Information security tools
The development of information technologies and the computerization of the economic sector have become an integral part of the life of modern society. And since information is one of the most valuable and important resources of any business, information security has become the most important aspect in the operation of an enterprise.
The concept of "information security" includes a set of measures aimed at preventing and eliminating unauthorized access, processing, distortion, formatting, analysis, inconsistent updating, correction and destruction of data. Simply put, it is a set of actions, standards and technologies required to protect confidential data.
Large corporations and small businesses, due to the need to preserve important and valuable business information, hire professionals in the field of protecting confidential data. Their task is to protect all electronic devices from hacker attacks, most often aimed at stealing confidential information or intercepting control of an organization's IT system.
Government agencies, the defense industry, business corporations, financial institutions, medical institutions and small businesses regularly collect large volumes of confidential data about personnel, customers, competitors, products and financial turnover. Leakage of valuable information to competitors or fraudsters promises the company, its management and customers significant financial losses and damages the prestige of the organization.
Creating a reliable system for maintaining confidential information is a laborious process that needs to be paid close attention. At the same time, it is important to have knowledge and operate methods that ensure information security.
The purpose of information protection is to preserve data and the integrity of the system, to minimize losses in the event of distortion of information information. Employees of the company's information security departments using special software can track any action in the corporate system - the creation, modification, deletion, copying and distribution of important files.
To properly implement the means to ensure the protection of confidential information, a company must adhere to three basic principles:
- Integrity. Control mechanisms must work together. Compliance with the principle of integrity ensures that there is no data corruption and protection against unauthorized changes.
- Confidentiality. The introduction of control measures to create an adequate level of protection of data, assets and information security of the company at various stages of business operations, as well as to eliminate the threat of illegal access to corporate information. It is important to maintain confidentiality when storing information, as well as when transferring data to intermediary firms, regardless of their degree of importance.
- Availability. Providing authorized employees with the information they need. The local network must behave consistently in order to have access to digital data if necessary. An important point is system recovery after any disruptions when it comes to data access. The recovery method should not adversely affect the functionality of the enterprise.
Protection of information is impossible without adherence to these principles.
What are the types of information security tools?
In practice, ensuring the information security of a company is carried out using the following means:
- moral;
- legal;
- organizational;
- physical;
- hardware;
- software;
- technical;
- cryptographic.
Moral remedies
By moral means, we mean the norms of behavior and rules for working with information assets that have developed as the spread and introduction of electronic technology in various sectors of the state and society as a whole. In fact, these are optional requirements, in contrast to the legally approved ones. However, their violation will lead to the loss of the reputation of the individual and the organization.
The moral and ethical means of protecting information, first of all, include the honesty and decency of employees. Each organization has its own set of rules and regulations aimed at creating a healthy moral climate in the team. The security mechanism is an internal company document that takes into account the specifics of business processes and information structure, as well as the structure of the IT system.
Legal remedies
They are based on the laws, decisions and regulations in force in the Russian Federation that establish the rules for the processing of personal data, guarantee the rights and obligations of participants when working with information resources during the period of their processing and use, as well as making them responsible for violation of these regulations, thereby eliminating the threat inconsistent use of confidential information. Such legal techniques are used as preventive and preventive actions. Basically, these are organized explanatory conversations with enterprise personnel using corporate electronic devices.
Organizational means
This is part of the administration of the organization. They regulate the functioning of the information processing system, the work of the organization's staff and the process of interaction of employees with the system so as to largely eliminate or prevent the threat of an information attack, or reduce losses if they occur. The main goal of organizational measures is to form an internal policy in the field of keeping confidential data secret, including the use of necessary resources and control over them.
The implementation of the privacy policy includes the implementation of controls and technical devices, as well as the recruitment of internal security personnel. Changes in the structure of the IT system are possible, therefore system administrators and programmers should participate in the implementation of the privacy policy. Staff must know why trade secrets are so important. All employees of the enterprise must be trained in the rules of working with confidential information.
Physical protection
These are various types of mechanical and electronic-mechanical devices for creating physical obstacles when intruders try to influence the components of an automated information protection system. These are also technical devices for security alarm, communication and external surveillance. Physical safety equipment is designed to protect against natural disasters, pandemics, hostilities and other sudden incidents.
Hardware protection
These are electronic devices integrated into the units of an automated system or designed as independent devices in contact with these units. Their task is the internal protection of the structural components of IT systems - processors, service terminals, secondary devices. This is implemented using a method for managing access to resources (identification, authentication, checking the authority of system subjects, registration).
Software protection methods
Network security is ensured through special programs that protect information resources from unauthorized actions. Due to its versatility, ease of use, and the ability to modify, software methods for protecting confidential data are the most popular. But this makes them vulnerable elements of the enterprise information system. Today, a large number of anti-virus programs, firewalls, and protection against attacks have been created.
The most common antivirus, firewall and intrusion detection tools on the market today are:
- Antivirus software designed to detect virus attacks. The most famous are Network Associates, Symantec, TrendMicro.
- Firewalls (firewalls) that control all traffic on the local network and act as a filter or proxy server. They use ITSEC (Information Technology Security Evaluation and Certification Scheme) and IASC (Information Assurance and Certification Services) standards. Some of the popular representatives in the market are Checkpoint Software, Cisco Systems, Microsoft, Net Screen Technologies and Symantec Corporation.
- Attack detection tools. Market leaders are Symantec and Entercept Security Technology.
By using the listed categories of programs suitable for the information systems used in the enterprise, a comprehensive network security provision is created.
Technical methods for protecting information data
Various electronic devices and specialized equipment that are part of a single automated complex of the organization and perform both independent and complex functions of storing personal data. These include personalization, authorization, verification, restricting access to user assets, encryption.
Cryptographic information security methods
This method is based on encryption methods and provides protection of confidential information both with the help of software and hardware protection of information. The cryptographic method provides a high degree of PPE efficiency. It can be expressed in digital terms: the average number of operations and the time to unravel keys and decrypt data. To protect texts during transmission, hardware encoding methods are used; software methods are also used to exchange information between PCs in the local network. When storing information on magnetic media, software encryption methods are used. However, they have some disadvantages: the time and power of the processors to encrypt information, difficulties with decryption, high requirements for ensuring the secrecy of keys (the threat of public keys from substitution).
***
Information is the most important part of modern reality. Right now, digital data is undergoing a growing number of threats and unwanted intrusions. DDoS attacks, network eavesdropping, software viruses and other cybercrimes are becoming more sophisticated and gaining momentum.
Therefore, you should implement an information protection system as soon as possible, which will reliably protect confidential corporate information. The issue of information security rests entirely on the shoulders of the management of the organization. When choosing the appropriate means to protect information, one should take into account the scope of the company, its size, technical equipment, as well as the competence of personnel in the field of confidentiality.
05/22/2020
