Cyber Security

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Computer Science

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CYBER SECURITY

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http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/tips/ and briefly answer the following questions using the MLA format. Do not copy and paste!

  1. What is a social engineering attack? What is a phishing attack? How do you avoid being a victim?
  2. How do you know if your identity has been stolen and how do you avoid being a victim?
  3. Why can email attachments be dangerous? How can you protect yourself and others?
  4. What do firewalls do and what type of firewall is best?

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INSERT SURNAME HERE 1 Cyber Security Institutional Affiliation Date Social engineering attack is when the person who performs the attack uses social skills to get information about an institution or its computer systems. The attacker might appear as a normal person working within the organization or temporarily hired by the organization unknowingly and might even produce credentials to support his or her identity. Though by asking questions from a single or multiple sources, the attacker might piece together information he or she needs to get into an organization’s network (Irani 55-74). A phishing attack is like a form of social engineering attack though the person doing the attack does not use social skills; rather he or she uses harmful websites or an individual’s email to get personal data from the victim by pretending to be a trustworthy organization. An example is when the attacker sends an email from a well-known credit company or financial institution requesting for the victim’s bank account information, often suggesting the account has some issues that need verification. When the unsuspecting users reply with this information, attackers use this to access the accounts. These attackers may also take advantage of certain calamities such as hurricanes by posing as charities to extort unsuspecting victims (Irani 55-74). These are some of the ways one avoids being a victim of either social engineering attack or phishing attack. One should always be suspicious of random visits, phone calls or emails asking about other employees or an organization’s internal info. In case a stranger claims to be from a certain organization, one should first try to contact the said organization so as to confirm INSERT SURNAME HERE 2 if the person is legitimate or not. Another way is one should never provide information of any kind whether personal or the organization’s information to any person unless you are completely sure one has the relevant authority to access the said information. Also one should never reveal personal or financial info through the email and in case you receive strange messages soliciting for either information one is advised to never respond to these emails. Also, links sent through emails should be ignored and sensitive information should never be sent via the internet until one is able to confirm the website’s security. People should pay more attention to website’s URL just to make sure the website is original and not a malicious one. One should also install antivirus software, email filters, and firewalls and ensure they are regularly updated so as to reduce internet traffic on your computer. If you feel unsure about a request sent via email, one should contact the company directly and never use the contact information provided on the website connected to the email (Irani 55-74). Here are some of the ways one can know if his or her identity has been stolen. One should always be aware of the changes occurring in one’s account. These are some of the examples that could show someone has got access to your personal information. They include; new, strange accounts showing on your financial reports, sudden cancellation or denial of your credit cards, bills that usually appear regularly suddenly stop showing, a sudden appearance of unusual bills or bills that cannot be explained, and bills for accounts, product or services that you have never had (Liu 981-997). These are some of the ways one can minimize being a victim of identity theft though it is not always a guarantee that you can never be a victim. First, you should stop publicizing personal information on public platforms like social media since attackers can put together information from various sources and can use this to steal your identity. One should also ensure to take INSERT SURNAME HERE 3 advantage of security features such as passwords as this also add protection if used in the best ways possible. One should pay keen attention to bank statements and credit reports. One is entitled to a copy of his or her credit report once every twelve months from each of the main credit reporting companies and it is absolutely free. One should also ensure that he or she does business with reputable companies before submitting any personal or financial information. Though some attackers may also try con one into submitting their vital information by creating malicious websites, one should ensure to verify if it is the same company as the one shown before giving out any information (Liu 981-997). One should always take precautions when giving out info and ensure to read carefully published privacy policies to check how the company uses or distributes the information (Irani 55-74). Email attachments can be dangerous in the sense that some of the traits that make it more popular also make it vulnerable. Viruses can be forwarded as emails since emails are easily circulated thus affecting many machines. Most viruses and malware do not even need the users to forward their emails, attackers can just scan a user’s computer for email addresses and send to them viruses in the form of emails. Attackers rely on the advantage that people tend to open emails from people they know without question. Also, some emails have the option to allow attachments download automatically once they are received and this exposes one’s computer to any malware that could be in the attachment (Uma 390-396). Any type of file can be sent through emails and this allows attackers to have more freedom in terms of the type of virus they can send. INSERT SURNAME HERE 4 These are the steps you can take to protect yourself and others in your address book. You should be careful of unexpected attachments even if you know the sender. It does not mean that if an attachment was sent from someone you know you should immediately open it. If possible, one should check with the person who maybe sent the attachment just to confirm if it is legit then you can open it. These also include email messages from supposedly ISP or software vendors that claim to have in them some anti-virus software. These vendors do not send patches or software via email (Liu 981-997). One should always ensure that the software they are using is always up to date. Software patches should be installed so that attackers cannot take advantage of the known difficulties and vulnerabilities. Most operating systems have automatic updating features it is advisable to enable such features (Irani 55-74). If you feel an email is suspicious, it is better if you do not open it even if the antivirus software shows that it is clean. Attackers constantly release new viruses and the anti-virus software may not yet have the signature. In the case of forwarded messages, they might come from a legitimate sender but still contain viruses. It is advisable not to let curiosity make you open an email thus putting your computer at risk. Attachments should be saved and scanned before opening them. Before opening an attachment, you should be sure the signatures on your anti-virus software are up to date. One should also save the file on his or her computer then manually scan the file using the anti-virus software to check if it is safe to open (Uma 390-396). One should always ensure that the option to automatically download attachments is always off so as to not accidentally open files containing malware. One should have multiple accounts on his or her computer that do not have same privileges. New emails should be read on INSERT SURNAME HERE 5 these accounts with limited privileges since some viruses require administrator privileges for them to infect a computer. Additional security practices should be applied. Email software such as Reducing Spam or firewalls should be used to filter certain varieties of attachments (Liu 981997). Firewalls protect computers from attackers by guarding the computer or the network one is using from harmful or unimportant network traffic. It also prevents malicious software from being able to access the network. Firewalls can be configured to block information from certain locations or apps and allowing information that is needed through (Liu 981-997). Firewalls exist in different types. The difference is always in where they are located and the type of activities they put in check. Though broadly they can be classified as hardware or software. Though both have their advantages and disadvantages, one is advised to always ensure he or she has a firewall installed on their computer (Liu 981-997). Firewalls that are contained in the hardware of a computer are called network firewalls. These firewalls are usually in place between one's computer and the internet. Most vendors and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) offer assimilated small office or home offices (SOHO) routers that also have firewall features. Hardware-based firewalls are important in making sure they protect multiple computers while controlling the type of network activity passing through them. Hardware-based firewalls provide an extra line of protection since they are separate devices that run on their own operating systems unlike system or host-level protections (Liu 981-997). Then there are the software-based firewalls. These are in built firewalls found in most operating systems and even though one might have a hardware-based firewall, it is important to still have software-based firewalls for added protection. Firewall software can be got from the INSERT SURNAME HERE 6 internet, a local computer store, software vendor or even an Internet Service Provider. All firewall software downloaded from the internet should be from a reliable and reputable source (Liu 981-997). An advantage of software firewalls is their capability to regulate specific network performance of individual applications on a computer or network system. Even though relying on a software firewall alone still provides security, one should know that having the firewall on the same computer as the data one is trying to protect may make the firewall drop in its ability to identify and stop harmful activities (Uma 390-396). INSERT SURNAME HERE 7 Work Cited Rowe, Dale C., Barry M. Lunt, and Joseph J. Ekstrom. "The role of cyber-security in information technology education." Proceedings of the 2011 conference on Information technology education. ACM, 2011. Liu, Jing, et al. "Cyber security and privacy issues in smart grids." IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials 14.4 (2012): 981-997. Uma, M., and Ganapathi Padmavathi. "A Survey on Various Cyber Attacks and their Classification." IJ Network Security 15.5 (2013): 390-396. Irani, Danesh, et al. "Reverse social engineering attacks in online social networks." Detection of intrusions and malware, and vulnerability assessment(2011): 55-74.
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Just what I was looking for! Super helpful.

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