Learning Aim B: Cyber security

Learning Aim B: Cyber security

1. Cyber Security

   • Refers to the range of measures that can be taken to protect computer systems, networks and data from unauthorised access or cyber attack.

2. Threat

   • A threat is an incident or an action which is deliberate or unintended that results in disruption, down time or data loss.
     • Internal
       • Caused by an incident inside an organisation
     • External
       • Caused outside the organisation

3. Attack

   • An attack is a deliberate action, targeting an organisation's digital system or data.

4. Unauthorised Access

   • This refers to someone gaining entry without permission to an organisation's system, software or data
     • Hacker
       • Black Hat
         • They try to inflict damage by compromising security systems
       • Grey Hat
         • Do it for fun and not with malicious intent
       • White
         • Working with organisations to strength the security of a system

5. Why are systems attacked?

   • Fun/Challenge
     • - Hacking systems can be fun or a challenge
       • There is a sense of achievement
         • Friends may give respect of hacking achievements
   • Financial gain
     • Ransoms can be made to prevent attacks form happening
       • Ransomware can be used to encrypt a computer until you pay
         • A payment is given to carry out an attack on an organisation
   • Dispution
     • Attacks such as Denial-of-Service stop websites working
       • Viruses can slow down computers and delete files
   • Industrial Espionage - Spying in companies
     • The aim is find intellectual property such as designs or blueprints for products, business strategies or software sort code
   • Personal attack
     • Employees that are unhappy may attack the company
       • Friends / family may attack each other if upset over something
   • Information/ Data Theft
     • Credit card and financial details are stolen to gain money
       • Company information may also be stolen

6. Malware

   • Malicious Software
     • This an umbrella term given to software that is designed to harm a digital system, damage data or harvest sensitive information
     • Virus
       • A piece of malicious code that attaches to a legitimate program. it is capable of reproducing itself and usually capable of causing great harm to files or other programs on the same computer
     • Worm
       • Similar to virus but unlike a virus but unlike a virus it is a self contained program. It is capable of spreading on it own, without help from humans. Worms get around by exploiting vulnerabilities in operating systems and attaching themselves to emails. They self replicate at a tremendous rate, using up hard drive space and bandwidth, overloading servers.