Security, Threat, Exposure and Vulnerability in Relation to Business Information Systems - Assignment Example

Business Information Systems My name Course Instructor Institution City/state Date Part A Q1: define security, threat, exposure and vulnerability in relation to business information systems Security in relation to business information systems is the information and information systems protection against modifications or unauthorized access of the information (Arthur, J. C & Quey-Jen, 2006). It can either be in storage, process and transit. Information security entails measures that detect threats, documents them and device ways of countering them In relation to computer security, threat represents the possible danger that might exploit the vulnerability of the computer system so as to cause a breach of security thus causing possible harm to the information system. Possible threats allow hackers or unauthorized persons to gain access into the information system without being noticed or recognized by the information system. Exposure is the software error that permits computer hackers to get access and break into the information system (Martin 2011). During this exposure, the attackers gain information or may hide their unauthorized actions. In this situation, the unauthorized access also hides the identity of the hackers Vulnerability, in relation to information system, is an error of the software coding that hackers use to gain access into the information system thus performing activities that the system has not authorized (Stefan et al 2013). The hackers, therefore, pose as the authorized users of the business information system (David 2011). Computer components that must be protected include the operating system or operating server, the computer access configurations like password login. Other software include antivirus. Q2. Explain malware and the 3 major categories of software attacks. Include definitions of a logic bomb, back door, denial of service attack and distributed denial of service attack. (200 words) Malware is the short form of malicious software. It is software that is designed for gaining access or damaging computers without the owner’s knowledge (Verine 2007). They exist in different forms including true viruses, spyware, key loggers, worms or other malicious codes that may infiltrate the computer (Martin 2011). The software becomes a malware with regard to the creator’s intent rather than the actual features. Passive attacks identify unencrypted traffic by looking at clear-text passwords as well as sensitive information (Stefanos 2004). Active attack on the other hand is where the attackers bypass secured system that result in disclosure of the data files or modification of the data. In addition, distributed attacks involves introduction of codes like Trojan horse to the software that later distributes to other users where it focuses on the malicious modification of the software. Logic bomb or slag code is a programming code that is inserted intentionally and designed to explode or execute under circumstances like time lapse or the failure of program user to respond to the program command (Stefanos 2004). Back door is the means of gaining access to computer programs that bypasses the security mechanism of the computer (Stefanos 2004). The back doors are installed to allow access into the program for trouble shooting. Attackers use back doors as part of exploit to gain access into the computer system Denial of service attack is the effort of making one or more systems of a computer unavailable that targets web servers but also used on name and mail servers (Nasser & Gordon 2002) Distributed denial of service attack (DDoS) is the computer software attack whereby a group of certain compromised systems invade a single computer system thus causing service denial for the users of this targeted system (Nasser & Gordon 2002) Q3. Define and discuss the major categories of information security controls. Provide 2 examples of each. (200 words) Information security control can be technical, physical and administrative and they can further classify as detective or preventive (Lois 2013). Preventive controls avoid occurrences of the unwanted events while detective controls identify unwanted events after their occurrence. Preventive controls inhibit the use of free computer resources thus they apply to the extent that the user wants that may include sound alarms and technical controls like user authentication, antivirus, firewalls among others. Detective controls include checkums, audit trails and methods of intrusion detection (Stefanos 2004). Other information security control include corrective, deterrent and recovery and they supplement detective and preventive controls (Stefanos 2004). Deterrent controls discourage people from intentional violation of the policies of information security or its procedures and good examples include privacy laws, clauses and policies (Edson et al 2008). On the other hand, corrective controls can either remedy circumstances that lead to unauthorized activity or return the system to its original condition. Nonetheless, recovery controls helps in restoring lost computer resources and can also aid an organisation to recover their monetary losses (Lois 2013). Q4. Define a business continuity plan contrasting a cold, warm and hot site. (200 words) Business continuity plan is creation of a clear strategy of recognising risks and threats that face a company (Michael P & Sonia 2004). It ensures that assets and personnel are able to function and protected in case of an emergency. It is simply a document of procedures and instructions that enables the business entity to respond to threats. In such scenarios, the plan helps the businesses to respond to risks by ensuring that they do not interfere with normal operations. A good example of business continuity plan would be finance companies in major cities backing up their computers and files of the clients who are offsite. If the company’s corporate office is affected, the satellite offices can still access the important information Hot site allows users to keep their servers as well as live backup site running in disaster situations (Loisb2013). Basically, the users replicate their production environment to a main data centre that allows for immediate cutover in the event of disaster at the primary site. Warm sites allow users to pre-install their hardware and bandwidth needs pre-configuration. If disaster happens, users only need to load their software and data of the business systems. Cold sites or recovery site is simply data centre space, ready network connectivity, power that awaits the computer users (Loisb2013). In the event of disasters, the support team readily moves the hardware into a main data centre and gets the system running again. Part B Claim Facebook fails to protect users’ privacy Data/Evidence Around 45000 login facebook credentials stolen by Ramnit as the security experts warned. Ramnit infected 800000 machines from September to December 2011. July 2011 Symantec report estimated 17.3% software infections came from Ramnit worms. Toulmins model refers to the evidence as grounds to support the claim. In this case, the model reviews credibility of the source of evidence to substantiate the claim that Facebook has failed to protect privacy of the users. All the evidence and sources of data are credible since most people have confirmed that their machines have been affected Warrant The warrant in this situation is the generalisation that 45, 000 affected computers represent Facebook user protection failure. This assumes that the number is large enough for the spread of Ramnit to many computers in the world thereby affecting individuals and organisations like businesses. The Facebook fraternity reviewed the data to authenticate that most information were out-dated that would make them vulnerable to Ramnit attacks. In this case, Toulmins causal argument applies since the facebook users know that they should up-date their information. However, the blame must be on the Facebook management since it bears the sole responsibility of protecting its customers Backing To back up the claim, a security expert claimed that the virus has been stealing passwords from computers thus it becomes unnoticed. The technical expert or security expert of Facebook have confirmed that the virus does not spread itself but it may be spread by people and that they are doing all it takes to address the issue. This is enough back up for the claim. According to Toulmans model, the above backing pints justifies that Ramnit is at large in Facebook site and that the management did not have a proper strategy to protect the users from such malware. It is when the management is trying to handle the problem or the situation. Rebuttal The rebuttal in this case study is the claim by the Facebook Corporation that it is when they are detecting user violation in their site. When developing the website, this could have been anticipated the problem. The other rebuttal is the argument where Facebook claims that users must be careful not to click on strange links. This is not the case because hackers have gone tech and Facebook should protect the user interfaces rather than advising them on which links to accept or not. Under Toulmans model, the exceptional argument is that facebook management claims that they may not be responsible for the attack on the users. Qualifier Researchers on the facebook blog describe how Ramanits used to hack into the account of users and send these links to their friends, spreading the virus further. This statement justifies or qualifies the claim that facebook has failed in protecting its users. By sending the virus to multiple users, it means the online security is sleeping on the job. Toulman’s model defines a qualifier as an element or statement that confirms the degree or extent to which the arguer sees the claim as of ground importance or significance Your Opinion The overall evaluation of this case study confirms justifies the claim that facebook has failed to protect privacy of the users. This is because it was designed with limited privacy settings that make most user accounts vulnerable to high tech hackers. The claim has a considerate strength since most arguments of security experts blame facebook for failing to protect privacies of its users. Warrant, data or evidence, backing, rebuttal and qualifier elements of this model all points out at the ineffectiveness of the facebook security system to protect and ensure privacy of the users References Arthur, J. C & Quey-Jen, Y 2006, ‘On security preparations against possible IS threats across industries’, Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 14, no. 4, pp.343-360 David, M 2011, ‘Understanding and reducing vulnerability: from the approach of liabilities and capabilities", Disaster Prevention and Management, vol. 20, no.3, pp.294-313 Edson, M, Luciana, A. F. M, Antonio, J. B, Mauro, C. B 2008, ‘Ontologies for information security management and governance’, Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 16, no. 2, pp.150-165. Lois, T 2013 ‘CURRENT CITE-ings from the popular and trade computing literature: what’s trending in computer security and hardware developments’, Library Hi Tech News, vol. 30, no. 1, pp20-32 Martin, Z 2011, ‘The dangers of malware in a library computing environment’, Electronic Library, vol. 29, no. 1, pp.5-19 Michael P & Sonia, G 2004, ‘Business continuity planning as a facilities management tool’, Facilities, vol. 22, no. 3/4, pp.87-99 Nasser S. A & Gordon A. Mv2002, ‘An intelligent approach to prevent distributed systems attacks’, Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 10, no. 5, pp.203-209 Stefan T, Jan, J, Yijun, Y &Bashar, N 2013, ‘Resolving vulnerability identification errors using security requirements on business process models’, Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 21, no. 3, pp.202-223 Stefanos, G 2004, ‘Enhancing Web privacy and anonymity in the digital era’, Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 12, no. 3, pp.255-287 Verine, E2007 ‘Malware: the new legal risk’, Electronic Library, vol. 25, no. 5, pp.534-542 Read More