Internet Security

October 13th, 2006 · 9 Comments
Information

One constant criticism we in IT receive is that we always refuse to do things in the way users want because of security. I’ve heard the comment that IT use security as the argument to trump all others when we don’t want to do something. I really do take exception to this. Most users of IT and a lot of IT professionals for that matter simply do not appreciate how real and present the threats to our networks and data are.

Those IT professionals who are responsible for the infrastructure generally have a good understanding of the threats they face and the steps that need to be taken to mitigate them. They are also only too aware of the inconvenience, cost, time and hassle it is to clean up the results of security breaches and that it is far better for everyone to stop them from happening in the first place.

Even although the majority of these threats may not be malicious in themselves the consequences can be at best inconvenient and at worst disastrous.

This week the BBC News website has been running a series of articles about the threats users are exposed to when they use the Internet. As you are reading my blog I assume you have at least a passing interest in IT, so please take the time to read them as I think you will find them interesting and hopefully gain a further insight into some of the threats we all face when we use the Internet.

Tracking Down Hi Tech Crime sets the scene and describes how the BBC set-up their honey pot computer.
Trapping Hackers demonstrates how ridiculously easy it is for a user to unwittingly infect their own PC when they actually believe they are taking steps to protect it.
Attacked from Cyberspace covers the numbers of attacks their honey pot PC was subjected to.
Money Talks describes one way in which the hackers meet and do business with those that can use the information they obtain through their activities.
Dissecting Spam explains ways in which you can determine whether an email is genuine or not.

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9 responses so far ↓

1 Robert Jones // Oct 23, 2006 at 10:25 pm

Interesting articles Alan. I once foolishly connected a laptop running xp onto a broadband connection without any firewall, and got a worm infection in about 2 minutes! Luckily I knew enough to clean it up, but it taught me a valuable lesson. Nowerdays I run Ubuntu Linux at home so I don’t really have to worry about such things (not that I don’t have a firewall!).
2 A Slacker // Oct 26, 2006 at 9:11 pm

Alan,

Sorry to pin this onto your blog, but sadly Robert Jones has decided to censor any posts where he does not know who the author is. This goes against the ethos of the vast majority of blogs I read, but that is his choice - I’m not sure that it is the best way to encourage people to voice their true opinions, but each to their own.

What follows is the comment I posted to his blog article located at http://www.jonesieboy.co.uk/blog/2006/10/04/activote-walkthrough-part-1/ - I feel that the issues I raise are relevant enough to the debate that people would want to read them, regardless of who is raising them. And as it happens, it also fits in quite well with your post here anyway…

—————
It’s good to see that this has turned into a proper debate, reflecting all sides to this issue.

With regard to the example in your last post of the iTunes upgrade: this is precisely the sort of thing that could cause problems. What happens if the new version causes a problem with another piece of software on your PC? What if there is a flaw which introduces a new security hole? Who is then responsible when someone places a rootkit using the flaw before the company patch it, and uses it to install a trojan on your PC, ultimately gaining access to the pupil information database?

These are sadly actual dangers that have to be considered - just look at the recent Sony DRM debacle, where the mere act of placing an audio CD in your PC led to a rootkit being installed to your PC (if you had rights to install software). The IT Division also have to give very serious consideration to these issues - Change Control is becoming more and more important, and rigorous, in any organisation that is even half-serious about their IT Security. Change Control becomes much harder when a central IT Division no longer has complete control of the software installation process.

The Info Security issues are just the start of it - the Council also has legal responsibilities with regard to licensing control, and other issues, which can carry heavy legal problems if they go awry.

btw, I know that you do not like anonymous commenters on your blog, but I do not feel very comfortable with sticking my real head above the parapet at the moment - but I hope you will consider these issues seriously. I am not someone who works with you, but I do take a strong interest in Info Security issues - and I make the above comments purely to raise the issues.
——————–

I just hope that you do not operate a similar censorship policy to Robert. To me, blogs have always been somewhere to stimulate open debate between whoever turns up - not just to people whose name meets with the approval of the blog owner.
3 Alan’s Blog » Blog Archive » Genghis Khan is Alive and Well! Or Posting Anonymously to Blogs // Oct 27, 2006 at 12:11 pm

[...] This particular post has been prompted by the following comment posted on my blog by someone calling themselves ‘A Slacker’ (Read it here). They are unhappy at what they feel is censorship in another blog also accessed under the auspices of the Exc-el.org portal run by our Education division. [...]
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