Network Security

    Phishing attacks, when I think of them, I think of them as a network vulnerability that incorporates both social engineering and email spam. Not quite as precise as social engineering and not as overarching as just trash spam. I believe phishing is one of the more prevalent and dangerous network security vulnerabilities because of those reasons. Unlike social engineering that attackers might use that focuses on specific individuals to obtain information on how to breach computer systems, phishing is spread like spam to individuals that are vulnerable in that environment, but refrains from being spread to the point of saturation that it becomes ineffective in it’s goal. Phishing can be used to target individuals of an organization with the express goal of obtaining compromising information. Like fishing in a pond, phishing is looking for that individual to bite on the line, once that individual is reeled in they can be blackmailed or enticed with a story or a plea for help to get the information needed to gain access to the information they are looking for. If successful, phishing attempts can compromise users and force them to provide passwords or divulge information that can allow the attackers to enter systems in that organization. From there the attackers can do as they please. When it comes to mitigating phishing attacks a two pronged method needs to be taken. First, proper user training on identifying phishing attacks, this can range from contacting security officials immediately upon suspecting a phishing attack and a filtering system that can identify the attacks before they occur. Second, proper firewall and spam protection for the organizations email and systems, preventing Network Security the attack before it happens can deter the attackers from continuing their phishing attempts. 

    Computer viruses are the most recognizable type of computer systems threat. They can be the tool used by exploiting the rest of the threats outlined in our assignment to cause damage to computer systems. As the name states it is a virus that can kill its host or exploit its resources for information or plain malicious intent. Computer systems are vulnerable to viruses because viruses can live and expand though the code or exploits that the system already has. Viruses can be used to hold systems hostage for money or can be used to destroy systems. One method that viruses can be used to destroy systems is by affecting hardware that the system manages. For example, a virus can turn off the fans that a system uses for cooling and increase the voltage to system components, this in turn increases the temperature of a system and can cause irreversible hardware damage. One method computer systems already fight viruses with is an anti-virus software that scans the system for known viruses or programs that are trying to access process level tasks when they are not authorized. Another method is to block viruses from entering the systems in the first place. This can be done with software like firewalls or network monitoring tools that detect incoming threats before they reach the system. Network Security

 References

     Hill, R. K. (2020). Protecting computers and people from viruses. Communications of the ACM, 63(10), 8–8. https://doi.org/10.1145/3415748 

    Jensen, M. L., Dinger, M., Wright, R. T., & Thatcher, J. B. (2017). Training to Mitigate Phishing Attacks Using Mindfulness Techniques. Journal of Management Information Systems, 34(2), 597–626. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2017.133449