Network Security

Network Security

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Network Security

Normally, users tend to engage in actions that compromise the level of security that their computer networks possess. Most times, the networks are compromised through the downloading of programs that may contain malicious programs such as viruses and Trojan horses. In addition to this, accessing certain sites without the proper protection by users may enables malicious activities such as hacking, cracking, and eavesdropping to occur. Such activities tend to infringe the privacy of users especially in terms of the information they possess. In this respect, it is important to consider the various mechanisms that can aid users in the protection of their networks. Nowadays, the level of technology continues to progress at an alarming rate forcing malicious persons to modify their attacks on respective networks. Hence, while considering this, the user needs to implement measures that actually comply and acclimatize with recent technological developments. Foremost, firewalls are the safest techniques that users can implement in order to protect their networks. Accordingly, they control the entering and exiting network traffic via an implemented rule set (Cuppens-Boulahia, Cuppens, Autrel, & Debar, 2009). Simply, firewall systems prohibit unauthorized access from or to a private user network. Secondly, anti-malware systems can also aid considerably in the protection of computer networks. Usually, malware systems collect personal information via internet connection without the knowledge of the user. Once they are installed into the computer, they become capable of deploying several well-hidden files such as Trojan horses, spyware, and adware (Cuppens-Boulahia, Cuppens, Autrel, & Debar, 2009). Anti-malware systems can prohibit this by eliminating most of these threats. In addition to this, anti-malware systems can warn the user from accessing sites that may actually contain spyware (Cuppens-Boulahia, Cuppens, Autrel, & Debar, 2009). For instance, certain sites such as music-sharing websites comprise pop-up dialogs whereby a user can answer a question by clicking ‘yes’ or ‘no’. If the user responds to these pop-ups, the browser may initiate a download of an adware or spyware program. As such, anti-malware systems prevent this by cautioning the user from clicking on the pop-up dialogs.

Reference

Cuppens-Boulahia, N., Cuppens, F., Autrel, F., & Debar, H. (2009). An ontology-based approach to react to network attacks. International Journal of Information and Computer Security, 3, 280-305.