Overall the companies should care about the new standards because the business depends on the reliability of the infrastructure, and cyber intrusions have accrued repeatedly, so securing the connectivity between business systems and industrial control system within the companies networks should be a priority. Also, with a minor mistake injuries and death of civilians and damage to the environment could happen by releasing of hazardous chemicals and leading to a disasters.
Security helps the organization meet its business objectives or mission by protecting its physical and financial resources, reputation, legal position, employees, and other tangible and intangible assets through the selection and application of appropriate safeguards. Businesses should establish roles and responsibilities of all personnel and staff members. However, a Chief Information Officer should be appointed to direct an organization’s day to day management of information assets. Supporting roles are performed by the service providers and include systems operations, whose personnel design and operate the computer systems. Each team member must be held accountable in ensuring all of the rules and policies are being followed, as well as, understanding their roles, responsibilities and functions. Organizations information processing systems are vulnerable to many threats that can inflict various types of damage that can result in significant losses (Harris, 2014). Losses can come from actions from trusted employees that defraud the system, outside hackers, or from careless data entry. The major threat to information protection is error and omissions that data entry personnel, users, system operators and programmers make. To better protect business information resources, organizations should conduct a risk analysis to see what
A public utility company employed SecureState to repair their internal and external network security. Consequently, SecureState was able to access the network due to a variety of exploits. Many threats would not be present if systems were updated with the latest operating software and patches and were properly configured. This engagement revealed several critical problems within the client’s system, allowing SecureState to gain access to more resources than intended. The improperly segmented networks combined with easily exploitable vulnerabilities can allow attackers to gain access to entire networks potentially causing untold levels of damage.
Network Security is the protection of the computer’s network though out the entire infrastructure. It can protect very important information and computer files to help prevent theft, spyware, malware, viruses, and more. Depending on if you have a public or private network, can determine what type of security settings you need for your network. All people are different on what they want to have secured or not, but most people do not know how to prevent people or things from getting in their network. “You must have a general understanding of security terminology and specifications as it relates to configuring hardware and software systems.”(Roberts, Richard M. 599). That quote states that by knowing and understanding security terms and specifics, you can
Whitman, M., & Mattord, H. (2010). Management of information security. (3rd ed., p. 6). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
One important reason that advancements in technology are bad is Personal identifying information can be found by anyone who has a computer. People’s personal information, like address and medical history can be found, because almost everything is online. ID theft is a growing problem in the United States. “The scope of ID theft has grown so quickly that it now takes up a substantial and growing portion of law enforcement resources.” This means that ID theft is becoming a big problem. Once your ID is stolen it can be very difficult to get back what you lost.“Though the costs of getting your money back have declined, victims aren't getting back all of what was taken”. This means that when people’s things get stolen over the internet, they may not get everything back that was taken.Technology is so advances people’s personal information can be accessed by anyone with a laptop, and that is something that needs to be changed.
It has been demonstrated that a number of interoperable systems must be implemented to fully protect a network; a strategy known as Defense in Depth. Due to the multitude of security devices and device categories available, it can be very difficult to identify the correct tools for meeting security goals. Using the Defense in Depth strategy will require an understanding of the interactions between devices occuring within the network.
As technology as advanced, so has our society. We are able to accomplish many tasks much easier, faster, and in effective ways. However, if looked at the harmful impact it has had on the society, one can realize that these are severe and really negative. One of the main concerns is privacy rights. Many people want that their information and personal data be kept in secrecy, however with today’s technology, privacy is almost impossible. No matter how hard one tries, information being leaked through technological advancements have become more and more common. With personal information being leaked, one does not know exactly how the information will be used, which validates the statement that privacy rights have been diminishing and should be brought to concern. Many people do not realize that their information is being used by third-parties and to consumer companies. In conclusion, technology has had a significant effect on privacy
To combat those threats and ensure that e-business transactions are not compromised, security technology must play a major role in today's networks. Why Networks Must Be Secured? Attacks: -. Without proper protection, any part of any network can be susceptible to attacks or unauthorized activity. Routers, switches, and hosts can all be violated by professional hackers, company competitors.
...vantage of the overall network design and implement usable subnets with virtual local area networks. Use encryption and encapsulation to secure communications of public segments to enable extranets and cross-Internet company traffic. Use items such as intrusion detection systems and firewalls to keep unauthorized users out and monitor activity. Taken together, these pieces can make a secure network that is efficient, manageable, and effective.
Corporate Networks in organisations can be complex structures that “requires a great deal of attention” (Clemm 2007). Even small companies can have quite complex networks that are a considerable investment to the business. The notion that corporate network management is a cost to a business rather than a continual beneficial investment is a naive assumption that requires further investigation to the benefits that network management brings. Clemm (Clemm 2007) states in his text that the ultimate goal of network management “is to reduce and minimize total cost of ownership”, improving operational efficiency and lowering cost. Clemm (Clemm 2007) also notes that “Network Management is not just related to cost and quality”, which will be an continual concept presented throughout the report. The report will address key issues with corporate network management and ultimately argue and justify that corporate network management must be seen as a positive benefit to the business and not as a continual expense. The supporting articles will also provide sound evidence that networking is crucial to a business’s processes and production which can be seen from the OpenSSL Heartbleed Security vulnerability fiasco (Nieva 2014) or the QANTAS Amadeus system failure (Heasley 2012).
Network management planning and security planning involves identifying the best and most appropriate systems and hardware that the firm can use to better manage network and plan security systems. Therefore, the management required me to examine the best software and hardware systems in the market place that the company can adopt to enable it to manage the network and security. The management required me to advice on the implementation procedure of various plans that are going to be adopted. My responsibility also involved finding out or predicting the impact of the plan on the future operations. They required me to evaluate the challenges the company might face while adopting the changes in the network management plan and security plans.
A critical part of network planning involves setting up of security mechanisms. Deploying the network with security configuration provides superior visibility, continuous control and advanced threat protection across the extended network. Additionally, security procedures define policies to monitor the network for securing critical data, obtain visibility, mitigate threats, identify and correlate discrepancies.