1.4. Network Security

• What is malware?


  Malicious software that harms computer system or steals data.
• Describe a virus:


  It is attached to a file - it damages, changes, deletes files and are often downloaded from the internet or emails.
• Describe a worm:


  It doesn't need to be attached to another file - enters through system security gaps and tricks the user into running them.
• Describe a trojan horse:


  Appears to be a legitimate program, but is trying to steal/delete data - for example, a fake anti-virus program.
• Describe a ransomware:


  Takes files hostage by encrypting them so they are unreadable - ransom is asked for by hackers before they'll decrypt them.
• Describe a spyware:


  Monitors what you are doing on your computer and can send information to criminals - for example, a key logger can note the passwords you type in.
• What is social engineering?


  Tricking people into making mistakes that give away data or make access to networks easier.
• What are examples of social engineering?


  Phishing, pharming, shoulder surfing, and more.
• What are examples of malware?


  Viruses, worms, trojan horses, ransomware, and spyware.
• What is phishing?


  Getting user to reveal important details such as bank passwords - usually from emails that pretend to come from legitimate sources.
• What is pharming?


  Software that redirects users to a fake website that can steal authentication details when user tries to log in - normally done via viruses.
• What is shoulder surfing?


  Watching someone enter a password without them knowing and then using it to enter a system.
• What are brute force attacks?


  Trial and error methods of gaining access.
• What is an example of a brute force attack?


  Trying to work out someone's password by making a computer generate and try different passwords.
• What is a botnet?


  A network of computers that hackers secretly have control over.
• How are botnets formed?

  Computers are infected with malware so they can be forced to secretly do tasks for hackers.
• How can botnets be used?


  In sending phishing or spam emails, or carrying out DDOS attacks.
• What does DDOS stand for?


  Distributed denial of service.
• What do DDOS attacks do?


  They stop websites from loading.
• How are DDOS attacks carried out?


  Bot computers are used to send repeated requests for data to a website - this overwhelms sever traffic so it won't load for any users.
• What is the purpose of DDOS attacks?


  To export money to stop the attack, or to harm business productivity, or even for political reasons.
• What are physical threats?


  Data being physically stolen or damaged.
• What are examples of physical threats?


  Theft of devices such as USB sticks, or damaging the hardware so data is deleted or corrupted.
• What is SQL?


  Structure query language.
• What is a SQL injection?


  A type of attack that involves inserting and executing malicious SQL statements to find data - usually written into search bars are forms on websites.
• What is SQL?


  A programming language written to search for, add to and change records - it is used for searching in a database of information for particular records and is commonly used in websites.
• What is the purpose of SQL injections?


  To gain access to important data such as credit card details.
• What is data interception / theft?


  Finding data whilst it is travelling around and between networks and stealing it.
• How may data interception or theft be carried out?


  In insecure Wi-Fi networks, or in the ethernet by tapping cables, or physically stealing USB sticks.
• What is packet sniffing?


  Hackers monitor network traffic to find data worth stealing - inspecting packets to see what sort of data they hold so they only steam useful things.
• What are network forensics?


  Forensic investigations of networks and attached devices.
• Why are network forensics carried out?


  To figure out where weaknesses are by examining data packets sent - what they contain and where they are going - as they can be used to gather legal evidence and detect intrusions.
• What is penetration testing?


  Attempting to hack a network to identify flaws so they can be fixed.
• What are anti-malware software?


  Software used to prevent malware from entering the system.
• What are the functions of anti-malware?


  • Quarantine
  • Downloads
• What is quarantining?


  Malware found on system being quarantined to prevent it from being ran.
• What do anti-malware do to downloads?


  They scan files being downloaded for threats against a database of known threats.
• What is a drawback of anti-malware?


  They must be kept up to date as new malware are being produced all the time.
• What is a firewall?


  A software or hardware that provides a barrier into your computer system.
• How do firewalls work?


  Only requested traffic can enter the system, which stops unwanted access such as hackers spying on your system - they also scan incoming and outgoing data packets and compare them to rules to decide what to do with them.