Information security involves protecting information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption or destruction. It aims to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data regardless of its form. Key goals include preventing breaches of confidentiality which could harm businesses or individuals, and ensuring data integrity so it cannot be modified without authorization. Risk management is the ongoing process of identifying vulnerabilities, deciding on countermeasures to reduce risk to an acceptable level based on the value of the information assets.
IT Security and Management - Prelim Lessons by Mark John LadoMark John Lado, MIT
Learning topics:
1. ACCESS CONTROL
2. ASSET MANAGEMENT
3. BUSINESS CONTINUITY
--------------------------------------------------
By the end of this chapter, learners will be able to;
Know about access control.
Differentiate the physical and logical access control.
Engage with different examples of access control.
Apply the role of access control in their future projects.
Recognize about asset management.
Distinguish the three goals of an asset management program.
Engage with different types of IT asset Management.
Elaborate about business continuity.
Engage with the types of business continuity.
Know about the steps for building and executing of business continuity.
Familiarize the business continuity strategy.
The document provides an overview of communications security, cryptography, and compliance as they relate to IT security. It discusses the importance of securing communications and provides methods for doing so, such as cryptography, data masking, and stenography. Cryptography techniques including encryption and decryption are explained. The document also covers compliance in IT security policies and who is responsible for compliance, why companies need compliance, and the purpose of compliance programs.
Chapter 4 vulnerability threat and attack newbie2019
This document discusses threats, vulnerabilities, and attacks related to information security. It defines threats as potential dangers that could breach security, and lists categories of threats like deliberate threats, environmental threats, and accidental threats. Vulnerabilities are weaknesses that can be exploited by threats, like physical vulnerabilities, hardware/software vulnerabilities, and human vulnerabilities. Attacks are exploits of vulnerabilities that damage systems. Common attacks are discussed like passive attacks that obtain information and active attacks that alter systems. The document also categorizes attacks as interruptions, interceptions, modifications, or fabrications of systems and assets. The three biggest common attacks are said to be virus, worm, and Trojan horse attacks.
We live in a digital world in which our happiness, health, and even our lives can depend on the performance of technology. From medical equipment to cars, and home security systems to smartphones, computerized equipment plays a greater role in the human experience with each passing year.
Best Practices for Security Awareness and TrainingKimberly Hood
This document discusses building an effective security awareness program. It emphasizes that the biggest risk to an organization's security is the actions or inactions of employees, so training is important. Effective training uses real examples, feedback, and individualized lessons. Compliance standards like PCI DSS, ISO, and HIPAA require awareness training. Building a security culture requires buy-in from executives and employees. Enforcing policies through graduated penalties helps change behavior. Measuring effectiveness through metrics like compliance and data breaches allows improvement. Social engineering tests and phishing simulations can train employees while easing security fatigue.
The document summarizes key topics around information security including:
- Definitions of security and information security focusing on protecting systems, hardware, and information.
- Critical characteristics of information including availability, accuracy, authenticity, confidentiality, and integrity.
- A culture of security including principles from the OECD around awareness, responsibility, response, ethics, democracy, and risk assessment.
- Global security trends showing a focus on business objectives, risk management, privacy, and challenges in resources.
- Best practices for managers including security policies, risk management, architecture, accountability, training, and ensuring expertise.
The document discusses information security and provides an overview of key concepts:
1) It defines information security as protecting information and systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption or destruction. Maintaining confidentiality, integrity and availability of information are core principles.
2) Reasons for managing information security are given, including compliance with laws, protecting assets from loss, meeting business requirements and customer demands.
3) Methods for managing security are outlined, including implementing security frameworks, classifying information assets, and establishing roles and processes for ongoing security management. Continual assessment and improvement of security controls is important.
IT Security and Management - Prelim Lessons by Mark John LadoMark John Lado, MIT
Learning topics:
1. ACCESS CONTROL
2. ASSET MANAGEMENT
3. BUSINESS CONTINUITY
--------------------------------------------------
By the end of this chapter, learners will be able to;
Know about access control.
Differentiate the physical and logical access control.
Engage with different examples of access control.
Apply the role of access control in their future projects.
Recognize about asset management.
Distinguish the three goals of an asset management program.
Engage with different types of IT asset Management.
Elaborate about business continuity.
Engage with the types of business continuity.
Know about the steps for building and executing of business continuity.
Familiarize the business continuity strategy.
The document provides an overview of communications security, cryptography, and compliance as they relate to IT security. It discusses the importance of securing communications and provides methods for doing so, such as cryptography, data masking, and stenography. Cryptography techniques including encryption and decryption are explained. The document also covers compliance in IT security policies and who is responsible for compliance, why companies need compliance, and the purpose of compliance programs.
Chapter 4 vulnerability threat and attack newbie2019
This document discusses threats, vulnerabilities, and attacks related to information security. It defines threats as potential dangers that could breach security, and lists categories of threats like deliberate threats, environmental threats, and accidental threats. Vulnerabilities are weaknesses that can be exploited by threats, like physical vulnerabilities, hardware/software vulnerabilities, and human vulnerabilities. Attacks are exploits of vulnerabilities that damage systems. Common attacks are discussed like passive attacks that obtain information and active attacks that alter systems. The document also categorizes attacks as interruptions, interceptions, modifications, or fabrications of systems and assets. The three biggest common attacks are said to be virus, worm, and Trojan horse attacks.
We live in a digital world in which our happiness, health, and even our lives can depend on the performance of technology. From medical equipment to cars, and home security systems to smartphones, computerized equipment plays a greater role in the human experience with each passing year.
Best Practices for Security Awareness and TrainingKimberly Hood
This document discusses building an effective security awareness program. It emphasizes that the biggest risk to an organization's security is the actions or inactions of employees, so training is important. Effective training uses real examples, feedback, and individualized lessons. Compliance standards like PCI DSS, ISO, and HIPAA require awareness training. Building a security culture requires buy-in from executives and employees. Enforcing policies through graduated penalties helps change behavior. Measuring effectiveness through metrics like compliance and data breaches allows improvement. Social engineering tests and phishing simulations can train employees while easing security fatigue.
The document summarizes key topics around information security including:
- Definitions of security and information security focusing on protecting systems, hardware, and information.
- Critical characteristics of information including availability, accuracy, authenticity, confidentiality, and integrity.
- A culture of security including principles from the OECD around awareness, responsibility, response, ethics, democracy, and risk assessment.
- Global security trends showing a focus on business objectives, risk management, privacy, and challenges in resources.
- Best practices for managers including security policies, risk management, architecture, accountability, training, and ensuring expertise.
The document discusses information security and provides an overview of key concepts:
1) It defines information security as protecting information and systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption or destruction. Maintaining confidentiality, integrity and availability of information are core principles.
2) Reasons for managing information security are given, including compliance with laws, protecting assets from loss, meeting business requirements and customer demands.
3) Methods for managing security are outlined, including implementing security frameworks, classifying information assets, and establishing roles and processes for ongoing security management. Continual assessment and improvement of security controls is important.
This document discusses foundational concepts in cyber security including cryptography, access control, and the CIA triad of confidentiality, integrity and availability. It provides an overview of common security terms and the roles and responsibilities in organizational security governance. Key topics covered include legislative and regulatory compliance, industry standards, and the importance of documentation for effective security.
Information security threats include eavesdropping, malware, trojans, viruses, worms, denial of service attacks, vulnerabilities, computer crimes, and key logging. Solutions involve access control using identification and authentication, cryptography, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and application security. The document discusses these threats and solutions in detail using examples and case studies, and emphasizes the importance of data protection and information security. It concludes that information security requires an ongoing process to protect information and systems from unauthorized access or disruption.
This document discusses information security and ethics in business and society. It covers topics like ensuring privacy and monitoring employee computer usage. It provides remedies for potential issues like protecting devices from viruses, not giving out sensitive information over the phone, and using safe browsing practices. The document aims to educate employees on maintaining security and ethics in their work.
This document provides an introduction to information system security. It discusses key concepts like security, information security, vulnerabilities, threats, attacks, security policies, and security measures. The document outlines common security risks like interruption, interception, modification, masquerading, and repudiation. It explains that security policies provide guidelines for implementing security controls to protect information system assets from such risks according to the security principles of confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Risk management involves assessing security risks, determining their potential impacts, and taking steps to mitigate them. There are proactive and reactive approaches to risk management. Proactive risk management identifies risks before incidents occur using techniques like risk assessment, while reactive risk management responds after problems are found. Information security risk management involves assessing technical risks through methods like quantitative and qualitative risk assessment as well as frameworks like OCTAVE and COBIT. Network security uses tools like firewalls and intrusion detection systems to control access and monitor networks for threats.
This document discusses various threats to information security and safeguards organizations can implement. The three main sources of threats are human error, malicious human activity, and natural disasters. Some key threats include hacking, viruses, unauthorized data disclosure through actions like phishing. Technical safeguards include identification & authentication like passwords, encryption, firewalls, malware protection. Human safeguards involve policies, training, account management and monitoring. Senior management must establish security policies, assess risks, and ensure all necessary safeguards are in place to protect the organization's information systems and data. The organization should also have an incident response plan to deal with security breaches when they do occur.
Fifty years ago, physical security such as locking file cabinets and document shredding was the primary focus, but security has significantly evolved with the digital age. Now both physical and digital security are important, as classified information and sensitive data are stored and transmitted electronically. While current security methods like access controls and encrypted communications aim to prevent exploitation, vulnerabilities will inevitably be found and new methods must constantly be developed and implemented. Security is an ever-changing field as threats evolve alongside new technologies.
Emerging Trends in Cyber Crime discusses the growing threat of cyber crimes both globally and in India. Some key points include:
- Cyber crimes are challenging to address due to the anonymity of perpetrators, involvement of multiple countries/networks, and lack of consistent global laws.
- India faces increasing challenges from the exponential growth of internet use and interconnected systems for business and government. Emerging technologies like UID and e-governance have cybersecurity implications.
- Recent cyber incidents in India involved the use of wireless networks and public WiFi systems to plan terrorist attacks. The 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks also demonstrated terrorists' use of technology.
- Common cyber crimes include hacking, phishing, spamming,
Information security aims to balance information risks and controls. It began with early computer security focused on physical threats. A successful security approach uses multiple layers including physical, personal, operations, communications, network, and information security. Managing information security requires a structured methodology similar to implementing a major system, such as the Security Systems Development Life Cycle.
This document provides an introduction to information security. It defines information security and outlines its objectives, which include understanding the critical characteristics of information, the comprehensive security model, and approaches to implementation. The document discusses the history of information security and components of an effective information security system. It also describes the security systems development life cycle process and provides key information security terminology.
This document provides an overview of information security. It defines information security as protecting information systems, hardware, and data. It then describes different types of security including physical, personal, operations, communications, network, and information security. The document outlines several common threats to information systems such as unauthorized access, cyberespionage, malware, data leakage, mobile device attacks, social engineering, insiders, phishing, spam, and identity theft. It recommends various controls for protecting information systems, including data security plans, access controls, encryption, backups, and employee training.
This document provides an overview of information security and privacy presented by Nawanan Theera-Ampornpunt. It covers topics such as protecting information privacy and security, user security, software security, cryptography, malware, and security standards. Specific threats to information security in Thailand are discussed such as hackers, viruses, insider threats, and natural disasters. The consequences of security attacks on information, operations, individuals, and organizations are also reviewed.
Information Security Management. Security solutions copyyuliana_mar
Information Security Management. Introduction.
By Yuliana Martirosyan,
Based on Bell G. Reggard, Information Security Management. Concepts and Practices.
This document discusses basics of information security including data security, network security, and information security. It defines information systems and explains the need for and importance of securing information. Reasons for information classification are provided along with criteria and levels of classification. The document also covers security basics such as confidentiality, integrity, availability, and authentication. Techniques for data obfuscation and event classification are described.
The document discusses information security threats and attacks. It provides examples of different types of threats including human error, intellectual property theft, espionage, service disruptions, natural disasters, hardware and software failures, and obsolescence. It also describes different categories of attacks such as malware, password cracking, denial of service, and how multi-vector worms can use various techniques like IP scanning, web browsing, file shares, and email to replicate. The document emphasizes that management must understand security threats in order to implement proper controls and safeguard the organization's data, systems, and ability to operate.
This document provides an introduction to information security. It outlines the objectives of understanding information security concepts and terms. The document discusses the history of information security beginning with early mainframe computers. It defines information security and explains the critical characteristics of information, including availability, accuracy, authenticity, confidentiality and integrity. The document also outlines approaches to implementing information security and the phases of the security systems development life cycle.
This document discusses information security and system security. It defines information, information security, and the goals of security including confidentiality, integrity and availability. It describes different types of attacks such as interruption, interception, modification and fabrication. It explains passive attacks like eavesdropping and traffic analysis, as well as active attacks including masquerade, replay, message modification, and denial of service. The document outlines why computer security is needed and covers topics like vulnerabilities, threats, and controls to protect against various security risks.
The document outlines an agenda for an information security essentials workshop. It discusses key topics like the principles of information security around confidentiality, integrity and availability. It also covers security governance structures, roles and responsibilities, risk management, information system controls and auditing information security. The objectives are to provide an overview of information security, describe approaches to auditing it, and discuss current trends.
The document discusses various topics related to IT security and risk mitigation. It begins with an overview of basic IT security principles such as confidentiality, integrity, availability, authenticity, non-repudiation and accountability. It also discusses banking security standards and the importance of having policies, procedures, and standards to ensure security. Finally, it covers the different types of risk mitigation controls including administrative, logical, and physical controls that can be implemented to minimize security risks.
The document discusses the daily grind of work life and looking forward to weekends. It then suggests that when one dies, God will not ask about material possessions or career accomplishments, but rather how one treated others and lived with good character. God will ask if one's deeds matched their words and how they helped people in need.
This document discusses different types of costs and cost behavior. It explains that in the short run, costs can be broken down into fixed and variable costs. As output increases, average and marginal costs may decrease at first due to economies of scale, but eventually marginal costs will rise as diminishing returns set in. In the long run, firms can adjust all inputs including plant size, allowing long run average costs to be lower than short run average costs due to greater potential for cost savings from scale economies. Diseconomies of scale may also occur if firms grow too large.
This document discusses foundational concepts in cyber security including cryptography, access control, and the CIA triad of confidentiality, integrity and availability. It provides an overview of common security terms and the roles and responsibilities in organizational security governance. Key topics covered include legislative and regulatory compliance, industry standards, and the importance of documentation for effective security.
Information security threats include eavesdropping, malware, trojans, viruses, worms, denial of service attacks, vulnerabilities, computer crimes, and key logging. Solutions involve access control using identification and authentication, cryptography, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and application security. The document discusses these threats and solutions in detail using examples and case studies, and emphasizes the importance of data protection and information security. It concludes that information security requires an ongoing process to protect information and systems from unauthorized access or disruption.
This document discusses information security and ethics in business and society. It covers topics like ensuring privacy and monitoring employee computer usage. It provides remedies for potential issues like protecting devices from viruses, not giving out sensitive information over the phone, and using safe browsing practices. The document aims to educate employees on maintaining security and ethics in their work.
This document provides an introduction to information system security. It discusses key concepts like security, information security, vulnerabilities, threats, attacks, security policies, and security measures. The document outlines common security risks like interruption, interception, modification, masquerading, and repudiation. It explains that security policies provide guidelines for implementing security controls to protect information system assets from such risks according to the security principles of confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Risk management involves assessing security risks, determining their potential impacts, and taking steps to mitigate them. There are proactive and reactive approaches to risk management. Proactive risk management identifies risks before incidents occur using techniques like risk assessment, while reactive risk management responds after problems are found. Information security risk management involves assessing technical risks through methods like quantitative and qualitative risk assessment as well as frameworks like OCTAVE and COBIT. Network security uses tools like firewalls and intrusion detection systems to control access and monitor networks for threats.
This document discusses various threats to information security and safeguards organizations can implement. The three main sources of threats are human error, malicious human activity, and natural disasters. Some key threats include hacking, viruses, unauthorized data disclosure through actions like phishing. Technical safeguards include identification & authentication like passwords, encryption, firewalls, malware protection. Human safeguards involve policies, training, account management and monitoring. Senior management must establish security policies, assess risks, and ensure all necessary safeguards are in place to protect the organization's information systems and data. The organization should also have an incident response plan to deal with security breaches when they do occur.
Fifty years ago, physical security such as locking file cabinets and document shredding was the primary focus, but security has significantly evolved with the digital age. Now both physical and digital security are important, as classified information and sensitive data are stored and transmitted electronically. While current security methods like access controls and encrypted communications aim to prevent exploitation, vulnerabilities will inevitably be found and new methods must constantly be developed and implemented. Security is an ever-changing field as threats evolve alongside new technologies.
Emerging Trends in Cyber Crime discusses the growing threat of cyber crimes both globally and in India. Some key points include:
- Cyber crimes are challenging to address due to the anonymity of perpetrators, involvement of multiple countries/networks, and lack of consistent global laws.
- India faces increasing challenges from the exponential growth of internet use and interconnected systems for business and government. Emerging technologies like UID and e-governance have cybersecurity implications.
- Recent cyber incidents in India involved the use of wireless networks and public WiFi systems to plan terrorist attacks. The 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks also demonstrated terrorists' use of technology.
- Common cyber crimes include hacking, phishing, spamming,
Information security aims to balance information risks and controls. It began with early computer security focused on physical threats. A successful security approach uses multiple layers including physical, personal, operations, communications, network, and information security. Managing information security requires a structured methodology similar to implementing a major system, such as the Security Systems Development Life Cycle.
This document provides an introduction to information security. It defines information security and outlines its objectives, which include understanding the critical characteristics of information, the comprehensive security model, and approaches to implementation. The document discusses the history of information security and components of an effective information security system. It also describes the security systems development life cycle process and provides key information security terminology.
This document provides an overview of information security. It defines information security as protecting information systems, hardware, and data. It then describes different types of security including physical, personal, operations, communications, network, and information security. The document outlines several common threats to information systems such as unauthorized access, cyberespionage, malware, data leakage, mobile device attacks, social engineering, insiders, phishing, spam, and identity theft. It recommends various controls for protecting information systems, including data security plans, access controls, encryption, backups, and employee training.
This document provides an overview of information security and privacy presented by Nawanan Theera-Ampornpunt. It covers topics such as protecting information privacy and security, user security, software security, cryptography, malware, and security standards. Specific threats to information security in Thailand are discussed such as hackers, viruses, insider threats, and natural disasters. The consequences of security attacks on information, operations, individuals, and organizations are also reviewed.
Information Security Management. Security solutions copyyuliana_mar
Information Security Management. Introduction.
By Yuliana Martirosyan,
Based on Bell G. Reggard, Information Security Management. Concepts and Practices.
This document discusses basics of information security including data security, network security, and information security. It defines information systems and explains the need for and importance of securing information. Reasons for information classification are provided along with criteria and levels of classification. The document also covers security basics such as confidentiality, integrity, availability, and authentication. Techniques for data obfuscation and event classification are described.
The document discusses information security threats and attacks. It provides examples of different types of threats including human error, intellectual property theft, espionage, service disruptions, natural disasters, hardware and software failures, and obsolescence. It also describes different categories of attacks such as malware, password cracking, denial of service, and how multi-vector worms can use various techniques like IP scanning, web browsing, file shares, and email to replicate. The document emphasizes that management must understand security threats in order to implement proper controls and safeguard the organization's data, systems, and ability to operate.
This document provides an introduction to information security. It outlines the objectives of understanding information security concepts and terms. The document discusses the history of information security beginning with early mainframe computers. It defines information security and explains the critical characteristics of information, including availability, accuracy, authenticity, confidentiality and integrity. The document also outlines approaches to implementing information security and the phases of the security systems development life cycle.
This document discusses information security and system security. It defines information, information security, and the goals of security including confidentiality, integrity and availability. It describes different types of attacks such as interruption, interception, modification and fabrication. It explains passive attacks like eavesdropping and traffic analysis, as well as active attacks including masquerade, replay, message modification, and denial of service. The document outlines why computer security is needed and covers topics like vulnerabilities, threats, and controls to protect against various security risks.
The document outlines an agenda for an information security essentials workshop. It discusses key topics like the principles of information security around confidentiality, integrity and availability. It also covers security governance structures, roles and responsibilities, risk management, information system controls and auditing information security. The objectives are to provide an overview of information security, describe approaches to auditing it, and discuss current trends.
The document discusses various topics related to IT security and risk mitigation. It begins with an overview of basic IT security principles such as confidentiality, integrity, availability, authenticity, non-repudiation and accountability. It also discusses banking security standards and the importance of having policies, procedures, and standards to ensure security. Finally, it covers the different types of risk mitigation controls including administrative, logical, and physical controls that can be implemented to minimize security risks.
The document discusses the daily grind of work life and looking forward to weekends. It then suggests that when one dies, God will not ask about material possessions or career accomplishments, but rather how one treated others and lived with good character. God will ask if one's deeds matched their words and how they helped people in need.
This document discusses different types of costs and cost behavior. It explains that in the short run, costs can be broken down into fixed and variable costs. As output increases, average and marginal costs may decrease at first due to economies of scale, but eventually marginal costs will rise as diminishing returns set in. In the long run, firms can adjust all inputs including plant size, allowing long run average costs to be lower than short run average costs due to greater potential for cost savings from scale economies. Diseconomies of scale may also occur if firms grow too large.
Obama's leadership lessons include being comfortable with yourself, developing strong communication skills through practicing speeches, connecting with audiences with passion, sticking to your message with a great team, learning from listening to others, having a stable strategy with flexible tactics leads to victory, seeing yesterday's competitors as today's collaborators, being your own storyteller, influencing others through leadership, using technology as an ally to reach supporters, empowering and releasing others to make an impact, staying calm under pressure, and not being afraid to experiment.
The document discusses building a legal framework for e-commerce and outlines several key issues and approaches. It notes fundamental changes from internet technologies, questions around identity and location, and whether law acts as an enabler or constraint. It also discusses different forms of regulation like non-discrimination laws, emerging customs, censorship approaches, and precedents from international space and sea laws. International aspects around applicable laws, comparative advantage, and mutual recognition are examined.
This document discusses recent developments in consumer privacy law as it relates to e-commerce. It summarizes that states have passed numerous privacy laws since 9/11, with Vermont and New Mexico passing laws requiring opt-in consent for sharing financial and health information with third parties. It also discusses the FTC's guidelines for information security programs and considerations for website privacy policies, including passive and active data collection, relationships with third parties, satisfying notice requirements, and jurisdiction.
Management of oral and written communicationOnkar Sule
This document discusses various types of oral and written communication used in management. It compares the advantages and disadvantages of oral vs written communication. It provides tips for effective oral communication including voice modulation, eye contact and body language. For written communication it suggests using forceful words, precise information and diplomatically presenting information. The document also briefly discusses non-verbal communication factors like body language, space, time, signs/symbols and visual aids.
This document discusses developing oral communication and presentation skills. It emphasizes several key points: effective use of visual aids, maintaining eye contact, clarity of pronunciation and fluency, proper speech speed, and confidence. It also covers developing pronunciation skills like stress, intonation, rhythm. Tables provide information on vowel and consonant sounds in English, including examples of each sound in different contexts. Developing strong pronunciation is important for oral communication and public speaking.
Improving english oral communication skills of pakistani publicSizzling Peridot
This study aimed to improve the oral communication skills of 6th grade students in public schools in Pakistan. The researchers implemented new teaching strategies focused on communication and student interaction through activities. They found that using methods like role plays, discussions, and group work helped increase students' participation, accuracy, and fluency over time. The researchers concluded traditional teaching needed to change to more modern, student-centered approaches to effectively develop students' English speaking skills.
This document discusses various aspects of information security. It begins by explaining how recent events show that commercial, personal, and sensitive information is difficult to keep secure. An estimated 80% of data breaches are caused by staff rather than technical issues. Effective information security requires a management approach rather than just technical solutions. The document then outlines key principles of information security including confidentiality, integrity, authentication, non-repudiation, access control, and availability. It provides examples to illustrate these principles and how losses can occur when they are compromised or violated. Finally, it discusses the importance of security policies and techniques such as cryptography and authentication to help control threats and restrict unauthorized access.
Information security involves protecting information and systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption or destruction. It aims to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information through technical, administrative and physical controls. The most common principles of information security are confidentiality, integrity, availability, authenticity, non-repudiation and accountability. Access controls like identification, authentication and authorization help enforce security policies and protect information based on user roles and permissions. Cryptography also plays an important role through encryption to render data unusable without authorization. Information security requires an ongoing, layered approach to safeguard information throughout its lifecycle.
The CIA triangle outlines the three primary goals of information security: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Confidentiality ensures that information is only available to authorized users, integrity ensures the accuracy and trustworthiness of information, and availability ensures that information is accessible when needed. These three principles form the basis of information security practices and help define how organizations should protect information assets from various threats.
The document discusses information security and analyzes its importance. It describes key aspects of information security like confidentiality, integrity and availability. It also outlines some common threats to information security such as computer viruses, theft, sabotage and vandalism. The document then analyzes some challenges to effective information security, including employees being fooled by scams, issues with authentication, and the growing threat of phishing. It emphasizes the importance of addressing security concerns to build trust with customers and gain a competitive advantage.
Top Cyber Security Interview Questions and Answers 2022.pdfCareerera
Cyber security positions have considerably taken the top list in the job market. Candidates vying for elite positions in the field of cyber security certainly need a clear-cut and detailed guide to channeling their preparation for smooth career growth, beginning with getting a job. We have curated the top cyber security interview questions that will help candidates focus on the key areas. We have classified the regularly asked cyber security interview questions here, in this article into different levels starting from basic general questions to advanced technical ones.
Before we move on to the top cyber security interview questions, it is critical to reflect on the vitality of cyber security in our modern times and how cyber security professionals are catering to the needs of securing a safe cyber ecosystem.
The times we live in is defined by the digital transition, in which the internet, electronic devices, and computers have become an integral part of our daily life. Institutions that serve our daily needs, such as banks and hospitals, now rely on internet-connected equipment to give the best possible service. A portion of their data, such as financial and personal information, has become vulnerable to illegal access, posing serious risks. Intruders utilize this information to carry out immoral and criminal goals.
Cyber-attacks have jeopardized the computer system and its arrangements, which has now become a global concern. To safeguard data from security breaches, a comprehensive cyber security policy is needed now more than ever. The rising frequency of cyber-attacks has compelled corporations and organizations working with national security and sensitive data to implement stringent security procedures and restrictions.
Computers, mobile devices, servers, data, electronic systems, networks, and other systems connected to the internet must be protected from harmful attacks. Cybersecurity, which is a combination of the words "cyber" and "security," provides this protection. 'Cyber' imbibes the vast-ranging technology with systems, networks, programs, and data in the aforementioned procedure. The phrase "security" refers to the process of protecting data, networks, applications, and systems. In a nutshell,
cyber security is a combination of principles and approaches that assist prevent unwanted access to data, networks, programs, and devices by meeting the security needs of technological resources (computer-based) and online databases.
Cybersecurity Interview Questions and Answers.pdfJazmine Brown
Cyber security professionals are in high demand, and those willing to learn new skills to enter the area will have plenty of opportunities. Our goal is to present you with the most comprehensive selection of cybersecurity interview questions available.
The document outlines an information security course that covers 5 key objectives: understanding information security basics, legal and ethical issues, risk management, security standards, and technological aspects. It details 5 units that will be covered: Introduction, Security Investigation, Security Analysis, Logical Design, and Physical Design. The Introduction unit defines information security, discusses its importance for organizations, and covers concepts like the CIA triad, NSTISSC security model, securing system components, and the Systems Development Life Cycle.
Cybersecurity Vs Information Security.pptxInfosectrain3
A simple definition of information security is preventing unauthorized access during the storage or transmission of data. Biometric information, social media profiles, and data on mobile phones can be considered information. Therefore, research for information security covers various fields, such as cryptocurrency and online forensics.
Document Security in the Digital Age: Strategies for Protecting Sensitive Inf...zainsmith017
In today's digital landscape, protecting sensitive information has become a paramount concern for organizations of all sizes and industries. With the proliferation of digital documents and the rise of cyber threats, safeguarding data from unauthorized access, disclosure, or manipulation is essential to maintaining trust, compliance, and business continuity.
American Bar Association guidelines on Cyber Security standardsDavid Sweigert
The document is a resolution from the American Bar Association that encourages organizations to develop and maintain cybersecurity programs to protect their data and systems from threats. It recommends that organizations conduct risk assessments, implement security controls based on the risks identified, develop response plans for cyber attacks, and engage in information sharing about cyber threats. The resolution aims to address the growing cybersecurity threats facing both private and public sector organizations and the nation's critical infrastructure systems.
Cyber Security Matters a book by Hama David Bundohdbundo
This document provides an introduction to cyber security. It defines cyber security and lists some common cyber security threats such as social engineering, malware, phishing, SQL injection, man-in-the-middle attacks, and denial-of-service attacks. It then discusses key cyber security terminology and concepts including access authorization, anti-virus software, authentication techniques, backups, encryption, firewalls, hackers, honeypots, intrusion detection systems, and port scanning. The document aims to educate readers on cyber security risks and mitigation strategies.
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Cyber Research Proposal
Cybersecurity in business
Introduction
Because of today's international economy, securing a company's intellectual property, financial information, and good name is critical for the company's long-term survival and growth. However, with the rise in risks and cyber vulnerability, most businesses find it difficult to keep up with the competition. Since their inception, most companies have reported 16% fraud, 37.7% financial losses, and an average of over 11% share value loss, according to data compiled by the US security. Most corporations and governments are working hard to keep their customers and residents safe from harm. There are both physical and cybersecurity risks involved with these threats. According to a recent study, many company owners aren't aware of the full scope of cybersecurity. People who own their businesses must deal with various issues daily.
Nevertheless, steps are being taken to address these issues. Customers and the company are likely to be protected by the measures adopted. Cybersecurity is one of the most pressing issues facing organizations today. Leaks of a company's intellectual property and other secrets may have devastating effects on its operations, as competitors and rivals will do all in their power to stop them. is an excellent illustration of this. This is perhaps the most talked-about security compromise of the year [footnoteRef:3]. The firm was severely damaged because of this. [1: "Database security attacks and control methods."] [2:q "Comprehending the IoT cyber threat landscape: A data dimensionality reduction technique to infer and characterize Internet-scale IoT probing campaigns."] [3: "The Equifax data breach: What cpas and firms need to know now." ]
Some individuals take advantage of clients by stealing highly important information to profit financially from their actions. For example, if the wrong individuals get their hands on your credit card information, you're in serious trouble since you might lose money. Some families lose all their resources, while others are forced to declare bankruptcy after being financially stable for a long period. Many of the findings of this study will be focused on cybersecurity and the sources of cybersecurity risks. The paper outlines a few of the issues and solutions that organizations may use to keep their operations and consumers safe from exploiting dishonest individuals.
Research question
According to the most recent study, more than 1500 companies have been exposed to some cybersecurity assault[footnoteRef:4]. This research details the specific types of attacks that have occurred. Organizational operations are affected, as is corporate governance, and the internal management of financial status is rendered ineffective due to these assaults. The question that will be investigated during the study is: [4: "Towards blockchain-based identity and access management for internet of things in enterprises."]
How doe ...
1
2
Cyber Research Proposal
Cybersecurity in business
Introduction
Because of today's international economy, securing a company's intellectual property, financial information, and good name is critical for the company's long-term survival and growth. However, with the rise in risks and cyber vulnerability, most businesses find it difficult to keep up with the competition. Since their inception, most companies have reported 16% fraud, 37.7% financial losses, and an average of over 11% share value loss, according to data compiled by the US security. Most corporations and governments are working hard to keep their customers and residents safe from harm. There are both physical and cybersecurity risks involved with these threats. According to a recent study, many company owners aren't aware of the full scope of cybersecurity. People who own their businesses must deal with various issues daily.
Nevertheless, steps are being taken to address these issues. Customers and the company are likely to be protected by the measures adopted. Cybersecurity is one of the most pressing issues facing organizations today. Leaks of a company's intellectual property and other secrets may have devastating effects on its operations, as competitors and rivals will do all in their power to stop them. is an excellent illustration of this. This is perhaps the most talked-about security compromise of the year [footnoteRef:3]. The firm was severely damaged because of this. [1: "Database security attacks and control methods."] [2:q "Comprehending the IoT cyber threat landscape: A data dimensionality reduction technique to infer and characterize Internet-scale IoT probing campaigns."] [3: "The Equifax data breach: What cpas and firms need to know now." ]
Some individuals take advantage of clients by stealing highly important information to profit financially from their actions. For example, if the wrong individuals get their hands on your credit card information, you're in serious trouble since you might lose money. Some families lose all their resources, while others are forced to declare bankruptcy after being financially stable for a long period. Many of the findings of this study will be focused on cybersecurity and the sources of cybersecurity risks. The paper outlines a few of the issues and solutions that organizations may use to keep their operations and consumers safe from exploiting dishonest individuals.
Research question
According to the most recent study, more than 1500 companies have been exposed to some cybersecurity assault[footnoteRef:4]. This research details the specific types of attacks that have occurred. Organizational operations are affected, as is corporate governance, and the internal management of financial status is rendered ineffective due to these assaults. The question that will be investigated during the study is: [4: "Towards blockchain-based identity and access management for internet of things in enterprises."]
How doe ...
The document discusses insider threats and how to mitigate them. It covers how insider threats can come from employees with malicious intent, but also from inadvertent actions like clicking a phishing link. Insider threats also include third party contractors who are given access to networks. The document provides recommendations for organizations to mitigate insider threats such as conducting background checks, monitoring unusual employee behavior, and escorting outsiders within the company's physical sites. It also discusses the ongoing threat of spam being used to distribute malware and how organizations need to protect their users from inadvertently enabling attacks through emails.
The document discusses insider threats and how to mitigate them. It covers how insider threats can come from employees with malicious intent, but also from inadvertent actions like clicking a phishing link. Insider threats also include third party contractors who are given access to networks. The document provides recommendations for organizations to mitigate insider threats such as conducting background checks, monitoring unusual employee behavior, and escorting outsiders within the company's physical sites. It also discusses the ongoing threat of spam distribution of malware and how organizations need to ensure all users remain vigilant against phishing attempts.
This document discusses system vulnerabilities and securing information systems. It begins by defining security and controls, and explains why systems are vulnerable, including issues with large networks like the Internet. It then describes various types of malicious software like viruses, worms, and Trojan horses that can exploit system vulnerabilities. The document also discusses hackers and computer crimes such as denial of service attacks and identity theft. It emphasizes the business value of security and control and legal requirements around protecting information. Finally, it outlines how organizations can establish a framework for security, including information system controls.
This document discusses cyber security in the era of networking. It covers several topics including types of cyber attacks like denial of service attacks and spoofing; threats like criminals, spies, and terrorists; vulnerabilities from insiders and supply chains; risks existing everywhere networked systems are used; and approaches to cyber crisis planning, mobile security, threat intelligence, next generation firewalls, access controls, surveillance, security awareness, and conclusions. Research areas discussed include scalable trustworthy systems, malware combating, and privacy-aware security.
Secrets to managing your Duty of Care in an ever- changing world.
How well do you know your risks?
Are you keeping up with your responsibilities to provide Duty of Care?
How well are you prioritising Cybersecurity initiatives?
Liability for Cybersecurity attacks sits with Executives and Board members who may not have the right level of technical security knowledge. This session will outline what practical steps executives can take to implement a Cybersecurity Roadmap that is aligned with its strategic objectives.
Led by Krist Davood, who has spent over 28 years implementing secure mission critical systems for executives. Krist is an expert in protecting the interconnectedness of technology, intellectual property and information systems, as evidenced through his roles at The Good Guys, Court Services Victoria and Schiavello.
The seminar will cover:
• Fiduciary responsibility
• How to efficiently deal with personal liability and the threat of court action
• The role of a Cybersecurity Executive Dashboard and its ability to simplify risk and amplify informed decision making
• How to identify and bridge the gap between your Cybersecurity Compliance Rating and the threat of court action
This document provides guidance for lawyers on data security issues and how to help clients meet data security standards. It discusses how lack of security knowledge is common among both personal and enterprise computer users. Various threats like viruses, worms, Trojans, bots, and spyware/adware are described. Examples of data security risks include loss of portable devices containing personal information, insecure home networks that employees access for work, and insecure disposal of physical documents and digital media. The document advises evaluating security controls and investing in tools to detect breaches and audit compliance.
E-commerce refers to business conducted over the internet and is now nearly ubiquitous. As the world becomes busier, people increasingly rely on computers and online shopping for needs like groceries, gifts, and banking. Examples of companies involved in e-commerce include eBay, Tesco, iTunes, Microsoft, and McDonald's to varying degrees. E-commerce is growing rapidly due to its convenience, speed of transactions, and wide global reach. However, there are also risks like sellers not delivering goods, theft of credit card details, and fraudulent purchases.
The document summarizes the state of eCommerce in 1999 and discusses various challenges and trends. It covers topics like choosing an eCommerce payment provider, authentication alternatives to SSL/credit cards like digital wallets, and the future of technologies like SET. Key points discussed include the lack of integration among eCommerce software suites, difficulties implementing public key infrastructure for payments, and how digital wallets and new authentication methods need widespread adoption to be truly useful.
E-commerce refers to business conducted over the Internet and World Wide Web. It involves the buying and selling of goods and services, as well as servicing customers and collaborating with business partners digitally. E-commerce lowers costs and product cycle times for businesses while allowing for faster customer response and improved service quality. It comes in various forms depending on whether transactions are business-to-business, business-to-consumer, etc. and whether aspects are purely digital or involve some physical elements.
Electronic commerce (e-commerce) involves conducting business transactions electronically over the internet. It has evolved from early electronic funds transfer and electronic data interchange between businesses in the 1970s-1980s to the widespread use of the world wide web for online shopping (B2C) and business transactions (B2B) in the 1990s. E-commerce provides advantages like increased sales, decreased costs, and access to new markets, but also challenges around technologies changing rapidly, calculating return on investment, and cultural/legal issues. Key elements of e-commerce include infrastructure, software, security, payment systems, and transaction processing.
This document summarizes a presentation given at a WTO regional seminar on electronic commerce in Geneva, Switzerland. The presentation discusses Malaysia's vision and strategy for e-commerce, which includes creating a knowledge-based economy and society through initiatives like the Multimedia Super Corridor. Some key points are that Malaysia aims to be a developed nation by 2020, the MSC was established to drive the economy through technology and attract global companies, and significant progress has been made in attracting world-class companies and implementing flagship applications like e-government and telehealth.
This document discusses security issues related to international e-commerce. It defines key security concepts like confidentiality, integrity, availability and accountability. It outlines general security threats to e-commerce like denial of service attacks, theft of customer data and intellectual property. The document also examines international security issues such as varying regulations, cultural differences, and mobile access challenges. It recommends taking a holistic approach to security that considers people, processes, and technology.
This document discusses building a legal framework for e-commerce. It covers several topics:
1) The fundamental changes from the internet regarding intangible assets, identity, location, speed and mobility and how this impacts policy and law/regulation.
2) Different forms of regulation including law, norms, markets, and technology ("code as code").
3) Regulatory precedents like non-discrimination, emerging custom/practice, non-territorial treatment, and media censorship.
4) International aspects like applicable law questions, comparative advantage vs. regulatory arbitrage, and country of origin principles.
The document provides an overview of e-commerce and the evolution of new digital businesses. It defines key terms like the Internet, World Wide Web, browsers, and servers. It describes how infrastructure developments allowed new forms of businesses to emerge and how brick-and-mortar companies had to adapt to the digital economy or risk losing market share. The professor concludes that the transformation to e-commerce continues to evolve as new opportunities arise.
This document summarizes a research project analyzing how eCommerce systems recovered after the September 11, 2001 WTC attacks. The project studied several large companies to understand their recovery processes and identify critical success factors. It found that preparedness through practices like data mirroring and redundancy, rapid decision making, and knowledgeable technical staff helped systems recover within days. The research aims to evaluate financial impacts, preparedness strategies, and survival techniques to inform corporate crisis management of extreme events.
The document traces the evolution of e-commerce from its earliest beginnings with the telegraph in the 1800s, to the development of credit cards and computers in the mid-20th century. It discusses how early online payment systems and the growth of the internet in the 1990s led to the rise of e-commerce as we know it today. The document also examines trends in online advertising models and payments. It concludes by suggesting that science fiction often predicts technological developments and that the future of e-commerce remains uncertain but full of possibilities.
This document discusses key legal issues related to e-commerce, including contracts, business structures, domain names, and other identifiers. Some main points:
1) Contract law still applies to e-commerce transactions, though offer/acceptance can be inferred from online conduct. The Electronic Transactions Act aims to validate electronic signatures and records.
2) Sole traders, partnerships, and companies are common business structures, each with different liability and control implications to consider.
3) Domain names provide a human-friendly web address and are administered globally and within country code top-level domains. Registration requires avoiding conflicts with trademarks and other rights.
This document provides an overview of e-commerce and strategies for small Pacific Island businesses to engage in e-commerce. It discusses what e-commerce is, different types of e-commerce models (B2B, B2C, C2C), and examples of industries where e-commerce has been successful globally and in the Pacific region. The document then outlines steps to develop an e-commerce strategy, including choosing a domain name, website design, transactions, delivery, and marketing. The overall message is that e-commerce provides opportunities for Pacific Island businesses but traditional business principles still apply.
This document discusses the basics of e-commerce including definitions of key terms like electronic commerce, business-to-consumer transactions, and online storefronts. It outlines the advantages of e-commerce such as a global market, lower costs, and immediate feedback. The document also reviews trends in e-commerce spending and consumer concerns about online shopping.
An e-commerce test validates that an e-commerce portal is functioning correctly by allowing a normal browser session to navigate the site, select a product, add it to the cart, log in if needed, validate the user information, validate each step of the checkout process, enter test payment information to avoid charges, validate the successful order feedback, and end the recording.
Michael McDonnell has experience with several e-commerce projects ranging from $X,000 to $X,000,000. He discusses three main components of B2C e-commerce: online stores, advertising networks, and social networks. Online stores involve catalogues, shopping carts, and checkout/payment processes. Advertising networks like Google AdWords are pay-per-click systems. Social networks like YouTube and blogs derive value from customer participation through user-generated content and reviews.
eCommerce provides several benefits for businesses. It allows purchasing to become more efficient by automating transactional tasks, reducing inventory levels, and providing information to customers and suppliers quickly with no marginal costs. eCommerce also simplifies administration and creates opportunities for incremental revenues without additional costs. While it may reduce some purchasing head counts over time by automating low-value purchases, eCommerce really revolutionizes rather than eliminates the purchasing function by enabling strategic sourcing capabilities.
The document discusses global B2B eCommerce adoption from the business perspective. It provides context on the complexity of B2B supply chains and procurement processes. Key points covered include the magnitude of the global B2B contract goods market, what factors are driving companies' adoption of B2B eCommerce solutions, and what capabilities companies seek in such solutions to help streamline procurement and achieve strategic goals.
Global B2B eCommerce adoption is being driven by companies seeking to reduce procurement costs and improve supply chain management. B2B eCommerce solutions allow companies to automate contract negotiations, better coordinate internal groups and external partners, and gain insights into vendor performance. Early research shows B2B eCommerce can cut contract management costs from 5% of revenues to 1-2.5% and reduce total purchase costs by as much as 30% by enabling more effective negotiations and continuous improvement of procurement processes. However, issues like lack of internet infrastructure and security concerns may slow adoption in some regions initially.
E-commerce trends in Asia are growing rapidly. Several regional initiatives aim to promote paperless trade, including the Pan Asian e-Commerce Alliance (PAA), Singapore Trade-net, and e-ASEAN. Analyst reports predict B2B e-commerce in Asia will reach $992 billion in 2004, with many Asian countries now ranked highly in e-readiness. However, security concerns and under-adoption of technologies like digital signatures still impede growth. Automating financial supply chain processes could help optimize $260 billion in working capital trapped in Asian supply chains.
This document discusses the prerequisites for e-commerce, including wired buyers and sellers through affordable telecommunications and computer access, e-payment systems like credit cards and electronic funds transfer, necessary legal frameworks around signatures and documents, and delivery mechanisms for goods both online and offline. It argues that most prerequisites stem from sound domestic policy decisions around telecommunications infrastructure and avoiding excessive content control or voice revenue support that could harm the internet. Governments can lead by implementing e-government and developing the market.
LAND USE LAND COVER AND NDVI OF MIRZAPUR DISTRICT, UPRAHUL
This Dissertation explores the particular circumstances of Mirzapur, a region located in the
core of India. Mirzapur, with its varied terrains and abundant biodiversity, offers an optimal
environment for investigating the changes in vegetation cover dynamics. Our study utilizes
advanced technologies such as GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and Remote sensing to
analyze the transformations that have taken place over the course of a decade.
The complex relationship between human activities and the environment has been the focus
of extensive research and worry. As the global community grapples with swift urbanization,
population expansion, and economic progress, the effects on natural ecosystems are becoming
more evident. A crucial element of this impact is the alteration of vegetation cover, which plays a
significant role in maintaining the ecological equilibrium of our planet.Land serves as the foundation for all human activities and provides the necessary materials for
these activities. As the most crucial natural resource, its utilization by humans results in different
'Land uses,' which are determined by both human activities and the physical characteristics of the
land.
The utilization of land is impacted by human needs and environmental factors. In countries
like India, rapid population growth and the emphasis on extensive resource exploitation can lead
to significant land degradation, adversely affecting the region's land cover.
Therefore, human intervention has significantly influenced land use patterns over many
centuries, evolving its structure over time and space. In the present era, these changes have
accelerated due to factors such as agriculture and urbanization. Information regarding land use and
cover is essential for various planning and management tasks related to the Earth's surface,
providing crucial environmental data for scientific, resource management, policy purposes, and
diverse human activities.
Accurate understanding of land use and cover is imperative for the development planning
of any area. Consequently, a wide range of professionals, including earth system scientists, land
and water managers, and urban planners, are interested in obtaining data on land use and cover
changes, conversion trends, and other related patterns. The spatial dimensions of land use and
cover support policymakers and scientists in making well-informed decisions, as alterations in
these patterns indicate shifts in economic and social conditions. Monitoring such changes with the
help of Advanced technologies like Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems is
crucial for coordinated efforts across different administrative levels. Advanced technologies like
Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems
9
Changes in vegetation cover refer to variations in the distribution, composition, and overall
structure of plant communities across different temporal and spatial scales. These changes can
occur natural.
This presentation was provided by Rebecca Benner, Ph.D., of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, for the second session of NISO's 2024 Training Series "DEIA in the Scholarly Landscape." Session Two: 'Expanding Pathways to Publishing Careers,' was held June 13, 2024.
This presentation was provided by Racquel Jemison, Ph.D., Christina MacLaughlin, Ph.D., and Paulomi Majumder. Ph.D., all of the American Chemical Society, for the second session of NISO's 2024 Training Series "DEIA in the Scholarly Landscape." Session Two: 'Expanding Pathways to Publishing Careers,' was held June 13, 2024.
A Visual Guide to 1 Samuel | A Tale of Two HeartsSteve Thomason
These slides walk through the story of 1 Samuel. Samuel is the last judge of Israel. The people reject God and want a king. Saul is anointed as the first king, but he is not a good king. David, the shepherd boy is anointed and Saul is envious of him. David shows honor while Saul continues to self destruct.
Beyond Degrees - Empowering the Workforce in the Context of Skills-First.pptxEduSkills OECD
Iván Bornacelly, Policy Analyst at the OECD Centre for Skills, OECD, presents at the webinar 'Tackling job market gaps with a skills-first approach' on 12 June 2024
Gender and Mental Health - Counselling and Family Therapy Applications and In...PsychoTech Services
A proprietary approach developed by bringing together the best of learning theories from Psychology, design principles from the world of visualization, and pedagogical methods from over a decade of training experience, that enables you to: Learn better, faster!
Gender and Mental Health - Counselling and Family Therapy Applications and In...
Information security
1. 1
Information Security
Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized
access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification or destruction.
The terms information security, computer security and information assurance are frequently
incorrectly used interchangeably. These fields are interrelated often and share the common goals of
protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information; however, there are some subtle
differences between them.
These differences lie primarily in the approach to the subject, the methodologies used, and the areas
of concentration. Information security is concerned with the confidentiality, integrity and availability of
data regardless of the form the data may take: electronic, print, or other forms.
Computer security can focus on ensuring the availability and correct operation of a computer system
without concern for the information stored or processed by the computer.
Governments, military, corporations, financial institutions, hospitals, and private businesses amass a
great deal of confidential information about their employees, customers, products, research, and
financial status. Most of this information is now collected, processed and stored on electronic
computers and transmitted across networks to other computers.
Should confidential information about a business' customers or finances or new product line fall into
the hands of a competitor, such a breach of security could lead to lost business, law suits or even
bankruptcy of the business. Protecting confidential information is a business requirement, and in
many cases also an ethical and legal requirement.
For the individual, information security has a significant effect on privacy, which is viewed very
differently in different cultures.
The field of information security has grown and evolved significantly in recent years. As a career
choice there are many ways of gaining entry into the field. It offers many areas for specialization
including: securing network(s) and allied infrastructure, securing applications and databases, security
testing, information systems auditing, business continuity planning and digital forensics science, to
name a few.
This article presents a general overview of information security and its core concepts.
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com
2. 2
History
Since the early days of writing, heads of state and military commanders understood that it was
necessary to provide some mechanism to protect the confidentiality of written correspondence and to
have some means of detecting tampering.
Julius Caesar is credited with the invention of the Caesar cipher c50 B.C., which was created in order
to prevent his secret messages from being read should a message fall into the wrong hands.
World War II brought about many advancements in information security and mark the beginning of
the professional field of information security.
The end of the 20th century and early years of the 21st century saw rapid advancements in
telecommunications, computing hardware and software, and data encryption. The availability of
smaller, more powerful and less expensive computing equipment made electronic data processing
within the reach of small business and the home user. These computers quickly became
interconnected through a network generically called the Internet or World Wide Web.
The rapid growth and widespread use of electronic data processing and electronic business conducted
through the Internet, along with numerous occurrences of international terrorism, fueled the need for
better methods of protecting the computers and the information they store, process and transmit. The
academic disciplines of computer security, information security and information assurance emerged
along with numerous professional organizations - all sharing the common goals of ensuring the
security and reliability of information systems.
Basic principles
Key concepts
For over twenty years information security has held that confidentiality, integrity and availability
(known as the CIA triad) as the core principles of information security.
Confidentiality
Confidentiality is the property of preventing disclosure of information to unauthorized individuals or
systems. For example, a credit card transaction on the Internet requires the credit card number to be
transmitted from the buyer to the merchant and from the merchant to a transaction processing
network. The system attempts to enforce confidentiality by encrypting the card number during
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com
3. 3
transmission, by limiting the places where it might appear (in databases, log files, backups, printed
receipts, and so on), and by restricting access to the places where it is stored. If an unauthorized
party obtains the card number in any way, a breach of confidentiality has occurred.
Breaches of confidentiality take many forms. Permitting someone to look over your shoulder at your
computer screen while you have confidential data displayed on it could be a breach of confidentiality.
If a laptop computer containing sensitive information about a company's employees is stolen or sold,
it could result in a breach of confidentiality. Giving out confidential information over the telephone is a
breach of confidentiality if the caller is not authorized to have the information.
Confidentiality is necessary (but not sufficient) for maintaining the privacy of the people whose
personal information a system holds.
Integrity
In information security, integrity means that data cannot be modified without authorization. This is
not the same thing as referential integrity in databases. Integrity is violated when an employee
accidentally or with malicious intent deletes important data files, when a computer virus infects a
computer, when an employee is able to modify his own salary in a payroll database, when an
unauthorized user vandalizes a web site, when someone is able to cast a very large number of votes
in an online poll, and so on.
There are many ways in which integrity could be violated without malicious intent. In the simplest
case, a user on a system could mis-type someone's address. On a larger scale, if an automated
process is not written and tested correctly, bulk updates to a database could alter data in an incorrect
way, leaving the integrity of the data compromised. Information security professionals are tasked with
finding ways to implement controls that prevent errors of integrity.
Availability
For any information system to serve its purpose, the information must be available when it is needed.
This means that the computing systems used to store and process the information, the security
controls used to protect it, and the communication channels used to access it must be functioning
correctly. High availability systems aim to remain available at all times, preventing service disruptions
due to power outages, hardware failures, and system upgrades. Ensuring availability also involves
preventing denial-of-service attacks.
In 2002, Donn Parker proposed an alternative model for the classic CIA triad that he called the six
atomic elements of information. The elements are confidentiality, possession, integrity, authenticity,
availability, and utility. The merits of the Parkerian hexad are a subject of debate amongst security
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com
4. 4
professionals.
Authenticity
In computing, e-Business and information security it is necessary to ensure that the data,
transactions, communications or documents (electronic or physical) are genuine. It is also important
for authenticity to validate that both parties involved are who they claim they are.
Non-repudiation
In law, non-repudiation implies one's intention to fulfill their obligations to a contract. It also implies
that one party of a transaction cannot deny having received a transaction nor can the other party
deny having sent a transaction.
Electronic commerce uses technology such as digital signatures and encryption to establish
authenticity and non-repudiation.
Risk management
Security is everyone’s responsibility. Security awareness poster. U.S. Department of Commerce/Office
of Security.
A comprehensive treatment of the topic of risk management is beyond the scope of this article. We
will however, provide a useful definition of risk management, outline a commonly used process for
risk management, and define some basic terminology.
The CISA Review Manual 2006 provides the following definition of risk management: "Risk
management is the process of identifying vulnerabilities and threats to the information resources used
by an organization in achieving business objectives, and deciding what countermeasures, if any, to
take in reducing risk to an acceptable level, based on the value of the information resource to the
organization."
There are two things in this definition that may need some clarification. First, the process of risk
management is an ongoing iterative process. It must be repeated indefinitely. The business
environment is constantly changing and new threats and vulnerability emerge every day. Second, the
choice of countermeasures (controls) used to manage risks must strike a balance between
productivity, cost, effectiveness of the countermeasure, and the value of the informational asset being
protected.
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com
5. 5
Risk is the likelihood that something bad will happen that causes harm to an informational asset (or
the loss of the asset). A vulnerability is a weakness that could be used to endanger or cause harm to
an informational asset. A threat is anything (man made or act of nature) that has the potential to
cause harm.
The likelihood that a threat will use a vulnerability to cause harm creates a risk. When a threat does
use a vulnerability to inflict harm, it has an impact. In the context of information security, the impact
is a loss of availability, integrity, and confidentiality, and possibly other losses (lost income, loss of
life, loss of real property). It should be pointed out that it is not possible to identify all risks, nor is it
possible to eliminate all risk. The remaining risk is called residual risk.
A risk assessment is carried out by a team of people who have knowledge of specific areas of the
business. Membership of the team may vary over time as different parts of the business are assessed.
The assessment may use a subjective qualitative analysis based on informed opinion, or where
reliable dollar figures and historical information is available, the analysis may use quantitative
analysis.
The ISO/IEC 27002:2005 Code of practice for information security management recommends the
following be examined during a risk assessment:
* security policy,
* organization of information security,
* asset management,
* human resources security,
* physical and environmental security,
* communications and operations management,
* access control,
* information systems acquisition, development and maintenance,
* information security incident management,
* business continuity management, and
* regulatory compliance.
In broad terms the risk management process consists of:
1. Identification of assets and estimating their value. Include: people, buildings, hardware,
software, data (electronic, print, other), supplies.
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6. 6
2. Conduct a threat assessment. Include: Acts of nature, acts of war, accidents, malicious acts
originating from inside or outside the organization.
3. Conduct a vulnerability assessment, and for each vulnerability, calculate the probability that it
will be exploited. Evaluate policies, procedures, standards, training, physical security, quality control,
technical security.
4. Calculate the impact that each threat would have on each asset. Use qualitative analysis or
quantitative analysis.
5. Identify, select and implement appropriate controls. Provide a proportional response. Consider
productivity, cost effectiveness, and value of the asset.
6. Evaluate the effectiveness of the control measures. Ensure the controls provide the required cost
effective protection without discernible loss of productivity.
For any given risk, Executive Management can choose to accept the risk based upon the relative low
value of the asset, the relative low frequency of occurrence, and the relative low impact on the
business. Or, leadership may choose to mitigate the risk by selecting and implementing appropriate
control measures to reduce the risk. In some cases, the risk can be transferred to another business by
buying insurance or out-sourcing to another business. The reality of some risks may be disputed. In
such cases leadership may choose to deny the risk. This is itself a potential risk.
Controls
When Management chooses to mitigate a risk, they will do so by implementing one or more of three
different types of controls.
Administrative
Administrative controls (also called procedural controls) consist of approved written policies,
procedures, standards and guidelines. Administrative controls form the framework for running the
business and managing people. They inform people on how the business is to be run and how day to
day operations are to be conducted. Laws and regulations created by government bodies are also a
type of administrative control because they inform the business. Some industry sectors have policies,
procedures, standards and guidelines that must be followed - the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data
Security Standard required by Visa and Master Card is such an example. Other examples of
administrative controls include the corporate security policy, password policy, hiring policies, and
disciplinary policies.
Administrative controls form the basis for the selection and implementation of logical and physical
controls. Logical and physical controls are manifestations of administrative controls. Administrative
controls are of paramount importance.
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com
7. 7
Logical
Logical controls (also called technical controls) use software and data to monitor and control access to
information and computing systems. For example: passwords, network and host based firewalls,
network intrusion detection systems, access control lists, and data encryption are logical controls.
An important logical control that is frequently overlooked is the principle of least privilege. The
principle of least privilege requires that an individual, program or system process is not granted any
more access privileges than are necessary to perform the task. A blatant example of the failure to
adhere to the principle of least privilege is logging into Windows as user Administrator to read Email
and surf the Web. Violations of this principle can also occur when an individual collects additional
access privileges over time. This happens when employees' job duties change, or they are promoted
to a new position, or they transfer to another department. The access privileges required by their new
duties are frequently added onto their already existing access privileges which may no longer be
necessary or appropriate.
Physical
Physical controls monitor and control the environment of the work place and computing facilities. They
also monitor and control access to and from such facilities. For example: doors, locks, heating and air
conditioning, smoke and fire alarms, fire suppression systems, cameras, barricades, fencing, security
guards, cable locks, etc. Separating the network and work place into functional areas are also physical
controls.
An important physical control that is frequently overlooked is the separation of duties. Separation of
duties ensures that an individual can not complete a critical task by himself. For example: an
employee who submits a request for reimbursement should not also be able to authorize payment or
print the check. An applications programmer should not also be the server administrator or the
database administrator - these roles and responsibilities must be separated from one another.
Security classification for information
An important aspect of information security and risk management is recognizing the value of
information and defining appropriate procedures and protection requirements for the information. Not
all information is equal and so not all information requires the same degree of protection. This
requires information to be assigned a security classification.
The first step in information classification is to identify a member of senior management as the owner
of the particular information to be classified. Next, develop a classification policy. The policy should
describe the different classification labels, define the criteria for information to be assigned a
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particular label, and list the required security controls for each classification.
Some factors that influence which classification information should be assigned include how much
value that information has to the organization, how old the information is and whether or not the
information has become obsolete. Laws and other regulatory requirements are also important
considerations when classifying information.
Common information security classification labels used by the business sector are: public, sensitive,
private, confidential. Common information security classification labels used by government are:
Unclassified, Sensitive But Unclassified, Restricted, Confidential, Secret, Top Secret and their non-
English equivalents.
All employees in the organization, as well as business partners, must be trained on the classification
schema and understand the required security controls and handling procedures for each classification.
The classification a particular information asset has been assigned should be reviewed periodically to
ensure the classification is still appropriate for the information and to ensure the security controls
required by the classification are in place.
Access control
Access to protected information must be restricted to people who are authorized to access the
information. The computer programs, and in many cases the computers that process the information,
must also be authorized. This requires that mechanisms be in place to control the access to protected
information. The sophistication of the access control mechanisms should be in parity with the value of
the information being protected - the more sensitive or valuable the information the stronger the
control mechanisms need to be. The foundation on which access control mechanisms are built start
with identification and authentication.
Identification is an assertion of who someone is or what something is. If a person makes the
statement "Hello, my name is John Doe." they are making a claim of who they are. However, their
claim may or may not be true. Before John Doe can be granted access to protected information it will
be necessary to verify that the person claiming to be John Doe really is John Doe.
Authentication is the act of verifying a claim of identity. When John Doe goes into a bank to make a
withdrawal, he tells the bank teller he is John Doe (a claim of identity). The bank teller asks to see a
photo ID, so he hands the teller his driver's license. The bank teller checks the license to make sure it
has John Doe printed on it and compares the photograph on the license against the person claiming to
be John Doe. If the photo and name match the person, then the teller has authenticated that John
Doe is who he claimed to be.
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There are three different types of information that can be used for authentication: something you
know, something you have, or something you are. Examples of something you know include such
things as a PIN, a password, or your mother's maiden name. Examples of something you have include
a driver's license or a magnetic swipe card. Something you are refers to biometrics. Examples of
biometrics include palm prints, finger prints, voice prints and retina (eye) scans. Strong authentication
requires providing information from two of the three different types of authentication information. For
example, something you know plus something you have. This is called two factor authentication.
On computer systems in use today, the Username is the most common form of identification and the
Password is the most common form of authentication. Usernames and passwords have served their
purpose but in our modern world they are no longer adequate. Usernames and passwords are slowly
being replaced with more sophisticated authentication mechanisms.
After a person, program or computer has successfully been identified and authenticated then it must
be determined what informational resources they are permitted to access and what actions they will
be allowed to perform (run, view, create, delete, or change). This is called authorization.
Authorization to access information and other computing services begins with administrative policies
and procedures. The policies prescribe what information and computing services can be accessed, by
whom, and under what conditions. The access control mechanisms are then configured to enforce
these policies.
Different computing systems are equipped with different kinds of access control mechanisms - some
may even offer a choice of different access control mechanisms. The access control mechanism a
system offers will be based upon one of three approaches to access control or it may be derived from
a combination of the three approaches.
The non-discretionary approach consolidates all access control under a centralized administration. The
access to information and other resources is usually based on the individuals function (role) in the
organization or the tasks the individual must perform. The discretionary approach gives the creator or
owner of the information resource the ability to control access to those resources. In the Mandatory
access control approach, access is granted or denied basing upon the security classification assigned
to the information resource.
Examples of common access control mechanisms in use today include Role-based access control
available in many advanced Database Management Systems, simple file permissions provided in the
UNIX and Windows operating systems, Group Policy Objects provided in Windows network systems,
Kerberos, RADIUS, TACACS, and the simple access lists used in many firewalls and routers.
To be effective, policies and other security controls must be enforceable and upheld. Effective policies
ensure that people are held accountable for their actions. All failed and successful authentication
attempts must be logged, and all access to information must leave some type of audit trail.
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Cryptography
Information security uses cryptography to transform usable information into a form that renders it
unusable by anyone other than an authorized user; this process is called encryption. Information that
has been encrypted (rendered unusable) can be transformed back into its original usable form by an
authorized user, who possesses the cryptographic key, through the process of decryption.
Cryptography is used in information security to protect information from unauthorized or accidental
discloser while the information is in transit (either electronically or physically) and while information is
in storage.
Cryptography provides information security with other useful applications as well including improved
authentication methods, message digests, digital signatures, non-repudiation, and encrypted network
communications. Older less secure application such as telnet and ftp are slowly being replaced with
more secure applications such as ssh that use encrypted network communications. Wireless
communications can be encrypted using the WPA or WEP protocols. Wired communications (such as
ITU-T G.hn) are secured using AES for encryption and X.1035 for authentication and key exchange.
Software applications such as GNUPG or PGP can be used to encrypt data files and Email.
Cryptography can introduce security problems when it is not implemented correctly. Cryptographic
solutions need to be implemented using industry accepted solutions that have undergone rigorous
peer review by independent experts in cryptography. The length and strength of the encryption key is
also an important consideration. A key that is weak or too short will produce weak encryption. The
keys used for encryption and decryption must be protected with the same degree of rigor as any other
confidential information. They must be protected from unauthorized disclosure and destruction and
they must be available when needed. PKI solutions address many of the problems that surround key
management.
Defense in depth
Information security must protect information throughout the life span of the information, from the
initial creation of the information on through to the final disposal of the information. The information
must be protected while in motion and while at rest. During its life time, information may pass
through many different information processing systems and through many different parts of
information processing systems. There are many different ways the information and information
systems can be threatened. To fully protect the information during its lifetime, each component of the
information processing system must have its own protection mechanisms. The building up, layering
on and overlapping of security measures is called defense in depth. The strength of any system is no
greater than its weakest link. Using a defence in depth strategy, should one defensive measure fail
there are other defensive measures in place that continue to provide protection.
Recall the earlier discussion about administrative controls, logical controls, and physical controls. The
three types of controls can be used to form the basis upon which to build a defense-in-depth strategy.
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With this approach, defense-in-depth can be conceptualized as three distinct layers or planes laid one
on top of the other. Additional insight into defense-in- depth can be gained by thinking of it as
forming the layers of an onion, with data at the core of the onion, people as the outer layer of the
onion, and network security, host-based security and application security forming the inner layers of
the onion. Both perspectives are equally valid and each provides valuable insight into the
implementation of a good defense-in-depth strategy.
Process
The terms reasonable and prudent person, due care and due diligence have been used in the fields of
Finance, Securities, and Law for many years. In recent years these terms have found their way into
the fields of computing and information security. U.S.A. Federal Sentencing Guidelines now make it
possible to hold corporate officers liable for failing to exercise due care and due diligence in the
management of their information systems.
In the business world, stockholders, customers, business partners and governments have the
expectation that corporate officers will run the business in accordance with accepted business
practices and in compliance with laws and other regulatory requirements. This is often described as
the "reasonable and prudent person" rule. A prudent person takes due care to ensure that everything
necessary is done to operate the business by sound business principles and in a legal ethical manner.
A prudent person is also diligent (mindful, attentive, and ongoing) in their due care of the business.
In the field of Information Security, Harris offers the following definitions of due care and due
diligence:
"Due care are steps that are taken to show that a company has taken responsibility for the
activities that take place within the corporation and has taken the necessary steps to help protect the
company, its resources, and employees." And, [Due diligence are the] "continual activities that make
sure the protection mechanisms are continually maintained and operational."
Attention should be made to two important points in these definitions. First, in due care, steps are
taken to show - this means that the steps can be verified, measured, or even produce tangible
artifacts. Second, in due diligence, there are continual activities - this means that people are actually
doing things to monitor and maintain the protection mechanisms, and these activities are ongoing.
Security governance
See also: Information Security Governance
The Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, in a publication titled "Governing for
Enterprise Security (GES)", defines characteristics of effective security governance. These include:
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* An enterprise-wide issue
* Leaders are accountable
* Viewed as a business requirement
* Risk-based
* Roles, responsibilities, and segregation of duties defined
* Addressed and enforced in policy
* Adequate resources committed
* Staff aware and trained
* A development life cycle requirement
* Planned, managed, measurable, and measured
* Reviewed and audited
Incident response plans
This section requires expansion.
Main article: Computer security incident management
1 to 3 paragraphs (non technical) that discuss:
* Selecting team members
* Define roles, responsibilities and lines of authority
* Define a security incident
* Define a reportable incident
* Training
* Detection
* Classification
* Escalation
* Containment
* Eradication
* Documentation
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Change management
Main article: Change Management (ITSM)
Change management is a formal process for directing and controlling alterations to the information
processing environment. This includes alterations to desktop computers, the network, servers and
software. The objectives of change management are to reduce the risks posed by changes to the
information processing environment and improve the stability and reliability of the processing
environment as changes are made. It is not the objective of change management to prevent or hinder
necessary changes from being implemented.
Any change to the information processing environment introduces an element of risk. Even apparently
simple changes can have unexpected effects. One of Managements many responsibilities is the
management of risk. Change management is a tool for managing the risks introduced by changes to
the information processing environment. Part of the change management process ensures that
changes are not implemented at inopportune times when they may disrupt critical business processes
or interfere with other changes being implemented.
Not every change needs to be managed. Some kinds of changes are a part of the everyday routine of
information processing and adhere to a predefined procedure, which reduces the overall level of risk
to the processing environment. Creating a new user account or deploying a new desktop computer are
examples of changes that do not generally require change management. However, relocating user file
shares, or upgrading the Email server pose a much higher level of risk to the processing environment
and are not a normal everyday activity. The critical first steps in change management are (a) defining
change (and communicating that definition) and (b) defining the scope of the change system.
Change management is usually overseen by a Change Review Board comprised of representatives
from key business areas, security, networking, systems administrators, Database administration,
applications development, desktop support and the help desk. The tasks of the Change Review Board
can be facilitated with the use of automated work flow application. The responsibility of the Change
Review Board is to ensure the organizations documented change management procedures are
followed. The change management process is as follows:
* Requested: Anyone can request a change. The person making the change request may or may
not be the same person that performs the analysis or implements the change. When a request for
change is received, it may undergo a preliminary review to determine if the requested change is
compatible with the organizations business model and practices, and to determine the amount of
resources needed to implement the change.
* Approved: Management runs the business and controls the allocation of resources therefore,
Management must approve requests for changes and assign a priority for every change. Management
might choose to reject a change request if the change is not compatible with the business model,
industry standards or best practices. Management might also choose to reject a change request if the
change requires more resources than can be allocated for the change.
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* Planned: Planning a change involves discovering the scope and impact of the proposed change;
analyzing the complexity of the change; allocation of resources and, developing, testing and
documenting both implementation and backout plans. Need to define the criteria on which a decision
to back out will be made.
* Tested: Every change must be tested in a safe test environment, which closely reflects the actual
production environment, before the change is applied to the production environment. The backout
plan must also be tested.
* Scheduled: Part of the change review board's responsibility is to assist in the scheduling of
changes by reviewing the proposed implementation date for potential conflicts with other scheduled
changes or critical business activities.
* Communicated: Once a change has been scheduled it must be communicated. The
communication is to give others the opportunity to remind the change review board about other
changes or critical business activities that might have been overlooked when scheduling the change.
The communication also serves to make the Help Desk and users aware that a change is about to
occur. Another responsibility of the change review board is to ensure that scheduled changes have
been properly communicated to those who will be affected by the change or otherwise have an
interest in the change.
* Implemented: At the appointed date and time, the changes must be implemented. Part of the
planning process was to develop an implementation plan, testing plan and, a back out plan. If the
implementation of the change should fail or, the post implementation testing fails or, other "drop
dead" criteria have been met, the back out plan should be implemented.
* Documented: All changes must be documented. The documentation includes the initial request
for change, its approval, the priority assigned to it, the implementation, testing and back out plans,
the results of the change review board critique, the date/time the change was implemented, who
implemented it, and whether the change was implemented successfully, failed or postponed.
* Post change review: The change review board should hold a post implementation review of
changes. It is particularly important to review failed and backed out changes. The review board should
try to understand the problems that were encountered, and look for areas for improvement.
Change management procedures that are simple to follow and easy to use can greatly reduce the
overall risks created when changes are made to the information processing environment. Good
change management procedures improve the over all quality and success of changes as they are
implemented. This is accomplished through planning, peer review, documentation and
communication.
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ISO/IEC 20000, The Visible OPS Handbook: Implementing ITIL in 4 Practical and Auditable Steps (Full
book summary), and Information Technology Infrastructure Library all provide valuable guidance on
implementing an efficient and effective change management program.
Business continuity
Business continuity is the mechanism by which an organization continues to operate its critical
business units, during planned or unplanned disruptions that affect normal business operations, by
invoking planned and managed procedures.
Unlike what most people think business continuity is not necessarily an IT system or process, simply
because it is about the business. Today disasters or disruptions to business are a reality. Whether the
disaster is natural or man-made (the TIME magazine has a website on the top 10), it affects normal
life and so business. So why is planning so important? Let us face reality that "all businesses recover",
whether they planned for recovery or not, simply because business is about earning money for
survival.
The planning is merely getting better prepared to face it, knowing fully well that the best plans may
fail. Planning helps to reduce cost of recovery, operational overheads and most importantly sail
through some smaller ones effortlessly.
For businesses to create effective plans they need to focus upon the following key questions. Most of
these are common knowledge, and anyone can do a BCP.
1. Should a disaster strike, what are the first few things that I should do? Should I call people to
find if they are OK or call up the bank to figure out my money is safe? This is Emergencey Response.
Emergency Response services help take the first hit when the disaster strikes and if the disaster is
serious enough the Emergency Response teams need to quickly get a Crisis Management team in
place.
2. What parts of my business should I recover first? The one that brings me most money or the one
where I spend the most, or the one that will ensure I shall be able to get sustained future growth?
The identified sections are the critical business units. There is no magic bullet here, no one answer
satisfies all. Businesses need to find answers that meet business requirements.
3. How soon should I target to recover my critical business units? In BCP technical jargon this is
called Recovery Time Objective, or RTO. This objective will define what costs the business will need to
spend to recover from a disruption. For example, it is cheaper to recover a business in 1 day than in 1
hour.
4. What all do I need to recover the business? IT, machinery, records...food, water, people...So
many aspects to dwell upon. The cost factor becomes clearer now...Business leaders need to drive
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business continuity. Hold on. My IT manager spent $200000 last month and created a DRP (Disaster
Recovery Plan), whatever happened to that? a DRP is about continuing an IT system, and is one of
the sections of a comprehensive Business Continuity Plan. Look below for more on this.
5. And where do I recover my business from... Will the business center give me space to work, or
would it be flooded by many people queuing up for the same reasons that I am.
6. But once I do recover from the disaster and work in reduced production capacity, since my main
operational sites are unavailable, how long can this go on. How long can I do without my original
sites, systems, people? this defines the amount of business resilience a business may have.
7. Now that I know how to recover my business. How do I make sure my plan works? Most BCP
pundits would recommend testing the plan at least once a year, reviewing it for adequacy and
rewriting or updating the plans either annually or when businesses change.
Disaster recovery planning
While a business continuity plan (BCP) takes a broad approach to dealing with organizational-wide
effects of a disaster, a disaster recovery plan (DRP), which is a subset of the business continuity plan,
is instead focused on taking the necessary steps to resume normal business operations as quickly as
possible. A disaster recovery plan is executed immediately after the disaster occurs and details what
steps are to be taken in order to recover critical information technology infrastructure.
Laws and regulations
Below is a partial listing of European, United Kingdom, Canadian and USA governmental laws and
regulations that have, or will have, a significant effect on data processing and information security.
Important industry sector regulations have also been included when they have a significant impact on
information security.
* UK Data Protection Act 1998 makes new provisions for the regulation of the processing of
information relating to individuals, including the obtaining, holding, use or disclosure of such
information. The European Union Data Protection Directive (EUDPD) requires that all EU member must
adopt national regulations to standardize the protection of data privacy for citizens throughout the EU.
* The Computer Misuse Act 1990 is an Act of the UK Parliament making computer crime (e.g.
cracking - sometimes incorrectly referred to as hacking) a criminal offence. The Act has become a
model upon which several other countries including Canada and the Republic of Ireland have drawn
inspiration when subsequently drafting their own information security laws.
* EU Data Retention laws requires Internet service providers and phone companies to keep data on
every electronic message sent and phone call made for between six months and two years.
* The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232 g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a
USA Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools
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that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. Generally,
schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any
information from a student's education record.
* Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 requires the adoption of
national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health
insurance plans, and employers. And, it requires health care providers, insurance providers and
employers to safeguard the security and privacy of health data.
* Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GLBA), also known as the Financial Services Modernization Act
of 1999, protects the privacy and security of private financial information that financial institutions
collect, hold, and process.
* Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX). Section 404 of the act requires publicly traded companies to
assess the effectiveness of their internal controls for financial reporting in annual reports they submit
at the end of each fiscal year. Chief information officers are responsible for the security, accuracy and
the reliability of the systems that manage and report the financial data. The act also requires publicly
traded companies to engage independent auditors who must attest to, and report on, the validity of
their assessments.
* Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) establishes comprehensive
requirements for enhancing payment account data security. It was developed by the founding
payment brands of the PCI Security Standards Council, including American Express, Discover Financial
Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa International, to help facilitate the broad adoption of
consistent data security measures on a global basis. The PCI DSS is a multifaceted security standard
that includes requirements for security management, policies, procedures, network architecture,
software design and other critical protective measures.
* State Security Breach Notification Laws (California and many others) require businesses,
nonprofits, and state institutions to notify consumers when unencrypted "personal information" may
have been compromised, lost, or stolen.
* Personal Information Protection and Electronics Document Act (PIPEDA) - An Act to support and
promote electronic commerce by protecting personal information that is collected, used or disclosed in
certain circumstances, by providing for the use of electronic means to communicate or record
information or transactions and by amending the Canada Evidence Act, the Statutory Instruments Act
and the Statute Revision ActThant is in fact the case.
Sources of standards
Main article: Cyber Security Standards
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a consortium of national standards institutes
from 157 countries with a Central Secretariat in Geneva Switzerland that coordinates the system. The
ISO is the world's largest developer of standards. The ISO-15443: "Information technology - Security
techniques - A framework for IT security assurance", ISO-17799: "Information technology - Security
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techniques - Code of practice for information security management", ISO-20000: "Information
technology - Service management", and ISO-27001: "Information technology - Security techniques -
Information security management systems" are of particular interest to information security
professionals.
The USA National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a non-regulatory federal agency
within the U.S. Department of Commerce. The NIST Computer Security Division develops standards,
metrics, tests and validation programs as well as publishes standards and guidelines to increase
secure IT planning, implementation, management and operation. NIST is also the custodian of the
USA Federal Information Processing Standardpublications (FIPS)].
The Internet Society is a professional membership society with more than 100 organization and over
20,000 individual members in over 180 countries. It provides leadership in addressing issues that
confront the future of the Internet, and is the organization home for the groups responsible for
Internet infrastructure standards, including the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and the
Internet Architecture Board (IAB). The ISOC hosts the Requests for Comments (RFCs) which includes
the Official Internet Protocol Standards and the RFC-2196 Site Security Handbook.
The Information Security Forum is a global nonprofit organization of several hundred leading
organizations in financial services, manufacturing, telecommunications, consumer goods, government,
and other areas. It provides research into best practice and practice advice summarized in its biannual
Standard of Good Practice, incorporating detail specifications across many areas.
The IT Baseline Protection Catalogs, or IT-Grundschutz Catalogs, ("IT Baseline Protection Manual"
before 2005) are a collection of documents from the German Federal Office for Security in Information
Technology (FSI), useful for detecting and combating security-relevant weak points in the IT
environment (“IT cluster“). The collection encompasses over 3000 pages with the introduction and
catalogs.
Professionalism
In 1989, Carnegie Mellon University established the Information Networking Institute, the United
States' first research and education center devoted to information networking. The academic
disciplines of computer security, information security and information assurance emerged along with
numerous professional organizations during the later years of the 20th century and early years of the
21st century.
Entry into the field can be accomplished through self-study, college or university schooling in the field,
or through week long focused training camps. Many colleges, universities and training companies offer
many of their programs on- line. The GIAC-GSEC and Security+ certifications are both entry level
security certifications. Membership of the Institute of Information Security Professionals (IISP) is
gaining traction in the U.K. as the professional standard for Information Security Professionals.
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The Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) is a mid- to senior-level information
security certification. The Information Systems Security Architecture Professional (ISSAP),
Information Systems Security Engineering Professional (ISSEP), Information Systems Security
Management Professional (ISSMP), and Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) certifications
are well-respected advanced certifications in information-security architecture, engineering, and
management respectively.
The profession of information security has seen an increased demand for security professionals who
are experienced in network security auditing, penetration testing, and digital forensics investigation.
In addition, many smaller companies have cropped up as the result of this increased demand in
information security training and consulting.
Conclusion
Information security is the ongoing process of exercising due care and due diligence to protect
information, and information systems, from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, destruction,
modification, or disruption or distribution. The never ending process of information security involves
ongoing training, assessment, protection, monitoring & detection, incident response & repair,
documentation, and review. Information security means protecting information and information
systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification or destruction.
The terms information security, computer security and information assurance are frequently
incorrectly used interchangeably. These fields are interrelated often and share the common goals of
protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information; however, there are some subtle
differences between them.
These differences lie primarily in the approach to the subject, the methodologies used, and the areas
of concentration. Information security is concerned with the confidentiality, integrity and availability of
data regardless of the form the data may take: electronic, print, or other forms.
Computer security can focus on ensuring the availability and correct operation of a computer system
without concern for the information stored or processed by the computer.
Governments, military, corporations, financial institutions, hospitals, and private businesses amass a
great deal of confidential information about their employees, customers, products, research, and
financial status. Most of this information is now collected, processed and stored on electronic
computers and transmitted across networks to other computers.
Should confidential information about a business' customers or finances or new product line fall into
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the hands of a competitor, such a breach of security could lead to lost business, law suits or even
bankruptcy of the business. Protecting confidential information is a business requirement, and in
many cases also an ethical and legal requirement.
For the individual, information security has a significant effect on privacy, which is viewed very
differently in different cultures.
The field of information security has grown and evolved significantly in recent years. As a career
choice there are many ways of gaining entry into the field. It offers many areas for specialization
including: securing network(s) and allied infrastructure, securing applications and databases, security
testing, information systems auditing, business continuity planning and digital forensics science, to
name a few.
This article presents a general overview of information security and its core concepts.
History
Since the early days of writing, heads of state and military commanders understood that it was
necessary to provide some mechanism to protect the confidentiality of written correspondence and to
have some means of detecting tampering.
Julius Caesar is credited with the invention of the Caesar cipher c50 B.C., which was created in order
to prevent his secret messages from being read should a message fall into the wrong hands.
World War II brought about many advancements in information security and mark the beginning of
the professional field of information security.
The end of the 20th century and early years of the 21st century saw rapid advancements in
telecommunications, computing hardware and software, and data encryption. The availability of
smaller, more powerful and less expensive computing equipment made electronic data processing
within the reach of small business and the home user. These computers quickly became
interconnected through a network generically called the Internet or World Wide Web.
The rapid growth and widespread use of electronic data processing and electronic business conducted
through the Internet, along with numerous occurrences of international terrorism, fueled the need for
better methods of protecting the computers and the information they store, process and transmit. The
academic disciplines of computer security, information security and information assurance emerged
along with numerous professional organizations - all sharing the common goals of ensuring the
security and reliability of information systems.
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Basic principles
Key concepts
For over twenty years information security has held that confidentiality, integrity and availability
(known as the CIA triad) as the core principles of information security.
Confidentiality
Confidentiality is the property of preventing disclosure of information to unauthorized individuals or
systems. For example, a credit card transaction on the Internet requires the credit card number to be
transmitted from the buyer to the merchant and from the merchant to a transaction processing
network. The system attempts to enforce confidentiality by encrypting the card number during
transmission, by limiting the places where it might appear (in databases, log files, backups, printed
receipts, and so on), and by restricting access to the places where it is stored. If an unauthorized
party obtains the card number in any way, a breach of confidentiality has occurred.
Breaches of confidentiality take many forms. Permitting someone to look over your shoulder at your
computer screen while you have confidential data displayed on it could be a breach of confidentiality.
If a laptop computer containing sensitive information about a company's employees is stolen or sold,
it could result in a breach of confidentiality. Giving out confidential information over the telephone is a
breach of confidentiality if the caller is not authorized to have the information.
Confidentiality is necessary (but not sufficient) for maintaining the privacy of the people whose
personal information a system holds.
Integrity
In information security, integrity means that data cannot be modified without authorization. This is
not the same thing as referential integrity in databases. Integrity is violated when an employee
accidentally or with malicious intent deletes important data files, when a computer virus infects a
computer, when an employee is able to modify his own salary in a payroll database, when an
unauthorized user vandalizes a web site, when someone is able to cast a very large number of votes
in an online poll, and so on.
There are many ways in which integrity could be violated without malicious intent. In the simplest
case, a user on a system could mis-type someone's address. On a larger scale, if an automated
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process is not written and tested correctly, bulk updates to a database could alter data in an incorrect
way, leaving the integrity of the data compromised. Information security professionals are tasked with
finding ways to implement controls that prevent errors of integrity.
Availability
For any information system to serve its purpose, the information must be available when it is needed.
This means that the computing systems used to store and process the information, the security
controls used to protect it, and the communication channels used to access it must be functioning
correctly. High availability systems aim to remain available at all times, preventing service disruptions
due to power outages, hardware failures, and system upgrades. Ensuring availability also involves
preventing denial-of-service attacks.
In 2002, Donn Parker proposed an alternative model for the classic CIA triad that he called the six
atomic elements of information. The elements are confidentiality, possession, integrity, authenticity,
availability, and utility. The merits of the Parkerian hexad are a subject of debate amongst security
professionals.
Authenticity
In computing, e-Business and information security it is necessary to ensure that the data,
transactions, communications or documents (electronic or physical) are genuine. It is also important
for authenticity to validate that both parties involved are who they claim they are.
Non-repudiation
In law, non-repudiation implies one's intention to fulfill their obligations to a contract. It also implies
that one party of a transaction cannot deny having received a transaction nor can the other party
deny having sent a transaction.
Electronic commerce uses technology such as digital signatures and encryption to establish
authenticity and non-repudiation.
Risk management
Security is everyone’s responsibility. Security awareness poster. U.S. Department of Commerce/Office
of Security.
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A comprehensive treatment of the topic of risk management is beyond the scope of this article. We
will however, provide a useful definition of risk management, outline a commonly used process for
risk management, and define some basic terminology.
The CISA Review Manual 2006 provides the following definition of risk management: "Risk
management is the process of identifying vulnerabilities and threats to the information resources used
by an organization in achieving business objectives, and deciding what countermeasures, if any, to
take in reducing risk to an acceptable level, based on the value of the information resource to the
organization."
There are two things in this definition that may need some clarification. First, the process of risk
management is an ongoing iterative process. It must be repeated indefinitely. The business
environment is constantly changing and new threats and vulnerability emerge every day. Second, the
choice of countermeasures (controls) used to manage risks must strike a balance between
productivity, cost, effectiveness of the countermeasure, and the value of the informational asset being
protected.
Risk is the likelihood that something bad will happen that causes harm to an informational asset (or
the loss of the asset). A vulnerability is a weakness that could be used to endanger or cause harm to
an informational asset. A threat is anything (man made or act of nature) that has the potential to
cause harm.
The likelihood that a threat will use a vulnerability to cause harm creates a risk. When a threat does
use a vulnerability to inflict harm, it has an impact. In the context of information security, the impact
is a loss of availability, integrity, and confidentiality, and possibly other losses (lost income, loss of
life, loss of real property). It should be pointed out that it is not possible to identify all risks, nor is it
possible to eliminate all risk. The remaining risk is called residual risk.
A risk assessment is carried out by a team of people who have knowledge of specific areas of the
business. Membership of the team may vary over time as different parts of the business are assessed.
The assessment may use a subjective qualitative analysis based on informed opinion, or where
reliable dollar figures and historical information is available, the analysis may use quantitative
analysis.
The ISO/IEC 27002:2005 Code of practice for information security management recommends the
following be examined during a risk assessment:
* security policy,
* organization of information security,
* asset management,
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* human resources security,
* physical and environmental security,
* communications and operations management,
* access control,
* information systems acquisition, development and maintenance,
* information security incident management,
* business continuity management, and
* regulatory compliance.
In broad terms the risk management process consists of:
1. Identification of assets and estimating their value. Include: people, buildings, hardware,
software, data (electronic, print, other), supplies.
2. Conduct a threat assessment. Include: Acts of nature, acts of war, accidents, malicious acts
originating from inside or outside the organization.
3. Conduct a vulnerability assessment, and for each vulnerability, calculate the probability that it
will be exploited. Evaluate policies, procedures, standards, training, physical security, quality control,
technical security.
4. Calculate the impact that each threat would have on each asset. Use qualitative analysis or
quantitative analysis.
5. Identify, select and implement appropriate controls. Provide a proportional response. Consider
productivity, cost effectiveness, and value of the asset.
6. Evaluate the effectiveness of the control measures. Ensure the controls provide the required cost
effective protection without discernible loss of productivity.
For any given risk, Executive Management can choose to accept the risk based upon the relative low
value of the asset, the relative low frequency of occurrence, and the relative low impact on the
business. Or, leadership may choose to mitigate the risk by selecting and implementing appropriate
control measures to reduce the risk. In some cases, the risk can be transferred to another business by
buying insurance or out-sourcing to another business. The reality of some risks may be disputed. In
such cases leadership may choose to deny the risk. This is itself a potential risk.
Controls
When Management chooses to mitigate a risk, they will do so by implementing one or more of three
different types of controls.
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Administrative
Administrative controls (also called procedural controls) consist of approved written policies,
procedures, standards and guidelines. Administrative controls form the framework for running the
business and managing people. They inform people on how the business is to be run and how day to
day operations are to be conducted. Laws and regulations created by government bodies are also a
type of administrative control because they inform the business. Some industry sectors have policies,
procedures, standards and guidelines that must be followed - the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data
Security Standard required by Visa and Master Card is such an example. Other examples of
administrative controls include the corporate security policy, password policy, hiring policies, and
disciplinary policies.
Administrative controls form the basis for the selection and implementation of logical and physical
controls. Logical and physical controls are manifestations of administrative controls. Administrative
controls are of paramount importance.
Logical
Logical controls (also called technical controls) use software and data to monitor and control access to
information and computing systems. For example: passwords, network and host based firewalls,
network intrusion detection systems, access control lists, and data encryption are logical controls.
An important logical control that is frequently overlooked is the principle of least privilege. The
principle of least privilege requires that an individual, program or system process is not granted any
more access privileges than are necessary to perform the task. A blatant example of the failure to
adhere to the principle of least privilege is logging into Windows as user Administrator to read Email
and surf the Web. Violations of this principle can also occur when an individual collects additional
access privileges over time. This happens when employees' job duties change, or they are promoted
to a new position, or they transfer to another department. The access privileges required by their new
duties are frequently added onto their already existing access privileges which may no longer be
necessary or appropriate.
Physical
Physical controls monitor and control the environment of the work place and computing facilities. They
also monitor and control access to and from such facilities. For example: doors, locks, heating and air
conditioning, smoke and fire alarms, fire suppression systems, cameras, barricades, fencing, security
guards, cable locks, etc. Separating the network and work place into functional areas are also physical
controls.
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An important physical control that is frequently overlooked is the separation of duties. Separation of
duties ensures that an individual can not complete a critical task by himself. For example: an
employee who submits a request for reimbursement should not also be able to authorize payment or
print the check. An applications programmer should not also be the server administrator or the
database administrator - these roles and responsibilities must be separated from one another.
Security classification for information
An important aspect of information security and risk management is recognizing the value of
information and defining appropriate procedures and protection requirements for the information. Not
all information is equal and so not all information requires the same degree of protection. This
requires information to be assigned a security classification.
The first step in information classification is to identify a member of senior management as the owner
of the particular information to be classified. Next, develop a classification policy. The policy should
describe the different classification labels, define the criteria for information to be assigned a
particular label, and list the required security controls for each classification.
Some factors that influence which classification information should be assigned include how much
value that information has to the organization, how old the information is and whether or not the
information has become obsolete. Laws and other regulatory requirements are also important
considerations when classifying information.
Common information security classification labels used by the business sector are: public, sensitive,
private, confidential. Common information security classification labels used by government are:
Unclassified, Sensitive But Unclassified, Restricted, Confidential, Secret, Top Secret and their non-
English equivalents.
All employees in the organization, as well as business partners, must be trained on the classification
schema and understand the required security controls and handling procedures for each classification.
The classification a particular information asset has been assigned should be reviewed periodically to
ensure the classification is still appropriate for the information and to ensure the security controls
required by the classification are in place.
Access control
Access to protected information must be restricted to people who are authorized to access the
information. The computer programs, and in many cases the computers that process the information,
must also be authorized. This requires that mechanisms be in place to control the access to protected
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information. The sophistication of the access control mechanisms should be in parity with the value of
the information being protected - the more sensitive or valuable the information the stronger the
control mechanisms need to be. The foundation on which access control mechanisms are built start
with identification and authentication.
Identification is an assertion of who someone is or what something is. If a person makes the
statement "Hello, my name is John Doe." they are making a claim of who they are. However, their
claim may or may not be true. Before John Doe can be granted access to protected information it will
be necessary to verify that the person claiming to be John Doe really is John Doe.
Authentication is the act of verifying a claim of identity. When John Doe goes into a bank to make a
withdrawal, he tells the bank teller he is John Doe (a claim of identity). The bank teller asks to see a
photo ID, so he hands the teller his driver's license. The bank teller checks the license to make sure it
has John Doe printed on it and compares the photograph on the license against the person claiming to
be John Doe. If the photo and name match the person, then the teller has authenticated that John
Doe is who he claimed to be.
There are three different types of information that can be used for authentication: something you
know, something you have, or something you are. Examples of something you know include such
things as a PIN, a password, or your mother's maiden name. Examples of something you have include
a driver's license or a magnetic swipe card. Something you are refers to biometrics. Examples of
biometrics include palm prints, finger prints, voice prints and retina (eye) scans. Strong authentication
requires providing information from two of the three different types of authentication information. For
example, something you know plus something you have. This is called two factor authentication.
On computer systems in use today, the Username is the most common form of identification and the
Password is the most common form of authentication. Usernames and passwords have served their
purpose but in our modern world they are no longer adequate. Usernames and passwords are slowly
being replaced with more sophisticated authentication mechanisms.
After a person, program or computer has successfully been identified and authenticated then it must
be determined what informational resources they are permitted to access and what actions they will
be allowed to perform (run, view, create, delete, or change). This is called authorization.
Authorization to access information and other computing services begins with administrative policies
and procedures. The policies prescribe what information and computing services can be accessed, by
whom, and under what conditions. The access control mechanisms are then configured to enforce
these policies.
Different computing systems are equipped with different kinds of access control mechanisms - some
may even offer a choice of different access control mechanisms. The access control mechanism a
system offers will be based upon one of three approaches to access control or it may be derived from
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a combination of the three approaches.
The non-discretionary approach consolidates all access control under a centralized administration. The
access to information and other resources is usually based on the individuals function (role) in the
organization or the tasks the individual must perform. The discretionary approach gives the creator or
owner of the information resource the ability to control access to those resources. In the Mandatory
access control approach, access is granted or denied basing upon the security classification assigned
to the information resource.
Examples of common access control mechanisms in use today include Role-based access control
available in many advanced Database Management Systems, simple file permissions provided in the
UNIX and Windows operating systems, Group Policy Objects provided in Windows network systems,
Kerberos, RADIUS, TACACS, and the simple access lists used in many firewalls and routers.
To be effective, policies and other security controls must be enforceable and upheld. Effective policies
ensure that people are held accountable for their actions. All failed and successful authentication
attempts must be logged, and all access to information must leave some type of audit trail.
Cryptography
Information security uses cryptography to transform usable information into a form that renders it
unusable by anyone other than an authorized user; this process is called encryption. Information that
has been encrypted (rendered unusable) can be transformed back into its original usable form by an
authorized user, who possesses the cryptographic key, through the process of decryption.
Cryptography is used in information security to protect information from unauthorized or accidental
discloser while the information is in transit (either electronically or physically) and while information is
in storage.
Cryptography provides information security with other useful applications as well including improved
authentication methods, message digests, digital signatures, non-repudiation, and encrypted network
communications. Older less secure application such as telnet and ftp are slowly being replaced with
more secure applications such as ssh that use encrypted network communications. Wireless
communications can be encrypted using the WPA or WEP protocols. Wired communications (such as
ITU-T G.hn) are secured using AES for encryption and X.1035 for authentication and key exchange.
Software applications such as GNUPG or PGP can be used to encrypt data files and Email.
Cryptography can introduce security problems when it is not implemented correctly. Cryptographic
solutions need to be implemented using industry accepted solutions that have undergone rigorous
peer review by independent experts in cryptography. The length and strength of the encryption key is
also an important consideration. A key that is weak or too short will produce weak encryption. The
keys used for encryption and decryption must be protected with the same degree of rigor as any other
confidential information. They must be protected from unauthorized disclosure and destruction and
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they must be available when needed. PKI solutions address many of the problems that surround key
management.
Defense in depth
Information security must protect information throughout the life span of the information, from the
initial creation of the information on through to the final disposal of the information. The information
must be protected while in motion and while at rest. During its life time, information may pass
through many different information processing systems and through many different parts of
information processing systems. There are many different ways the information and information
systems can be threatened. To fully protect the information during its lifetime, each component of the
information processing system must have its own protection mechanisms. The building up, layering
on and overlapping of security measures is called defense in depth. The strength of any system is no
greater than its weakest link. Using a defence in depth strategy, should one defensive measure fail
there are other defensive measures in place that continue to provide protection.
Recall the earlier discussion about administrative controls, logical controls, and physical controls. The
three types of controls can be used to form the basis upon which to build a defense-in-depth strategy.
With this approach, defense-in-depth can be conceptualized as three distinct layers or planes laid one
on top of the other. Additional insight into defense-in- depth can be gained by thinking of it as
forming the layers of an onion, with data at the core of the onion, people as the outer layer of the
onion, and network security, host-based security and application security forming the inner layers of
the onion. Both perspectives are equally valid and each provides valuable insight into the
implementation of a good defense-in-depth strategy.
Process
The terms reasonable and prudent person, due care and due diligence have been used in the fields of
Finance, Securities, and Law for many years. In recent years these terms have found their way into
the fields of computing and information security. U.S.A. Federal Sentencing Guidelines now make it
possible to hold corporate officers liable for failing to exercise due care and due diligence in the
management of their information systems.
In the business world, stockholders, customers, business partners and governments have the
expectation that corporate officers will run the business in accordance with accepted business
practices and in compliance with laws and other regulatory requirements. This is often described as
the "reasonable and prudent person" rule. A prudent person takes due care to ensure that everything
necessary is done to operate the business by sound business principles and in a legal ethical manner.
A prudent person is also diligent (mindful, attentive, and ongoing) in their due care of the business.
In the field of Information Security, Harris offers the following definitions of due care and due
diligence:
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"Due care are steps that are taken to show that a company has taken responsibility for the
activities that take place within the corporation and has taken the necessary steps to help protect the
company, its resources, and employees." And, [Due diligence are the] "continual activities that make
sure the protection mechanisms are continually maintained and operational."
Attention should be made to two important points in these definitions. First, in due care, steps are
taken to show - this means that the steps can be verified, measured, or even produce tangible
artifacts. Second, in due diligence, there are continual activities - this means that people are actually
doing things to monitor and maintain the protection mechanisms, and these activities are ongoing.
Security governance
See also: Information Security Governance
The Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, in a publication titled "Governing for
Enterprise Security (GES)", defines characteristics of effective security governance. These include:
* An enterprise-wide issue
* Leaders are accountable
* Viewed as a business requirement
* Risk-based
* Roles, responsibilities, and segregation of duties defined
* Addressed and enforced in policy
* Adequate resources committed
* Staff aware and trained
* A development life cycle requirement
* Planned, managed, measurable, and measured
* Reviewed and audited
Incident response plans
This section requires expansion.
Main article: Computer security incident management
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1 to 3 paragraphs (non technical) that discuss:
* Selecting team members
* Define roles, responsibilities and lines of authority
* Define a security incident
* Define a reportable incident
* Training
* Detection
* Classification
* Escalation
* Containment
* Eradication
* Documentation
Change management
Main article: Change Management (ITSM)
Change management is a formal process for directing and controlling alterations to the information
processing environment. This includes alterations to desktop computers, the network, servers and
software. The objectives of change management are to reduce the risks posed by changes to the
information processing environment and improve the stability and reliability of the processing
environment as changes are made. It is not the objective of change management to prevent or hinder
necessary changes from being implemented.
Any change to the information processing environment introduces an element of risk. Even apparently
simple changes can have unexpected effects. One of Managements many responsibilities is the
management of risk. Change management is a tool for managing the risks introduced by changes to
the information processing environment. Part of the change management process ensures that
changes are not implemented at inopportune times when they may disrupt critical business processes
or interfere with other changes being implemented.
Not every change needs to be managed. Some kinds of changes are a part of the everyday routine of
information processing and adhere to a predefined procedure, which reduces the overall level of risk
to the processing environment. Creating a new user account or deploying a new desktop computer are
examples of changes that do not generally require change management. However, relocating user file
shares, or upgrading the Email server pose a much higher level of risk to the processing environment
and are not a normal everyday activity. The critical first steps in change management are (a) defining
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change (and communicating that definition) and (b) defining the scope of the change system.
Change management is usually overseen by a Change Review Board comprised of representatives
from key business areas, security, networking, systems administrators, Database administration,
applications development, desktop support and the help desk. The tasks of the Change Review Board
can be facilitated with the use of automated work flow application. The responsibility of the Change
Review Board is to ensure the organizations documented change management procedures are
followed. The change management process is as follows:
* Requested: Anyone can request a change. The person making the change request may or may
not be the same person that performs the analysis or implements the change. When a request for
change is received, it may undergo a preliminary review to determine if the requested change is
compatible with the organizations business model and practices, and to determine the amount of
resources needed to implement the change.
* Approved: Management runs the business and controls the allocation of resources therefore,
Management must approve requests for changes and assign a priority for every change. Management
might choose to reject a change request if the change is not compatible with the business model,
industry standards or best practices. Management might also choose to reject a change request if the
change requires more resources than can be allocated for the change.
* Planned: Planning a change involves discovering the scope and impact of the proposed change;
analyzing the complexity of the change; allocation of resources and, developing, testing and
documenting both implementation and backout plans. Need to define the criteria on which a decision
to back out will be made.
* Tested: Every change must be tested in a safe test environment, which closely reflects the actual
production environment, before the change is applied to the production environment. The backout
plan must also be tested.
* Scheduled: Part of the change review board's responsibility is to assist in the scheduling of
changes by reviewing the proposed implementation date for potential conflicts with other scheduled
changes or critical business activities.
* Communicated: Once a change has been scheduled it must be communicated. The
communication is to give others the opportunity to remind the change review board about other
changes or critical business activities that might have been overlooked when scheduling the change.
The communication also serves to make the Help Desk and users aware that a change is about to
occur. Another responsibility of the change review board is to ensure that scheduled changes have
been properly communicated to those who will be affected by the change or otherwise have an
interest in the change.
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* Implemented: At the appointed date and time, the changes must be implemented. Part of the
planning process was to develop an implementation plan, testing plan and, a back out plan. If the
implementation of the change should fail or, the post implementation testing fails or, other "drop
dead" criteria have been met, the back out plan should be implemented.
* Documented: All changes must be documented. The documentation includes the initial request
for change, its approval, the priority assigned to it, the implementation, testing and back out plans,
the results of the change review board critique, the date/time the change was implemented, who
implemented it, and whether the change was implemented successfully, failed or postponed.
* Post change review: The change review board should hold a post implementation review of
changes. It is particularly important to review failed and backed out changes. The review board should
try to understand the problems that were encountered, and look for areas for improvement.
Change management procedures that are simple to follow and easy to use can greatly reduce the
overall risks created when changes are made to the information processing environment. Good
change management procedures improve the over all quality and success of changes as they are
implemented. This is accomplished through planning, peer review, documentation and
communication.
ISO/IEC 20000, The Visible OPS Handbook: Implementing ITIL in 4 Practical and Auditable Steps (Full
book summary), and Information Technology Infrastructure Library all provide valuable guidance on
implementing an efficient and effective change management program.
Business continuity
Business continuity is the mechanism by which an organization continues to operate its critical
business units, during planned or unplanned disruptions that affect normal business operations, by
invoking planned and managed procedures.
Unlike what most people think business continuity is not necessarily an IT system or process, simply
because it is about the business. Today disasters or disruptions to business are a reality. Whether the
disaster is natural or man-made (the TIME magazine has a website on the top 10), it affects normal
life and so business. So why is planning so important? Let us face reality that "all businesses recover",
whether they planned for recovery or not, simply because business is about earning money for
survival.
The planning is merely getting better prepared to face it, knowing fully well that the best plans may
fail. Planning helps to reduce cost of recovery, operational overheads and most importantly sail
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through some smaller ones effortlessly.
For businesses to create effective plans they need to focus upon the following key questions. Most of
these are common knowledge, and anyone can do a BCP.
1. Should a disaster strike, what are the first few things that I should do? Should I call people to
find if they are OK or call up the bank to figure out my money is safe? This is Emergencey Response.
Emergency Response services help take the first hit when the disaster strikes and if the disaster is
serious enough the Emergency Response teams need to quickly get a Crisis Management team in
place.
2. What parts of my business should I recover first? The one that brings me most money or the one
where I spend the most, or the one that will ensure I shall be able to get sustained future growth?
The identified sections are the critical business units. There is no magic bullet here, no one answer
satisfies all. Businesses need to find answers that meet business requirements.
3. How soon should I target to recover my critical business units? In BCP technical jargon this is
called Recovery Time Objective, or RTO. This objective will define what costs the business will need to
spend to recover from a disruption. For example, it is cheaper to recover a business in 1 day than in 1
hour.
4. What all do I need to recover the business? IT, machinery, records...food, water, people...So
many aspects to dwell upon. The cost factor becomes clearer now...Business leaders need to drive
business continuity. Hold on. My IT manager spent $200000 last month and created a DRP (Disaster
Recovery Plan), whatever happened to that? a DRP is about continuing an IT system, and is one of
the sections of a comprehensive Business Continuity Plan. Look below for more on this.
5. And where do I recover my business from... Will the business center give me space to work, or
would it be flooded by many people queuing up for the same reasons that I am.
6. But once I do recover from the disaster and work in reduced production capacity, since my main
operational sites are unavailable, how long can this go on. How long can I do without my original
sites, systems, people? this defines the amount of business resilience a business may have.
7. Now that I know how to recover my business. How do I make sure my plan works? Most BCP
pundits would recommend testing the plan at least once a year, reviewing it for adequacy and
rewriting or updating the plans either annually or when businesses change.
Disaster recovery planning
While a business continuity plan (BCP) takes a broad approach to dealing with organizational-wide
effects of a disaster, a disaster recovery plan (DRP), which is a subset of the business continuity plan,
is instead focused on taking the necessary steps to resume normal business operations as quickly as
possible. A disaster recovery plan is executed immediately after the disaster occurs and details what
steps are to be taken in order to recover critical information technology infrastructure.
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Laws and regulations
Below is a partial listing of European, United Kingdom, Canadian and USA governmental laws and
regulations that have, or will have, a significant effect on data processing and information security.
Important industry sector regulations have also been included when they have a significant impact on
information security.
* UK Data Protection Act 1998 makes new provisions for the regulation of the processing of
information relating to individuals, including the obtaining, holding, use or disclosure of such
information. The European Union Data Protection Directive (EUDPD) requires that all EU member must
adopt national regulations to standardize the protection of data privacy for citizens throughout the EU.
* The Computer Misuse Act 1990 is an Act of the UK Parliament making computer crime (e.g.
cracking - sometimes incorrectly referred to as hacking) a criminal offence. The Act has become a
model upon which several other countries including Canada and the Republic of Ireland have drawn
inspiration when subsequently drafting their own information security laws.
* EU Data Retention laws requires Internet service providers and phone companies to keep data on
every electronic message sent and phone call made for between six months and two years.
* The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232 g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a
USA Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools
that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. Generally,
schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any
information from a student's education record.
* Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 requires the adoption of
national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health
insurance plans, and employers. And, it requires health care providers, insurance providers and
employers to safeguard the security and privacy of health data.
* Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GLBA), also known as the Financial Services Modernization Act
of 1999, protects the privacy and security of private financial information that financial institutions
collect, hold, and process.
* Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX). Section 404 of the act requires publicly traded companies to
assess the effectiveness of their internal controls for financial reporting in annual reports they submit
at the end of each fiscal year. Chief information officers are responsible for the security, accuracy and
the reliability of the systems that manage and report the financial data. The act also requires publicly
traded companies to engage independent auditors who must attest to, and report on, the validity of
their assessments.
* Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) establishes comprehensive
requirements for enhancing payment account data security. It was developed by the founding
payment brands of the PCI Security Standards Council, including American Express, Discover Financial
Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa International, to help facilitate the broad adoption of
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consistent data security measures on a global basis. The PCI DSS is a multifaceted security standard
that includes requirements for security management, policies, procedures, network architecture,
software design and other critical protective measures.
* State Security Breach Notification Laws (California and many others) require businesses,
nonprofits, and state institutions to notify consumers when unencrypted "personal information" may
have been compromised, lost, or stolen.
* Personal Information Protection and Electronics Document Act (PIPEDA) - An Act to support and
promote electronic commerce by protecting personal information that is collected, used or disclosed in
certain circumstances, by providing for the use of electronic means to communicate or record
information or transactions and by amending the Canada Evidence Act, the Statutory Instruments Act
and the Statute Revision ActThant is in fact the case.
Sources of standards
Main article: Cyber Security Standards
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a consortium of national standards institutes
from 157 countries with a Central Secretariat in Geneva Switzerland that coordinates the system. The
ISO is the world's largest developer of standards. The ISO-15443: "Information technology - Security
techniques - A framework for IT security assurance", ISO-17799: "Information technology - Security
techniques - Code of practice for information security management", ISO-20000: "Information
technology - Service management", and ISO-27001: "Information technology - Security techniques -
Information security management systems" are of particular interest to information security
professionals.
The USA National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a non-regulatory federal agency
within the U.S. Department of Commerce. The NIST Computer Security Division develops standards,
metrics, tests and validation programs as well as publishes standards and guidelines to increase
secure IT planning, implementation, management and operation. NIST is also the custodian of the
USA Federal Information Processing Standardpublications (FIPS)].
The Internet Society is a professional membership society with more than 100 organization and over
20,000 individual members in over 180 countries. It provides leadership in addressing issues that
confront the future of the Internet, and is the organization home for the groups responsible for
Internet infrastructure standards, including the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and the
Internet Architecture Board (IAB). The ISOC hosts the Requests for Comments (RFCs) which includes
the Official Internet Protocol Standards and the RFC-2196 Site Security Handbook.
The Information Security Forum is a global nonprofit organization of several hundred leading
organizations in financial services, manufacturing, telecommunications, consumer goods, government,
and other areas. It provides research into best practice and practice advice summarized in its biannual
Standard of Good Practice, incorporating detail specifications across many areas.
Information Security - www.viplavkambli.com