300569 Computer Security Assignment Sample

• Subject Code : 300569
• University : Western Sydney University My Assignment Services is not sponsored or endorsed by this college or university.
• Subject Name : IT Computer Science

Network Security

Abstract

Network Security is an important aspect in today’s world of technology. It is one of the fastest growing industries, as well as with the recent developments of cloud computing, a host of issues are starting to arise. Cloud computing is without a doubt the future of technology, but the issues that have risen have set back its foray into everyday life.

Contents

Abstract

Introduction

Network Security in Cloud Computing

Types of Network Security

Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)

Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)

Media Access Control Address (MAC)

802.1X authentication

Authentication

Firewall

Physical Security

Improvement of Network Security

Improving rates of spam catch

Information assets and identity protection

Impose policies for internet use

Minimize internal threats

Best practices of Firewalls

Application protection

Secure access to VPN

Network security benefits

Improved Performance of Network

Lesser Costs

Mitigation of Risk

Proactive as well as Quick Problem Resolution

Lower Stress Levels for Management

Conclusion

References

Introduction

Network security is an important aspect in today’s tech world. From stopping a hacker from accessing your computer files to stopping other people from checking your bank balance, Network security is almost a necessity. In today’s world of fast growing technological advances, security has advanced over the years to the point where security measures of yesteryear are no longer sufficient enough to keep your Network safe. There are thousands of people who keep sensitive Network on outdated PCs, unwary of the risks that could follow.

The consequences include having your credit card number stolen while trying to purchase something online, or even your social security number stolen when applying for a credit card. It is imperative that computer users stay up to date with the top of the line security measures. Not only are users at fault, but sometimes companies are too. In 2011, the notorious hacker group Anonymous hacked into Sony’s PlayStation Network servers as well as stole Network pertaining to millions of PSN users, which prompted Sony to bring down the network for over a month in order to prevent another external intrusion.

Network Security in Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is the future of technology. Although still in its early stages, the cloud has started to be integrated in everyday businesses. With the transition to cloud computing comes a whole host of security, privacy, as well as technical issues. The CIA triad, which stands for confidentiality, integrity, as well as availability, is the standard of looking at security problems. Confidentiality ensures that key data remains protected from unauthorized access...Integrity ensures that data can only be modified by the appropriate mechanism. Availability is the degree to which authorized users can access the right network for legitimate purposes when they need it.

Once the client data is virtualized, the client no longer owns the physical data. If a service or data is not available on the cloud, it is difficult to retrieve the data. Therefore, availability is a key concern of cloud computing.

A large number of cloud services require an active Internet connection to both the client and the server. Without an active Internet connection, users cannot access their services or data, and are in trouble. Also, put into considerations the multitude of times a user loses connectivity or the network connection becomes too slow to operate. Network reliability is a major concern for those looking to delve into the cloud. With today’s age of physical storage devices such as USB drives as well as hard disk drives (HDD), work can be continued using programs installed on a HDD as well as accessing data on a USB drive or a HDD.

Once cloud computing becomes more mainstream, a simple power outage can set back a user a few hours. A laptop with a decent sized battery can keep a user working for about three to four hours without the need to recharge, given the files as well as applications to work are stored locally. In the future of cloud computing, a power outage means loss of access to files. Productivity will start to falter.

Unless a new portable way of receiving internet access is introduced, cloud computing has a long way to go before it replaces physical storage. If Internet Service Providers (ISP) start to deliver affordable as well as reliable internet access by satellites as well as signal towers, much like phone carriers deliver internet access to mobile phones, the adoption of cloud technologies will start to pick up, but as of now, the lack or a reliable source of internet connection as well as the unpredictability of the network leaves cloud computing a utopia of the future.

Types of Network Security

Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)

WPA encrypts the information it needs to check for any changes to network security and allow users to access the network only if they are authorized to. There are two types of Wi-Fi-protected access: WPA and WPA2. WPA works on all wireless network adapters, except for some access points and older routers used by 802.1x (issues, 1997) authentication servers. An authentication server called WPA-Enterpriser distributes different keys to each user. Using the same key for all users in pre-shaded key mode (PSK), called WPA-Personnel and WPA2, works on most networks except the old network adapter and is more secure than WPA.

Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)

One of the older network security methods that still support older network devices is no longer recommended because WEP security is weak and can be easily decrypted. When WEP is enabled, the network security key is set to encrypt information from one computer to another throughout the network, but is not considered secure enough (vanda, 2011).

Media Access Control Address (MAC)

The physical network segment assigns a unique identifier to the network interface for communication. This is called an Ethernet hardware address (EHA) or physical address by the manufacturer of the network interface card (NIC) and is stored in hardware or some type of storage. A firmware mechanism with a read-only memory card. The MAC has the drawback that the nature of the LAN broadcast as well as WLAN can make it easier (DIS-DCPS, 2012).

802.1X authentication

802.11 securities for wireless and wired Ethernet networks are enhanced by 802.1X authentication to provide network access and validate authentication. This type of authentication is used primarily in office networks because 802.1X works in wireless networks as well as WEP and WAP keys.

Authentication

One-factor authentication: The most recognized type of authentication that the user knows: Password

Two-factor authentication: This is what you have. For example, a device that generates a digital certificate, code, or biometrics

Three-factor authentication: In addition to two elements, there is a third element as an example of a user. Fingerprints, user's voice, retina scan, etc.

Firewall

Whether it’s a hardware or software based on the predetermined rule set firewall acts as primary objective in controlling outgoing as well as incoming network traffic by analyzing data packets as well as determines to allow or not. Firewall has advantage for user to monitor incoming as well as outgoing security alerts as well as disadvantage is firewall offers weak defense from viruses that attack (issues, 1997)

Physical Security

Physically someone breaking into the system is known as physical security for example doors, walls as well as security guards.

Improvement of Network Security

In today's world, network security is a very complex topic because of a variety of threats, security breaches, attacks, Internet security vulnerabilities, and non-compliance with new guidelines. The following are some tips for improving security:

Improve Spam Catch Rate

Spam can cause many problems, such as slow networks and slow communications, and can also cause aggressive productivity in your organization. Because new technologies may be introduced as well as spammers to reach the traditional filters, a "well-configured" spam filter that maintains a high spam detection rate regardless of volume is strongly required.

Information Assets and Identity Protection

The desktop is very vulnerable to spyware. This is because spyware has the ability to provide partial control of your computer by secretly monitoring user behavior and performing certain activities such as redirecting web browser activities and installing additional software. Spyware protection must also be verified on the desktop on the gateway. In addition, the gateway must be the first line of defense, since the "protected gateway" can interrupt and alert administrators to messages sent from the affected desktop.

Impose Policies on The Use of The Internet

Organizations need to create and apply the right policies before spending on IT security to minimize risk to legal responsibility and organizations. After defining acceptable use policies and having discussions with the HR department, IT must incorporate them into company regulations and standards, allowing companies to better utilize time and increase productivity by limiting access to inappropriate websites. The same applies to instant messaging and social networking sites. (Network security tips better than 2008)

Minimize Internal Threats

Your organization can compromise information security because it sends sensitive information from employees to outsiders or to you in a way that is not secure. The presence of various compliance regulations imposed by management can have serious consequences. In addition, laptops used for remote work are at high risk because connections that they access to the network can infect the network. Examples of such connections include wireless hotspots, public networks, and home networks. To minimize these threats, IT needs to ensure that spyware and virus protection are up-to-date on all computers and that email filtering is enabled.

Firewall Best Practices

Firewalls are typically designed to protect your organization from attacks outside your network. However, you should be aware that the possibility of intrusion itself coming from the network itself is the same. Therefore, as well as implementing a firewall to protect the infrastructure of your organization's information, you need to apply policies to the firewall to match your security policies. It is also important for IT to periodically evaluate both network and internal vulnerabilities. (Tips for improving network security in 2008)

Application Protection

Applications-based infrastructure such as email, web, database, and file servers face a high risk because of the various recent threats to move along the service and the creation of ports to avoid traditional firewalls. However, in addition to detecting abnormal behavior, you can protect the application layer by implementing Intrusion Prevention Service (IPS) on the gateway to not only protect servers in the network from threats, but also enforce strict policies related to the gateway. The use and accessibility level of the social networking website or IM application.

Secure access to VPN

Today, many organizations are beginning to offer employees the option to work remotely from anywhere by connecting to their corporate network. This is very useful to organizations and sales representatives who have executives on the road. In addition, Terminal Server, which is as easy to use as Setup, provides a "desk-to-desk" experience even when you are working from a remote location. However, these networks are vulnerable to unauthorized access and are not very secure. Therefore, the program must be protected using the program in a more secure IPSec or traditional VPN without disrupting user accessibility.

Network Security Benefits

Security in business networks is critical to any organization, and the implementation of "managed security services" is also important because it enables efficient protection against threats. Before you choose to provide a service, it is very important to analyze the services provided by the provider and their effects. By securing your network, you can:

Improved network performance

An important aspect of an organization is the performance of a computer network because it spends money for delays and downtime. Network slowness can also reduce stability and profit. You can ensure efficient network performance by selecting the appropriate provider to provide "managed network security services".

Low cost

It's more cost effective to employ a well-managed security service than to hire a full-time staff or consultant to secure the network. These costs can be used to provide more efficient services or products to customers.

Reduce risk

In today's technical environment, reducing risk is very important for organizations and businesses because of the risk of hacking. Not only malware but also virus and spyware infections are minimized. However, reducing risk is not an easy task, and it's very difficult to achieve even though IT is within the organization. (5 Ways to Benefit from Managed Network Security, 2012)

Proactive, fast problem resolution

Being proactive when trying to solve a problem is more useful than responding only when a problem occurs. In addition, the impact of these network stability, performance, and uptime problems can be significantly minimized if the problem is identified before the problem occurs.

Reduce the stress level for the management

Network problems are, in the worst cases, a very difficult task for the IT team to manage the network because it can take days to solve the problem, and the complexity of the network increases Scenario. Therefore, you can hire a service provider that provides managed network security for ease of management. (5 Ways to Benefit from Managed Network Security, 2012)

Conclusion

The growing Internet has also increased the importance of network security because of the Internet's security vulnerabilities. For the purposes of this study, we analyzed various references to help you clearly understand the network security overview and key types. It also identifies specific services that are supported by what we call "network security" and then differentiates them from "data security”. The various issues related to network security and some tips for improving network security are also not part of this document for developing network security advantages, groups involved, current software, or network security hardware. as a future trends a whole, the area of network security may need to make rapid progress to address future threats.

References

5 Ways Businesses Benefit from Managed Network Security. (2012, April 16). Retrieved from GWI Blog: http://www.gwi.net/policy/blog/5-ways-businesses-benefit-from-managed-network-security/

Applications of Smart Cards. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://people.cs.uchicago.edu/~dinoj/smartcard/applications.html

Daya, B. (n.d.). Network Security:History, Importance, as well as Future. Retrieved from mit.edu: http://web.mit.edu/~bdaya/www/Network%20Security.pdf

Kizza. (2005). computer network security. Newyork: springner.

Reid, P. (2004). Biometrics for Network Security. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall .

Top tips for better network security. (2008, March). Retrieved from The Chartered Institute for IT: http://www.bcs.org/content/ConWebDoc/17962/*/changeNav/8265

vanda, s. (2011). Network as well as information security issues . NY.

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