P3 - Explain the security risks and protection mechanisms involved in website performance

Explain the security risks and protection mechanisms involved in website performance 

Hacking

Hacking is a broad term to encompass malicious users who intend to exploit weaknesses in a computer and its internet software. They intend to force their way into the computer and discover personal information on the owner of the computer, and use it for identity theft or other malicious intent.

Hackers will use the information that they gain for malicious uses, often identity theft or fraud. This makes it vitally important that users and companies find good protection and anti-virus software for their systems to protect them from hackers.

Phishing

Phishing is a term used to describe the act of taking a secure website, such as the login page for an online banking account, and copying it in its entirety and uploading it to another website with an almost identical address. The website will tell the user to login, and once they have logged in with their username and password, the website will show a page informing the user that the website is down for maintenance. Meanwhile, the user’s information is being sent to malicious users in another country, who will use the information to sign into their online banking.

Identity Theft

Identity theft is when malicious users use software, such as Trojans, to gain personal information on people and use it to steal their identities and use them for personal gain. They will gain their identity through passports or other ways of confirming a person’s identity, and using them they will open bank accounts in their name, withdraw money from their bank accounts and commit fraud.

Identity theft can cause users and companies to lose a lot of money, which makes it important that they protect themselves from these malicious users. 

Viruses

Viruses are malicious programs and software that has been installed onto a system. The software is intended to steal data and information on the user, and the stolen information will be used to steal details, usually on bank accounts. Some viruses are keyloggers, which is a program that will log your keystrokes when using the keyboard. This usually enables the owner of the malicious software to determine your password from the keystrokes you make while using the computer.

Security Protection

Users and companies can protect themselves from these malicious users in several ways. Firewalls will protect your computer from malicious users attempting to force access via viruses and keyloggers. 

Strong passwords are also key to security protection, as a strong password is much harder to crack and will reduce the amount of people that are able to break into your system. A strong password should contain, both letters and numbers, upper and lower case letters, over eight characters long and should contain symbols such as %, + and -. 

Secure Socket Layers is an internet protocol that provides a secure connection to another user via communication over the internet. This is done by encryption and will verify who each user is and the user of the computer, preventing malicious users from gaining entry to the system. 

Principles of the Data Protection Act

The data protection act consists of eight principles that companies are required by law to comply with and follow. The data protection act states that companies must:

1. Data must be processed fairly and lawfully.
2. Data must be obtained for specified and lawful purposes.
3. Data must be adequate, relevant and not excessive.
4. Data must be accurate and up to date.
5. Data must not be kept any longer than necessary.
6. Data must be processed in accordance with the "data subject's" rights.
7. Data must be securely kept.

8. Data must not be transferred to any other country without adequate protection in situ.

These principles are in place to keep data safe and within in the laws for companies. If these principles aren't adhered to, then data can be unlawfully distributed to users with malicious intent.