Internet is not a safe place for the web users. Every unprotected online computer can be affected with the viruses, malware, adware, hackers' attacks and Trojans with only in 20 minutes. There are specialized hackings tools and scripts that are designed to attack an unprotected computer. The common online security threats include the Viruses, Spyware, Adware, Malware, Hackers, Intruders, and Trojans.
VIRUSES
A computer virus is a dangerous computer program with the characteristic feature of being able to generate copies of itself, and thereby spreading.Additionally most computer viruses have a destructive payload that is activated under certain conditions.
SPYWARE/TROJANS
Spyware spies on everything you do and steals private infor-mation. Trojan horse programs pretend to be useful but can turn your computer into a spam-spewing zombie.
HACKER ATTACK
A hacker is a person who accesses computer files without authorisation, often destroying vast amounts of data.Expert hackers dont have times to attack each computers individually. They might broadcast a network virus or release a Trojan, but a personal attack is highly unlikely.
In addition:
IDENTITY THEFT
Identity theft not just about your computer when they use your credit cards, divert your paycheck, and change your vehicle registration.
PHISHING
Phishing attacks use both social engineering and technical subterfuge to steal consumers' personal identity data and financial account credentials.Phishing messages pretend to be from eBay, PayPal, your bank, or the like.
SPAM MAIL
Spam by e-mail is a type of spam that involves sending identical or nearly identical messages to thousands (or millions) of recipients.Addresses of recipients are often harvested from Usenet postings or web pages, obtained from databases, or simply guessed by using common names and domains.
WIRELESS ATTACK
These attacks attempt to penetrate a network by using wireless or evading WLAN access control measures, like AP MAC filters and 802.1X port access controls. If youre not careful, anybody in range can mooch bandwidth from your wireless network and can rum-mage through your files, because they are inside your network.
Cyber criminals
Cyber criminals increasingly operate in an elaborate networked underworld of Web sites and chat rooms, where they sell one another stolen account numbers, tools for making credit cards, scanners to pick up card numbers and PINs from ATMs, and viruses and other malicious software.In a chat room, an identity theft defrauder bragged to another, "I have bank accounts ... discount if you buy in bulk." In a feat of credential burnishing, one criminal assured another that he'd been "uploading scams on hacked hosts for long time." The site also featured discussion forums, a news and how-to publication about fraud, and a Hall of Shame, where defrauders trying to cheat other defrauders were exposed.
Not all ID theft is carried out online, of course. The most notorious recent identity theft schemes involve hackers who broke into businesses' customer files. And for a look at how easily someone can obtain personal information from your used PC.But given the prevalence of tools for cyber criminals on sites like the one reporter viewed, it's clear that the kind of online threats we've investigated for this report--spam, fraudulent Web sites, and malicious software (malware)--have become important tools in the arsenals of identity thieves.
Online shopping
Online transactions are set to quadruple by 2020, accounting for 40 per cent of all retail spending, but there are growing concerns that consumers are failing to protect themselves from cyber criminals.
Online sales are set to reach £40 billion this year according to analysis by uSwitch.com, the comparison website. During the run up to Christmas, 27million shoppers will spend a record-breaking £14 billion online, making Britain the web-commerce capital of Europe.
Safety of social networks
There were warnings about the safety of social networks such as Facebook and MySpace.
It is estimated that of the 10.8 million people registered to social networking sites in Britain, as many as a quarter had posted sensitive information, such as home addresses and telephone numbers on their profile pages.
Tony Neate, managing director of GetSafeOnline said: "Although some of these details may seem harmless, they actually provide rich pickings for criminals. Your date of birth and where you live is enough for someone to set up a credit card in your name.”
Online banking
Online banking, advertised by banks as nearly effortless, is about to become more cumbersome.Federal regulators, alarmed by the threat of online financial fraud, are requiring banks by the end of 2006 to provide several layers of identify verification before customers can access their accounts and conduct other banking over the Internet.I
In addition to standard passwords, customers may soon need a unique digital ''fingerprint" that will identify their computer for the bank, or may scan a copy of their real fingerprints to identify themselves to the bank's network.
Another, more cumbersome method would have customers carrying keyfob-sized electronic ''tokens" that authenticate their identity.With some 53 million Americans paying bills, checking account balances, and doing other banking online, Internet fraud has become a growing threat to the popularity of Internet business transactions. Research firm Gartner Inc. estimated in a June report that 2.5 million people lost money in so-called ''phishing" attacks last year.
Phishing involves thieves who try to dupe customers into providing account numbers and other sensitive information by directing them to phony websites that resemble a legitimate business -- frequently a bank.
Federal financial regulators say these threats are scaring away many potential customers.
Thumb drives
Thumb drives, media players and other portable storage devices have become widely accepted as tools that bring down costs while increasing employee mobility and productivity. For a mere $20, one can buy a USB device, easily transport data from a work computer to a home computer, and stay ahead of the game.
So small and seemingly innocuous, one rarely thinks about the security implications at hand; but the low cost and convenience of thumb drives could also introduce greater risk into the enterprise.
The physical size and large storage capacity of these devices make them a potential data breach time bomb. For example, if a thumb drive containing business files is lost and lands in the wrong hands, there could be severe consequences. Even more terrifying is the potential for a malicious attack using these inconspicuous devices.
In minutes, a rogue user can load proprietary files on to a thumb drive unnoticed and potentially expose a business to massive data breach.These acts can be referred to as thumb sucking - the intentional or unintentional use of a portable storage device to download confidential data from a network endpoint. It is one of the top causes of security breaches, yet it has garnered little attention while the threat continues to grow. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, the number of publicly reported data breaches in the United States rose by more than 40 percent in 2007.
However, even with fears at an all-time high, very few companies have put direct controls and policies in place to prevent these attacks on the endpoint.
HOW SAFE IS THE DATA ??????????
Just about anyone that gets online is at risk. Being a web user, it is very important for you to learn about the common online threats. To deal with these threats you need to implement security solution on your computer, which includes antivirus, antispyware and firewall software or hardware device to protect DATA from online threats.
Furthermore, the computer is attacked with the viruses or other threats, all the connected computers may also get attacked. There are preventive measures, tools and techniques that can be used to deal with these threats. (can see: the prevention method)
No comments:
Post a Comment