As everyone moves their business online, we have become dependent on the internet to store all organizational information and very delicate personal information. Many cyber security breaches happen daily, but only a few get covered in the mainstream media. Cyber security issues should be given more attention so that institutions can find a better way to protect themselves and their data.
The main aim of cyber security is to make it harder for hackers to penetrate your system and access your data. Like everyone, hackers also have insufficient time, payoff, and budget. If you have invested in the three cyber security fundamentals, you can always ensure that your system is always a little harder for hackers to access.
Why is cyber security so important?
The birth of cyber security occurred in the 1970s when Bob Thomas was working on a program, namely “The Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET)”, a connectivity network developed before the internet. He created a Creeper program that would hop from one computer to the next with the message, “I’M THE CREEPER: CATCH ME IF YOU CAN.” Ray Tomlison then developed a new Reaper program, which followed the Creeper and deleted it. From then on, computer viruses have become more rampant and do more damage, thus proving a need for cyber security.
We keep becoming more dependent on technology than ever before as a society. Because of how much we rely on technology, there is a high risk of attacks which calls for cyber security. There are so many reasons why cyber security is essential. These include:
- It protects all categories of data from theft and damage. Without cyber security, your institution can’t defend itself against data breach campaigns, making it an irresistible target for cybercriminals.
- An increase in cybercrimes. Due to the fast increase in technology, there is also an increase in connected devices. The further the dark web develops, the more it creates a fertile ground for cybercrime activities.
- It helps protect cloud storage. Most people store their passwords, bank account details, and other personal information on the cloud. It is in your highest interest to make certain that no one comes across this information and hacks it. Cybercrime targets the cloud as they’re sure that people store most of their information there.
- It saves companies millions. Cybercrimes cost organizations up to millions because of what cybercriminals take for themselves. Cybercrimes can result in breaches in information such as financial information, health records, trade secrets, personal data, and intellectual property. Instead of having your company undergo espionage, it is better to pay a small amount to protect all of your data.
What are the cyber security fundamentals?
The top cyber security fundamentals, also known as the “CIA triad”, consist of three components which include:
- Confidentiality
- Integrity
- Availability
The 3 main cyber security fundamentals
1. Confidentiality
Confidentiality is often associated with secrecy and the use of encryption. In this case, the term “confidentiality” refers to the data being available only to authorized personnel. When an institution keeps data confidential, it means that data isn’t made available to those who don’t need it or do not require it—putting data in order of who needs it and how sensitive it makes protecting it easy.
Doing so isn’t such a challenging task at a company because different people require various data depending on their position at the company. The most sensitive data should only be accessed by a few individuals, preventing breaching most of the time. A breach of data may occur due to hacking or social engineering.
Since confidentiality is a core cyber security fundamental, protecting it is a responsibility shared between technologists and every other person in the organization. Cyber security personnel are responsible for ensuring that confidentiality controls are in place and they do operate properly. But even so, it is the responsibility of everyone with access to sensitive information to protect the confidentiality of the data.
Sometimes, a breach of confidentiality occurs not because of a technical failure but because of a mistake made by an individual with authorized access to the information. Companies ought to rely on various technical controls put in place to detect, prevent, and remediate confidentiality breaches. When put in place, most of these controls prevent breaches from occurring in the first place by restricting information access to authorized users only.
For example, some controls may limit the kind of information each user can view. Other controls detect security breaches and act accordingly to prevent further damage. In the case of data loss prevention systems, they work by monitoring network communication for unauthorized transmission of sensitive information. These systems can even work to prevent these data from reaching unauthorized persons.
2. Integrity
The integrity of data ensures that once data is submitted, no one tampers with it. Integrity is the certainty that data hasn’t been subjected to unauthorized modification, whether intentional or unintentional.
There are two common ways that data integrity can be compromised. That’s during the upload of data or the storage of data. By ensuring data integrity is kept, your company’s data will be in safe hands for the most part.
Since integrity protects data from unauthorized alteration, these measures also assure the completeness and accuracy of data. Protecting stored and transmitted data means that even emails will be protected. By maintaining integrity, the company will be able to control access at the system level and also ensure that system users can only alter data that they’re authorized and allowed to alter.
Integrity also protects against intentional and unintentional breaches. For example, a system malfunction or a user creating errors. Even though all system owners need confidence and integrity in their data, it is more necessary for the finance industry since they need to ensure that their transactions are secure from tampering. If there is any breach in a financial institution’s system, it will suffer huge losses that could even lead to the institution’s collapse. Rigorous authentication and access control can help prevent authorized users from making unauthorized changes.
If an institution puts in place hash verifications and digital signatures, these can assure that those are authentic transactions and there are no corrupted or modified files. Other administrative controls like training and separation of duties are a great way of protecting data integrity.
3. Availability
Availability of data refers to information or data being available to authorized users when required. Any system that demonstrates availability must have adequately functioning security controls, communication channels, and computing systems.
Availability is a common challenge in collaborative environments where data must be stable and continually maintained. Such systems always allow users to access data with little waiting time. You can quickly tell an information system’s usefulness by its availability to authorized users. The availability measures help protect timely and uninterrupted access to the system.
The most common threats to availability measures are non-malicious. The most common ones include unscheduled software downtime, hardware failures, and network bandwidth issues. When it comes to malicious attacks include varying forms of sabotage intended to harm the company by refuting users’ access to the information system.
Most businesses are highly dependent on the availability of their system. Failure could result in loss of money, customer dissatisfaction and reputation damage. The most common method used by hackers to disrupt a website’s availability is through Denial of Service (DoS). A DoS attack often floods the server with countless requests overwhelming it and degrading service for authorized users.
It is safer for institutions that need continuous up to have significant hardware redundancy with backup servers and data storage readily available. Some big companies prefer having redundant systems in separate physical locations. It is essential to have software tools in place to monitor the performance of the systems and monitor their traffic. Firewalls and routers are the most convenient ways to protect against DoS.
Is there a way of studying cyber security online?
Online, you can find cyber security courses that you can partake in and get certified. Depending on your needs, it can take you a few months up to a couple of years to complete studying.
Short courses include:
- Harvard’s Cybersecurity- Managing Risk in the Information Age- This course is thorough, and it’s specific to those that want to pursue cybersecurity seriously as a career. It is a worthy course since it’s from Harvard, and no employer could turn you down. It costs $2900, and you can complete it in only eight weeks. Even though it may seem expensive, it’s not for the value you’ll receive.
- Northwestern’s Cybersecurity Leadership- Unlike the previous course, which was assessing and dealing with risk, this course is more focused on implementing strategies within your organization to protect digital information. Its price is $2500, and it will take you about six weeks to complete it.
- IMD’s Cyber Security for Managers- This one has more to offer to even those who don’t want to be cyber security managers. It touches more on cyber security fundamentals and how to carry out senior-level planning. It costs $2000, and you can complete it within five weeks.
- University of Cape Town’s Fundamentals of Cybersecurity- This is a great entry-level course if you’re getting into cyber security. It is a course anyone, from employees to employers, can take to understand cyber security. It costs $1000 and takes about eight weeks. Determining by the amount of time it takes, just because it’s cheap doesn’t mean it’s not thorough.
- Udacity Introduction to Cybersecurity- This course focuses on several different topics in cybersecurity, such as the foundations of cybersecurity, securing and defending systems, how to act when you experience threats and vulnerabilities, and the best way to comply with laws and regulations. It costs $1500 and takes up to 16 weeks to complete.
- Getsmarter’s Cybersecurity- Managing Risk in the Information Age- If you aim to learn more about defending a company against cyber threats exclusively, this should be your first choice. You will get all the tools and knowledge you need to create a defence today. It costs $2900 and takes up to 8 weeks to complete.
- Udacity’s Security Analyst Course- This course is a bit advanced and is best for those with a background in code and security. It helps you understand Python, SQL, and security fundamentals.
Degrees include:
- Norwich University- This university has consistently been voted the best one to offer cyber security education. You can quickly complete the Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity program within 18 months.
- Iowa State University- Considering it’s one of the oldest universities offering cyber security courses since 1995, it shows how impressive it is. You can choose to pursue your degree online or on campus.
- University Of Arizona- The university offers a Bachelor of applied science in cyber operations entirely online. It is among the top choices for cyber security students.
- Champlain College- If you want to develop the critical and technical skills required by today’s cyber security experts, this is the perfect place to study. They even won an award offered by SC Magazine in 2021.
- Liberty University- Their Bachelors in Information Assurance Degree is purely inline. The studies have no specific schedules allowing students to go to other jobs and take the classes when they can. The only problem with them is their acceptance rate which is relatively low, standing at 51%.
Final thoughts
Cyber security is reasonably necessary with the growth of the internet and its users. Bugs and viruses can cause trouble for users, and massive companies use their programs to store essential data. If you want to pursue cyber security as a career, then there’s no better time to start than now. There are many opportunities for you, and the market keeps growing every day, so you’ll always have a job.
