2101 Ch16: Network Security Fundamentals Quiz

Network Security Fundamentals

• Network security is crucial for protection from threat actors
• Opening all doors and windows is like having unsecured network
• Individuals and organizations depend on computer networks
• Network intrusions can lead to costly outages and data loss
• Threat actors gain access through software vulnerabilities, hardware attacks or guessed passwords

Types of Threats

• Information theft: Gaining confidential information (e.g., research data)
• Data loss/manipulation: Destroying or altering data records (e.g., reformatting disks)
• Identity theft: Stealing personal information for fraudulent purposes
• Disruption of service: Preventing legitimate use of services (e.g., denial of service attacks)

Types of Vulnerabilities

• Technological: Weaknesses in the technology itself
• Configuration: Weaknesses due to how a system is configured
• Security policy: Weaknesses in the policies outlining how a system functions

Physical Security

• Hardware threats: Physical damage to devices
• Environmental threats: Extreme temperatures or humidity
• Electrical threats: Voltage spikes, insufficient/total power loss
• Maintenance threats: Poor handling of equipment, lack of parts, poor cabling
• Security protocols to limit damage

Malware

• Viruses: Copy themselves into other programs causing varying levels of damage
• Worms: Standalone software that replicates themselves and cause harm similar to viruses
• Trojan Horses: Seem legitimate but cause harm to a host/system (e.g., by deleting files or stealing data)

Network Attacks

• Recononnaissance attacks: Identify systems, services, or vulnerabilities
• Access attacks: Unauthorized manipulation of data, system access or user privileges
• Denial of service attacks: Disrupting or corrupting services

Trust Exploitation

• Port redirection: Using a compromised system to attack other targets
• Man-in-the-middle attacks: Intercepting data between two legitimate entities. Steps:1.Victim requests page 2.Threat actor gets page 3.Threat actor modifies page 4.Threat actor sends page to victim

Denial of Service Attacks

• DoS attacks: Attack that attempts to make a machine or network resource unavailable
• DDoS attacks: A distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack is a type of DoS attack where multiple compromised systems are used to target a single victim to make the target unavailable. 

Mitigation

• Secure all devices (routers, switches, servers, hosts)
• Employ updated data backups, including network device configurations as appropriate
• Implement security systems like Firewalls, Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS), Email Security Appliances (ESAs), AAA/authentication authorization/accounting servers, to prevent attacks
• Monitor devices for threats
• Regularly update software
• Comply with security policies