Security and Ethical Issues Affecting Information Systems
Because information systems became increasingly important business assets, they also became harder and more expensive to replace. Having damage to information systems or theft of data can have negative consequences. Two of the major security threats are cybercrime and so-called malware.
Cybercrime
Computers provide efficient ways for people and employees to share information. But they could also allow people who have malicious intentions on using it, and some who could just have motives to see if they can actually do it. Some common cybercrimes involve stealing or altering data in several ways.
Employees or outsiders may change or invent data to produce inaccurate or misleading information.
Employees or outsiders
…show more content…
An ASP relationship is successful, the buyer can then devote more time and resources to its core business instead of struggling to manage its information systems. Other benefits include stretching the firm 's technology dollar farther and facing smaller companies more competitive information power. Even large companies turn to ASP 's to manage some or all of their information systems. Microsoft outsourced much of its internal information technology services to Infosys Technology to save money and streamline, simplify, and support its services. Companies that decide to use ASP 's should check the backgrounds and references of these firms before hitting them to manage critical systems. Customers should try to ensure that the service provider has strong security measures to block computer hackers or other unauthorized access to the data,that its data centers are running reliably, and that adequate data and applications backups are
Our generation is the first to travel within cyberspace, a virtual world that exists with all the computers that form the global network. For most people today, cyberspace is still a bewildering and alien place. How computers work and how they affect our lives is still a mystery to all but the experts, but expertise doesn't necessarily guarantee morality. Originally the word hacker meant computer enthusiasts but now that the internet has revealed its potential for destruction and profit the hacker has become the outlaw of cyberspace. Not only do hackers commit crimes that cost millions of dollars, they also publicize their illegal techniques on the net where innocent minds can find them and be seduced by the allure of power and money.
There are different types of computer crimes that many people become victims of every day. Computer crime is any crime that involves a computer and a network. The computer may have been used in the commission of a crime, or it may be the target ("Computer Crime: Chapter 2: What Are the Crimes? ", n.d.) - " Crimes such as data diddling, pump and dump, social engineering and spoofing are computer crimes. Even though these crimes are difficult due to privacy issues, the new technology has made investigations and prosecutions well organized and effective.
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
In todays fast pace world of technology many of us leave ourselves vulnerable to become victims of a cybercrime. With people using the internet to do everything from paying bills, personal banking, and on-line shopping their financial and personal information is available at the stroke of a key to a hacker. Often someone is unaware that they have been attacked and had their information stolen. The use of the internet has grown exorbitantly throughout the world. Nelson Online reported that as of December 31, 2014, there were 360,985,492 users of the internet throughout the world. (2015) With so many users in so many countries accessing the internet, prosecuting cybercrimes is nearly impossible.
Millions of people all around the world are using Smartphones, like iPhones, which turns out to be crucial part of our lives. We are using them not only for calling but we also store unbelievably huge amount of personal information. We have there all our contacts, calls and messages and all our pictures that we save and keep in the phones. A
Computers; they are a part of or in millions of homes; they are an intricate part of just about every if not all successful businesses, the government, and the military. Computers have become common place in today’s society and the lives of the people who live in it. They have crossed every national, racial, cultural, educational, and financial barrier, which consequently ushered in the information age. A computer is a programmable electronic device that can store, retrieve and process data, and they come in all shapes, and sizes. They can be used for and in just about anything. As stated before, they are used in just about every aspect of modern society. They are so fundamental to modern society that it would be disastrous to society without them. As stated before, there are many areas in modern society that are run by computers. They play an intricate part of millions of homes in the world. Office workers in business, government and the military may use them to write letters, keep rosters, create budgets, find information, manage projects, communicate with workers, and so on. They are used in education, medicine, music, law enforcement, and unfortunately crime. Because computers have become such a part of the world and how it operates, there is a tremendous responsibility for those who are in control of these computers and the vital information that they carry, to manage and protect them properly. This is management and protection is vital because any loss or damage could be disastrous for the affected entity. For example, a mistake or intentional alteration of a personal credit file could affect ones ability to buy a car or home, or can lead to legal actions against the affected person until the mistake or intentional alteration has been corrected. Therefore, with the advent of computers in the information age, and all of the intentional and unintentional violations against them, comes the need to safeguard them and the information they carry with strong systems and policies of computer security.
Computer crime is defined as, “Criminal activity directly related to the use of computers, specifically illegal trespass into the computer system or database of another, manipulation or theft of stored or on-line data, or sabotage of equipment and data.”(1). This includes both crimes using computers and crimes against computers.
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.
When the internet was considered a global information system in 1995 millions of Americans participated in virtual communication. People began to communicate with each other and personal information began to be placed online by the stroke of the fingertips to their own computer. So the question is the privacy of individuals trusted online? Can people snoop around and see personal information? Of course people can if guidelines are not set in place to protect them. Public and private information can be complex when some individual(s) do not expect their communication to be read outside of their online community. What will be discussed are some ethical responsibilities that need to take place in the United States. Respecting the individual privacy and honor confidentiality is a must in this country.
Just as traditional criminal activities, cybercrime can take many forms and occur virtually anytime and anywhere. Criminals committing cybercrime use very different methods, depending on their abilities and goals. This should not surprise anyone after all cybercrime is merely an activity "criminal" to the ingredient that adds a computer or an electronic network for its commission.
In the early years of computers and computerized technology, computer engineers had to believe that their contribution to the development of computer technology would produce positive impacts on the people that would use it. During the infancy of computer technology, ethical issues concerning computer technology were almost nonexistent because computers back then were not as multifaceted as they are today. However, ethical issues relating to computer technology and cyber technology is undeniable in today’s society. Computer technology plays a crucial role in all aspects of our daily lives. Different forms of computer technology provide unique functionalities that allow people to perform daily activities effectively and efficiently. In modern society, we use computer and cyber technology to communicate with friends and family via social networking sites, participate in business transactions, and get current news. Different tasks require unique technological feature in computer technology to function properly. Although, unique technological features increase people’s proficiency in accomplishing various tasks, unique technological features in computer and cyber technology increase security vulnerabilities. In many cases, the security vulnerabilities in computer technology are exploited by cybercriminals to invade people’s privacy, and steal people’s identity. We know that computers have no moral compass; they cannot make moral decisions for themselves. Essentially, people make moral decisions that affect others positively or negatively depending on how they use computer technology. Some of the biggest ethical issues facing people in the computing environment include privacy concerns on the web and identity theft. Privacy concerns...
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.
Cybercrime refers to all forms of crime conducted through a computer or a mobile device using computer networks. It is thus the use of a computer with the aim of intercepting and manipulating content, disrupting communication, stealing or generally destroying others’ information or hardware through a network. Although cybercrime is a worldwide problem and affects both small and big companies, small companies are affected more from the dangers of cybercrime. The rapid advancement in technology is causing tremendous problems to businesses in terms of more sophisticated cyber-attacks. This project is interesting and beneficial because it enlightens one on the dangers of cybercrime, thus preparing individuals to know how to prevent attacks while online, how to reduce the effects of a cyber-attack and how to prevent future
Computer crime or Cyber Crime is defined as any type of crime that involves or regards a computer or computer network. Cyber Crime mainly means that the computer may be used as a tool in the commission of the crime or the computer may be the main target of the criminal’s crime. The rapid growth of technology and gadgets as well as the further de...
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. While the impact of globalization has led to amazing, new discoveries throughout the world, Internet connectivity has also made cybercrime easier. America and the rest of the world have become more reliant on technology and use it in more aspects of their lives, technology-users make themselves more vulnerable to cyber attacks. Globalization and the growing use of computers in the world have given people a motive to learn more about computing and become more knowledgeable as programmers. As these people learn more, there is a risk that they will use their new intelligence to commit cybercrimes.