What does a Digital Forensics Investigator do in an Investigation?

Digital forensics investigation is one of the leading disciplines developing from the extensive field of forensic science. Every organization with a working computer system needs the services of a qualified digital forensics analyst. However, in spite of the remarkable development in the digital world and the increase in cybersecurity attacks through digital tools and techniques, most forensic investigators lack the appropriate credentials to perform digital forensic investigations.

Moreover, owing to the upsurge of computer-related crimes, computer investigation techniques are applied by law enforcement agencies, government, and other corporate organizations across the globe. A large number of whom turn to EC-Council for our Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI) certification program.

What is digital forensics?

Digital forensics, or otherwise called digital forensic science, covers the investigation of materials detected in digital technologies and the recovery of these items, usually in relation to computer crime. Digital forensics investigation is the process of identifying, extracting, preserving, and documenting computer evidence through digital tools to produce evidence that can be used in the court of law.

Similarly, digital forensics provides the forensic analyst and forensics team with the greatest strategies and technologies for unraveling complicated digital-based criminal cases. Digital forensics investigations have several applications, but the most widespread use is to disprove or support a supposition before the civil or criminal court of law.

Digital forensics investigations may also be applied in the corporate sector, including during computer hacking investigations or internal corporate investigations. Here, the digital forensics analysts investigate the environment and degree of an unlawful network intrusion or system hack. The rapidly expanding field of digital forensics includes numerous branches related to databases, malware, firewalls, mobile devices, cloud, and network forensics.

What is the difference between Digital Forensics and Computer Forensics?

Although the term ‘digital forensics’ is used interchangeably with computer forensics, the two concepts are slightly different. Digital forensics investigation goes beyond computer forensics. It includes all technologies capable of gathering digital data during a digital-related investigation such as cell phones, digital networks, flash drives, hard drives, CDs, digital cameras, electronic files such as JPEGs, and email.

Whereas, computer forensics is basically the use of computer analysis techniques and computer investigations to help find probable legal evidence. Both computer forensics and digital forensics have the same purpose which is to determine if a tool was applied for unlawful activities, ranging from storing illegal activities to computer hacking.

More devices are designed daily to help the CHFI conduct computer investigations, whether it’s for digital forensics, computer investigations, computer crimes, or the basic computer data recovery.

How do you become a Digital Forensic Investigator?

The role of a digital forensic analyst is intricately linked with the incidence response process of the company. The experts who specialize in digital forensics, cyber forensics, or computer forensics are typically called digital forensics analysts, cyber forensics experts, computer forensic specialists, computer forensics investigators, computer forensics technicians, or computer forensics examiner.

To become any of these, you need a bachelor’s degree in digital forensics or other related fields. You can also obtain a vendor-neutral credential or you can take a digital forensics online course to become a certified digital forensic analyst. However, the degree level required for this task will largely depend on the job description. At times, you may need other similar experiences to complement an educational requirement.

Your computer forensics analyst profile can be improved with certifications and experience by completing an online forensics training courses and programs conducted by a certified forensic computer examiner. While a certificate may not be mandatory to land a job as a digital forensic analyst, it is advised that is you take a certification course before you apply for a job. This will definitely give you an edge over other applicants.

Simply put, the following are the steps required to become a digital forensic expert:

◉ Bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree
◉ Work experience in related fields
◉ Become certified as an EC-Council’s Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI)
◉ Get relevant soft and hard skills
◉ Apply for a digital forensic position
◉ Meet the expectations of the certified forensic interviewer
◉ Land the job position
◉ Receive other necessary pieces of training on-the-job

How is digital forensics used in investigations?

For your digital evidence to be valid in a civil or criminal court, it is necessary that the materials gathered are handled in certain manners so the evidence will not be tampered with. Most people think the criticality of actions demanded in sectors such as digital forensics and incidence response, are only applicable for companies that function in the most security-conscious fields.

However, this is not true. An awareness of the best cybersecurity practices is always worthwhile. Regardless of the type or size of your organization, it is always important that your IT security team or those responsible for handling your security always follow an informed, structured, and effective process if/when a security incident happens.

While there are several ways digital forensics can be used in an investigation, the following are the general steps required.

1. Planning

The first phase of any successful endeavor is planning. In the digital world, where events occur quickly, you need to plan your approach. Pinpoint and prioritize your targets so you can obtain relevant and useful evidence. Make plans to follow every relevant regulatory guidelines and policy. In a bid to gather your evidence in a timely manner, you may flout some legal requirements which will render your evidence void in the courts of law. So always keep it legal.

Do you have the right people to assist you with the investigation? You’ll need professionals for the configuration of your hardware and software. You also need strong contacts with external agents who can offer impartial alternatives. Furthermore, since no investigation is without its cost. Ensure you strike a balance between relational effort and risk to the organization.

2. Identification and Preservation

The next step is to identify the evidence, observing where it is stored. Ensure that all the data gathered are not tampered with. Don’t work on the original copies, make other copies so the integrity of the original data is preserved. In essence, isolate, safeguard, and preserve the master copy. This involves stopping people from manipulating or interfering with the evidence.

3. Analysis

The next step is to reconstruct fragments of the data and make inferences based on the evidence discovered. The first step is to make a timeline of events to ensure orderliness. Since you are going to get your data from several sources, their timestamps may be different. By gathering your data based on their timeframes, you can build a comprehensive picture of events and pinpoint supporting evidence.

The next step is to analyze all the evidence-based on the timeframe of their occurrence. You’ll need to be systematic about your analysis. Make a hypothesis and run tests to refute or support all the theories.

4. Documentation

You need to generate a record of all the data gathered to reinvent the crime scene. This record must be detailed, understandable, factual, and must include only defensible data. Make sure that everything you captured is recorded just as they are, dated, and signed. Ensure that your record is not littered with technical jargon. This way, even non-technical audiences can understand the results.

5. Presentation

The final step of any investigation is to present a report of your findings. Your findings must be presented without any bias or partiality. Include dates and present events in chronological order. Create an additional appendix where additional information, data, or evidence are included.

While your report summarizes your findings, you still need to ensure that the report is detailed. In a more critical case, other certified forensic interviewers may be called upon to validate your findings.

What is the first rule of digital forensics?

The first rule of digital forensics is to preserve the original evidence. During the analysis phase, the digital forensics analyst or computer hacking forensics investigator (CHFI) recovers evidence material using a variety of different tools and strategies.

Why CHFI is Your Go-To For All Things Digital Forensics

There is an increasing demand for exclusive digital forensic experts owing to the increasing significance of digital forensics. while there is a substantial amount of obtainable, first-rate accreditation courses, and certified forensics interviewers that concentrate on digital forensics and investigations. nevertheless, there are other credentials and programs in the field of digital forensics science that are not as transparent or commonly known.

EC-Council is a globally recognized certification and training company that specializes in the fields of digital forensics, ethical hacking or anti-hacking, and penetration testing. The aim of the EC-Council’s CHFI certification program is to authenticate the candidate’s competences and abilities to pinpoint a perpetrator’s footprints and to accurately assemble all the relevant evidence needed to take legal actions against the intruder.

EC-Council’s CHFI program is a vendor-neutral certification that endorses individuals in the particular security field of computer forensics. several topics are covered, including comprehensive coverage of the computer forensics investigation practice, anti-forensics, an overview of digital forensics, applying digital evidence, database, and cloud forensics, complying with related policies and regulations, inspecting network traffic, email and mobile forensics, and ethical hacking.

Source: eccouncil.org

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5 Steps to Becoming a Digital Forensic Investigator

Compared to other fields of forensics science, the field of digital forensics investigation is quite new. Nevertheless, the job position for those seeking to pursue a career as a Digital Forensics Investigator is highly promising.

The increasing use of computers and other new-age digital devices, as well as the increase in cyberattacks, suggests that the world needs more IT professionals, cybersecurity experts, and other specialists with in-depth knowledge about how to deal with the crimes that follow the advancements in the digital world.

Like any industry, the prospects for a job in digital forensics investigation mainly depends on the education and experience that you can bring to the table. EC-Council offers you this opportunity through its globally recognized Computer Hacking Forensics Investigation (CHFI) certification program and computer forensics training.

Who is a Digital Forensics Investigator?

A Digital Forensics Investigator is a person responsible for detecting, investigating, and re-counting the state of and the information contained in a digital artifact. The purpose of the digital forensic investigation is to detect criminal behavior, investigate, preserve, and document the evidence either to support or refute a case in the courts of law.

A Digital Forensics Investigator is also known as a computer forensics examiner, computer forensics investigator, computer forensics specialist, digital forensics analyst, forensic computer examiner, and/or computer forensics technician.

Who Uses Digital Forensics?

Although federal and state authorities are more commonly known to apply digital artifacts to prosecute criminals. Yet, IT professionals, legal teams, and security experts also use digital forensics methodology to identify, collect, analyze, preserve, document, and report digital evidence to mitigate cyberattacks, prevent insider threats, or even conclude a workplace investigation.

Digital Forensics Investigators use digital evidence to prepare reports that can be used in civil proceedings, computer crime, as well as legal and fact-finding environments to prosecute a perpetrator. These specialists work closely with law enforcement agencies to conduct activities that relate to gathering and examining digital evidence.

Is Digital Forensics a Good Career?

Digital forensics investigation is crucial to cybersecurity programs. Digital forensics is a good career path for individuals and organizations who seek to understand prevailing digital forensics issues and those who seek to gather relevant digital information. It is also a good career path for cybersecurity experts, network administrators, network security experts, IT security professionals, legal experts, security managers, and other computer-based security teams.

Digital Forensics Investigators blend their background in computer science or forensics science, with their forensic competencies to retrieve digital evidence from computers and other storage devices to defend against cyberattacks. Digital Forensics Investigators contribute to the security and safety of your consumers, preserve relevant forensics evidence, and they also save you an exorbitant amount that would have been spent on information technology intended for network and information security.

How Much do Digital Forensics Investigators Make?

According to Glassdoor (2020), the national average salary for Digital Forensics Investigators is 57,755 USD in the United States. PayScale.com (2020), suggested that a digital forensic analyst earns an average salary of 72,929 USD per annum in the United States with the top ten percent making 118,000USD, whereas the lower 10 percent makes 49,000 USD.

Nevertheless, it is always vital to bear in mind that several factors go into play when deciding the ideal salary for any job. These factors vary based on the geographic location, the amount of experience in the field and time working as a specialist, the job description, the size of the organization, the certification or degree you hold, and the type of work.

Why Become a Certified Digital Forensics Investigator?

Certification is not a legal requirement for digital forensics investigation. However, it is advised that you become certified. The following are some of the reasons why.

1. Advanced Understanding and Knowledge

Having a credential in digital forensics investigation will reinforce the application awareness of security officers, law enforcement personnel, legal professionals, network administrators, and any individual concerned with the integrity of the network infrastructure. You will also undergo comprehensive online training loaded with several white papers that helps you learn computer forensics. For instance, the CHFI program gives you a comprehensive knowledge about the law enforcement process and instructions that informs and guides you about the acceptable method of a legal investigation.

2. Better Experience and Refined Skillset

Moreover, the experience you need to conduct a digital forensics investigation will be realized through a certification program. As a certified digital examiner, you’ll gain hands-on experience through the analysis of key real-world digital forensics investigation cases that were handled through computer forensics processes. The pre-requisite for becoming a digital forensic examiner is to have certain skills and in-depth knowledge of cybersecurity and information technology. You gain these skills and knowledge through the computer forensics course and training.

3. A Necessity and not an Option

Becoming a certified computer examiner is no longer an option but a requirement. Employers want the best staff on their team and what better way to acquire this than to employ certified experts. Will you allow a lawyer without due certifications to handle your case? While the field of forensics science differs from the law, you still need a certificate to prove that you’re an authority in your field and to improve consumer trust.

4. Increased Salary

Obtaining a certificate in computer forensics is always worth the investment. Your credentials offer many startling opportunities with top-notch organizations and employers. Having a credential also helps you when it comes to negotiating for better pay.

How Do You Become a Digital Forensic Investigator?

Now that you know that you know who uses digital forensics and why digital forensics is a good career path, if you are wondering how to become a digital forensic investigator, you are at the right place. Below are the steps required to become a Digital Forensics Investigator.

Step One: Get a Degree

The first step to becoming a computer forensics investigator is to get a degree in computer science, information technology, and other fields related to forensics science. You need at least a bachelor’s degree to be employed in this field. EC-Council University offers courses in digital forensics to teach students about the technologies and processes used in digital investigations.

Step Two: Acquire Relevant Skills

Most employers look beyond your certificate. They want the best people on their team. So, you need to hone the necessary skills for this job. For example, you can gain some technical skills through internship programs and other school projects. Some certification programs even require you to have certain skills before you can become certified. You need both technical and soft skills in this industry.

Step Three: Attend Certification Programs and Training

There are various types of certification programs available today. You stand a better chance of landing a job as a computer forensics examiner when you have the credentials than those who lack the credentials. Since no forensics case is ever the same, employers need your credentials to guarantee that you have the knowledge and competence to handle the case.

Some states have licensing requirements for digital forensics investigations, which vary from state to state. You should explore the licensing requirements for the state you want to practice beforehand. You should also know the area you want to specialize in before attending a certification course, that way you don’t gather irrelevant certificates.

Step Four: Search and Apply for a Job Opening

Search for organizations that are hiring and find out what your job description entails. Large institutions such as the Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI), National Security Agency (NSA), Homeland Security offices, as well as banks, utility providers, retailers, and tech companies, including Walmart, Apple, are constantly in need of their own Digital Forensics Investigators.

Step Five: Complete an Interview and Get Hired

If you have the requirements in steps one to three, you have a higher chance of being called for an interview. Once you complete the interview and meet all their requirements, you’ll get hired as a Digital Forensics Investigator.

Step Six: Improve Yourself

Get more training on the job after you’ve been hired. There aren’t so many options in digital forensics for advancing your career. However, you can decide to further your education by getting a Master degree. Over the years, you can gain enough experience to start your private practice if you want.

Source: eccouncil.org

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How to Identify Network Security Threats and Vulnerabilities?

Today, network security threats are becoming more rampant. The efficiency of these threats cascading into full-blown attacks and consequent breaches hangs on the level of vulnerability of the organization’s network systems. Data protection and the data itself are significant considerations for organizations. Based on the openness of today’s software-based systems, using the correct security testing techniques is becoming more significant and critical to identifying and mitigating network security threats and vulnerabilities.

It is no secret that no system, device, website, or network, are above network security threats, risks, and vulnerabilities. Network security is a critical aspect of any organization, and it is possible to become careless with your security approach as time goes by. This is why there is a growing need for Certified Network Defenders.

Every business needs a Certified Network Defender that is capable of executing a thorough analysis, through specific techniques and technology that would be exclusive to each organization. EC-Council offers a number of certification programs in the field of Ethical Hacking, so your organizational data is as safe as possible from threats and potential malicious attacks.

What are network security threats?

A network security threat is an effort to obtain illegal admission to your organization’s network, to take your data without your knowledge, or execute other malicious pursuits. Your network security is at risk or vulnerable if or when there is a weakness or vulnerability within your computer network.

Some network security threats are intended to upset your organization’s processes and functionality instead of noiselessly collecting information for espionage or financial motives. With the extensive use and accessibility of the internet, comes the increase in all kinds of threats. The most prevalent technique is the Denial of Service (DoS) attack.

Having the essential mechanisms and tools to identify and categorize network security threats and irregularities in your system or network is critical. You don’t know the importance of a Certified Network Defender, until your computer network and other systems fall victim to an unidentified attack.

What is the difference between active and passive attacks?

There are two broad categories of network security attacks. They include passive and active attacks.

Active Attacks

In this type of attack, malicious hackers gain unsanctioned access to a computer system or network. They also make amendments to the data, either by encrypting, removing, or compromising it.

Passive Attacks

Here, malicious hackers obtain access to a computer network to steal and monitor delicate information. In this approach, attackers cannot make alterations to the data, so they usually leave it undamaged.

Thus, the main difference between passive and active attacks is that the attacker in an active attack can interrupt the transferred information with the aim of intercepting the connection and adjusting the information. However, in a passive attack, the attacker can only intercept the information to read or analyze it, without making any alterations to it.

What are network vulnerabilities?

Network vulnerabilities are known flaws or weaknesses in hardware, software, or other organizational assets, which can be exploited by attackers. When your network security is compromised by a threat, it can lead to a severe security breach. Most network security vulnerabilities are often abused by computerized attackers rather than human typing on your network.

For instance, when a significant member of your staff or IT security is laid off or resigns when you forget to change their login details, disable their contact with your nonphysical assets, or delete their usernames or user ID from your business credit cards, your organization becomes vulnerable to both planned and unplanned threats.

Testing your network security vulnerabilities is essential if you must enjoy constant security within your networks or systems. To find out more about how to secure your networks from vulnerabilities, sign-up for our bespoke Certified Network Defender program now!

What are the four main types of network security threats?

1. Structured threats

A structured threat is a more concentrated or organized form of attack executed by one or more perpetrators with savvy hacking proficiencies. The attackers actively work to cause a network or system breach to a known victim. The intended network might have been specifically selected or identified through some random search approach.

The motives for a structured attack include political or racial motives, ransom or extortion, personal motives, or state-motivated attacks. The major drive is that the assaults are not causally linked to the hacker.

2. Unstructured threats

An unstructured threat usually covers disorganized attacks on one or more unknown networks, by amateurs or attackers with restrictive skills. The motives for these attacks are often boredom or people with unscrupulous intent. The intent may or may not be malicious, but there’s always an insensibility to the ensuing impacts.

3. External threats

An external threat is a form of attack executed by perpetrators outside the organization, usually through dial-up access or the Internet. These malicious hackers often don’t have permission to traverse these networks.

4. Internal threats

An internal threat stems from perpetrators who have had contact with authorized access to a network or those with knowledgeable insight about the system network. Internal attacks are significant both in the size and number of losses. This type of attack is executed by unsatisfied, disgruntled, or employees who still have active access.

If vindictive employees can pilfer company money and assets, what’s stopping them from learning about how to hack your network or computer for malicious motives? With a Certified Network Defender training and certifications, you can easily identify and mitigate network security threats.

What is the difference between a threat, vulnerability, and risk?

Correctly grasping the differences among these security factors will assist you in becoming more successful in crafting an effective strategy for identifying potential network security threats, discover and resolve your vulnerability issues, and also mitigate possible risks.

We’ve defined network security threats and vulnerabilities earlier in this article. However, we are yet to define security risks. Network risks are the possible damages or loss your organization can suffer when a threat abuses a vulnerability. Risk can be so severe that you suffer reputational damage, financial losses, legal consequences, loss of privacy, reputational damage, or even loss of life.

To understand the differences among these security components, let us use the COVID-19 pandemic as a guide. The COVID-19 is an external threat that is beyond your control. However, the series of epidemics that have occurred and knowing that a natural disaster can happen to anyone can assist organizations with evaluating their flaws and weaknesses as well as formulating a plan to mitigate such impacts.

The vulnerability here would be a lack of an effective incidence response plan, a business continuity plan (BCP), or an effective network security policy. This would help your organization in case your nonphysical assets are affected, such as employee performance, finances, remote operations, and so on. The potential risk for your organization would be the loss of valuable information and data or a disturbance in your business operation because you did not address your vulnerability issues.

What is the most common cause of network security threats?

Regardless of the type of network security threat, there are different motives for executing network attacks and they are often malicious. Individuals, businesses, and nations have different reasons for executing an attack. The most common are hacktivism, extortion, cyber warfare, business feuds, and personal reasons.

The most common network security threats are Computer viruses, Computer worms, Trojan horse, SQL injection attack, DOS and DDOS attack, Rootkit, Rogue security software, Phishing, Adware and spyware, and Man-in-the-middle attacks. Computer viruses are the most common network threats for everyday internet users, with approximately 33% of PCs being affected by malware, most of which are viruses.

How do you identify network security threats?

If you want to defend your network security effectively, you need a Certified Network Defender that can properly identify and mitigate the vulnerabilities within your network.

1. Enable your network visibility

The first step for preparing your network defender and other members of your security team to identify network threats and vulnerabilities is to enable your whole network visibility. The only way you can detect a threat is when it is visible. You can use the existing structures on your network devices to achieve visibility.

You can also design a strategic network diagram to exemplify your packet flows and the possible places where you can activate security procedures that will identify, categorize, and alleviate the threat.

2. Set up computer and network access

You need to construct your computer and network access to control who can access your network and the level of access they can have. Not every user should be given access to the whole network. Your network security policies will determine the appropriate ways to protect treasured assets, evaluate potential risks, lessen vulnerability channels, and craft a recovery plan in case of an incident.

3. Firewall configuration 

Setting up a network firewall thwarts unauthorized access and internet-based attacks from dispersing into your computer networks. Your network firewall oversees the flow of computer data traffic permitted to traverse your network. They can also obstruct reconnaissance assaults, including IP scanning or port sweeps. Your internal firewall can restrict this, but you need to configure it.

4. Limit access to updates and installations

Malicious hackers can penetrate your computer network through out-of-date software for antivirus, operating systems, device drivers, firmware, and other endpoint mechanisms. Access control in network security is critical. Network defenders can mitigate the risk of random assaults by restricting the number of people who can install or update software. Your IT team should only be allowed to activate updates and installations only via their admin access.

Source: eccouncil.org

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Why does your business need a CISO?

The Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) is a top-level executive whose role is to set up and sustain the organization’s strategy, mission, and system to guarantee that the business information security of an organization is adequately protected and enhanced. The role of a CISO is to supervise security technologies, respond adequately to incidents, design suitable standards and controls, and also manage the formulation and execution of policies and processes.

The role of a CISO is a much-coveted position since it blends both technical savviness and managerial proficiencies. Discovering an individual with all these skillsets is often difficult. You can improve your chances of being considered for a CISO position by becoming a certified Chief Information Security Officer (CCISO). You can also obtain a risk management training certification online to validate your skills or acquire all or most of the following skills.

◉ You need a sound foundation in computer networking concepts including VPN, DNS, DDoS and DoS, authentication, proxy, and other equivalent mitigation controls.

◉ You need deft negotiation skills and skills related to interpersonal qualities.

◉ A good CCISO has extensive knowledge about the architecture of innovativeness and security. They are also expected to understand the appropriate practices and approaches for IT strategy.

◉ A good CISO has a vast understanding of the business mission and thus, aligns it with the security goals of the organization.

◉ They must have proficiencies in Unix and Windows-like operating systems and programming languages such as PHP, Python, and Java.

◉ Experience with routing, TCP/IP, and switching.

◉ Possess effective leadership skills that influence rather than commands.

◉ Understands data protection or data information.

◉ They should be able to identify and build network security architecture.

◉ It is expected that a CCISO is aware of and understands governance risk and compliance such as GLBA, PCI DSS, NIST, HIPAA, SOX, and NIST.

◉ CISOs must be able to handle frameworks such as ITIL, ISO 27001, COBIT, and ISO 27002.

◉ They must be conversant with protocols that evaluate and execute intrusion prevention, firewalls, and intrusion detection.

◉ You need strong communication skills with the board and other C-level executives and build strong relationships with other departments within the organization.

◉ Vast ethical hacking skills, high-tech coding skills, and knowledge about threat modeling.

If you want to improve your cybersecurity knowledge and awareness, it is often advisable to invest in security officer training and other IT-based certifications that have the potential to improve your resume. A popular cybersecurity certification you must earn is EC-Council’s Certified Chief Information Security Officer (CISO).

Why do you need a CISO?

It is amazing the number of large organizations that are yet to hire a CISO. In reality, only a few businesses can do without an IT department, with business information security being a fundamental aspect of every business operation. Although, even a CCISO may not guarantee that cyberattacks would not hit your organization’s network or device. However, you incur fewer costs and minimize the damage when you have a specialist who can manage the incident.

For one, your cybersecurity and business information security and data security require a specialized professional with extensive knowledge and skillsets regarding the technical and administrative issues related to business. CISO’s handle your business information security, governance risk, and compliance, information technology controls, risk management, digital forensics, business continuity, and disaster recovery, IT infrastructure, eDiscovery, Information assurance, emergency response, and network or system privacy, among several others.

How to know when your company should hire a CISO?

So, how do you know that your organization requires the services of a CISO? If you fall under the following, then you need a CISO.

1. Records of Security Infringements

If your business information security has been compromised on one or more occasions than you need a CCISO. It might seem like a waste since your network and devices have already been compromised, but malicious hackers are greedy and often relentless. They will not stop at one attack. They often want to test how far your security programs can handle.

You have no way of knowing that your incident response plan and other security controls will effectively withstand a potential attack. Therefore, you need to hire a competent CISO to handle your business information security.

To learn more about how to handle a security breach, take a test now to assess your skill for the Certified Chief Information Security Officer (CCISO) course.

2. Intricate Threat Environment

The size of your company will determine your cybersecurity needs. The cybersecurity needs of SMEs with dozens of employees will differ from those of a large organization with thousands of consumers and workers. Hiring a CISO is a crucial consideration. Your threat environment should be your foremost deliberation when contemplating whether to hire a CISO or not.

You don’t want to wait until your network or systems have been compromised before you have a backup plan. Your business complexity will determine how to prioritize your security. Understand that your business intricacy is not automatically the same as the scale of your business. The moment your organization is ready to affiliate the business information security with other top-level executives, then you need a CISO.

3. Governance risk and compliance

Organizations that render financial or health services are extremely regulated. Thus, companies that operate in these industries are frequently expected to have advanced business information security approaches than regular establishments. The legal, regulatory, reputational, and financial detriment of defiance or failure could outweigh the compensation and advantages you’d give a CISO.

4. A dearth of business information security experts

There’s a shortage of IT professionals in the cybersecurity industry. The demand for business information security professionals exceeds the available skillsets. This alone is an indication that your IT team may lack the required skills to handle such incidents. You may not need to hire a CISO if your organization already has an IT professional handling your business information security needs and also juggling the required leadership inputs such as a CSO, COO, CIO, or CTO.

Nevertheless, since it might be cumbersome to assign a suitable member to head your cybersecurity demands from your IT team, entitling or hiring a CISO might be essential. They would also need security officer training or obtain risk management certifications online to become a good CISO.

How many companies have a CISO?

The job demand of a CISO is certainly not a dormant position. The position expands and fluctuates at a similar tempo with the cybersecurity and business information security environment. Amazingly, the number of companies that currently have a CISO, is below 50%.

Previously, organizations hired other equivalent positions such as a chief information officer (CIO), chief security officer (CSO), chief technology officer (CTO), chief operating officer (COO), or a VP of security instead of a CISO. However, the job description of a CISO has expanded to include risks encountered through business information security, customer privacy, business processes, and digital forensics, among several others. Consequently, the current trend is to entrench the CISO function within the IT department.

If you are an aspiring CISO then this session is for you:

How can you become a CISO?

There isn’t a fixed way to become a CISO. However, you can adopt several options that would boost your knowledge and enhance your chance of landing a job as a CISO.

◉ A degree: You need a master’s degree or at least a bachelor’s degree to be able to qualify for a job as a CISO. The potential educational path includes information technology (IT), business, computer science, ICT, or other equivalent fields.

◉ Cybersecurity experience: The average requirement for a CISO is seven to ten years of working experience. Consider gaining experience in risk management and government, business information security, and programming. Or you can also use your experience of ethical hacking, security engineering, and security analysts.

◉ Security officer training and certifications: There isn’t a single certification per se for landing a job as a CISO. However, investing in IT-based training and certification programs enhance your IT knowledge and also demonstrates your dedication to the field. A popular and acceptable certification is the CCISO.

Source: eccouncil.org

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How to Upgrade Your Business Continuity Plan (BCP) in a COVID-19 World

The majority of the large organizations have business continuity plans, or their equivalent prepared to tackle human-made disasters and natural disasters such as power outage, terrorism, IT infrastructure failure, floods, cyber-attacks, earthquakes, hurricanes, and so on. Nevertheless, most organizations are not prepared to handle the threat that COVID-19 presents.

The COVID-19 pandemic poses new and unique sets of challenges for most organizations. Not only does the coronavirus spread from one person to the other, and has no geographical focus, its destructive influence is vigorously changing without concern for boundaries. For global companies to remain competitive, build enterprise resilience, and preserve their business continuity, organizations have had to be analytical and proactive in their policy-making to preserve their business community, consumers, employees, and teams.

EC-Council’s disaster recovery professionals (EDRP) certification can help with administrative continuity planning efforts. It offers DRP training that provides IT professionals or cybersecurity experts with the needed knowledge for formulating organizational communications and executing remote work programs, evaluating the organization’s remote workplace preparedness, and designing enhanced remote work programs.

What is a business continuity plan (BCP) in cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity remains a major concern for organizations. Imagine getting to the office and realizing that most of your critical systems and networks are not properly working because of a cyber-attack. The important question is, “are you ready for an emergency or a disaster?” And more importantly, “can your cybersecurity solutions adjust and function effectively in an altered business environment?”

BCP or business continuity plan covers the entire critical business operation that can be affected during an emergency or disaster. In cybersecurity, business continuity plans lessen the risk associated with technological loss or the loss from IT infrastructural downtime. Your business continuity plan is a proactive tool that can be adapted for the complete restoration of all your business operations following an attack. A well-crafted BCP includes IT disaster recovery strategies and incidence response solutions.

When your computer or network has been compromised, it leads to a temporary or perpetual financial loss, reputational damage, loss of software and sensitive data or information, and so on. An organization’s cybersecurity mitigation procedures, together with its IT disaster recovery and business continuity plans, protect essential integrated equipment, averts hacking and other related cyberattacks, and guarantees business continuity.

Business Continuity in the new WFH Culture 

Who is responsible for a business continuity plan (BCP)?

A business continuity coordinator (BCC) or a disaster recovery professional (DRP) is saddled with the responsibility of designing, updating, and testing your IT disaster recovery and business continuity plans. An EDRP works intimately with critical business units to comprehend their operations, detect risks, assess incidence response preparedness, and mitigate the loss from potential cyberattacks. BCPs are typically developed with the input of departmental heads and key stakeholders.

The target of an EDRP is to ensure the continuity of business operations during and following disaster recovery efforts. To craft an adequate and useable BC/DR plan, a DRP must undergo disaster recovery and business continuity training. They must also have enough knowledge about:

◉ IT infrastructure
◉ Supplies and suppliers
◉ Equipment
◉ Documents and documentation such as Business documents and Procedure documentation
◉ Locations and whereabouts of organizations and backup sites or work area recovery (WAR).

What is included in a business continuity plan (BCP)?

Well-crafted business continuity plans sketch out a variety of disaster situations and the possible approaches the business can apply to specific emergency or disaster incidents to restore the organization to its normal trade environment. DRPs craft the business continuity plans before the incident, including precautionary measures to be implemented.

Creating a detailed disaster recovery and business continuity plan is a process prepared to tackle a set of anticipated eventualities to identify and mitigate possible damage to your companies throughout the hostile situation. The BCP consists of business impact analysis (BIA), threat intelligence analysis (TIA), and impact scenarios.

1. Business impact analysis

A detailed BIA distinguishes between critical and non-critical business operations. The criticality of a business operation is dependent on government regulations and compliance requirements. The components of a BIA include electronic or physical documents, IT systems, human resources, and physical assets, such as workstations, laptops, mobile phones, and so on.

2. Threat intelligence analysis

Threat intelligence analysis or risk assessment is an evaluation of potential risks or threats. Common cybersecurity risks and threats assessed include cyberattack, IT outage, data breach, DNS, computer virus, computer worms, DDoS and DoS, phishing, SQL injection attack. Common natural threats include hurricane, flood, epidemic/pandemic, fire outbreak, floods, and other major storms.

3. Impact scenarios

Impact scenario describes a management tool intended to permit organizations to assess the usefulness and adequacy of their business plans, strategies, and approaches, under a variety of imaginable real-life events or imminent environments. Your impact scenario planning is a significant add-on to the company’s risk management solutions since it tackles the possible impacts of substitute situation on the business’s risk profile.

In short, it is the ideal solution in the face of the increasing trend in cyberattacks and the COVID-19 pandemic. Impact scenarios should cover the broadest conceivable impacts.

What are the steps in the business continuity planning process?

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations across the globe are making efforts to confront the effect it has had on critical and non-critical business functions. Even though the risks are extensive, there are certain aspects that businesses can develop resilience to and reshape their business policies to restore their entire business operation both during and after the crisis.

Step One: Re-imagine business continuity plans

While it is unmanageable to plan for every potential destructive incident or disaster, it is probable for disaster recovery teams and other incident response teams to be communicated with and reinforced to craft out new procedures. Initially, when the crisis began in Wuhan, supply chain disruptions were only felt by organizations that had dealings with China. However, due to the current extensiveness of the COVID-19 pandemic, almost every business is experiencing operational challenges and shifts in consumer behavior.

Since the coronavirus is yet to show signs of abating, the implication of this is that organizations must continue to work while acclimatizing to the newest IT disaster recovery plan, decision-making processes, and different systems of collaborating. Companies should adopt the following strategies to tackle these challenges:

◉ Review the organization’s risks and exposures and respond adequately.

◉ Assess temporary liquidity to be able to envisage cash flow demands and respond as quickly as possible.

◉ Consider other substitute supply chain options to minimize the impact of the pandemic on your business operation.

◉ Conduct possible impact scenarios for your financial plans to know the likely influence of the pandemic on your financial performance and evaluate its probable duration.

Step Two: Concentrate on your human resources and technical needs

Organizations need to ensure seamless transitions during this pandemic era. The safety of members of your human resource is critical, including both your permanent and temporary employees, contractors, suppliers, consumers, and so on. Organizational staffs have high expectations from their employers and management team. They need some sort of guidance on what to do.

You can exploit different digital collaboration solutions for continuous communication across different business units and teams. Companies are required to meet their employees’ demands and resolve consumer’s uncertainties. This can be achieved via tremendous transparency in critical business functions and service delivery strategy. This will ensure an effective shift from unpredictability to reliable relationships.

Step Three: Communicate all new directions with key stakeholders

Communication is key for crafting successful business continuity plans. When formulating a plan that will reshape and sustain continuous support from consumers, partners, employees, suppliers, creditors, and other human resource teams, you need a strong, timely, and transparent communication pattern.

◉ Keep your customers up-to-speed of any impacts the pandemic or other disasters may have on your products and service delivery.

◉ Communicate regularly with your suppliers to find out the availability of the materials you need and whether they can deliver them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

◉ When communicating with your employees, your communication tools must strike a balance between being thoughtful and having a business continuity perspective.

◉ You may also want to communicate with your legal teams to understand governance risks and compliance to avoid when communicating with key stakeholders. The aim is to avoid incurring legal charges.

Step Four: Develop resilience while preparing for potential alterations

After you have observed steps one to three, it is time to build your business resilience. Business resilience suggests the ability of an organization to endure the alterations made to its environment while continuing to conduct regular business activities/functions. An organizational resilience could either mean that you’ve developed a capacity to withstand environmental alterations without permanently having to acclimatize or being compelled to acclimatize a new working system that is more fitting to the new environment.

Your BCP would have to be revised based on the new modifications stated above while observing the ongoing fluctuating scenario. IT disaster recovery teams and DRP teams should give timely reports from their findings to ensure that organizations would affect the modifications. You should document your findings, lessons learned, and contingency plans to create resilience for impending scenarios.

Source: eccouncil.org

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Why Is This the Right Time to Choose a Cyber Career?

With unemployment reaching the 4.8 million mark in June (for nonfarm payroll only), surpassing the number of jobless in the US during the time of Great Recession, it comes as no surprise that anxiety about job loss is looming over everyone’s heads. Since the coronavirus hit the US, nearly 1 in 5 households either experienced a layoff or a reduction in working hours. While a section of employers may consider less harsh options like pay cuts and furloughs, the uncertainty of losing jobs will remain.

As millions wonder what to do when a potential job loss hits them, organizations are beginning to classify most cybersecurity jobs as “essential” or National Critical Functions.

This is the right time for students and working professionals to look for assured career prospects in the cybersecurity industry. In order to kickstart your cybersecurity career, you will need to acquire cybersecurity skills that are mapped to the cyber roles demanded in the industry.

Why switch to a cybersecurity career?

With almost 3 Million jobs vacancies globally, Cybersecurity is an obviously attractive industry to be in.  Day after day, more and more security breaches are making headlines and organizations are eagerly hunting for skilled cybersecurity professionals to shore up their defences. If you’re looking for one good reason to make this switch, we’ll give you three major reasons to consider a cybersecurity career –

1. Ever-Expanding Growth and Unlimited Options

It is true that every IT role has its cybersecurity counterpart. The primary focus on security gives birth to a plethora of new career options. With the right cybersecurity skills and knowledge, you can start as a security operation engineer and move to becoming a risk assessment analyst, or cyber forensic investigator, compliance educator, and several other options.

Apart from that, the unlimited growth potential of the industry enables you to take up challenging learning opportunities to change tracks as the industry matures.

2. Number of Unfilled Cybersecurity Jobs

As per a report by the Center for Cyber Safety and Education, the unfilled cybersecurity jobs are expected to reach 1.8 million by 2022. The number evidently suggests that the cybersecurity skill gap is only going increase  in the next couple of years. Isn’t it the right time for you to build your skills and get started as a security professional?

3. Exciting Cybersecurity Salary Offers

While looking at the exciting salary offers for entry- and mid-level security jobs, keep in mind that the role most coveted and sought after, which you can reach with a few years of experience is that of aChief Information Security Officer (CISO). CISO’s ensure the security of a business, its invaluable data assets and its people.

Source: PayScale

Indeed.com released a list of top 10 highest paying IT security jobs, which are –

#1 Application Security Engineer – $128,128

#2 Director of Information Security – $127,855

#3 Senior Security Consultant – $126,628

#4 Cloud Engineer – $126,365

#5 Software Architect – $117,633

#6 PenTester – $114,431

#7 Risk Manager – $108,465

#8 Chief Information Officer – $103,690

#9 Security Engineer – $101,808

#10 Information Manager – $99,930

EC-Council Cyber Career Series

Entering the cybersecurity industry is easy when you know how. When you’re getting trained on the right job-skills, adding the most acclaimed certifications into your resume, you can build your cybersecurity career for the long haul!

EC-Council has initiated Career Transition Series (webinars), where the industry’s top experts will help you identify the required skillsets and the ways to acquire them. This series is an attempt to address the queries of cybersecurity aspirants as well as experienced cybersecurity professionals. Our speakers are experts who have achieved much success in their professional careers.ITheir experiences will surely serve as an excellent guide to career-changers who wish to transition into cybersecurity.

Here are the ten speakers you should be looking forward to –

• Dawie Wentzel, Head of Cyber Forensic Investigations at Absa Group
• Subin Thayille Kandy, Senior Product Security Engineer at Salesforce
• Jeremy Green, Cyber Security Manager at BT Telecommunications
• Jean Carlos, Group Head of Information Security at Nomad Foods
• Nia F. Luckey, SOC Manager US Public Sector at CISCO
• Vanessa Padua, Cybersecurity Executive Director at Microsoft
• Jothi Dugar, CISO at The National Institute of Health, Centre of IT
• Andres Felipe Lorza, CISO at Registraduria Nacional del Estado Civil de Colombia
• Alexandre Horvath, CISO & DPO at Cryptix AG
• Bjorn Voitel, Information Security and Privacy Professional at Internehmensinaber-IT

Source: eccouncil.org

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Do You Have What It Takes to Become a CISO?

Do You Have What It Takes to Become a CISO?

Do you ever wonder how people working as a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) view cybersecurity? What challenges do they face? What skills do they develop to overcome those challenges? In other words, if you want to be a CISO, then you need to ask yourself if you have what it takes to become a CISO. The answer is here.

Understanding the Role of a CISO

CISO stands as the senior-most position in the hierarchy of cybersecurity, but the role demands more than a deeper understanding of information security. It is an Executive C-suite level where the job role is focused on information security with a business perspective. It means that having an understanding of enterprise vision and business strategy and taking steps for the protection of information technology infrastructure is all a part of the job. CISO is a C-Suite Certification and is considered as the top most job-role in the cybersecurity hierarchy.

The primary responsibilities of a CISO include –

◉ Hiring and leading cybersecurity team of professionals.
◉ Recognizing the development of information security solutions.
◉ Creating strategic IT security plans in association with the executive team.
◉ Collaborating across multiple sections to maintain secure IT infrastructure.
◉ Following security incidents from the time of identification to resolution.
◉ Conducting employee awareness programs on cybersecurity regularly.
◉ Conducting a cybersecurity education upgrade regularly.
◉ Planning, forecasting, and managing security budgets.
◉ Monitoring software launches and upgrades.
◉ Ensuring timely network upgrades.
◉ Ensuring the deliverance of IT projects without disabling security standards.

There exists a thin line between the job role of a CISO and CIO (Chief Information Officer) and many organizations blur the line making it a single title.

The significant elements that a successful CISO should be aware of –

1. Risk and compliance management

To automate and execute work processes, organizations rely on many tools, third-party vendors, applications, etc. that might bring a probability of risk. The scope of IT security implementation is not restricted within organizations. It incorporates vendors, partners, visitors, remote staff, and all devices and individuals directly or indirectly connected with the organization’s IT infrastructure. All these associates present security challenges, and therefore risk management is a crucial skill for CISOs. The need to understand the flow of information within the organization as well as outside the organization and define security policies accordingly is another must. Risk management is a critical skill to protect against information loss, damage, theft or harm.

Industry regulations and compliance are vital areas that CISOs should consider. Every nation has its security policies, and CISOs should ensure their compliance in their organization. Industry regulations like HIPAA, FINRA, PCI, etc. govern an organization’s cybersecurity standards and must be compliant. GDPR, issues of Internet of Things (IoT), software and patch management are few other regulations that every CISO should consider.

2. Technical skills

Though CISO is a C-Suite certification, a CISO must be well-versed with technical skills along with cybersecurity skills. They should be proficient in managing complex IT architecture and IT operational tasks. CISOs are not involved in daily execution, but they do have to oversee vulnerability scans, security assessments, penetration testing, security coding, etc.

Few of the top IT security skills that a CISO should have –

◉ Development of security architecture
◉ Incident response and remediation
◉ Disaster recovery planning
◉ Mobile and endpoint management
◉ Remote device management
◉ Identity management
◉ Data and information management
◉ Security policy and framework
◉ Application and database security
◉ Management of network security and firewall
◉ Communication and leadership skills

CISO is one of the most influential positions that belong to the management level. They are the spokesperson about the security concerns of their organization to any outsider, stakeholders, law enforcement or media agencies. CISOs are, therefore, expected to be energy boosters with excellent communication and leadership skills.

How to become a CISO?

CISO is the senior-most profile, and therefore it involves several steps, including education, experience, and certifications, that can help you develop the required skills.

1. Obtain a bachelor’s and a master’s degree

The first and foremost step to becoming a CISO is to have a bachelor and master’s degree in cybersecurity. CISO is a highest grade in cybersecurity and therefore, master certification becomes mandatory. If you want to be a CISO, then it is crucial for you to invest your time in attaining master’s degree. There are many universities offering online master and bachelor programs in cybersecurity and such online learning can help you in pursuing a degree and master program without disturbing your current job.

2. Obtain cybersecurity certifications

Certifications play an essential role as they provide specialized knowledge on the subject. Having a degree and master certification is a generic requirement to be a CISO. Beside this, to be proficient in specific subjects like ethical hacking, penetration testing, etc. one should acquire cybersecurity certifications too. Most of the universities, provide opportunity to avail certifications while pursuing degree or master in cybersecurity.

3. Get cybersecurity experience

The eligibility to receive C|CISO certification is to have five years of experience in each of the five C|CISO domains. Therefore, education should also be backed by the relevant experience to make you eligible for a role in a higher hierarchy.

4. Build management experience

CISO requires a unique blend of IT and managerial skills. Once you acquire technical skills, seek experience in management.

To sum up, CISO is a superior managerial position and to reach that level; one must have a perfect combination of education, certification, skills, and experience.

Source: blog.eccu.edu

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An Introduction to Network Traffic Monitoring

With the penetrating growth of organization intranets, now more than ever, it is crucial that network security administrators are conscious of the varying forms of traffic that are navigating their networks and how to properly handle them. Your organization’s cybersecurity solution is incomplete without network traffic monitoring and analysis.

Network security trainings and certifications are important for your organization, so you can swiftly troubleshoot and work out network issues the moment they arise. The purpose of this training is to prevent your network services from being on hold for prolonged periods. Several tools are available to assist the Certified Network Defenders with the monitoring and analysis of network traffic.

What is network traffic monitoring?

Network traffic monitoring describes the process by which the devices connected to a network are analyzed, reviewed, and managed, to identify the anomalies or processes that can affect the performance of a network, its availability, or security. Network traffic monitoring, or otherwise network flow monitoring, or network traffic analysis (NTA), is a security analytical tool exploited to detect and give off alerts when issues that would affect the functionality, accessibility, and security of network traffics are detected.

NTA is a network security technique that checks the network traffic of internet-connected devices, the forms of data these devices are retrieving, and the level of bandwidth each device is consuming. Network security administrators and other Certified Network Defenders usually carry out this task. They use network security tools to ensure that critical systems within the networks are functioning properly and readily available.

What do network traffic monitoring and analysis cover?

Network traffic monitoring and analysis solutions can execute active monitoring, such as transferring a ping or executing a TCP request to examine how a network service or server responds. Some network monitor tools also execute passive monitoring, including giving reports about traffic flows and eavesdropping on ports.

A network traffic monitor functions alongside protocols such as DNS, HTTP, SSH, HTTPS, UDP, TELNET, SNMP, SMTP, FTP, SIP, POP3, IMAP, SSL, TCP, ICMP, and Media Streaming. Network traffic monitoring solutions, measure certain components of your traffic network, including network availability, network route analytics, and network response time.

Network traffic monitoring solutions also covers certain network elements such as:

◉ Links and Connections: it monitors connections between network components, such as network interfaces.
◉ Network Gadgets: this includes, switches, routers, gateways, appliances, and proxies.
◉ External Service Providers: this includes cloud services, web hosting, messaging services, and SaaS applications.
◉ Mission Critical Servers: This includes email servers, web server monitoring, FTP servers, application servers, and storage systems.

Why is network traffic analysis important?

With the incessant bouts of cyber-attacks today, it can be crushing and overpowering for your security experts and IT teams to make sure most of your organization’s environment is properly secured. With Network traffic monitoring tools, the burden can be lessened.

Using a device that can always monitor and analyze the issues within your network traffic, provides you with the necessary insight you need to optimize the performance of your network, improve security, lessen your attack surface, and advance the administration of your resources. Network traffic monitoring is also important for the following reasons:

◉ Stay ahead of outages
◉ Improved internal visibility into connected devices on your network (including health care visitors,  IoT devices, etc.)
◉ Eliminating blind spot
◉ Meet compliance necessities
◉ Spotting malware activities, including ransomware
◉ Troubleshoot operational and security issues and fix issues faster
◉ Gain immediate ROI
◉ Detecting vulnerable protocols and ciphers
◉ Responding to investigations faster with rich detail and additional network context
◉ Gathering historical records and real-time analysis of what is occurring on your network
◉ Report on SLAs

What are the major risks in network security monitoring?

Every year, thousands of security risks and vulnerabilities are revealed in IT infrastructures, software, and systems. Cybercriminals abuse these vulnerabilities to infiltrate the organization’s communications networks and also to have access to significant assets.

Attackers have different motives for infiltrating your network traffic, including personal, competitive, financial, and political motives. The core purpose of this malicious activity is to compromise the integrity, confidentiality, and accessibility of systems or data. Since security vulnerabilities can cause severe damage, your network security administrator must have ample knowledge about network security to mitigate these security issues.

Below are some of the most common risks in network security:

Computer viruses

Computer viruses are the most common risks in cybersecurity. Virus attacks can present huge threats to any organization regardless of its size. A recent statistic suggests that 33 percent of home-based or personal computers are compromised by one form of malware or the other, of which viruses rank the highest.

Viruses can compromise your files, remove important data, and negatively disrupt your regular operations. Viruses are notorious for corrupting and stealing valuable data, sending spam, deleting everything on your hard drive, or deactivate your security settings.

Computer worm

Worms are sent by manipulating security vulnerabilities. Computer worms are fragments of malware packages that are designed to duplicate rapidly and distribute themselves from one computer or device to the next. Usually, worms spread from an infected device by distributing itself from the infected computer, and from the infected computer to all other devices that comes in contact with it.

Rogue security software

Most often people think that network breaches are caused by things on their hardware, however, cyber-attackers can cause severe damages from anywhere. Hackers have discovered different ways of committing internet fraud.

Rogue security software is a harmful software that deceives users into believing that their systems have a virus or that their device needs an update. The aim is to prompt the user to act, either to update their security settings or click the download option. However, these actions cause real malware to be installed on your device.

Rootkit

A Rootkit is an assemblage of software applications that allows remote access and control over networks or a computer. Rootkits are mounted by concealing themselves in genuine software. They work by gaining permission to adjust your OS, after which the rootkit installs itself in your device, and waits for the cybercriminal to activate it.

Adware and spyware

Adware is any software that tracks data from your browsing behaviors and uses the information gathered to show you commercials and pop-ups. The data are collected with your consent and are even legitimate sources used by organizations.

However, adware becomes malicious when it is downloaded without your knowledge. The Spyware functions in the same manner as adware, except that your permission is not requested for installation.

Trojan horse

Trojan horse spreads by email and when you click a deceitful commercial. A trojan horse or simply Trojan is malicious software or code that deceives users into voluntarily running the software, by concealing itself behind an authentic database.

DDoS and DoS attacks

Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks and denial-of-service (DoS) attacks are popular risks for your network security. DDoS and DoS merely differ because DDoS exploits multiple internet connections to make the user’s network or computer inaccessible to them, while DoS exploits one internet-connected device or network to saturate the user’s computer or networks with malicious traffic.

SQL injection attack

An SQL injection attack is a widespread attack vector that permits a malicious hacker to carry out malicious SQL statements for backend database operation or confine the queries that an application makes to its database. Malicious actors exploit SQL Injection vulnerabilities to evade login and other significant application security measures.

Man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks

Man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks are security attacks that permit the malicious actor to listen to the communication between two users, which should be private. Types of MITM include IP spoofing, DNS spoofing, SSL hijacking, HTTPS spoofing, Wi-Fi hacking, and ARP spoofing.

How do you analyze network traffic?

Analyzing network traffic in large organizations differ from home-based network security monitoring. You can hire a Certified Network Defender or try the following options:

Identify network data sources

The first step in an operative Network traffic monitoring and analysis is to obtain visibility by unifying data from various sources. The core data sources for network monitoring include packet data, flow data, wi-fi data, and device data.

Uncover computers and applications traversing your network

The second step is to discover the applications, devices, users, VPNs, and interfaces, running on your network. You can use a network topology mapper to automatically uncover those traversing your network and the applications consuming your bandwidth.

Implement the correct network traffic monitoring solution

Aside from your network topology mapper, you need effective Network traffic monitoring tools. The right tools should include NetFlow analyzer, Proactive Alerts, Network Monitoring Reports, and Network Performance Dashboard.

Use specific network manufactures

The specific network toolset you apply can determine the success or failure of your network traffic monitoring. Although most manufacturers brand their products as not needing specialized network monitoring solutions, these assertions usually come with exceptions. Thus, you’ll need a network monitoring package that can consume data from several vendors to grasp the whole network.

Optimize your network traffic

Last but not least, is the optimization of your network traffic. The four key areas which need optimization, include the optimization of your overall network performance, optimization of video, voice, and unified communications, optimization through forensic analysis, and optimization to quality of service (QoS) points.

How to become a Network Security Administrator

If you want to become a network security administrator, you need to be a certified network defender. You need an MBA or bachelor’s degree in a related field of information and computer technology. Also, some vendors offer certification programs. Certification authenticates best practices and knowledge and needed by network security administrators.

Source: eccouncil.org

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