SolveYourProblem
eLearning Series
Internet Security
Top
5 Internet Security Vulnerabilities
The internet connects millions of computers.
With it, you have access to a vast warehouse of knowledge.
All you need to get to that knowledge is a humble home computer
and a phone line or cable. However, that kind of access also
opens new security risk doors. Important information can be
taken, changed, or used for the wrong purpose with these security
risks. These security risks can even damage the computer systems
involved. An intruder does not have to break into your home,
someone's office, or anyone's safe to damage the information
or the systems involved with the internet. They can do it from
the convenience of their own computer. There are five major
risks on the internet.
The
first risk is called an account compromise. This means
someone else uses your computer account besides you. This is
not the same thing as the account manager using your account.
This is the unauthorized access of your account. This can be
done for a number of reasons. The first reason someone might
use your account without your permission is to gain access
to your data. They could steal something as small as your contact
information or something as important as your credit card or
bank account information. Another reason someone might use
your account is to cause havoc in the information stored in
your account. This is basically malicious mischief, computer
style. It's like kids spray-painting graffiti, only in an electronic
form.
Another
risk is from probing. A probe is the attempt to get
into a system or an account. In most cases, the perpetrator
is looking for something he can steal or cause harm to. For
example, a probe may try to get into your site files to look
at your customer's names and addresses. In some other cases,
probes have tried to get into sites to corrupt the data. Probes,
themselves, though, don't cause the harm. They may cause some
confusion, but once the probe discovers a way in, the perpetrator
is not far behind.
An additional risk to internet security comes from a
denial of service attack. The point of these is to stop users who
should be in the system from using it appropriately. This can
not only damage the equipment involved, it can cause panic
and confusion. If large enough networks are hit, say major
businesses like telecommunications companies, business can
come to a standstill, causing major profit loss.
A fourth major risk to internet security is a malicious
code attack. These kinds of attacks damage systems permanently.
You may have heard about some of these. They can include Trojan
horses, viruses, and worms. With a Trojan horse, the program
is hidden in something legitimate. Once opened or altered,
the Trojan horse begins its quiet damage. A worm makes thousands
of copies of itself once it has started. A virus can do the
same thing, but it usually requires a little help from a user.
Any of these kinds of malicious codes can cause system damage
and denial of service.
The final major risk to internet security is an internet
infrastructure attack. While these other risks represent serious problems,
an attack on the internet infrastructure could cause far more
damage than any one of these smaller attacks. These are very
serious security attacks that can compromise lots of users
at any one given time.
The people who cause these problems can be curious kids, college
students testing out new programs and software tools, people
seeking fame, or paid individuals working for companies with
malicious intents. They could even be former employees of a
corporation who wish to do serious damage to the company because
of problems they experienced during their tenure there. Intruders
may want any number of things including laughs, a problem to
solve, power, attention, or money. Most are connected with
other intruders through bulletin boards and conferences. They
share knowledge, software, and programs.
Security
risks and incidents have risen dramatically as more and
more users have internet access. It is important that you
remember every part of the internet is vulnerable, whether
you realize it or not. Giving your contact information, account
information, or financial information to any company that does
business with the web, is a risk. Putting your company on the
web is a risk. Usually, these kinds of risks are well worth
it. They make you a part of the ever growing, ever changing
internet. However, sometimes they cause serious personal loss. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
> Home > Internet
Security Articles:
Main Page |
