BUSINESS PLUG-IN B6 Information Security

LEARNING OUTCOMES Describe the relationship between information security policies and an information security plan Summarize the five steps to creating an information security plan Provide an example of each of the three primary security areas: (1) authentication and authorization, (2) prevention and resistance, and (3) detection and response Describe the relationships and differences between hackers and viruses

INTRODUCTION Information security – a broad term encompassing the protection of information from accidental or intentional misuse by persons inside or outside an organization This plug-in discusses how organizations can implement information security lines of defense through people first and technology second

The First Line of Defense - People The biggest issue surrounding information security is not a technical issue, but a people issue 38% of security incidents originate within the organization Insiders Social engineering

The First Line of Defense - People The first line of defense an organization should follow to help combat insider issues is to develop information security policies and an information security plan Information security policies – identify the rules required to maintain information security Information security plan – details how an organization will implement the information security policies

The First Line of Defense - People Five steps to creating an information security plan Develop the information security policies Communicate the information security policies Identify critical information assets and risks Test and reevaluate risks Obtain stakeholder support

The First Line of Defense - People

The Second Line of Defense - Technology Three primary information security areas Authentication and authorization Prevention and resistance Detection and response

AUTHENTICATION AND AUTHORIZATION Authentication – a method for confirming users’ identities Authorization – the process of giving someone permission to do or have something The most secure type of authentication involves a combination of the following: Something the user knows such as a user ID and password Something the user has such as a smart card or token Something that is part of the user such as a fingerprint or voice signature

Something the User Knows such as a User ID and Password User ID and passwords are the most common way to identify individual users, and are the most ineffective form of authentication Identity theft – the forging of someone’s identity for the purpose of fraud Phishing – a technique to gain personal information for the purpose of identity theft

Something the User Has such as a Smart Card or Token Smart cards and tokens are more effective than a user ID and a password Token – small electronic devices that change user passwords automatically Smart card – a device that is around the same size as a credit card, containing embedded technologies that can store information and small amounts of software to perform some limited processing

Something That Is Part of the User such as a Fingerprint or Voice Signature This is by far the best and most effective way to manage authentication Biometrics – the identification of a user based on a physical characteristic, such as a fingerprint, iris, face, voice, or handwriting Unfortunately, this method can be costly and intrusive

PREVENTION AND RESISTANCE Downtime can cost an organization anywhere from $100 to $1 million per hour Technologies available to help prevent and build resistance to attacks include: Content filtering Encryption Firewalls

Content Filtering Organizations can use content filtering technologies to filter email and prevent emails containing sensitive information from transmitting and stop spam and viruses from spreading Content filtering – occurs when organizations use software that filters content to prevent the transmission of unauthorized information Spam – a form of unsolicited email

Content Filtering Worldwide corporate losses caused by Spam (in billions)

ENCRYPTION If there is an information security breach and the information was encrypted, the person stealing the information would be unable to read it Encryption – scrambles information into an alternative form that requires a key or password to decrypt the information Public key encryption – uses two keys: a public key that everyone can have and a private key for only the recipient

ENCRYPTION

FIREWALLS One of the most common defenses for preventing a security breach is a firewall Firewall – hardware and/or software that guards a private network by analyzing the information leaving and entering the network

FIREWALLS Sample firewall architecture connecting systems located in Chicago, New York, and Boston

DETECTION AND RESPONSE If prevention and resistance strategies fail and there is a security breach, an organization can use detection and response technologies to mitigate the damage Antivirus software is the most common type of detection and response technology

DETECTION AND RESPONSE Hacker - people very knowledgeable about computers who use their knowledge to invade other people’s computers White-hat hacker Black-hat hacker Hactivist Script kiddies or script bunnies Cracker Cyberterrorist

DETECTION AND RESPONSE Virus - software written with malicious intent to cause annoyance or damage Worm Denial-of-service attack (DoS) Distributed denial-of-service attack (DDoS) Trojan-horse virus Backdoor program Polymorphic virus and worm

DETECTION AND RESPONSE Security threats to ebusiness include: Elevation of privilege Hoaxes Malicious code Spoofing Spyware Sniffer Packet tampering

CLOSING CASE ONE Thinking Like the Enemy The Intense School offers several security courses, including the five-day “Professional Hacking Boot Camp” and “Social Engineering in Two Days” Main philosophy of the Intense School is “To Know Thy Enemy” The school is taught by several notorious hackers

CLOSING CASE ONE QUESTIONS How could an organization benefit from attending one of the courses offered at the Intense School? What are the two primary lines of security defense and how can organizational employees use the information taught by the Intense School when drafting an information security plan? Determine the difference between the two primary courses offered at the Intense school, “Professional Hacking Boot Camp” and “Social Engineering in Two Days.” Which course is more important for organizational employees to attend?

CLOSING CASE ONE QUESTIONS If your employer sent you to take a course at the Intense School, which one would you choose and why? What are the ethical dilemmas involved with having such a course offered by a private company?

CLOSING CASE TWO Hacker Hunters Hackers are a new breed of crime fighters Operation Firewall, targeting the ShadowCrew, a gang whose members were schooled in identity theft, bank account pillage, and selling illegal goods on the Internet, arrested 28 gang members in eight states and six countries

CLOSING CASE TWO QUESTIONS What types of technology could big retailers use to prevent identity thieves from purchasing merchandise? What can organizations do to protect themselves from hackers looking to steal account data? Authorities frequently tap online service providers to track down hackers. Do you think it is ethical for authorities to tap an online service provider and read people’s email? Why or why not?

CLOSING CASE TWO QUESTIONS Do you think it was ethical for authorities to use one of the high-ranking officials to trap other gang members? Why or why not? In a team, research the Internet and find the best ways to protect yourself from identity theft