Defense Against a Cyber Attack with Malicious Code Prevention Plan

Competition getting access to the Proprietary management program through the shared T-1 line provided by ISP

As part of the network security team, we will be proving IDI with a network security plan to mitigate the vulnerabilities that have been discovered. A secure site will be set up with network intrusion detection and network protection systems will be available to access via the internal network. Policies will be presented for remote access and the use of VPN. Also contained within this report will be strategies for hardening the network and mitigating risks. An updated network layout with increased network security to meet the current needs will be included.

While digital network connectivity and electronic data exchange have paved the way to greater efficiencies in government systems, they have also opened the door to potential malicious attacks by hackers and malware that can jeopardize a system’s availability and overall security. Effective IT security rests on a careful mix of systematic security engineering, interoperable security standards and regulations, and intelligent information, procedures, technology and security personnel.

To detect a cyberattack on the power grid, Western Interconnection should implement a system that will allow public and private authorities to receive Indications and Warning (I&W) when a cyberattack is in its early phase. Koester and Cohen (2012) discuss their Electric Power Grid Indications & Warning Tool in their paper. The purpose of this tool is “to provide near real-time I&W to alert private and public sector authorities when the likely causes of outage events are malicious activity.” (Koester & Cohen, 2012, p. 1). The tool minimizes false alarms due to severe weather and high temperatures. Implementing this solution will allow administrators at the Western Interconnection power grid to take precautionary measures as necessary. For example, the substations can be manually shutdown in case of a cyberattack, to prevent potential damage and spread of malware.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is Incharge of shielding our country’s crucial infrastructure from physical and cyber dangers. Of the varied kinds of infrastructure, cyberspace is crucial constituting the information regarding the government and business operations, crisis management and readiness information, and our crucial digital and process control systems. Safeguarding these critical resources and infrastructure is

These proposals and systems suggestions can minimize the vulnerabilities associated with any compromises or intrusions within the network. Deploying an intrusion detection system is an essential security strategy for monitoring a network information system for abnormal or authorized activity. An intrusion detection system (IDS) is set of tools which monitor a network topology by providing a system administrator with the overall picture of how the system is being utilized. Executing an IDS will make a difference in creating a defense in depth architecture to be more compelling in recognizing any form of malicious activities. The capacity of the IDS is to monitor and survey the network traffic without affecting network activity. IDS tools gather information and analyzes it against a pre-characterized manage set, and against a set of known assault 'marks'. The IDS can scan port numbers and to determine if any breaches or attacks are occurring (Kuipers,

However, anti-malware detection products are available to detect and prevent attacks. These products can better ensure protection on computers. Group three believes that training employees to be aware of security issues in companies, along with different type’s attacks can prevent employees from clicking on suspicious emails, links, and downloads. It also gives the companies systems’ a better chance of not being compromised. Group three predicts that the amount of attacks similar to the Sony data breach will increase as technology advances along with news ways to compromise systems. Collectively, group three believes there is not true solution to this type of attack. In the future group three believes that for a company to be truly safe, the network has to be completely secure, servers and connections have to be checked and updated regularly, and employees must be aware of the attacks that hackers will try to do to infect a network

The fix to the Malware problem is the implementation of the NIST SP 800-83 regulation. It covers all aspects of malware handling and will assist in mitigating the

In the first Presidential debate of 2016, the issue of cybersecurity was a pressing topic. While both candidates did their best to point fingers and place blames on the inadequacy of the government to protect their files, the primary focus on cybersecurity pointed to an intriguing development. The development is that cybersecurity is now a forefront issue in our nation, and a whole host of research and new projects are emerging in the field. Unfortunately, this great interest in cybersecurity has not done much to help the standard computer user, who must deal with notoriously poor protection systems called antiviruses. With the new interest in cyber security, it is in the best interest of corporations and users to reflect on the design of antivirus. Such reflection yields the results

Ledanidze, Evgeny. Guide to Developing a Cyber Security and Risk Mitigation Plan. 2011. http://www.smartgrid.gov/sites/default/files/doc/files/CyberSecurityGuideforanElectricCooperativeV11-2%5B1%5D.pdf (accessed 10 20, 2013).

2. DSB Task Force, “Resilient Military Systems and the Advanced Cyber Threat,” Defense Science Board, 18 January 2013, http://www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/ResilientMilitarySystems. CyberThreat.pdf.

The potential impact of a breach to DTL’s power grid can significantly affect not just the 5.4 million customers, but can have cascading effects across to the other sectors. The electric grid has many interdependencies with the other sectors that link corporate systems together, providing access to customers, suppliers, and other entities (Zhen, 2013). The threat is goes beyond the proprietary information and other sensitive information contained in the corporate systems, there is also the threat to the control systems that are tied in to these networks.

Present day events have shown that cyber-attacks are becoming more prevalent and sophisticated on the internet especially against our nation’s Critical Infrastructures (CI). One of them being the U.S. electrical power grid is also a national security risk that is currently vulnerable to cyber threats from malicious actors on the intent of causing a power blackout. The lack of protection on the power grid can result in an operational nightmare that can cause other government entities or specific CI targets that rely on the power grid to be non-operational. The consequence of a blackout would cost billions and can affect millions of people in the United States by delaying essential services needed to keep the country operational, which is essential for the nation’s economy and security. The complexity to understand cyber threats is ever changing due to technological advances and methods being used by computer hackers. The nation’s electricity system consists of generators and regional networks of interconnected transmission lines that are vulnerable to a cyber-attack. However, with increased reliance to develop a smart grid to improve system operability such as supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) to monitor load balances remotely using internet protocols comes more risk for intruders. This paper will identify the risks associated with the electric grid and discuss the proposed new policy approaches that will help the electric industry which have been

By the year of 2016, investments in online security are expected to reach $86bn (Contu et al, 2012). Although this might seem a large sum of money, it is considered necessary since there is an increase in online risks from all over the world. Professional hackers develop malware on a global scale and on a 24/7 basis. Hackers have five objectives when spreading malware over the Internet: to infect/distribute, to steal, to persist, to control and for intelligence (Morris, 2010).

Just like a biological virus, a computer virus is able to infect and ruin lives. This malicious software constitutes more than just simple viruses but also includes other types of software including worms, Trojan horses, and ransomware. Malware has been around since the late 1980’s. Originally, people became hackers to gain notoriety online, but today, it has become more of a business. Cyber attacks originate from all around the world, and it is not just individual people that benefit from it. In two decades, numerous cyber crime syndicates have been created, and states all over the world sponsor hacker groups. Over the past twenty-five years, malware has become less about checking the integrity of computer security and gaining notoriety in the underground cyber society, and it has become more of a chaos creating, money making business that many people and institutions take part in.