This paper explores the most significant security vulnerability that information technology (IT) professionals face in the future. It provides definitions, dissimilarities between vulnerabilities, risks, threats, and risk along with real-world examples of each. This conclusion is the result of several research reports from various sources, to include IT professionals such as the Apple Developers who propose that there are several variations of vulnerabilities which exist, Microsoft, and The Certified Ethical Hackers Guide. This paper also examines four variations of vulnerabilities described in various articles reports, and websites and gives real world examples of each. These descriptions and examples also define as well as illustrate the vulnerabilities albeit each article has its own conviction as to what the greatest security vulnerability is facing IT professionals. Nevertheless, all vulnerabilities have a commonality discussed in the IBM Security Services 2014 Cyber Security Intelligence Index (2014). The IBM Security Services 2014 Cyber Security Intelligence Index establishes the correlation between the variations in vulnerabilities: Humans and human error.
Keywords: vulnerability, human error, cybersecurity, breach
An adage states, “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link” (Reid, 1850). Cybersecurity, a derivative of the word cyberspace, is a term devised by science fiction author, William Gibson. The term which he used, “consensual
The problem experienced by the Wayward Pines Public Library of having one of their public access computers (PAC) becoming a zombie member of a Botnet army is not an isolated one.
In today’s modern society, to which a well-developed information technology has been applied, it is getting more and more inevitable to use it in our everyday life, since people can store and access to their private information in one place without difficulty. However, this is also the danger of it, as it has become much easier for a third-party to collect and steal information online. Consequently, many cautious company and institutions are aware and well prepared for the potential cyber data hack attacks. (Bennett, 1992)
The purpose of the report is to explore the current vulnerabilities in the information system network and outline potential
Cyber security must be an aggressive and evolving practice. Not only is it important to put security in place for current technology that can access electronic information, but also to look forward to future trends and strategies. Methods must also be developed that will continuously protect information regardless of growth and technological advances. As trends change and new technology develops it is the responsibility of businesses to balance cost saving measures with adequate security measures.
Society has become dependent and subjected to the new development of computer innovations. As innovation advances, securing data frameworks threats and vulnerabilities risk increases which forced organization to compete with growing concerns to protect their information systems. Vulnerabilities in data frameworks may not be the only exist in unpatched applications or through that the deployment of malware which cause prompt breaches. The human component shockingly can be a damagingly reason which can cause cybersecurity breaches. Careless personnel are a huge contributing element in which adds to the cybersecurity vulnerabilities. User management console must be utilized to control the unknown threats of personnel, users, accessing their information
There are two types of vulnerabilities we face at our company today, technical and administrative vulnerabilities. Technical vulnerabilities consist of improper configuration of software and hardware, a lack of advanced security software and vulnerable
In today's information age, Information Technology (IT) is changing rapidly and a range of cybersecurity vulnerabilities come about. Because of the increases in exploitations, safeguarding personal information and computing resources has become a vital part of the daily operations of organizations. Organizations that use computers have a hugely added advantage over how they do business. Any organization that has a computer system is susceptible to vulnerabilities. In analyzing some the most threatening web vulnerabilities, the conclusion of this essay is that the most critical vulnerability facing IT managers today is humans. This paper will talk about how organizations can secure their businesses to protect their sensitive data.
Vulnerability is defined as the capability of or susceptibility to being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon; open to assault; difficult to defend . IT managers face many aspects of vulnerability everyday and it is rapidly growing. This study is an attempt to show that most important cybersecurity vulnerability facing IT managers today is trust of the end user. Overall, an end user working within any capacity can be easily compromised through BYOD use and cause possible damage to an IT infrastructure.
Data security failures cause significant damage to a company. The level of harm caused determines the extent of ruin. It might go as far as forcing businesses to close down. The non-compliance with regulations has made data security quite a big deal. It is the duty of a company’s information officer to ensure the privacy and security of the company’s customers’ information and, most importantly, the company’s data parse. Contrary to the public perception that hackers are the leading cause of data breaches, as they are portrayed in movies, the greatest threat (namely the way these hackers get their information) is actually the employee’s unawareness. In a recent study, it was identified that inadequate employee training and a lack of threat awareness are actually the major threat to data privacy and security.
It should not be a surprise that the biggest vulnerability in Cybersecurity is the user (Goldman, 2010). The vulnerabilities presented by the user fall into two general categories: (1) accidental and (2) malicious. Vulnerabilities are important to those that are trying to perform unauthorized actions on an information system. For this paper, the term information system is being used generically to be anything from a home computer to a global enterprise encompassing numerous servers and storage systems. These unauthorized actions are threats to the information system. While not all vulnerabilities create threats, even a single vulnerability puts the information system at risk.
Another risk of IT security is because of hackers and their malicious nature, massive loss
Prevalent to the current trend now is the dependency of the society on Information technology and communication systems. Every aspect of human life is one way or the other linked and controlled by information technology tools. The importance of information technology cannot be over emphasized as its unavailability could lead to a form of disaster or the other. Pivotal infrastructures like finance, healthcare, education and security are driven by information technology. However, information technology and its benefits are accompanied by vulnerabilities and risks that can be exploited by people with the necessary technical skills. Individuals like ‘Hackers’ and ‘Cyber Terrorist’ can cause disruption to information systems, commit financial fraud and also attack computers and networks. These attacks and disruptions could result to violence against people and properties. In some cases, death, serious injuries and severe economic loss could occur as a result of these attacks.
1 Everyday we see innovations, new technology in the market, updates, upgrades. The world is moving forward and it is moving rapidly. Businesses around the globe are becoming more dependent on an ever-increasing selection of IT systems and technologies more and more as time goes on. Furthermore, they need to be interconnected with their suppliers, venders, customers and business partners. The dependency on technology combined with interconnection of their business and rapid increase has increased the potential of cyber security risks. Cyber attacks are not just an IT problem; they are more a business risk. Hacking has evolved from hackers to hack for fun to just look for technical vulnerabilities to being sponsored attacks that are targeting specific industries, sectors, companies, and individuals. Cyber attacks methods evolve incredibly fast, complexity, and impact with new, more complex cyber risks everyday. “Many organizations across the industry spectrum are suffering from substantive technology debt.” (PWC.com). Companies are so focused with their emerging business technologies, but they forget that their IT infrastructure is suffering. Their IT infrastructure is aging and it is getting to the point that it cannot even support basic data security functions. Yes, Technology has grown its influence on business, such as “mobile solutions, social media, alternative workplace solutions, collaborative product innovation, digitized healthcare, and telemedicine.”
“Humans are consistently referred to as the weakest link in security. “ (Schneier, 2007) An exclusive focus on the technical aspects of security, without due consideration of how the human interacts with the system, is clearly inadequate. This section includes the types of human factor errors that can lead to security violations. A number of reasons for these errors will also be discussed. Information security breaches can be categorized in a number of different ways. There are five different types of human factor errors, which can be used to explain information security breaches. First, there are acts of omission, in which people forget to perform a necessary action. For
Information security professional’s job is to deploy the right safeguards, evaluating risks against critical assets and to mitigate those threats and vulnerabilities. Management can ensure their company’s assets, such as data, remain intact by finding the latest technology and implementing the right policies. Risk management focuses on analyzing risk and mitigating actions to reduce that risk. Successful implementation of security safeguards depends on the knowledge and experience of information security staff. This paper addresses the methods and fundamentals on how to systematically conduct risk assessments on the security risks of information systems.