Technical Terminology
In understanding the field of international security studies, an array of technical terms and concepts must first be defined. Throughout this research paper I will be using various terminology relating to the cyberspace and its struggles when evaluating the magnitude of potential cyber threats.
Lucas Kello is an associate of the Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program’s of the Cyber Project for Harvard University’s Cyber Project. Kello is a Harvard undergrad with a master 's and doctorate in International Relations from Oxford University. Kello states that certain aspects of the cyberspace - such as the analysis of code - belong to computer specialists. Kello also points out that other scholars tend to
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Malware : Commonly referred to as malicious software that is designed to interrupt computer functionality and/or to gain access to sensitive data. As an umbrella term, malware includes things such computer viruses, Trojans, spyware, and other malicious programs. Malware can and often is designed to create access ways into an adversary 's computer or to attack it, sometimes both. Therefore, using malware is seen as an instrument of hostility as it can also be implied. Almost every cyber hostile action uses malware.
Botnets : Botnets have been described as the “Swiss Army knives of the underground economy” because they are so versatile. Botnets, or “Bot Networks,” can be remotely controlled from the attackers location anywhere in the world. Allowing them to send commands via the Internet to the hundreds or thousands of computers infected with malicious code. As these infected computers are taking “hostage” into actions meant to disrupt or block Internet traffic for the targeted victims, also to harvest information, or to distribute spam, and viruses.
Originally Botnet codes were distributed as infected email attachments, although in recent years users have grown more cautious. In more recent times through technological advancements, attackers, and cyber criminals have changed and advanced their
Malware refers to any computer program that is designed to do things that are harmful to or unwanted by a computer's legitimate user.
Malware, or “malicious software”, has taken different forms and names for years. Spyware and viruses are just a few of the common titles attributed to this devastating means of cyber attack, the main purpose of which is to ultimately compromise a rival's computer infrastructure. State-sponsored attacks have typically been perpetrated by means of malware. Spear-phishing is one particularly popular means of malware, where by a target is fooled into opening a corrupted email or file, only to unwittingly download a compromising piece of malware onto their computer (XX). Once this malware is installed, control of the computer is placed in the hands of the hacker, allowing them to hack other networks while proving impossible to track down (XX18). China has been a prime culprit for spear-phishing attacks, often following current events to target respective dignitaries. For instance, the 2010 G20 Summit saw thousands of spear-phishing campaigns against officials, with email titles labelled in relation to the Summit itself (XX). Countless departments, institutions, and governments have fallen victim to spear-phishing campaigns, at the count of millions of dollars and priceless information
Explains what a botnet is, how it is created, used and the amount or types of data that can be collected over time. The ability to track or monitor many of these botnets by antivirus software is reported to be a very low percentage of known botnets. One of the basic principles is almost a “throw everything at it and see what sticks” mentality in that developers will employ a botnet through embedding it in a quasi-convincing spam message and hoping the reader is dumb enough to click on the link (Mittleman 67.)
Clarke and Knake use a mixed method research approach in Cyber War to support their hypothesis that offensive prowess is meaningless without solid defense in cyberspace, and that the United States need immediately fix our defensive cyber shortfalls, or face apocalyptic doom. Specifically, the authors define ‘cyber war’ as “actions by a nation state to penetrate another nation’s computers or networks for the purposes of causing damage or disruption.” This infers that they are really talking about ‘warfare’ and
Cyber Security - Emerging Trends and Investment Outlook. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2015, from http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/m4f6wf/cyber_security
Cyberattacks can range from instantaneous to time-delayed and staged in several waves. Attackers can often go as anonymous and can even frame other people. There are also no clear ways to figure out an attacker’s motive or if they are acting alone or as a group. Due to the open-nature of the Internet, it is easier to organize an attack rather than defend against one. Developed countries are also more prone to cyberattacks because of their heavy reliance on technology. Furthermore, many countries categorize cyberthreats as a law enforcement issue rather than a national security threat. This means they are more focused on a set trial and conviction based on criminal intent and a criminal act. Meanwhile, a national security threat can be dealt with based on the severity of the situation. Overall, there is no global consensus on how to effectively deal with
Bots is taken from the word robots and it’s an automated process that interacts with other network services. Bots are utilized to gather information for either good or malicious purposes, but the latter of the two is designed to infect the host and reconnect back to a central server, which acts as a Command and Control (C&C) center for an entire network of comprised devices (Cisco, n.d.). The use of bots is the most sophisticate tool hackers have at their disposal because bots have the versatility of worms and bots also utilize existing viruses, backdoors, and exploits already exposed to log in keystrokes, gather password information, analyze packets, and gather financial information without being immediately noticed (Cisco,
When considering the technological advances over the past 50 years, the Internet has undoubtedly had the greatest impact on everyday life of developed economies and its citizens. The world has become smaller, societies interconnected, and the pace of global integration dramatically increased since the introduction of the Internet. As people and information become increasingly integrated around the world, physical borders between nations are no longer sufficient to restrict access to information and sensitive data. This integrated world allows for malicious cyber actors to advance strategic
Concerns regarding cyber security have risen in America due to the massive attacks sprung by Isis and other criminals within the nation. Cyber-crime itself can range from theft, harassment, hacking, and potential organized killings. However, what does cyber security entail and how can it be addressed? Some argue that the threat of cyber war is dominant, while others argue that cyber wars are exaggerated threats that should not be taken seriously. In regards to handling this predicament, people demonstrate that the NSA (National Security Agency) can’t be trusted because of their failure to protect civil liberties, whereas others argue that requiring education on cyber security would provide a foundation for individuals to advocate security for themselves. The advancement of the Internet continues to evolve without safety repercussions that prevent terrorism, loss of
Malwares are mischievous programs crafted to agitate or forbid normal operations to gather selected information which may lead to loss of privacy through
For thousands of years warfare remained relatively unchanged. While the tactics and weapons have changed as new methods of combat evolved, men and women or their weapons still had to meet at the same time and place in order to attack, defend, surrender or conquer. However, the advent of the of the internet has created a new realm of combat in which armies can remotely conduct surveillance, reconnaissance, espionage, and attacks from an ambiguous and space-less digital environment. Both state and non-state actors have already embraced this new realm and utilized both legal and illegal means to further facilitate their interests. What complicates cyber security further is as states attempt to protect themselves from cyber-warfare, private
A lot of opinions and meanings has been given to the word “Cyberterrorism”. Some of these meanings and definitions varies. In this light, Gordon and Ford (2003) are concerned that when 10 people define cyberterrorism and nine of the given answers are different, and these 10 people represent different government agencies tasked with safeguarding national assets and infrastructure, then it becomes a critical issue.
By the year of 2016, investments in online security are expected to reach $86bn (Contu et al, 2012). Although this might seem a large sum of money, it is considered necessary since there is an increase in online risks from all over the world. Professional hackers develop malware on a global scale and on a 24/7 basis. Hackers have five objectives when spreading malware over the Internet: to infect/distribute, to steal, to persist, to control and for intelligence (Morris, 2010).
To understand the business of malware, one must understand how malware has evolved in the past twenty-five years. Malware, which includes all kinds of malicious software, was originally created to show the weaknesses of computers. The first type of malware, created in 1986, was a virus called “Brain.A. Brain.A was developed in Pakistan, by two brothers - Basit and Amjad. They wanted to prove that PC is not secure platform, so they created virus that was replicating using floppy disks” (Milošević). Even today malware is still used to check the security of machines.
Network viruses are another favorite method of cyber criminals. As we all know, viruses can bring a network to