Informatic Security in distributed systems environments, virtual and physical.
What are the best known and most common dangers, and methods of prevention and action.
Virus, Hacking and Social Engineering.
Virus.
The Virus has been a great threat to internet and computers users.
Protecting yourself from this destructive and intrusive programs, is a basic necessity for internet users, even if you are just checking your e-mail, or browsing and searching for some information in the internet .
It is very difficult to completly avoid viruses because sooner or later you will have one in you PC or mobile phone.
What is realy important is that you have the knowledge about viruses and how
to use anti-virus aplications, but the most important is to learn how to behave with security questions.
There are a lot of precautionary measures to protect your computer .
Its very important to Educate yourself about Viruses, having basic knowledge about how we can be infected and how Virus behave in the host Machine, will help you know the ways you can get prevent in getting a Virus.
Diferent types of Virus.
Normally, an Internet Virus attempts to spread from computer to computer by infecting another file, typically an executable program.
Besides spreading, viruses can be used to do harm or criminal activity.
There are several variants of malicius Virus traveling online, with a variety of different intentions. Some of them are built to attack the host computer and cause geat damages.
Others, like trojans , that hides in the background computing processes with the intent of exposing and capturing personal information and then transmitting it to the viruse's creator .
However, even if this Viruses may attempt to go undetected , there are always some signs of infection to look out for.
For example, if you notice that your computer is taking longer than usual to turn on, if is generally less responsive, or has changed appearance in some way, or is opening programs that you don't installed or dont recognise, it may be that your machine has became infected.
There are 3 Basic types of virus that are more common Public known.
Which are: Trojan Horses , Worms, E-mail Viruses.
The best way to ensure your computer against viruses is to use a secure antivirus program to monitor the files and software running on your machine.
Additionally, never open programs or email attachments unless you are sure of their origins – even if they appear to have been sent by a friend, they may in fact be malicious.
Security procedures:
Use a firewall.
Firewalls keep out some viruses and hackers.
A firewall acts as a barrier between the public internet and your private computer or network, and blocks threats including some viruses.
What a firewall does?
Because the internet is a public network, any connected computer can find and connect to any other connected computer.
A firewall is a barrier between the public internet and your private computer system. Think of it as a really paranoid bouncer who stops anyone coming into your computer if they’re not on the guest list.
Install anti-virus software.
Why install anti-virus software?
Anti-virus software is one of the main defences against online problems.
It continually scans for viruses, including Trojans and worms. To be effective it must be kept up-to-date.
Without anti-virus software you are very vulnerable to computer viruses, including:
Infected email attachments.
Drive-by infections caused by visiting corrupt websites.
Viruses that attack over the internet (“worms”).
Spyware that is introduced by virus infections.
Viruses that are spread using macros in application documents.
Depending on the software you use, it may detect some (but not all) spyware.
Get the latest Windows updates
As new threats emerge, Microsoft updates its Windows operating system and Microsoft Office applications to block them.
However, you need to download the updates regularly to be sure of getting maximum protection.
Why update Windows and Office applications?
Like locksmiths and burglars, hackers (cyber-criminals) and software manufacturers are engaged in a cat-and-mouse game.
Hackers try to find and exploit bugs and loopholes in popular software in order to get a back door into people’s computers.
Developers try to close these loopholes as they are discovered.
If passwords are the door key and a firewall and anti-virus software is your alarm system, installing patches is like making sure that you don’t leave any windows open.
Stop spyware
Spyware is an insidious threat to privacy and can result in financial fraud. It is also a huge pain to live with.
What is spyware?
Spyware is like a virus that is an unwanted program that runs on your computer.
However, it does not try to replicate itself to other machines.
Infection usually occurs when it is installed alongside another program such as a peer to peer file sharing application. However, increasingly,
spyware is blending with viruses making it harder to eradicate and harder to avoid.
Make regular backups.
Backups are the last line of defence against hardware failure, floods or fires, the damage caused by a security breach or just accidental deletion of data.
Ask yourself what would happen if you lost all your critical business data – how long would it take you to recover?
How much disruption and delay would occur?
Why make backups?
Backups protect you against:
Hardware failure. Disk failure is rare but it does happen.
Accidental file deletion.
Theft and natural disaster.
Catastrophic virus or spyware infections, if you have to erase your hard disk and reinstall everything.
Secure wireless networks.
Wi-Fi (wireless) networks are vulnerable to eavesdropping, hackers and freeloaders.
Wireless networks, which are sometimes known as Wi-Fi or 802.11 networks, let computers talk to one another using a radio link similar to cordless phones.
Stop unwanted email.
Unwanted email, sometimes known as junk or spam email, is unsolicited email advertising.
Examples of unwanted email:
Adverts for porn or gambling sites.
Work from home schemes.
Online pharmacies.
Advertising “Herbal Viagra” and similarly improbable products.
Selling implausibly cheap (pirated) software.
How spammers get your email address
Spammers collect addresses in many different ways, including:
Guessing. Spammers use automated software to generate addresses.
Harvesting from websites. If an email address is embedded in a webpage, spammers can use spiders (similar to those used by search engines) to find them.
Online registration. If someone gives their email address to a dodgy website or one with a lax privacy policy, the site owner can sell the addresses
to spammers.
From other spammers. It’s possible to buy lists of email addresses by the million online.
So-called spam email cancellation services. These bogus services offer to block unwanted email but really collect addresses.
Browse the internet safely.
Simply browsing the internet can be dangerous.
Malicious websites contain viruses and spyware and criminals create fake sites to steal personal information,
so it's important to learn how to protect yourself.
Top online safety myths
Forget what you’ve heard, find out the truth.
The internet can be a dangerous place. You need to protect yourself.
However, a lot of people kid themselves that they are not at risk. Don’t be fooled by what other people say: learn the truth about dangerous online safety myths.
I’ve got anti-virus software so I’m completely protected
Viruses aren’t the only security threat so this is a bit like always locking the front door but leaving the windows wide open. For example, anti-virus software won’t keep out evil hackers or stop spyware and it won’t stop you falling for a con trick online.
Nobody’s interested in me
Wrong again. Increasingly corrupt hackers and criminals work hand-in-hand. Stealing your identity is a lot more profitable than stealing your television.
Anonymity is no protection. Criminals use automated tools to find potential victims. They can scan tens of thousands of computers an hour over the internet. It’s like flicking through the phone book and ringing people up at random to see if they’re home.
I’ve got a backup
A backup on its own won’t protect you against anything. It’s a bit like having a spare car in the garage at home in case you crash the one you’re in. Also, unless you have a backup of your computer before any virus attack occurred, you’ll only end up restoring data onto an infected computer.
I’ve got insurance
Insurance companies usually exclude virus attacks from their cover. Specialist cover is available for businesses but usually comes with a requirement for extra security. Policies vary, check yours to see what is covered.
You only get viruses from emails
Unfortunately, there are lots of ways for a virus to infect your computer. For example: via websites, directly over the internet, on disks or other removable media or by installing infected programs.
If I lose money, the bank or credit card company will sort it out.
If you can prove you were not responsible for a debt that was run up fraudulently using your stolen information, you will be reimbursed.
However, there is no compensation for the time and stress required to sort it out. It isn’t pleasant when someone drives a bulldozer through your credit history.
A typical case might take a week or more to put right but there are extreme examples of identity theft that have taken people months to straighten out.
The internet police will stop anything bad happening to me
There is no such thing as ‘the internet police!’
The internet doesn’t have borders and online criminals can use technology to conceal their identity.
It’s too time-consuming to do anything about security
It can take 60 hours, on average, to sort out a case of identity theft and a couple of days to clean up a computer that has been infected with viruses and spyware. An ounce of prevention really is worth a pound of cure.
My internet service provider protects me from online threats.
Some internet service providers (ISPs) provide some elements of security such as scanning emails for viruses or providing you with a firewall, but you need to understand exactly what they do and, more importantly, what they don’t do.
Some ISPs do nothing to protect you. Not only that, an ISP can do nothing to protect you from conmen or hoax emails. Assuming that your ISP is doing it all could be an expensive mistake.
I have a Mac or Linux-based computer, so I'm safe.
While it is true that Mac and Linux-based systems suffer fewer attacks than PCs running Windows, that doesn’t mean that they are invulnerable. For example, Apple rolls out security updates on a regular basis just like Microsoft. In addition, many internet frauds work whatever kind of machine you use.
How do people become victims?
Have you been a victim? Find out why.
A burglar walking down a street at night might pass a dozen houses before selecting his victim. Lights, noise, dogs, and nosy neighbours – all these things can deter them. It’s the same on the internet.
The difference is that technology means that criminals can look at millions of houses before deciding which ones to attack and can then attack all the vulnerable ones simultaneously.
Except in very unusual circumstances, such as fame or vendetta, you are unlikely to be singled out individually for attack. It is much more random than that.
Criminals use the internet’s reach and efficiency against us. They can:
Send out millions of emails in a day.
Download DIY ( Do it Your Self ) virus kits from the internet.
Hijack tens of thousands of computers to spread viruses and spam.
Use viruses to find vulnerable computers or private information.
Anonymously subcontract techy stuff to bad hackers.
Buy and sell vast quantities of personal information.
Use software to guess most passwords in seconds.
Host fraudulent websites on other people’s computers.
Impersonate real users using stolen identities.
Operate clandestinely almost anywhere in the world.
And it costs them next to nothing. On the other hand the rewards are substantial:
If someone signs up for a gambling site after clicking on a spammer's advert, the spammer receives up to half of the money they spend gambling as a 'reward' for bringing in the customer.
Or a share of their spending on online porn or product sales.
With a stolen identity, they can empty your bank account or max out your credit cards.
E-commerce sites can suffer extortion or risk having their site jammed.
Criminals can impersonate legitimate buyers and sellers online.
How do they get your details? There are countless ways you can be targeted, including:
Your name and personal details might be stolen from a database
Your email might be lifted from a friend’s computer that has suffered a virus attack.
You might get a virus in a spam email that has been sent to ten million email addresses.
Your computer could be the victim of a computer-to-computer virus that sneaks in.
There are three key points:
Online crime is about making money.
Victims tend to be targeted at random.
People with less protection are much more likely to be victims.
If you are connected to the internet, the chances are that you will be on the receiving end of a virus or fraudulent email or other attack. But that doesn’t mean you have to be a victim.
If you protect yourself properly , you can dramatically cut the risk of being a victim. Think of it as leaving the lights on, setting the burglar alarm and buying two large Alsatians and a twitchy Jack Russell Terrier.
Internet security is becoming an very precious asset .
João Cristina , 26 de Abril, 2011
