The Importance of Network Security (Edexcel GCSE Computer Science)

What is network security?

• Network security is any activity designed to protect a network and it's data from internal and external threats

• A network vulnerability is a weakness that can be exploited by a criminal to gain unauthorised access to information or resources

Identifying Network Vulnerabilities

What are common network vulnerabilities?

• Examples of common network vulnerabilities are:

  • Weak passwords

  • Outdated software

  • Malware

  • Poorly configured firewalls

Weak passwords

• A week password is a password with less than 8-12 characters and does not contain a combination of:

  • Upper case characters

  • Lower case characters

  • Numbers

  • Special characters (*, #. ! etc.)

• Predictable patterns make a weak password, for example, using birthdays, names and/or keyboard patterns (qwerty)

• Weak passwords can lead to hackers deploying brute force attacks, which can lead to:

  • Data theft

  • Access to private information

  • Further attacks

Outdated software

• Outdated software is software that has not been patched or updated regularly

• Outdated software can lead to hackers exploiting vulnerabilities in source code

Malware

• Malware is malicious software designed to cause harm to a network or computer system

• Examples of issues that malware can cause are:

  • File deletion/corruption

  • Use system resources - slow down performance/internet

  • Logging key strokes

Poorly configured firewalls

• A firewall is designed to monitor incoming and outgoing traffic from a network

• A poorly configured firewall can lead to malicious software getting in or cause it to spread

Penetration Testing & Ethical Hacking

What is penetration testing?

• Penetration testing is the process of attempting to gain access to resources without knowledge of usernames, passwords and other normal means of access

• A company will employ penetration testers to test a networks security and use any information gained to to fix any issues that are found

• There are two main types of penetration testing:

  • Internal (white-box)

  • External (black-box)

Internal (white-box)

• When the person or team testing the system has knowledge of and possibly basic credentials for the target system, simulating an attack from inside the system

External (black-box)

• When the person or team testing the system has no knowledge of any credentials for the target system, simulating an attack from outside the system

What is ethical hacking?

• Ethical hacking is attempting to gain unauthorised access to a network or computer system with the intention of helping to fix any vulnerabilities

• Ethical hackers have permission from the system owner

• There are 3 categories of hackers: