STUDY MODULE FOR

MCQ SESSION 11
COMPUTER SECURITY

By Tawqeer ul Islam
 Please Visit
CA Lateef’s Academy – Educate All Trust
on YouTube for the Videos.
Link: [Link]
 LECTURE 12

COMPUTER
SECURIT Y
Learning Objectives
• Introduction to COMPUTER SECURITY.
• Methods to Provide Protection.
• Components of Computer Security.
• Sources of Cyber Attack.
• Malware : Threats to Computer Security.
• Effects of Virus.
• Symptoms of Malware Attack.
• Some Other Threats to Computer Security.
• Solutions to Compute Security Threats.
• Some Important terms related to Computer Security.
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SECURITY
COMPUTER SECURITY
• Computer security is also known as cyber security or IT security.
• Computer security is a branch of information technology known as information security, which is
intended to protect computers.
• It is the protection of computing systems and the data that they store, share or access.
COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER SECURITY
COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER SECURITY
• Basic components of computer security system are as follows
1. Confidentiality It ensures that data is not accessed by any unauthorized person.
2. Integrity It ensures that information is not altered by any unauthorized person in such a way that it is
not detectable by authorised users.
3. Authentication It ensures that users are the persons they claim to be.
4. Access Control It ensures that users access only those resources that they are allowed to access.
5. Non-Repudiation It ensures that originators of messages cannot deny they are not sender of the
message.
6. Availability It ensures that systems work promptly and service is not denied to authorised users.
7. Privacy It ensures the right that someone has to keep their personal information secret or known only
to a small group of people.
COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER SECURITY
8. Steganography: Steganography is the practice of hiding a secret message in something (text,
image, video, etc.) that is not secret.
9. Cryptography: Cryptography is a method of protecting information and communications through
the use of codes, so that only those for whom the information is intended can read and process it.

Some terms commonly used in cryptography are as follows

(i) Plain text It is the original message that is an input.
(ii) Cipher It is a bit-by-bit or character-by character transformation without regard to the meaning
of the message.
(iii) Cipher Text It is the coded message or the encrypted data.
(iv) Encryption It is the process of converting plain text to cipher text, using an encryption
algorithm.
(v) Decryption It is the reverse of encryption, i.e. converting cipher text to plaint ext.
SOURCES OF CYBER ATTACK
 SOURCES OF CYBER ATTACK
• The most potent and vulnerable threat of computer users is virus attacks.
• A computer virus is a small software program that spreads from one computer to another and that
interferes with computer operation.

• The sources of attack can be follow

1. Downloadable Programs Downloadable files are one of the best possible sources of virus.
• Any type of executable file like games, screen saver are one of the major sources.
• If you want to download programs from the Internet then it is necessary to scan every program
before downloading them.
2. Cracked Software These softwares are another source of virus attacks.
• Such cracked forms of illegal files contain virus and bugs that are difficult to detect as well as to
remove.
• Hence, it is always a preferable option to download software from the appropriate source.
 SOURCES OF CYBER ATTACK
3. E-mail Attachments: These attachments are the most common source of [Link] must
handle E-mail attachments with extreme care, especially if the E-mail comes from an unknown sender.
4. Internet: Majority of all computer users are unaware as when viruses attack computer systems.
Almost all computer users click or download everything that comes their way and hence unknowingly
invites the possibility of virus attacks.
5. Booting from Unknown CD: When the computer system is not working, it is a good practice to
remove the CD. If you do not remove the CD, it may start to boot automatically from the disk which
enhances the possibility of virus attacks.
MALWARE : THREATS TO COMPUTER
SECURITY
MALWARE : THREATS TO COMPUTER SECURITY
• Malware stands for malicious software.
• It is a broad term that refers to a variety of malicious programs that are used to damage computer system, gather
sensitive information or gain access to private computer systems.
• It includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, rootkits, spyware, adware, etc.
• Some of them are described below
1. Virus : VIRUS stands for Vital Information Resources Under Siege.
• Computer viruses are small programs that can negatively affect the computer.
• It obtains control of a PC and directs it to perform unusual and often destructive actions.
• Viruses are copied itself and attached itself to other programs which further spread the infection.
• The virus can affect or attack any part of the computer software such as the boot block, operating system, system
areas, files and application programs.
• The first computer virus Creeper created in 1971.
• Types of Virus
• Some common types of viruses are as follows
1. Resident Virus: It fixes themselves into the system’s memory and get activated whenever the operating system runs and
infects all the files that are opened. It hides in the RAM and stays there even after the malicious code is executed. e.g.
Randex, Meve etc.
2. Direct Action Virus: It comes into action when the file containing the virus is executed. It infects files in the folder
that are specified in the [Link] file path. e.g. Vienna virus.
3. Overwrite Virus: It deletes the information contained in the files that it infects, rendering them
partially or totally useless, once they have been infected. e.g. Way,[Link], Trivial.88.D etc.
4. Boot Sector Virus: It is also called Master Boot Sector virus or Master Boot Record virus. This
type of virus affects the boot sector of a hard disk. Brain was the first PC boot sector virus created
in 1986. e.g. Polyboot.B, AntiEXE etc.
5. Macro Virus: It infects files that are created using certain applications or programs that contain
macros, like .doc, .xls, .ppt etc. e.g. Melissa.
6. File System Virus It is also called Cluster virus or Directory virus. It infects the directory of
the computer by changing the path that indicates the location of a file. e.g. Dir-2 virus
7. Polymorphic Virus: It encrypts or encodes itself in an encrypted way, every time it infects a
system. This virus then goes on to create a large number of copies. e.g. Elkern, Tuareg etc.
8. FAT Virus: File Allocation Table is used to store all the information about the location of
files, unusable space, etc. FAT Virus affects the FAT. e.g. Link virus etc.
9. Multipartite Virus: It may spread in multiple ways such as the operating system installed or
the existence of certain files. e.g. Flip.
10. Web Scripting Virus: Many Websites execute complex code in order to provide interesting
content. These sites are sometimes created with purposely infected code. e.g. JS Fortnight
EFFECTS OF VIRUS
EFFECTS OF VIRUS
• There are many different effects that viruses can have on your computer, depending on the
types of virus.
• Some viruses can
(i) monitor what you are doing.
(ii) slow down your computer’s performance.
(iii) destroy all data on your local disk.
(iv) affect on computer networks and the connection to Internet.
(v) Virtually increase or decrease memory size.
(vi) display different types of error messages.
(vii) decrease partition size.
(viii)alter PC settings.
(ix) display arrays of annoying advertising.
(x) extend boot times.
(xi) create more than one partitions.
OTHER MALWARES
 OTHER MALWARES
• Worms: A computer worm is a standalone malware computer program that replicates itself in order to
spread to other computers.
• Often, it uses computer network to spread itself, relying on security failures on the target computer to access
it.
• Worms are hard to detect because they are invisible files. e.g. Bagle, I love you, Morris, Nimda etc.
• Trojan: A Trojan, or Trojan horse, is a non-self-replicating type of malware which appears to perform a desirable
function but instead facilitates unauthorised access to the user’s computer system. Trojans do not attempt to inject
themselves into other files like a computer virus.
• Trojan horses may steal information, or harm their host computer systems.
• Trojans may use drive by downloads or install via online games or Internet driven applications in order to reach
target computers. Unlike viruses, Trojan horses do not replicate themselves. e.g. Beast, [Link], ZeroAccess
Rootkit etc.
• Spyware: It is a program which is installed on a computer system to spy on the system owner’s activity and
collects all the information which is misused afterwards.
• It tracks the user’s behavior and reports back to a central source.
• These are used for either legal or illegal purpose.
• Spyware can transmit personal information to another person’s computer over the Internet. e.g. CoolWeb
Search, FinFisher, Zango, Zlob Trojan, Keyloggers etc.
SYMPTOMS OF MALWARE ATTACK
SYMPTOMS OF MALWARE ATTACK
• There is a list of symptoms of malware attack which indicates that your system is infected with
a computer malware.
• Some primary symptoms of malware attack are as follows
(i) Odd messages are displaying on the screen.
(ii) Some files are missing.
(iii) System runs slower.
(iv) PC crashes and restarts again and again.
(v) Drives are not accessible.
(vi) Antivirus software will not run or installed.
(vii) Unexpected sound or music plays.
(viii) The mouse pointer changes its graphic.
(ix) System receives strange E-mails containing odd attachments or viruses.
(x) PC starts performing functions like opening or closing window, running programs on its own.
SOME OTHER THREATS TO COMPUTER
SECURITY
SOME OTHER THREATS T COMPUTER SECURITY
• There are some other threats to computer security which are described below
1. Spoofing It is the technique to access the unauthorised data without concerning to the authorised user. It
accesses the resources over the network.
• It is also known as ‘Masquerade’.
• IP spoofing is a process or technique to enter in another computer by accessing its IP address.
• It pretends to be a legitimate user and access to its computer via a network.
2. Salami Technique It diverts small amounts of money from a large number of accounts maintained by the system.
3. Hacking It is the act of intruding into someone else’s computer or network.
• Hacking may result in a Denial of Service (DoS) attack.
• It prevents authorised users from accessing the resources of the computer.
• A hacker is someone, who does hacking process.
• Black Hat, White Hat and Grey Hat hackers.
4. Cracking It is the act of breaking into computers.
• It is a popular, growing subject on Internet.
• Cracking tools are widely distributed on the Internet.
• They include password crackers, trojans, viruses, wardialers, etc.
SOME OTHER THREATS T COMPUTER SECURITY
5. Phishing It is characterised by attempting to fraudulently acquire sensitive information such as
passwords, credit cards details etc. by masquerading as a trustworthy person.
6. Spam It is the abuse of messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages in the form of
E-mails.
• It is a subset of electronic spam involving nearly identical messages sent to numerous
recipients by E-mails.
7. Adware It is any software package which automatically renders advertisements in order to
generate revenue for its author.
• The term is sometimes used to refer the software that displays unwanted advertisements.
8. Rootkit It is a type of malware that is designed to gain administrative level control over a
computer system without being detected.
SOLUTIONS TO COMPUTE SECURITY
THREATS
SOLUTIONS TO COMPUTER SECURITY THREATS
• Some safeguards (or solutions) to protect a computer system from accidental access, are described below
[Link] Software: It is an application software that is designed to prevent, search for, detect
and remove viruses and other malicious softwares like worms, trojans, adware and more.
• It consists of computer programs that attempt to identify threats and eliminate computer viruses
and other malware.
• Some popular Antiviruses
(i) Avast (ii) Avg
(iii) K7 (iv) Kaspersky
(v) Trend Micro (vi) Quick Heal
(vii) Symantec (viii) Norton
(ix) McAfee
2. Digital Certificate: It is the attachment to an electronic message used for security purposes.
• The common use of a digital certificate is to verify that a user sending a message is who he or
she claims to be, and to provide the receiver with the means to encode a reply.
• It provides a means of proving your identity in electronic transactions.
[Link] Signature: It is an electronic form of a signature that can be used to authenticate the identity of the
sender of a message or the signer of a document, and also ensure that the original content of the message or document
that has been sent is unchanged.
4. Firewall: It can either be software based or hardware based and is used to help in keeping a network secure.
• Its primary objective is to control the incoming and outgoing network traffic by analyzing the data
packets and determining whether it should be allowed through or not, based on a predetermined rule set.
• A network’s firewall builds a bridge between an internal network that is assumed to be secure and trusted,
and another network, usually an external (inter) network, such as the Internet, that is not assumed to be
secure and trusted.
• A firewall also includes or works with a proxy server that makes network requests on behalf of workstation
users.
5. Password: It is a secret word or a string of characters used for user authentication to prove identity or
access approval to gain access to a resource.
• A password is typically somewhere between 4 to 16 characters, depending on how the computer system is
setup.
• When a password is entered, the computer system is careful not to display the characters on the display
screen, in case others might see it.
• There are two common modes of password as follows
(i) Weak Password Easily remember just like names, birth dates, phone number etc.
(ii) Strong Password Difficult to break and a combination of alphabets and symbols.
6. File Access Permission: Most current file systems have methods of assigning permissions or
access rights to specific user and group of users.
• These systems control the ability of the users to view or make changes to the contents of the
file system.
• File access permission refers to privileges that allow a user to read, write or execute a file.
• There are three specific file access permissions as follows
(i) Read Permission: If you have read permission of a file, you can only see the contents. In
case of directory, access means that the user can read the contents.
(ii) Write Permission: If you have write permission of a file, you can only modify or remove
the contents of a file. In case of directory, you can add or delete contents to the files of the
directory.
(iii) Execute Permission: If you have execute permission of a file, you can only execute a file.
TERMS RELATED TO SECURITY
TERMS RELATED TO SECURITY
1. Eavesdropping: The attacker monitors transmissions for message content.
2. Masquerading: The attacker impersonates an authorized user and thereby gain certain
unauthorised privilege.
3. Patches: It is a piece of software designed to fix problems with a computer program or its
supporting data.
• This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs and improving the usability and
performance.
4. Logic Bomb It is a piece of code intentionally inserted into a computer’s memory that will
set off a malicious function when specified conditions are met.
• They are also called slag code and does not replicate itself.
5. Proxy Server It can act as a firewall by responding to input packets in the manner of an
application while blocking other packets.
• It hides the true network addresses and used to intercept all messages entering and leaving the
network.
TERMS RELATED TO SECURITY
7. Keylogger: is a software program designed to record every keystroke on the machine on which
it runs.
8. Software License: The legal right to use software based on specific restrictions is granted
via Software license.
9. Software Piracy means copying of data or computer software without the owner’s permission.
I hope you liked the session.

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 Please Visit
CA Lateef’s Academy – Educate All Trust
on YouTube for the Videos.
Link: [Link]