Week 13: Clear

           The concept that was most clear to me this week was the topic of unauthorized access and use. Unauthorized access is the risk of someone using your computer or network without permission, while unauthorized use might happen if you gave someone authorized access but they use the computer or its data for unapproved or possibly illegal activity. One example of unauthorized use is an employee using an organization's computer to send personal emails. One measure taken by most organizations to prevent unauthorized access and use is an AUP, a written acceptable use policy that outlines the ways in which the computer and network may and may not be used. Others ways to prevent unauthorized intrusions are to disable file and printer sharing on your Internet connection, use firewalls, and use intrusion detection software. Access controls are security measures used to minimize the chance that a perpetrator intentionally or unintentionally accesses confidential information by defining who can access a computer, when they can access it, and what actions they can take while accessing it. The computer also maintains an audit trail to record successful and unsucessful attempts (which should be investigated to insure they are not intentional breaches of security). Many systems also use a two-phase process of identification, which verifies an individual is a valid user, and authentication, which verifies an individual is the person he or she claims to be. There are three methods that include user names and passwords, possessed objects, and biometric devices. A user name is a unique combination of letters or numbers to identify one specific user while a password is a private combination of chracters that is associated with the user name. Longer passwords provide greater security, and the addition of each character to a password significantly increases the number of possible combinations and the length of time for someone to guess the password. Possessed objects, such as smart cards or keys, must be carried to gain access to a computer or computer facility. They are often used in combination with personal identification numbers (PINs), numeric passwords either assigned to a user or a selected by the user.
            This topic is very important in the business environment because cyber crimes have been on the rise, and if your computer is not properly protected, cyber criminals can access your computer and its data. Protecting your computer is essential because anytime you connect to the Internet, you are at risk of having a cyber criminal hack into your information. For example, at a place like a doctor's office, patient confidentiality is essential. A doctor's office must take every action necessary to prevent unauthorized access and use to prevent patient information from being leaked. This is illegal for patient information to be leaked, so a doctor's office must protect information kept on the computer.
             This website discusses how to prevent unauthorized access, which was the topic covered this week that was most clear to me. It says the need for increased security and prevention of unauthorized access has never been greater than it is today. It says the key ways to enhance security are having a wise choice of programs, using effective security software, having a hardware firewall (router), and using strong passwords. It goes on to say you need to choose your software carefully, particularly your Web brower and email client. You need current anti-virus software, some of which are free for personal use. You need a hardware and software firewall for protection, and you need to check for spyware on your computer. Passwords and encryption are also effective tools if used correctly. This website stresses keeping everything updated, such as antivirus, firewall and anti-spyware security software, because things change so quickly on the Internet. The site says at a bare minimum, weekly updates and scans are vital.


Here is a picture of a password checker I found online that tests the strength of your passwords. As I learned this week, a strong password is very important to prevent unauthorized access and use.

Works Cited:
http://www.russharvey.bc.ca/resources/security.html


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