Chapter 8 Securing Information System

Chapter 8
Securing Information
Systems
6.1 Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Management Information Systems
Chapter 8 Securing Information Systems
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Analyze why information systems need special

protection from destruction, error, and abuse.
2. Assess the business value of security and control.
3. Design an organizational framework for security and
control.
4. Evaluate the most important tools and technologies for
safeguarding information resources.

Chapter 8: Securing Information Systems
System Vulnerability and Abuse
• Security:
– Policies, procedures, and technical measures used to
prevent unauthorized access, alteration, theft, or
physical damage to information systems
• Controls:
– Methods, policies, and organizational procedures that
ensure safety of organization’s assets; accuracy and
reliability of its accounting records; and operational
adherence to management standards

• Why systems are vulnerable

– Accessibility of networks
– Hardware problems (breakdowns, configuration errors,
damage from improper use or crime)
– Software problems (programming errors, installation
errors, unauthorized changes)
– Disasters
– Use of networks/computers outside of firm’s control
– Loss and theft of portable devices

• Internet vulnerabilities
– Network open to anyone
– Size of Internet means abuses can have wide impact
– Use of fixed Internet addresses with cable / DSL
modems creates fixed targets for hackers
– Unencrypted VOIP
– E-mail, P2P, IM
• Interception
• Attachments with malicious software
• Transmitting trade secrets

• Wireless security challenges

– Radio frequency bands easy to scan
– SSIDs (service set identifiers)
• Identify access points
• Broadcast multiple times
• Can be identified by sniffer programs
• War driving
– Eavesdroppers drive by buildings and try to detect SSID
and gain access to network and resources
• Once access point is breached, intruder can use OS to
access networked drives and files

• Malware (malicious software)

– Viruses
• Rogue software program that attaches itself to other
software programs or data files in order to be executed
– Worms
• Independent programs that copy themselves from one
computer to other computers over a network.
– Worms and viruses spread by
• Downloads (drive-by downloads)
• E-mail, IM attachments
• Downloads on Web sites and social networks

• Malware (cont.)
– Smartphones as vulnerable as computers
• Study finds 13,000 types of smartphone malware
– Trojan horses
• Software that appears benign but does something
other than expected
– SQL injection attacks
• Hackers submit data to Web forms that exploits site’s
unprotected software and sends rogue SQL query to
database
– Ransomware

• Malware (cont.)
– Spyware
• Small programs install themselves surreptitiously on
computers to monitor user Web surfing activity and serve up
advertising
• Key loggers
– Record every keystroke on computer to steal serial
numbers, passwords, launch Internet attacks
• Other types:
– Reset browser home page
– Redirect search requests
– Slow computer performance by taking up memory

• Hackers and computer crime

– Hackers vs. crackers
– Activities include:
• System intrusion
• System damage
• Cybervandalism
– Intentional disruption, defacement, destruction
of Web site or corporate information system

• Spoofing
– Misrepresenting oneself by using fake e-mail addresses
or masquerading as someone else
– Redirecting Web link to address different from intended
one, with site masquerading as intended destination
• Sniffer
– Eavesdropping program that monitors information
traveling over network
– Enables hackers to steal proprietary information such as
e-mail, company files, and so on

• Identity theft
– Theft of personal Information (social security ID,
driver’s license, or credit card numbers) to
impersonate someone else
• Phishing
– Setting up fake Web sites or sending e-mail messages
that look like legitimate businesses to ask users for
confidential personal data
• Evil twins
– Wireless networks that pretend to offer trustworthy
Wi-Fi connections to the Internet
• Pharming
– Redirects users to a bogus Web page, even when
individual types correct Web page address into his or
her browser
• Click fraud
– Occurs when individual or computer program
fraudulently clicks on online ad without any intention
of learning more about the advertiser or making a
purchase
• Cyberterrorism and Cyberwarfare

• Internal threats: Employees

– Security threats often originate inside an
organization
– Inside knowledge
– Sloppy security procedures
• User lack of knowledge
– Social engineering:
• Tricking employees into revealing their passwords
by pretending to be legitimate members of the
company in need of information

• Software vulnerability
– Commercial software contains flaws that create
security vulnerabilities
• Hidden bugs (program code defects)
– Zero defects cannot be achieved because complete testing is
not possible with large programs
• Flaws can open networks to intruders
– Patches
• Small pieces of software to repair flaws
• Exploits often created faster than patches can be
released and implemented

Business Value of Security and Control
• Legal and regulatory requirements for electronic records

management and privacy protection
– HIPAA: Medical security and privacy rules and procedures
– Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act: Requires financial institutions to
ensure the security and confidentiality of customer data
– Sarbanes-Oxley Act: Imposes responsibility on companies
and their management to safeguard the accuracy and
integrity of financial information that is used internally and
released externally

Business Value of Security and Control
• Electronic evidence
– Evidence for white collar crimes often in digital form
• Data on computers, e-mail, instant messages,
e-commerce transactions
– Proper control of data can save time and money
when responding to legal discovery request
• Computer forensics:
– Scientific collection, examination, authentication,
preservation, and analysis of data from computer
storage media for use as evidence in court of law
– Includes recovery of ambient and hidden data
Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control
• Types of general controls

– Software controls
– Hardware controls
– Computer operations controls
– Data security controls
– Implementation controls
– Administrative controls

• Application controls
– Specific controls unique to each computerized
application, such as payroll or order processing
– Include both automated and manual procedures
– Ensure that only authorized data are completely and
accurately processed by that application
– Include:
• Input controls
• Processing controls
• Output controls
• Risk assessment: Determines level of risk to firm if

specific activity or process is not properly controlled
• Types of threat
• Probability of occurrence during year
• Potential losses, value of threat
• Expected annual loss
EXPECTED
EXPOSURE PROBABILITY LOSS RANGE (AVG) ANNUAL LOSS
Power failure 30% $5K–$200K ($102,500) $30,750
Embezzlement 5% $1K–$50K ($25,500) $1,275
User error 98% $200–$40K ($20,100) $19,698

• Security policy
– Ranks information risks, identifies acceptable security
goals, and identifies mechanisms for achieving these goals
– Drives other policies
• Acceptable use policy (AUP)
– Defines acceptable uses of firm’s information
resources and computing equipment
• Authorization policies
– Determine differing levels of user access to
information assets

• Identity management
– Business processes and tools to identify valid users
of system and control access
• Identifies and authorizes different categories of
users
• Specifies which portion of system users can access
• Authenticating users and protects identities
– Identity management systems
• Captures access rules for different levels of users

• Disaster recovery planning: Devises plans for restoration

of disrupted services
• Business continuity planning: Focuses on restoring
business operations after disaster
– Both types of plans needed to identify firm’s most
critical systems
– Business impact analysis to determine impact of an
outage
– Management must determine which systems
restored first

• Information systems audit

– Examines firm’s overall security environment as well as
controls governing individual information systems
– Reviews technologies, procedures, documentation,
training, and personnel
– May even simulate disaster to test response of
technology, IS staff, other employees
– Lists and ranks all control weaknesses and estimates
probability of their occurrence
– Assesses financial and organizational impact of each
threat

Tools and Technologies for Safeguarding Information Resources
• Identity management software

– Automates keeping track of all users and privileges
– Authenticates users, protecting identities, controlling
access
• Authentication
– Password systems
– Tokens
– Smart cards
– Biometric authentication
– Two-factor authentication

• Firewall:
– Combination of hardware and software that prevents
unauthorized users from accessing private networks
– Technologies include:
• Static packet filtering
• Stateful inspection
• Network address translation (NAT)
• Application proxy filtering

• Intrusion detection systems:

– Monitors hot spots on corporate networks to detect
and deter intruders
– Examines events as they are happening to discover
attacks in progress
• Antivirus and antispyware software:
– Checks computers for presence of malware and can
often eliminate it as well
– Requires continual updating
• Unified threat management (UTM) systems

• Securing wireless networks

– WEP security can provide some security by:
• Assigning unique name to network’s SSID and not
broadcasting SSID
• Using it with VPN technology
– Wi-Fi Alliance finalized WPA2 specification, replacing
WEP with stronger standards
• Continually changing keys
• Encrypted authentication system with central
server

• Encryption:
– Transforming text or data into cipher text that cannot
be read by unintended recipients
– Two methods for encryption on networks
• Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and successor Transport
Layer Security (TLS)
• Secure Hypertext Transfer Protocol (S-HTTP)

• Two methods of encryption

– Symmetric key encryption
• Sender and receiver use single, shared key
– Public key encryption
• Uses two, mathematically related keys: Public key
and private key
• Sender encrypts message with recipient’s public
key
• Recipient decrypts with private key

• Ensuring system availability

– Online transaction processing requires 100%
availability, no downtime
• Fault-tolerant computer systems
– For continuous availability, for example, stock markets
– Contain redundant hardware, software, and power
supply components that create an environment that
provides continuous, uninterrupted service

• Security in the cloud

– Responsibility for security resides with company
owning the data
– Firms must ensure providers provides adequate
protection:
• Where data are stored
• Meeting corporate requirements, legal privacy laws
• Segregation of data from other clients
• Audits and security certifications
– Service level agreements (SLAs)

• Ensuring software quality

– Software metrics: Objective assessments of system in
form of quantified measurements
• Number of transactions
• Online response time
• Payroll checks printed per hour
• Known bugs per hundred lines of code
– Early and regular testing
– Walkthrough: Review of specification or design
document by small group of qualified people
– Debugging: Process by which errors are eliminated


Chapter 8 Securing Information System

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8 Securing Information System

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8 Securing Information System

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8

6.1 Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

1. Analyze why information systems need special

6.2 Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.3 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

• Why systems are vulnerable

8.4 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.5 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

• Wireless security challenges

8.6 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

• Malware (malicious software)

8.7 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.8 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.9 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

• Hackers and computer crime

8.10 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.11 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.13 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

• Internal threats: Employees

8.14 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

System Vulnerability and Abuse

System Vulnerability and Abuse

8.16 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Business Value of Security and Control

• Legal and regulatory requirements for electronic records

8.17 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Business Value of Security and Control

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

• Types of general controls

8.19 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

• Risk assessment: Determines level of risk to firm if

Embezzlement 5% $1K–$50K ($25,500) $1,275

User error 98% $200–$40K ($20,100) $19,698

8.21 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

8.22 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

8.23 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

• Disaster recovery planning: Devises plans for restoration

8.24 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Organizational Frameworks for Security and Control

• Information systems audit

8.25 Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Inc.

Tools and Technologies for Safeguarding Information Resources

• Identity management software