Vulnerability Of Computer Systems Research Articles

Network Security Threats and Vulnerabilities

The communication of confidential data over the Internet increases every day. Individuals and organizations submit their sensitive data electronically. It is also common for hackers to target these networks. Nowadays, protecting your data, software, and hardware from viruses is more of a necessity than ever, not just a concern. Cyber security is traditionally defined by the three attributes of confidentiality, integrity and availability. Confidentiality is the prevention of unauthorized disclosure of information. Integrity is the prevention of unauthorized modification of information, and availability is the prevention of unauthorized retention of information or resources. This article studies the different types of security threats, resources and vulnerabilities of computer systems.

Navigating the Cyber Threat Landscape: A Comprehensive Analysis of Attacks and Security in the Digital Age

In this contemporary digital age, cybersecurity stands as a crucial linchpin amid the expanding role of technology in our lives, encountering numerous challenges. This review addresses the imperative need for robust cybersecurity measures as malicious actors continually innovate methods to exploit vulnerabilities in computer systems, networks, and data. The exploration delves into the multifaceted realm of cybersecurity attacks, unveiling the evolving threat landscape and their profound implications. From cybercriminals utilizing phishing attacks to the covert tactics of malware and the disruptive potential of Denial of Service (DoS) and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, including Phishing, Zero-Day Exploits, Man-in-the-Middle, and SQL Injection Attacks, the cybersecurity battleground is ever-expanding. The study systematically categorizes cyber threats, scrutinizes their distinctive characteristics, and elucidates the modus operandi of each attack type. Through a meticulous dissection of cybercriminal methods and motivations and a comprehensive evaluation of countermeasure efficacy, this review offers indispensable insights for securing our digital future in an era marked by escalating interconnectivity and technological dependence.

About one approach to increasing the security of computer systems against intrusion

The article considers an approach to increasing the security of computer systems from intrusion. The importance of the problem of information security and cybersecurity is substantiated. Strategies of attack and destructive actions used by intruders (hackers) are considered. 16 different attack and intrusion strategies are identified. The reasons for the vulnerability of computer systems are analyzed. Two groups of reasons are considered: objective reasons depending on the hardware and software components of the computer system and subjective reasons depending on the human factor. It is noted that one of the main reasons that objectively complicate the protection of a computer from intrusion is that the same computer is assigned the solution of two unrelated problems: the direct solution of tasks, which are essentially an internal problem, and the tasks of communication, which can be seen as an external problem. An approach is proposed to increase the security of computer systems from intrusion through hardware redundancy, in particular, instead of one computer, use a computer unit consisting of two computers – internal and external. The internal computer is used for the direct solution of tasks. The external computer is responsible for performing communication tasks. Additionally, the issues of physical protection of computer systems are considered.

Taxonomical Challenges for Cyber Incident Response Threat Intelligence

As attackers continue to devise new means of exploiting vulnerabilities in computer systems, security personnel are doing their best to identify loopholes and threats. Analysis of threats to come up with effective mitigation techniques requires all-encompassing information about them. Security analysts can represent and share cyber threat information with semantic knowledge graphs within cyber security space to access. However, there should be no conflicting information because the response to threats must be immediate. This calls for a standardized taxonomy that is generally accepted within the cybersecurity space to represent information, ultimately making cyber threat intelligence (CTI) credible. This review looks into existing CTI-based ontologies, taxonomies, and knowledge graphs. The absence of standardized taxonomy identified could be responsible for limited taxonomy encoding and integration among existing CTI-based ontologies, as well as missing interconnections between taxonomies and existing ontologies. Hence, the development of a standardized taxonomy will enhance CTI effectiveness.

Уязвимости компьютерных систем – угроза информационной безопасности общества.

Уязвимости компьютерных систем – угроза информационной безопасности общества.

Detection of vulnerabilities of the computer systems and networks using social engineering techniques

Information protection in computer systems and networks is focused on preserving its confidentiality properties of, integrity and availability from various inherently adverse impacts. Potentially possible adverse effects are interpreted as a threat. To prevent or complicate the possibility of realizing threats and reducing potential losses, a system of information protection measures is created and maintained in a healthy state. Such a system includes a computing system, physical environment, staff, and information. One of the most vulnerable elements of such system is staff. Within the framework of the socio-engineering approach, staff vulnerability is interpreted as its weaknesses, needs, mania (passions), hobbies. Manipulating them allows one to gain unauthorized access to information without destroying and distorting its main system-forming qualities. This is reflected in such forms as fraud, deception, scam, intrigue, hoax, provocation. The use of each of these manipulation forms is preceded by the determination of its content by careful planning, organization, and control. These actions are the basis of social engineering methods. Their use is aimed at imitating the actions of the information security violator, which are aimed at staff. This allows to assess the level of staff skills in the information security field and, as a result, to identify information vulnerabilities in computer systems and networks. The methods of social engineering used for this are divided into two groups, in particular, remote social engineering and personal contact. Methods of remote social engineering are implemented by means of modern telecommunications. In addition, the second group of methods involves the establishment of personal contact with the object of influence. In the end, it becomes possible not only to identify, neutralize, but also to prevent information vulnerabilities in computer systems and networks with the introduction of social engineering methods. Therefore, firstly, its protection is ensured taking into account the requirements of the information security policy; secondly, the rules of conduct of the staff are established, regulated by the job descriptions; thirdly, training is held to increase the persistence of employees stereotypes of the organization.

A Methodological Approach for Assessing Amplified Reflection Distributed Denial of Service on the Internet of Things.

Concerns about security on Internet of Things (IoT) cover data privacy and integrity, access control, and availability. IoT abuse in distributed denial of service attacks is a major issue, as typical IoT devices’ limited computing, communications, and power resources are prioritized in implementing functionality rather than security features. Incidents involving attacks have been reported, but without clear characterization and evaluation of threats and impacts. The main purpose of this work is to methodically assess the possible impacts of a specific class–amplified reflection distributed denial of service attacks (AR-DDoS)–against IoT. The novel approach used to empirically examine the threat represented by running the attack over a controlled environment, with IoT devices, considered the perspective of an attacker. The methodology used in tests includes that perspective, and actively prospects vulnerabilities in computer systems. This methodology defines standardized procedures for tool-independent vulnerability assessment based on strategy, and the decision flows during execution of penetration tests (pentests). After validation in different scenarios, the methodology was applied in amplified reflection distributed denial of service (AR-DDoS) attack threat assessment. Results show that, according to attack intensity, AR-DDoS saturates reflector infrastructure. Therefore, concerns about AR-DDoS are founded, but expected impact on abused IoT infrastructure and devices will be possibly as hard as on final victims.

Vulnerability Research and Mapping of Campus Network

Vulnerability of computer systems in campus- wide network has been an issue for years, since networks were open to allow anonymous access. It will take many studies of computer security to protect. A vulnerability research and mapping of a network is a step to address the issue, as well as minimizing security breach in the future. Evaluation of a network security can be done by many tools available and also guidelines based on CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker) module and Acunetix for web specific security. These test tools were deployed several times on every target, scanning open ports and sending test scripts to find vulnerabilities. With CEH and Acunetix guidelines, the evaluation shows many common security weaknesses such as Cross-Site Scripting, SQL injection and DDoS vulnerabilities and therefor this evaluation leads to security recommendations based on the weaknesses and security holes found.

Behavior query discovery in system-generated temporal graphs

Computer system monitoring generates huge amounts of logs that record the interaction of system entities. How to query such data to better understand system behaviors and identify potential system risks and malicious behaviors becomes a challenging task for system administrators due to the dynamics and heterogeneity of the data. System monitoring data are essentially heterogeneous temporal graphs with nodes being system entities and edges being their interactions over time. Given the complexity of such graphs, it becomes time-consuming for system administrators to manually formulate useful queries in order to examine abnormal activities, attacks, and vulnerabilities in computer systems. In this work, we investigate how to query temporal graphs and treat query formulation as a discriminative temporal graph pattern mining problem. We introduce TGMiner to mine discriminative patterns from system logs, and these patterns can be taken as templates for building more complex queries. TGMiner leverages temporal information in graphs to prune graph patterns that share similar growth trend without compromising pattern quality. Experimental results on real system data show that TGMiner is 6-32 times faster than baseline methods. The discovered patterns were verified by system experts; they achieved high precision (97%) and recall (91%).

Timing of cyber conflict

Nations are accumulating cyber resources in the form of stockpiles of zero-day exploits as well as other novel methods of engaging in future cyber conflict against selected targets. This paper analyzes the optimal timing for the use of such cyber resources. A simple mathematical model is offered to clarify how the timing of such a choice can depend on the stakes involved in the present situation, as well as the characteristics of the resource for exploitation. The model deals with the question of when the resource should be used given that its use today may well prevent it from being available for use later. The analysis provides concepts, theory, applications, and distinctions to promote the understanding strategy aspects of cyber conflict. Case studies include the Stuxnet attack on Iran's nuclear program, the Iranian cyber attack on the energy firm Saudi Aramco, the persistent cyber espionage carried out by the Chinese military, and an analogous case of economic coercion by China in a dispute with Japan. The effects of the rapidly expanding market for zero-day exploits are also analyzed. The goal of the paper is to promote the understanding of this domain of cyber conflict to mitigate the harm it can do, and harness the capabilities it can provide.

Compositional Approach to Quantify the Vulnerability of Computer Systems

Although analyzing complex systems could be a complicated process, current approaches to quantify system security or vulnerability usually consider the whole system as a single component. In this paper, we propose a new compositional method to evaluate the vulnerability measure of complex systems. By the word composition we mean that the vulnerability measure of a complex system can be computed using pre-calculated vulnerability measures of its components. We define compatible systems to demonstrate which components could combine. Moreover, choice, sequential, parallel and synchronized parallel composition methods are defined and the measurement of the vulnerability in each case is presented. Our method uses a state machine to model the system. The model considers unauthorized states and attacker capabilities. Furthermore, both the probability of attack and delay time to reach the target state are used to quantify vulnerability. The proposed approach would be useful to analyze complex systems which may have complicated models. This approach reduces the state space and complexity of computation. On the other hand, if a component is replaced by another one, the vulnerability measures of other components do not change. Thus, these quantities are reused in new computation. Therefore, the calculation of the vulnerability measure for a new system is simplified.

Taxonomies of attacks and vulnerabilities in computer systems

Security assessment of a system is a difficult problem. Most of the current efforts in security assessment involve searching for known vulnerabilities. Finding unknown vulnerabilities still largely remains a subjective process. The process can be improved by understanding the characteristics and nature of known vulnerabilities. The knowledge thus gained can be organized into a suitable taxonomy, which can then be used as a framework for systematically examining new systems for similar but as yet unknown vulnerabilities. There have been many attempts at producing such taxonomies. This article provides a comprehensive survey of the important work done on developing taxonomies of attacks and vulnerabilities in computer systems. This survey covers work done in security related taxonomies from 1974 until 2006. Apart from providing a state-of-the-art survey of taxonomies, we also analyze their effectiveness for use in a security assessment process. Finally, we summarize the important properties of various taxonomies to provide a framework for organizing information about known attacks and vulnerabilities into a taxonomy that would benefit the security assessment process.

Harmonising Computer Crime Laws in Europe

AbstractAs the ‘Information Society’ emerges, the European economy and its citizens have become dependent on computers and communication networks. However, with the ravages of the viruses MyDoom and MS Blaster still being felt around the world, the vulnerability of computer systems and networks to criminal crime, as well as potentially terrorist activity, is still fresh in our minds. There is no agreed definition of what constitutes a ‘computer crime’. A computer may constitute the instrument of the crime, such as in murder and fraud; the object of the crime, such as the theft of processor chips; or the subject of the crime, such as ‘hacking’ or ‘cracking’. The involvement of computers may challenge traditional criminal concepts, such as fraud, as well as facilitating particular types of crime, such as child pornography. This article is concerned with the computer as the subject of the crime and with laws that have been established to specifically address activities that attack the integrity of computer and communications networks, such as the distribution of computer viruses. This article examines various initiatives to harmonise substantive criminal law to address the threat of computer integrity crimes, focusing specifically on a draft Council Framework Decision on ‘attacks against information systems’. Consideration is given to the impact the Decision may have when transposed into UK law, through an amendment of existing legislation, the Computer Misuse Act 1990.

The challenges of designing lab exercises for a curriculum in computer security

Increasing awareness of the vulnerabilities of computer systems has led to the introduction of several programs in computer security. Most of these programs are meant to attract graduate students. ...

Lessons from corporate America applied to training in computer ethics

As publicity related to computer abuse becomes commonplace, Information Systems (IS) managers are becoming aware of the vulnerability of computer systems. Much can be learned from established corporate-wide programs which have attempted to integrate ethics into decision-making. By establishing ethics codes, providing mechanisms for reporting problems, and using ethics training, corporations are attempting to alter the ethical climate of their businesses. IS can benefit by utilizing some of the same approaches. This article examines the current state of the objectives, extent, and content of ethics training and applies it to the IS environment.

Cost-effectiveness modeling for a decision support system in computer security

The increasing number of corporate computer failures and crimes has forced managers to tighten controls of their Electronic Data Processing systems. However, the costs of an exhaustive program of controls are often inordinately expensive, and the effectiveness of such an operation is not necessarily guaranteed. Assuming that managers have limited time and capital resources, a comprehensive and formalized methodology is considered essential to assess vulnerability of computer systems, determine acceptable levels of potential losses, and identify cost-effective control strategies. This paper presents a Cost-Effectiveness Model (CEM) that determines an optimal program for control of EDP systems. The Cost-Effectiveness Model has been implemented in Pascal as a microcomputer-based Decision Support System (DSS). The CEM-DSS is geared to help the EDP manager: (i) identify alternative sets of control activities, (ii) evaluate and choose the most preferred set, and (iii) monitor and upgrade the security of EDP systems frequently.

Cryptography in data processing

Recent reports of breaches in computer system security have created a heightened concern and interest in the vulnerability of computer systems. Cryptography is one method of combatting one problem of security. The article describes the two types of algorithm involved in cryptographic techniques.

Can computer crime be stopped? The proliferation of microcomputers in today's information society has brought with it new problems in protecting both computer systems and their resident intelligence

The various aspects of computer crime are discussed from the viewpoint of the vulnerability of computer systems to information destruction, data diddling, theft of service, browsing, and theft of information. Also discussed are various methods to limit or reduce vulnerability to these types of attack.

Congress tackless computer abuse

Congress has been taking an active interest in protecting information stored in computers. Congressional investigations and media reports have highlighted the vulnerability of computer systems to abuse and mis-use. Recent accounts of “system hackers” describe young students and others who gain illegal access to systems, thereby obtaining information and services, as well as disrupting systems.