Computer Security

1. Cross site scripting (XSS)
The “most prevalent and pernicious” Web application security vulnerability, XSS flaws happen when an application sends user data to a Web browser without first validating or encoding the content. This lets hackers execute malicious scripts in a browser, letting them hijack user sessions, deface Web sites, insert hostile content and conduct phishing and malware attacks.

2. Injection flaws
When user-supplied data is sent to interpreters as part of a command or query, hackers trick the interpreter — which interprets text-based commands — into executing unintended commands. “Injection flaws allow attackers to create, read, update, or delete any arbitrary data available to the application,” OWASP writes. “In the worst-case scenario, these flaws allow an attacker to completely compromise the application and the underlying systems, even bypassing deeply nested firewalled environments.”

3. Malicious file execution
Hackers can perform remote code execution, remote installation of rootkits, or completely compromise a system. Any type of Web application is vulnerable if it accepts filenames or files from users. The vulnerability may be most common with PHP, a widely used scripting language for Web development.

4. Insecure direct object reference
Attackers manipulate direct object references to gain unauthorized access to other objects. It happens when URLs or form parameters contain references to objects such as files, directories, database records or keys.

Do you know that recently it was reported by some research that claims over 10,000 laptops are lost or stolen every WEEK at US airports. So here are simple six loss prevention tips for laptop during travelling.

Preventive Control Method
1. Place your laptop in the first bin you put on the belt of the X-ray machine. You should put your laptop bag in front of it./
Put the bin with your shoes, belt, purse, wallet, etc. right behind your laptop. And your carry-on bag last. The first thing you should do on the other side is put your laptop in its bag before the other luggage crashes into it and dumps it on the floor. Your other stuff separates it from the person behind you and in front of you.

2. Mark your laptop! Put a sticker on it. I know people hate to do this. But you should identify your laptop in such a way that you can quickly identify it.
There are lots of Dell computers our there. I have almost picked up the wrong laptop on many occasions. DO NOT TAPE YOUR BUSINESS CARD TO YOUR LAPTOP. Do not become a target by letting potential laptop thieves know just how valuable your laptop may be. My favorite marker for my Dell Latitude is the white Apple sticker I got with my iPod.

3. If you lose your laptop contact the TSA immediately.
Call the airport. Take action. I bet in 99% of the cases you can get it back.

Protective Control Method:
4. Protect your information If you keep a lot of personal or financial information on your computer
Also have the tools to protect your information through

Step 1 – Admit the possibility of disaster
Just as the first step to personal recovery is admitting one has a problem, so the first step in BCDR planning is to admit the organization faces tangible threats that could jeopardize its prosperity – or its survival. Until this first step is taken at a senior leadership level, go no further.

Step 2 – List and categorize likely threats to the organization
The nature of the business and its physical and social environment will influence the types of threats an organization might face. Once the threats are listed, they should be categorized according to their likely impact on various systems. The cost of the response should be balanced against the tolerance for system downtime -- the less downtime that can be tolerated, the more it will cost to create an appropriate response. Some systems must be functioning again within minutes or seconds, while others can be down a few hours, and still others can be down for a few days without serious consequences.

Step 3 – Outline the organization’s BCDR technology infrastructure
The key technology elements

Cryptography and computer security are two distinct subjects. Cryptography is the art of encoding information in a secret format such that only the intended recipient can access the information. Cryptography can also be applied to supply proofs of authenticity, integrity, and intent. The use of cryptography has progressed extensively over a long period of time, ranging from the ancient Caesar cipher to cipher machines widely used in World War II to modern cryptosystems implemented with computer hardware and software.

Computer security is the application of measures that ensure that information being processed, stored, or communicated is reliable and available to authorized entities. Computer security first became an issue only in the 1960s, when timesharing, multiuser computer operating systems, such as Cambridge's early computing system and MIT's Multics, were first built. After that, the field of computer security remained relatively obscure for years, apart from a brief active period in the mid-1970s. Security concerns then were based mostly on military requirements. Commercial security did not become fully mainstream until the Internet and electronic commerce (e-commerce)—and Java technology in particular—took center stage in the 1990s.

The advantage of the ZoneAlarm firewall over the built-in Vista firewall is that ZoneAlarm will only allow those programs you specifically ok to access the Internet. Microsoft's Vista firewall does allow this kind of outbound filtering, but the feature disabled by default. Not only that, it's hidden and buried - you can't even get to it through the normal Windows Firewall interface.

ZoneAlarm's free firewall, by contrast, will display a pop-up if a new program attempts to access the Internet. That program will be blocked until you allow it. I installed ZoneAlarm's app on my Vista laptop, and it went smoothly for the most part. After double-clicking the 18MB download, I was prompted to shut down the Cisco VPN service. But after a couple of reboots - I had to reboot twice before my wireless connection re-activated - I was able to establish a VPN connection without any trouble.

Security work is a continuous and daily process. You can’t just install a firewall or an intrusion-detection system and say that you’re suddenly secure. In some cases, you’ll be lucky to enter an organization that already has a relatively mature security program. In these cases, most of the items discussed in the following sections will already be implemented and your job will be easier to manage. In other cases, you may find yourself hired into an organization that has not had a security program in the past. In this case, you’ll have the opportunity to build the program from the ground up. Although this might sound like more work, and a potentially bigger hassle, you may find it easier creating everything from scratch and ensuring that it’s all done correctly. But let’s look at some of the items you’ll need to understand.

1. Patches and Hot Fixes
Both operating systems and applications have a single huge flaw: They are written by human beings. Because of that, they have bugs and security issues. Vendors release patches or hot fixes on a periodic basis to address security concerns that may have arisen since the last patch came out. To keep an organization secure, you need to ensure that these software patches are applied in a timely manner. One important item to note here: Test your patches in a test environment before you implement them in production systems. In some cases, patches have caused more harm than good because of unexpected issues.

The importance of IT to the modern enterprise screams out through high investment, the pervasiveness of the technology, our reliance on its continuing operation and the pain we suffer when it doesn’t work. But above all we see the strategic importance of IT through its critical role in building efficiencies and the ways in which IT enables business to make its strategic moves.

But you can’t survive simply by fighting yesterday’s battles. IT continues to develop rapidly and to provide opportunities to improve every facet of business. Innovations are not just in terms of computing, but increasingly in dramatic changes to communication and collaboration technology, linking directly and instantaneously to customers and suppliers.