PamelaRoosh
31 Jan 2009, 05:32 AM
When one takes a penetrating look at the components of computer crime it reveals itself to be the same as any other crime. There's an attacker and a victim, and the attacker requires the same three components to be successful - Motive, Opportunity and Means (MOM). In the beginning of the computer era, computer crime was less prevalent as the elements of MOM were few. Naturally the ever-present profit has always been around, but punitive revenge attacks such as denial of service, and malicious random attacks such as viruses (created out of ego), are relatively new Motives. Means and Opportunity have also greatly increased as both computer knowledge and computer access have increased. Years ago, few enough people knew how to operate a computer and even if they did there was little value in attacking them. Most companies that might have been the target of an attack were not even connected to the internet. Now that the internet is all but ubiquitous the Means and Opportunity are vastly increased.
As Website Design have evolved, computers have become more user-friendly, and many more people have started to use them which added more MOM's (easier access using the internet, money transactions all over the web, on line gaming sites, web-based banking etc. Looking at IT vulnerability and security history, the bad guys were always far more sophisticated than the people who tried to stop them, if they were even aware of the threat, and the terms vulnerability and security were only applicable in the physical world. Even if companies could conceive of IT security it was almost impossible to achieve it because the lack of security professionals and the lack of security protection tools in the marketplace.
Today it's a different story. MOM is more powerful than ever. Even the uninitiated can download powerful intrusion tools and can find free written guides to penetrating systems. Millions of pages of instruction available to anyone interested in reading it - massively accessible Means. In few minutes you can hack a bank account and steal someone's life savings because there are still many financial institutions that are not protecting their clients and their systems with any sophistication - for some this presents irresistible Opportunity! So we see the stage is set today - powerful Motive, perfect Opportunity and the best Means. Today the security vulnerability in the electronic space can be reduced. There are many products and strategies that can be deployed. There are many robust tools out there that log attacks and prevent them in real-time. These tools and strategies can provide security and minimize vulnerability for a committed company. As long as the defense is treated as an ongoing process and not an end-state, the battle can be well-waged.
As Website Design have evolved, computers have become more user-friendly, and many more people have started to use them which added more MOM's (easier access using the internet, money transactions all over the web, on line gaming sites, web-based banking etc. Looking at IT vulnerability and security history, the bad guys were always far more sophisticated than the people who tried to stop them, if they were even aware of the threat, and the terms vulnerability and security were only applicable in the physical world. Even if companies could conceive of IT security it was almost impossible to achieve it because the lack of security professionals and the lack of security protection tools in the marketplace.
Today it's a different story. MOM is more powerful than ever. Even the uninitiated can download powerful intrusion tools and can find free written guides to penetrating systems. Millions of pages of instruction available to anyone interested in reading it - massively accessible Means. In few minutes you can hack a bank account and steal someone's life savings because there are still many financial institutions that are not protecting their clients and their systems with any sophistication - for some this presents irresistible Opportunity! So we see the stage is set today - powerful Motive, perfect Opportunity and the best Means. Today the security vulnerability in the electronic space can be reduced. There are many products and strategies that can be deployed. There are many robust tools out there that log attacks and prevent them in real-time. These tools and strategies can provide security and minimize vulnerability for a committed company. As long as the defense is treated as an ongoing process and not an end-state, the battle can be well-waged.