Colorado ITS481 Cyber Security Discussion - A system that is free of bugs

ITS 481 Colorado State University Cyber Security Discussion

ITS 481 Discussion

PROVIDE A 250 WORD MINIMUM ANSWER TO EACH QUESTION AND 2 FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS

1. A system that is free of bugs, misconfigurations, and vulnerabilities proves to be a constant battle for today’s IT professional. With large Enterprise environments, as well as the menagerie of software and hardware configurations available, this goal has become increasingly difficult. Given that misconfigurations are becoming more and more common, and these misconfigurations can allow hackers access and control to a company’s systems, it is important to know what is out there and how to stop inappropriate access. One resource that is often used to search for common vulnerabilities is the CVE website, a collection of common vulnerabilities and exposures: http://cve.mitre.org/find/index.htmlLinks to an external site.

Explore the CVE website. After exploring some of the examples of the vulnerabilities for access control on the site, write a reflection responding to the following in this week’s discussion:

• After taking some time to explore the CVE website, discuss and justify some of the reasons behind protecting systems against access control vulnerabilities.
• Use 1-2 examples from the website to highlight and explain how hackers exploit system and software vulnerabilities to penetrate systems.
• Discuss what organizations are most at risk and why you think they are based on your research.

2. Imagine that the organization you work at has been involved in a cyber-attack. Using what you’ve learned about cyber threats and threat actors, respond to the following in your discussion post as you reflect on this scenario:

• Many of the stakeholders and managers are asking you if it’s acceptable to return hack and try and be retaliatory or proactive to preempt another strike. Do you think this a good idea for an organization?
• What are the dangers and possible legal ramifications of attempting this sort of activity?