Computer Networking & Security

Archive for December, 2009

Computer security is a very delicate subject because today, the world is being digitalized very rapidly as new technologies are vastly being distributed to the most remote places. Every business involves computers and they need to be safe and secure more than ever, because of the fact that all the important data is being documented and archived on pieces of hardware.

Essentials to shared computers

• For better access, most computers in an organization are linked via a network, which has to be protected by specially designed software. Now, computer security systems are used to protect data from theft, misuse, damage or any other disaster that can potentially harm stored information.

• Computer security is practically not needed if a given computer is not in a network connection or in any other way connected to other computers. Thus, when someone mentions “computer security” – most probably he or she means “computer network security”. For example, there is no chance your computer to become infected, if you don’t have an internet connection.

Privacy issues

One of the most important aspects of computer security is the privacy every person is naturally entitled to. Privacy is absolutely necessary, even if the information available is not sensitive or confidential. Any information, no matter the level of importance, could be used against certain person and may bring damage, and not just emotional. One should always be able to share certain information with certain individuals and predict what harm could be brought if it falls in the wrong hands.

The computer security in its core is a list of usernames and passwords. There are usually one person, the lead manager of the system, who have accedes to all password protected areas, in order to keep everything working and to be able to check for malfunction or any potentials flaws in the system.

History shows that it is very often the actual person who breaks down a security system who later helps it to be fixed. After all – he or she is the only one who best knows where the weak parts are and can figure a way to strengthen them. In this business, solutions are carried out by the same persons who have caused or spotted the problems. Some of these people have built the computer security systems that are your best defense against hackers.

Some might feel that to deal with network security risks you just have to simply have someone stand lookout over a room full of computers. This may be the case in cartoon land, but is unrealistic in real life. The world is your oyster should come to mind, since a network and computers could be anywhere. With the Internet, not simply the employed users record data and information, but it can be from unrestricted sources too.

The problems of network security risks are rather challenging and each person expects that these risks be dealt with in a routine and even fashion conceivably by utilizing a sophisticated network security function. To make this appear effortless, there are lots of behind the scenes actions and people that guard network data secure.

Network security risks abound for internal maltreat of a computer network just as there is external abuse. Staff and human resources departments are examples of in-house network use, which cannot under any situation violate confidential information. Damage of other company data is something that is at risk and has to be protected from industry moles and persons who sell secrets and client data to others.

Also risks exist from genuine sources connected with the network. Also, internal information should be protected from department to department to decrease the network security risks. Below that on a user level, confidential records ought to be allowed for use as required and kept from snooping eyes when it is not. This is much to control, but through the use of network security software, it is more manageable

Three ships have been seized in a week off Africa’s lawless eastern coast and Vice Adm. Robert Moeller, the deputy commander for the U.S. Africa Command, said pirates continue to pose a significant challenge.

With the monsoon season now ended, there have been a rash of attacks as pirates return to the open seas. More than 130 crew members from seven ships are currently being held, including about 70 from the latest attacks.

In an effort to stem the surge, unmanned U.S. military surveillance planes called MQ-9 Reapers stationed on the island nation of Seychelles are being deployed to patrol the Indian Ocean in search of pirates, Moeller told The Associated Press in an interview at command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. The patrols began this week, military officials said.

The 36-foot(11-meter)-long Reapers are the size of a jet fighter, can fly about 16 hours and are capable of carrying a dozen guided bombs and missiles. They are outfitted with infrared, laser and radar targeting.

Military officials said Friday the drones would not immediately be fitted with weaponry, but they did not rule out doing so in the future.

Analysts said they expected the Reapers would also be used to hunt al-Qaida and other Islamist militants in Somalia. While Moeller said the aircraft would “primarily” be used against pirates, he acknowledged they could also be used for other missions.

Even the drones and the presence of an international naval armada are unlikely to deter pirates, Moeller said. Pirates are “prepared to take their chances against the warships that are patrolling the area, simply because the potential for big financial gain is significant,” he said.

Cyrus Mody, an expert on piracy at the London branch of the International Maritime Bureau, said he expects the drones will help ward off attacks by acting as an early-warning system for tankers and other commercial vessels traversing waters off the Somali coast.