THE GROWTH OF SECURITY BREACHES
Since the introduction of the Internet, people have been gravitating towards using the Internet for communication. However, in recent years it has been improved to perform a series of additional tasks. As of now, one can buy goods online, book airline tickets and hotels, apply for jobs, among other tasks. All these functions require a high level of data security since this sensitive data can be replicated and used in illegal acts that may harm the owners of the data.
Whenever someone accesses sensitive data without the consent of the owner, one has breached the security of the data. According to Bagchi and Udo (2003), a security breach is the occurrence of any incident where unauthorized access of data, networks, devices, applications, and or services occurs. Many of these breaches happen when hackers bypass the underlying security mechanisms in place and thus accessing the data. Similar to the security breach of data, there exists a data breach. A data breach is the unintentional or intentional release of secure, confidential information into an environment that is untrusted (Bagchi and Udo, 2003).
The security of most data is at its highest risk of the breach at the moment. No single industry in the world is free from breach of data (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019). This situation is created since people have found it to be profitable to leak sensitive information about others to the general public (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019). Their reasons for committing this crime may vary from using the data for blackmail to intentionally denigrate someone’s Name. The companies and parties affected try to come up with new, safer ways to protect their data, but the thieves seem to be catching on to these methods and finding alternative routes around them (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019).
The growth of security breaches being experienced at the moment can be attributed to several factors. One such factor is the fact that people pay more to expose sensitive information than they pay to ensure the information remains private. It was once said that curiosity killed the cat. However, many people seem to ignore that fact. Unfortunately, more people are interested in peoples’ business than in minding their own. This curiosity drives a vast number of people to find out this information, no matter the cost (Automatic detection for breaches, 1998). Several companies have been in the business of hiring hackers who hack into rival companies’ databases and steal information about the competing company to get an unfair edge over the competition (Automatic detection for breaches, 1998). Such companies have increased the percentage of a security breach since they have more than enough resources to participate in the breach, and their need to come out on top in the market gets even rival companies into the same sham dealings (Automatic detection for breaches, 1998).
Another reason why the security breaches occur more often lies in the value of the data that is breached. Nowadays, almost every detail about a person can be found on the Internet. These details include identification documents, passwords to bank accounts, and private conversations. By using this information, some people have been able to steal the identity of some unsuspecting citizens (More data breaches compromise millions of records, 2019). The details enable them to walk comfortably into a bank and take away every penny of the owner (More data breaches compromise millions of records, 2019).
Several companies have discovered that the data from customers can be used to improve their performance when it comes to sales (More data breaches compromise millions of records, 2019). These companies take information that customers leave on their sites and use this information to come up with messages and advertisements that fit the preferences of the customer. Some may argue that this form of advertising is harmless. Yet, the fact stands that the companies obtain all the information left by their customers without their consent for the company’s benefit (More data breaches compromise millions of records, 2019). Moreover, some information that these companies take happens to be secret information, such as credit card numbers (Diaz and Long, 2013).
The growth of security breaches has been kept alive thanks to several fraudsters. These fraudsters have mastered the art of acquiring user data. They do so by hacking into various accounts of the victims (Diaz and Long, 2013). Once they have gained access, they use the data to form many multiple accounts under the Name of the victims. With these new accounts, the fraudsters can then take considerable loans in the user’s Name and bolt, thus leaving the victim in debt that they are unaware of until it is too late (Diaz and Long, 2013).
The Internet has brought a lot of good, but a few unfortunate souls have also exploited the weaknesses of the Internet to profit themselves. The fact that all information is present under one medium (the Internet) makes the breach of data a little easier for the fraudsters to access. These criminals have found a myriad of ways to beat security and access all sorts of data and information that they desire.
A common way that the criminals access the data is through phishing. This method occurs predominantly through email (Bidgoli, 2006). The criminal sends an email to the victim under the pretence that he is a worker of a reputable company. Subsequently, they try and coarse the individual to reveal confidential information about themselves (Bidgoli, 2006). The information varies from as little as the Name to severe pieces of information, such as passwords and credit card information. With all this data, the criminal then is able to cause a substantial amount of damage to the victim (Bidgoli, 2006).
The presence of social media in the general public has, to a certain extent, lent a hand in the growth of security breaches (Internet breaches still rising, 1994). The perpetrators can assess the value of the victim’s items from their social media photos. They then acquire adequate information about the user, such as the user’s name, email address, phone number, and other details that they might find helpful (Internet breaches still rising, 1994). Once they have these details, they go onto their other accounts and try to hack their accounts. Details that these criminals get from social media, such as date of birth, help them when they try to hack. The presence of individual accounts that one gets access to after accessing related apps also assists these criminals (Internet breaches still rising, 1994).
We should not solely blame humans for these breaches in security since errors made by the computers are just as accountable for them. From several errors experienced in the coding of computers, their security is breachable. The computer may have errors that display additional information about a particular topic of discussion, even when not prompted to do so. Viruses can be a reason for occurring of these errors, which may also lead to the deletion of essential data from computers.
The breaches in the security of data can bring numerous effects to customers and businesses. The impact on the customers is such as the vulnerability of the customer’s data. Besides, the breaches in security can make many customers go into a state of panic. Sensitive information that can lead them to financial ruin, such as passwords to bank accounts, is at the risk of being accessed. Online shoppers may be forced into closing their accounts to save their data. However, unlucky customers who get their data and information stolen have been forced into bankruptcy due to this unfortunate act.
The identification documents and details of customers have been used in a crime. Regrettably, victims who got their secure information hacked have been unfortunate enough to get involved in crime. The criminals take their information and use it to lease cars used in the crime or give these documents as their own. Once investigations are conducted, the burden of proving innocence falls on the victims. Many lives have been ruined through these antics.
Businesses also fall prey to the security breaches and their effects. Companies whose security is breached have lost a large chunk of important information. Records of dealings that have been completed might get deleted, and thus, ruin the records of these companies. Additionally, the hackers who arrange the breaches in security can decide to auction this information to the highest bidder. Once these pieces of information are released, they can lead to the financial ruin of the companies.
Companies spend fortunes when they hire qualified professionals who are supposed to ensure the safety of their data (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019). Once several hackers hack into the company servers and databases, they force the company to encounter unwanted losses. The company will be forced to invest more money to secure the data from the methods through which the hackers accessed the data (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019). While they accomplish this, they also have to focus on strengthening every part of their systems to ensure no further breaches.
For the growth of security breaches to be reduced, a number of steps should be taken. For instance, heavy encryption of the data should be done. Therefore, the end-to-end encryption should be adequate to keep the data safe (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019). The criminals will have a hard time when trying to hack the information. Additional security can be put in place to track these hackers and to report them to the authorities. These measures will ensure that these criminals do not commit similar crimes to others (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019).
Companies should have several technicians whose sole aim is to analyze the code running the programs. These technicians can identify errors in the code early before damage is done. The computers should also be equipped with updated versions of the antivirus. The antivirus will detect and deal with viruses that may lead to the breach of data security.
Customers and users should be cautious when using the Internet. They should not give information to unauthorized people. The companies that deal with online shopping should set up measures to protect their users’ information in their sites.
The government should set up stringent laws to deal with these criminals. They should put costly bonds and bails, and long prison sentences to put off future criminals from committing this crime. Additionally, the government should address the issue of companies using private customer data. The companies should ask for the consent of the customer before using or accessing the customer’s information. Cookies in sites should also be regulated to ensure no one acquires information from these cookies (DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2019, 2019).
References
Automatic detection for breaches. (1998). Network Security, 1998(4), p.7.
Bagchi, K., and Udo, G., 2003. An analysis of the growth of computer and Internet security breaches. Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 12(4), p.4.
Bidgoli, H., 2006. Handbook of information security. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley.
DCMS: Cyber Security Breaches Survey, 2019. (2019). Network Security, 2019(4), p.4.
Diaz, P., and Long, W., 2013. Data security breaches. Hauppauge: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Internet breaches are still rising. (1994). Computer Fraud & Security Bulletin, 1994(5), p.5.
More data breaches compromise millions of records, 2019. Network Security, 2019(8), pp.1-3.
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