Information Technology has Passwords and Viruses and Lost PDA’s Oh My

Setting up a new computer can be a very intimidating task. There are several steps to ensure that your computer has the necessary setup for the best protection. Some of which include, the operating system settings that are built-into the computer, properly setup of firewall, security settings on the web browser configured correctly, and strong anti-virus software installed to protect the computer. After the computer is setup with a reasonable standard of security, a strong policy for passwords should be implemented to ensure account security along with ensuring the sites you utilize are in fact secure and who they say they are.

Another thing that you should never do, is use the same password for everything. The problem with using the same password for all your online accounts is that if someone was able to crack that one password, they would have access to everything. So a few things that would help keep your information safe. First you must create different passwords that are at least 14 -16 characters

The world of cyber security continues to introduce new threats each year against network infrastructures and computer devices. In the recent years, the impact from cyber-attacks has wreaked havoc on many company brands and organizational reputations. As this issue grows so does the technology to prevent and protect against these malicious attacks. It is absolutely crucial for organizations and businesses to shift focus from defense for different types of attacks to improving safeguards to mitigate the loss of sensitive data when an attack occurs. In addition to the traditional security technology used to detect an attack, companies will have to include

Cyber-security demands are ever increasing in the field of Information Technology with the globalization of the internet. Disruptions due to cyber-attacks are affecting the economy, costing companies billions of dollars each year in lost revenue. To counter this problem

In today’s IT world every organization has a responsibility to protect the information and sensitive data they have. Protecting data is not only responsibility of security and IT staff but every individual is involved in protecting the information. The risks to information security are not digital only, but it involves technology, people and process that an organization may have. These threats may represent the problems that are associated to complex and expensive solution, but doing nothing about these risks is not the solution.

This ends up giving the hackers an enormous help. When it comes to safety and security, people are usually uneducated which result in lost of personal information being breaches with ease. People can give their information away to hackers to the slightest carelessness. Using common password or having the same login can lead to a system breach. One study found only 45% of consumers change password in a yearly basis and the most popular passwords are “password” and “123456”( Morgan, 2011). Hackers don’t need to scam experts to guess these passwords and access the information of the individuals.

Information security enabled by technology must include the means of lowering the impact of intentional and unintentional errors entering the system and to prevent unauthorized internally or externally accessing the system  actions to reduce risk data validation, pre-numbered forms, and reviews for duplications. It is crucial that the mission plan include the provision of a disaster recovery and business continuity plan. On the other hand, there is much more intrusion activity today than ever before. Obviously, there is an increased concern for attacks through companies’ network in an effort to either commit malice or affect the integrity of an organization’s most valuable resource. Therefore, it is important that companies do not get complacent in their IT infrastructure security. The fact of the matter, there is no perfect system; however, it behooves organizations to protect their information by way of reducing threats and vulnerabilities. Moreover, Whitman and Mattord (2010) said it best, “because of businesses and technology have become more fluid, the concept of computer security has been replaced by the concept of information security. Companies

Computers have become part of our daily complex lives; we depend heavily on computers to help break our complicated lives down. Most people now prefer to do things the digital way and so does companies. Most of trading (buying and selling) is now online which requires computers. In order to satisfy our hunger for digital living, there is a need for technology called the operating system to carry out the activities we require our computers to do. Computers and technology come in different forms and sizes and due to the capitalistic nature of our economy everyone is allowed to come up with their own form of computer and even the technology to run it. In recent years’ companies have gained interest doing business digitally and since software have become easier to write or code, it is also vulnerable- easy for programmers to access and exploit called hacking. Hackers are unapproved clients who break into a technological framework, change or decimate data, frequently by introducing hazardous malware without the insight and assent of the host company. Companies are now at risk of losing much more than money by doing business the digital way. It is in this view that the Security Exchange

Authentication and privilege attacks: Passwords remain the number one vulnerability in many systems. It is not an easy task to have a secure system whereby people are required to choose a unique password that others cannot guess but is still easy for them to remember. Nowadays most people have at least five other passwords to remember, and the password used for company business should not be the same one used for webmail accounts, site memberships and so on. Password policies can go a long way to mitigate the risk, but if the password policy is too strict people will find ways and means to get around it. They will write the password on sticky notes, share them with their colleagues or simply find a keyboard pattern (1q2w3e4r5t) that is easy to remember but also easy to guess.

Moreover, now days using information system is not as walking as in the park, it has many new security treats that the company might lose their confidential data, financial and personal information.

While all of these technologies have enabled exciting changes and opportunities for businesses, they have also created a unique set of challenges for business managers. Chief among all concerns about technology is the issue of information security. It seems to be almost a weekly occurrence to see a news article about yet another breach of security and loss of sensitive data. Many people will remember high profile data breaches from companies such as T.J Maxx, Boston Market, Sports Authority, and OfficeMax. In the case of T.J. Maxx, a data breach resulted in the loss of more than 45 million credit and debit card numbers. In many of these incidents, the root cause is a lack of adequate security practices within the company. The same technologies that enable managers can also be used against them. Because of this, businesses must take appropriate steps to ensure their data remains secure and their communications remain

The use of information technology in business presents major security challenges, poses serious ethical question, and affects society in significant ways. Especially, the computer crime is a growing threat to society and is caused by the criminal or irresponsible actions of individuals who are taking advantage of the widespread use and vulnerability of computers and the Internet and other networks. It presents a major challenge to the integrity, safety, and survival of most business systems.

Prevalent to the current trend now is the dependency of the society on Information technology and communication systems. Every aspect of human life is one way or the other linked and controlled by information technology tools. The importance of information technology cannot be over emphasized as its unavailability could lead to a form of disaster or the other. Pivotal infrastructures like finance, healthcare, education and security are driven by information technology. However, information technology and its benefits are accompanied by vulnerabilities and risks that can be exploited by people with the necessary technical skills. Individuals like ‘Hackers’ and ‘Cyber Terrorist’ can cause disruption to information systems, commit financial fraud and also attack computers and networks. These attacks and disruptions could result to violence against people and properties. In some cases, death, serious injuries and severe economic loss could occur as a result of these attacks.

The problem with passwords is that they require to be extremely complex in order to be protective. You also need a different password for all of your logins – this means password retention is hard. This is problematic for both the user and the business. Both will be compromised in the event that hackers obtain the password – businesses will need to spend a lot of money in preventing hacking, but they are still vulnerable for users’ lack of proper handling of passwords. Knowing where liability lies in the event of hacking can be difficult.

Almost all kind of large and small organizations might face increasing number of attacks into their network or intellectual property. This may lead to data disclosure, data destruction, and damage of organization’s reputation. There are numerous threats in the cyber space which might be capable of stealing, destroying or making use of out sensitive data for financial and non-financial gains. As the amount of computer, mobile and internet users increases, so does the number of exploiters.