SIX Flashcards
(17 cards)
cyber security
cyber security is the processes, practices and technologies designed to protect networks, computers, programs and data from attack, damage or unauthorised access
social engirneering techniques
mailicious code (malware)
pharming
weak and default passwords
misconfigured access rights
removable media
unpatched and/or outdated software
Social engineering techniques
blagging—using an invented scenario to target someone to persuade the victim to share information or do things they wouldn’t normally do. Uses sense of urgency to pressure victims
phishing - using email or text message to obtain information. pretending to be from a well knwon business, lead the victim to a fake website—e.g. bank website and then asks victim to enter bank details
shouldering—watching and observing a person’s activity—spying on someone’s pin number, or password. also through cctv/cameras
Malicious software (malware)
malicious code that is designed to cause harm or gain unauthorised access to a computer system
virus
trojan horse
spyware
virus
replicate code in other programs and infect other computers
harm the computer by deleting, corrupting or modifying files
worms
replicate itself in order to spread to other computers
they might cause no damage to the attacked computers
slowdown networks and computers
trojan
disguise themselves as legitimate software but contain malicious code in the background
games, programs or cracked files that the user wants and installs
then the negative program in the Trojan can attack and damage files, steal data and provide unauthorised access to the computer and control it
Spyware
software which allows a person to spy on the user’s activities on their devices
it is embedded into other software, e.g. games or programs that have been downloaded from illegitimate sources
spyware can record user’s screen, log your keystrokes to grain access to passwords
Pharming
WHen computer requests a website it asks the DNS (domain name system) server for the IP adddress
the DNS server replies with the IP address. Hackers can change the entry on the DNS server then they make it point to a fake website that they control so the DNS server has been poisoned.
fake website appears to be the same as real website. When the user types personal details into the website, the hacker’s can colelct the information and use it for themselves
weak and default passwords
easy to obtain by brute force attack
should have password rules, e.g. 8-12 characters long, symbol, number
misconfigured access rights
can give users too much access which they can misuse, e.g. share confidential information
protect against it be granting minimum access rights unless proven to need more
removable media
could be used to steal documents and files from a company
introduce malware
malware could be present on a home computer and then infect the removable media device when inserted
or a hacker could leave an infected USB flash drive in a car part or reception of a business
could restrict the use of removable media
unpatched software:
many updates contain fixes to known security issues
hackers will be aware of the known issues, so computers that haven’t been updated yet are easy targets
antivirus software
the virus is detected and sent to the antivirus company
it scans files to detect the malware by checking it against their database of viruses
when something suspicious is detected the company places the file in quarantine
it tells the user that it’s in quarantine
the user can still view the file when it is in quarantine
prevent cyber security threats
biometric measures
password systems—have password policies
CAPTCHA—tell humans and computers apart
using email confirmations to confirm a user’s identity—an authentication email can be sent to the email address, which contains a unique web address link which needs to be clicked. once the web page is visited, the web site knows that the user has accesss to the email account so that the amil adress has been authenticated
automatic software updates—offer security updates
penetration testing
the practice of deliberately trying to find security holes in your own systems
white box
simulates a malicious insider with knowledge of the system
they have permission to find weaknesses in the computer systems
they may have basic credentials, e.g. username and password for the target system
will be given network and system information to help target possible attacks
black box
simulates an external hacking or cyber warfare attack
the engineer trying to find weaknessess has no inside knowledge of the target system such as passwords or layout of the network structure
simulates the damage that someone with no inside knowledge could do
