English 2011

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1. Bug, glitch, flaw: similarities and differences

In computer technology, a bug is a coding error in a computer program.

The process of finding bugs before program users do is called debugging. Debugging starts after the code is first written and continues in successive stages as code is combined with other units of programming to form a software product, such as an operating system or an application. After a product is released or during public beta testing, bugs are still apt to be discovered. When this occurs, users have to either find a way to avoid using the “buggy” code or get a patch from the originators of the code.

A lot of dangerous situations can also be caused by bugs like explosions, crippled space probes, car manufacturing failures etc.

In conclusion, bug is most important error that any program can contain. But a bug is not the only kind of problem a program can have. A program can run bug-free and still be difficult to use or fail in some major objective. This kind of flaw is more difficult to test for (and often simply isn’t). Moreover well-designed program can contain some number of bugs but only fewer bugs per thousands of lines of code.

Glitch is a sudden break in function or continuity, sometimes of a transient nature, with a varying degree of seriousness.

It can be different kind:

1) In electrical service, a glitch, sometimes called a power glitch, is a momentary power failure.

2) In network service, a glitch can be any temporary loss of service in the network.

3) In a computer program, a glitch can be a bug that isn’t encountered very often, resulting in a problem that sometimes goes away because next time the combination of events is different.

4) In computer audio, a glitch is a quick temporary noise in a file that sounds like a “snap.”

Lets talk about glitch in computer program. In a computer program, a glitch can be a bug that isn’t encountered very often, resulting in a problem that sometimes goes away because next time the combination of events is different. For example some combination of button clicks in some program may cause unexpected termination of the program. In some ways reopening program can help you to fix a glitch.

In conclusion very difficult to find and fix a glitch in program because in this case developer should know all combination of actions that causes this failure and can reproduce them.

Thanks for listening!

2. Debugging

In computers, debugging is the process of locating and fixing or bypassing bugs (errors) in computer program code or the engineering of a hardware device.

To debug a program or hardware device is to start with a problem, isolate the source of the problem, and then fix it. A user of a program that does not know how to fix the problem may learn enough about the problem to be able to avoid it until it is permanently fixed. When someone says they’ve debugged a program or “worked the bugs out” of a program, they imply that they fixed it so that the bugs no longer exist.

For complex products, debugging is done as the result of the unit test for the smallest unit of a system, again at component test when parts are brought together, again at system test when the product is used with other existing products, and again during customer beta test, when users try the product out in a real world situation.

To sum up debbuging is last and impotant step in software life cycle. Developers do debugging while product have any bugs or glitches.

Thanks for listening!

3. Exploit. Zero-day exploit

Exploit. In computing, an exploit is an attack on a computer system, especially one that takes advantage of a particular vulnerability that the system offers to intruders. Used as a verb, the term refers to the act of successfully making such an attack.

Where an exploit takes advantage of a weakness in an operating system or vended application program, the owners of the system or application issue a “fix” or patch in response. Users of the system or application are responsible for obtaining the patch, which can usually be downloaded from the Web. Failure to install a patch for a given problem exposes the user to a security breach. (However, it can be difficult to keep up with all the required patches.)

In conclusion majority hackers proud of finding vulnerabilities in programs and computer systems.  Many crackers (or hackers, if you prefer that term) take pride in keeping tabs of such exploits and post their exploits (and discovered vulnerabilities) on a Web site to share with others.

Zero-day exploit. A zero-day exploit is one that takes advantage of a security vulnerability on the same day that the vulnerability becomes generally known.

Ordinarily, when someone detects that a software program contains a potential security issue, that person or company will notify the software company (and sometimes the world at large) so that action can be taken. Given time, the software company can fix the code and distribute a patch or software update.

Even if potential attackers hear about the vulnerability, it may take them some time to exploit it; meanwhile, the fix will hopefully become available first.

To sum up in most cases developers don’t distribute patches in time and it causes a lot of incidents of zero-day exploits.

Thanks for listening!

4. Malware and PUPs

Malware (for “malicious software”) is any program or file that is harmful to a computer user. Thus, malware includes computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and also spyware, programming that gathers information about a computer user without permission.

There is another “bad” kind of software that is called PUP or potential unwanted programs. And to day my goal is to get you some background information about this term.

A PUP (potentially unwanted program) is a program that may be unwanted, despite the possibility that users consented to download it. PUPs include spyware, adware, and dialers, and are often downloaded in conjunction with a program that the user wants.

In most cases users just don’t read the download or install agreement in which developers write all actions that their application can do. And in such way users have “unwanted” program on their PCs or mobile phones.

Thanks for listening!

5. Adware, spyware

Adware and spyware are types of PUP (potential unwanted programs)

Generically, adware (spelled all lower case) is any software application in which advertising banners are displayed while the program is running.

The authors of these applications include additional code that delivers the ads, which can be viewed through pop-up windows or through a bar that appears on a computer screen. The justification for adware is that it helps recover programming development cost and helps to hold down the cost for the user.

Spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge.

On the Internet (where it is sometimes called a spybot or tracking software), spyware is programming that is put in someone’s computer to secretly gather information about the user and relay it to advertisers or other interested parties. Spyware can get in a computer as a software virus or as the result of installing a new program.

Thanks for listening!

6.Types of downloads (pop-up, drive-by, barnacle)

        Good morning everyone! My name is X and I’m 3rd year student of Higher School of Economics. The point of my presentation is to give you information about different types of unexpected downloads. My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to introduce you with the problem. Then I would like to take a brief look on different types of downloads. Following that I will tell you about ways to avoid unexpected downloads. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

        As you might know, while browsing the internet you are vulnerable to different malware. But how do they get on your computer? To put it simply they trick you to download them. There are 3 known types of this trickery: pop-up download, drive-by download, and a barnacle. Let me tell you more about them.

        First of all, pop-up download. This trick asks user’s permission to do something in a pop-up window. It might not even mention downloading the program. Usually pop-up doesn’t even have an obvious option to reject the offering. And when user presses the only “Ok”, “Download” or “Yes” button, the dirty job is done and downloading has already started.

        Second type, I’ve mentioned, is drive-by download, which is bigger brother of pop-up download. He doesn’t ask you anything. He just downloads the program to the user’s hard drive as soon as you visit some website or open an e-mail.

        Last type we are going to talk about is barnacle. This one is sneaky: it attaches itself to other programs, you download, just like… real barnacles. This one is closely related to drive-by download.

        The best way to avoid all this is to not visit malicious looking sites. Most modern browsers warn you of doing so. Also some anti-virus software will help a lot in case your browser’s defense failed. They will also clean up your hard drive from the ones that are already affecting our computer. A regular anti-virus system scan is a good practice.

        In conclusion I would like to sum up the main points again. While browsing the internet you are able to get potentially unwanted program. There are 3 currently known types: which are. pop-up, drive-by and barnacle. The easiest way to avoid unexpected downloads is to not visit malicious looking sites. And having an anti-virus software will help keep your computer clean and healthy.

This concludes my presentation, thank you for your attention!

7.Flash-based malware. Protection against flash-based malware

Good morning everyone! My name is X and I’m 3rd year student of Higher School of Economics. The point of my presentation is to give you information about different types of unexpected downloads. My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to give the definition for Flash-based malware. Then I would like to talk about ways of protection against flash-based malware. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

So, Flash-based malware is basically malware in flash application. It could be some ad or video player, or even some game. An odd detail about how this malware works is it does not activate with every click. Many of the malware samples that have been analyzed either trigger on X number of clicks, or function by a preset timer. This makes analysis difficult. Most common example is a pop-up box which claims a user’s system is infected. If the user selects “OK” to allow the pop-up to “clean” their systems, they become victims. If they select “Cancel,” their systems are still infected.

Legitimate sites can also become unfortunate hosts of malware, specifically in the form of Flash objects that purport to be part of a legitimate advertisement. This malware has been found on sites like Expedia.com, The Economist and MLB.com.

Given that Flash-based malware represents a substantial threat, enterprises should ask their endpoint security vendors about the capabilities their tools have to monitor browser behavior. User education is important as well; many times the success of Flash malware depends on getting the user to click “OK” or “Cancel,” when instead they should use the X in the upper right-hand corner to close the pop-up window.

Another approach that can be somewhat controversial is to run browser ad-blocking software, which will block many advertisements that show up on Web pages and greatly reduce the attack surface of an environment. In my opinion, if there’s an opportunity to strip a possible attack vector away from the attackers, security pros should take it.

So to sum-up: Flash-base malware is the hardest to detect due to unpredictability of triggering. The best way to be protected against it is just be aware of it, and not fall for “traps”.

Thank you for your attention!

8.Virus structure

Good morning everyone! My name is X and I’m 3rd year student of Higher School of Economics. The point of my presentation is to give you information about virus structure. My presentation will consist of 3 parts: First I would like to describe what a virus is. Then I would like to tell you about his structure. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

A computer virus is a very small program routine that infects a computer system and uses its resources to reproduce itself. It often does this by patching the operating system to enable it to detect program files, such as COM or EXE files. It then copies itself into those files. This sometimes causes harm to the host computer system. It might do something relatively harmless such as displaying a message on the monitor screen or it might do something more destructive such as deleting files on the hard disk.

To be a virus, a program only needs to have a reproduction routine that enables it to infect other programs. Viruses can, however, have four main parts. A misdirection routine that enables it to hide itself; a reproduction routine that allows it to copy itself to other programs; a trigger that causes the payload to be activated at a particular time or when a particular event takes place; and a payload that may be a fairly harmless joke or may be very destructive. A program that has a payload but does not have a reproduction routine is known as a Trojan.

So a virus is a small program routine that can consist of 4 parts: a misdirection routine, a reproduction routine, a trigger and a payload. However for a program to be considered a virus it only needs the reproduction routine.

Thank you for your attention!

9. Classification of viruses

Good morning everyone! My name is X and I’m 3rd year student of Higher School of Economics. The point of my presentation is to give you information about basic virus classification. My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to introduce you with the term “virus”. Then I would like to take a brief look on 3 main types of viruses. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

A virus is a program or programming code that replicates by being copied or initiating its copying to another program, computer boot sector or document. Viruses can be transmitted as attachments to an e-mail note or in a downloaded file, or be present on a diskette or CD. The computer virus, of course, gets its name from the biological virus. The word itself comes from a Latin word meaning slimy liquid or poison.

Generally, there are three main classes of viruses:

File infectors. Some file infector viruses attach themselves to program files, usually selected .COM or .EXE files. Some can infect any program for which execution is requested, including .SYS, .OVL, .PRG, and .MNU files. When the program is loaded, the virus is loaded as well. Other file infector viruses arrive as wholly-contained programs or scripts sent as an attachment to an e-mail note.

System or boot-record infectors. These viruses infect executable code found in certain system areas on a disk. They attach to the DOS boot sector on diskettes or the Master Boot Record on hard disks. A typical scenario (familiar to the author) is to receive a diskette from an innocent source that contains a boot disk virus. When your operating system is running, files on the diskette can be read without triggering the boot disk virus. However, if you leave the diskette in the drive, and then turn the computer off or reload the operating system, the computer will look first in your A drive, find the diskette with its boot disk virus, load it, and make it temporarily impossible to use your hard disk.

Macro viruses. These are among the most common viruses, and they tend to do the least damage. Macro viruses infect your Microsoft Word application and typically insert unwanted words or phrases.

So to sum-up. Virus is a program or programming code that replicates itself. There are 3 main classes of viruses: file infectors, system or boot-record infectors and macro viruses.

Thank you for your attention!

10. Types of viruses

Good morning everyone! My name is X and I’m 3rd year student of Higher School of Economics. The point of my presentation is to give you information about different types Viruses. My presentation will consist of 3parts: Firstly I will tell what does term virus mean. Then I would like to take a brief look on different types of viruses. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

A virus is a program or programming code that replicates by being copied or initiating its copying to another program, computer boot sector or document. Viruses can be transmitted as attachments to an e-mail note or in a downloaded file, or be present on a diskette or CD. The computer virus, of course, gets its name from the biological virus. The word itself comes from a Latin word meaning slimy liquid or poison.

E-mail virus. An e-mail virus is computer code sent to you as an e-mail note attachment which, if activated, will cause some unexpected and usually harmful effect, such as destroying certain files on your hard disk and causing the attachment to be remailed to everyone in your address book.

Macro virus. A macro virus is a computer virus that “infects” a Microsoft Word or similar application and causes a sequence of actions to be performed automatically when the application is started or something else triggers it. A typical effect is the undesired insertion of some comic text at certain points when writing a line.

Worm. In a computer, a worm is a self-replicating virus that does not alter files but resides in active memory and duplicates itself. Worms use parts of an operating system that are automatic and usually invisible to the user. It is common for worms to be noticed only when their uncontrolled replication consumes system resources, slowing or halting other tasks.

Trojan horse. In computers, a Trojan horse is a program in which malicious or harmful code is contained inside apparently harmless programming or data in such a way that it can get control and do its chosen form of damage, such as ruining the file allocation table on your hard disk

Stealth virus. In computer security, a stealth virus is a computer virus that uses various mechanisms to avoid detection by antivirus software. Generally, stealth describes any approach to doing something while avoiding notice. Viruses that escape notice without being specifically designed to do so — whether because the virus is new, or because the user hasn’t updated their antivirus software — are sometimes described as stealth viruses too.

Hybrid virus. A hybrid virus is one that combines characteristics of more than one type to infect both program files and system sectors. The virus may attack at either level and proceed to infect the other once it has established itself. Hybrid viruses can be very difficult to eradicate and, unless completely eradicated, will often reinfect the host system repeatedly.

        So, a virus is a malware. There are different types of viruses but what they all have in common is the ability to replicate itself.

Thank you for your attention.

11. Virus protection. Anti-viruses and firewalls

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I am going to talk about “Virus protection. Anti-viruses and firewalls”.

My presentation consists of 3 sections. Firstly, I will tell you the reasons why we should have anti-viruses and firewalls. Secondly, you will hear a basic instruction about how to not be infected. And lastly, I will talk about some antivirus programs and firewalls. Do feel free to interrupt me if you have any questions. I hope my presentation won’t be too long and that you will find it interesting.

To begin with let’s try to understand why virus protection is important. A computer virus is a computer program that can replicate itself and spread from one computer to another. Almost in every context a virus have a bad meaning. There are many classes of viruses: ones that steal your personal and identical information, others that make you to pay money with a hope that a virus will be fixed and also some that just injure your soft in order to damage your system and even a computer itself. So we see that viruses are very harmful to our system and we should try to do everything to protect our computers from them.

Moving on to another point of my presentation let’s talk about instruction which will help you not to be infected. First of all, you should have an antivirus program installed on your computer which can screen e-mail attachments and also check all of your files periodically and remove any viruses that are found. Secondly, you should know the origin of each program or file you load into your computer or open from your e-mail program because sometimes antivirus may not recognize a virus and it is better to open files from verified sources. And thirdly, be cautious. If you received a legitimate looking email which contain a web link, before clicking on it look whether this web link is right and not just legitimate looking. In case your system is already infected in order to fix the problem you should check all the files on your computer.

Let’s now turn to the last point of my presentation. It is certainly a success that there are so many anti-virus programs in the world but often people choose the free ones. In my opinion it is better to spend some money on a good protection system than spending a lot of time on fixing a problem connected with your infected system. The most popular protection systems are: kaspersky antivirus, ESET NOD32, DrWeb, Norton Antivirus, Outpost firewall and Agnitium firewall.

To sum up I’d like to say that virus protection is very important and not to be infected is not very hard. You should only be cautious and have the up-to-date antivirus or firewall.

Thanks for listening!

12. Bypass. Trapdoors and backdoors.

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I am going to talk about “Bypass. Trapdoors and backdoors”.

My presentation consists of 2 sections. Firstly, I will tell you what bypass means. Secondly, you will hear different kinds of bypass. Do feel free to interrupt me if you have any questions. I hope my presentation won’t be too long and that you will find it interesting.

To begin with let’s try to understand what bypass is. Bypass, in general, means either to go around something by an external route rather than going through it, or the means of reaching that goal. In network security, a bypass is a flaw in a security system that allows an attacker to circumvent security mechanisms to get system or network access. The actual point of entry is through a mechanism (either a hardware device or program, even just a piece of code) that enables the user to access the system without going through the security clearance procedures (such as authentication) that were set up by the system administrator. A bypass may be a mechanism put in place by an attacker, a flaw in the design, or an alternate access route left in place by developers.

Moving on to the last point of my presentation let’s talk about different kinds of bypass. One of the most popular bypasses is a back door (or a trapdoor). A back door is a bypass that is purposefully put in place as a means of access for authorized users. A programmer may sometimes install a back door so that the program can be accessed for troubleshooting or other purposes. However, attackers often use back doors that they detect or install themselves, as part of an exploit. In some cases, a worm is designed to take advantage of a back door created by an earlier attack. Whether installed as an administrative tool or a means of attack, a back door is a security risk, because there are always crackers out there looking for any vulnerability to exploit. In her article “Who gets your trust?” security consultant Carole Fennelly uses an analogy to illustrate the situation: “Think of approaching a building with an elaboratesecurity system that does bio scans, background checks, the works. Someone who doesn’t have time to go through all that might just rig a back exit so they can step out for a smoke — and then hope no one finds out about it.” A crypto bypass is a flaw that allows data to circumvent the encryption process and escape, unencrypted, as plaintext.

To sum up I’d like to say that in some ways bypass is very useful but it has some minuses. If the hacker find this vulnerability it is certain that he will use it on his own purpose.

Thanks for listening!

13. Phishing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, Phishig. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “Phishing”. Then I would like to take a look at the phishing techniques. Following that we should talk about anti-phishing. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “Phishing”. Phishing is an e-mail fraud method in which the perpetrator sends out legitimate-looking email in an attempt to gather personal and financial information from recipients. A phishing expedition is a speculative venture: the phisher puts the lure hoping to fool at least a few of the prey that encounter the bait. Typically, the messages appear to come from well known and trustworthy Web sites. Web sites that are frequently spoofed by phishers include PayPal, eBay, MSN, Yahoo, etc.

Let’s move on to the phishing techniques. Phishers use a number of different social engineering and e-mail spoofing ploys to try to trick their victims. The first type is Link manipulation. Most methods of phishing use some form of technical deception designed to make a link in an e-mail (and the spoofed website it leads to) appear to belong to the spoofed organization. Misspelled URLs or the use of subdomains are common tricks used by phishers.

That will bring us to our next point – anti-phishing. There are several different techniques to combat phishing, including legislation and technology created specifically to protect against phishing. Most new internet browsers come with anti-phishing software. Users tent to be suspicious of any official-looking e-mail message that asks for updates on personal or financial information and urges recipients to go directly to the organization’s Web site to find out whether the request is legitimate.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. In computing, phishing is a form of criminal activity using social engineering techniques. Phishing is identity theft. It is fraud. It masquerades as legitimate and trustworthy entities in order to obtain sensitive data. It then uses it to “rip off” the misled user with often tragic consequences. A good protection involves being vigilant and having decent Internet security software installed. So be confident.

Thanks for listening!

14. Pharming

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, Pharming. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “Pharming”. Then I would like to take a look at the pharming tactic. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “Pharming”.  Pharming is a scamming practice in which malicious code is installed on a personal computer or server, misdirecting users to fraudulent Web sites without their knowledge or consent. In pharming, larger numbers of computer users can be victimized because it is not necessary to target individuals one by one and no conscious action is required on the part of the victim. In one form of pharming attack, code sent in an e-mail modifies local host files on a personal computer. The host files convert URLs into the number strings that the computer uses to access Web sites. A computer with a compromised host file will go to the fake Web site even if a user types in the correct Internet address or clicks on an affected bookmark entry. Some spyware removal programs can correct the corruption, but it frequently recurs unless the user changes browsing habits.

Let’s move on to the pharming tactic. A particularly ominous pharming tactic is known as domain name system poisoning, in which the domain name system table in a server is modified so that someone who thinks they are accessing legitimate Web sites is actually directed toward fraudulent ones. In this method of pharming, individual personal computer host files need not be corrupted. Instead, the problem occurs in the DNS server, which handles thousands or millions of Internet users’ requests for URLs. Victims end up at the bogus site without any visible indicator of a discrepancy. Spyware removal programs cannot deal with this type of pharming because nothing need be technically wrong with the end users’ computers.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. Once personal information such as a credit card number, bank account number, or password has been entered at a fraudulent Web site, criminals have the information and identity theft can be the end result.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Pharming  is a very real threat and one that currently has fairly free reign. With an understanding of risks and methods by which pharming attacks are launched, a multi-layered defense and security policies could be devised to make pharming a much  more difficult attack to carry out.

Thanks for listening!

15. Spear phishing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, Spear phishing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “Spear phishing”. Then I would like to take a look at the how spear phishing works.. Following that we should talk about the – Criminal gain, users loss. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “Spear phishing”. Spear phishing is an e-mail spoofing fraud attempt that targets a specific organization, seeking unauthorized access to confidential data. Spear phishing attempts are not typically initiated by “random hackers” but are more likely to be conducted by perpetrators out for financial gain, trade secrets or military information.

Let’s move on to the how spear phishing works.  First, criminals need some inside information on their targets to convince them the e-mails are legitimate. They often obtain it by hacking into an organization’s computer network (which is what happened in the above case) or sometimes by combing through other websites, blogs, and social networking sites.

Then, they send e-mails that look like the real thing to targeted victims, offering all sorts of urgent and legitimate-sounding explanations as to why they need your personal data.
Finally, the victims are asked to click on a link inside the e-mail that takes them to a phony but realistic-looking website, where they are asked to provide passwords, account numbers, user IDs, access codes, PINs, etc.
That will bring us to our next point – Criminal gain, users loss. Once criminals have your personal data, they can access your bank account, use your credit cards, and create a whole new identity using your information.
Spear phishing can also trick you into downloading malicious codes or malware after you click on a link embedded in the e-mail…an especially useful tool in crimes like economic espionage where sensitive internal communications can be accessed and trade secrets stolen. Malware can also hijack your computer, and hijacked computers can be organized into enormous networks called botnets that can be used for denial of service attacks.

        To conclude, according to security researchers, spear phishing attacks can be best avoided if users don’t follow Web-links given in e-mails, rather type in the URLs directly into their browsers. Also, they must run an anti-phishing filter. Be confident.

Thanks for listening!

16. Buffer overflow

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I am going to talk about “Buffer overflow”.

My presentation consists of 2 sections. Firstly, I will tell you what buffer overflow means. Secondly, you will hear about buffer overflow attacks a how was it fixed. Do feel free to interrupt me if you have any questions. I hope my presentation won’t be too long and that you will find it interesting.

To begin with let’s try to understand what buffer overflow is. A buffer overflow occurs when a program or process tries to store more data in a buffer (temporary data storage area) than it was intended to hold. Since buffers are created to contain a finite amount of data, the extra information – which has to go somewhere – can overflow into adjacent buffers, corrupting or overwriting the valid data held in them. Although it may occur accidentally through programming error, buffer overflow is an increasingly common type of security attack on data integrity.

Moving on to the last point of my presentation let’s talk about buffer overflow attacks. In buffer overflow attacks, the extra data may contain codes designed to trigger specific actions, in effect sending new instructions to the attacked computer that could, for example, damage the user’s files, change data, or disclose confidential information. Buffer overflow attacks are said to have arisen because the C programming language supplied the framework, and poor programming practices supplied the vulnerability. In July 2000, a vulnerability to buffer overflow attack was discovered in Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express. A programming flaw made it possible for an attacker to compromise the integrity of the target computer by simply it sending an e-mail message. Unlike the typical e-mail virus, users could not protect themselves by not opening attached files; in fact, the user did not even have to open the message to enable the attack. The programs’ message header mechanisms had a defect that made it possible for senders to overflow the area with extraneous data, which allowed them to execute whatever type of code they desired on the recipient’s computers. Because the process was activated as soon as the recipient downloaded the message from the server, this type of buffer overflow attack was very difficult to defend. Microsoft has since created a patch to eliminate the vulnerability.

To sum up I’d like to say that even this problem looks a bit dangerous but I am sure if buffer overflow occur, Microsoft will create a patch for fixing the vulnerability.

Thanks for listening!

17. Blended threat

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I am going to talk about “Blended threat”.

My presentation consists of 3 sections. Firstly, I will tell you what blended threat means. Secondly, you will hear what blended threat includes. And lastly, I will talk about how to protect our computers from blended threat. Do feel free to interrupt me if you have any questions. I hope my presentation won’t be too long and that you will find it interesting.

To begin with let’s try to understand what blended threat means. A blended threat is a computer network attack that seeks to maximize the severity of damage and speed of contagion by combining methods, for example using characteristics of both viruses and worms, while also taking advantage of vulnerabilities in computers, networks, or other physical systems. An attack using a blended approach might send a virus via an e-mail attachment, along with a Trojan horse embedded in an HTML file that will cause damage to the recipient computer.

Moving on to another point of my presentation let’s talk about what blended threat includes. A blended threat typically includes:

·         More than one means of propagation — for example, distributing a hybrid virus/worm via e-mail that will self-replicate and also infect a Web server, so that contagion will spread through all visitors to a particular site;

·         Exploitation of vulnerabilities, which may be preexisting or even caused by malware distributed as part of the attack;

·         The intent to cause real harm (rather than just causing minor computer problems for victims), for example, by launching a denial of service (DOS) attack against a target, or delivering a Trojan horse that will be activated at some later date;

·         Automation that enables increasing contagion without requiring user actions, such as opening attachments.

Let’s now turn to the last point of my presentation. To guard against blended threats, experts urge network administrators to be vigilant about patch management, use and maintain good firewall products, employ server software to detect malware, and educate users about proper e-mail handling and online behavior.

To sum up I’d like to say that blended threat looks very dangerous but from every attack there is a protection. Not to be attacked is not very hard. You should only be cautious and have the up-to-date antivirus program or firewall.

Thanks for listening!

18. Bluesnarfing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about Bluesnarfing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “Bluesnarfing”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about how to protect yourself from Bluesnarfing. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term. Bluesnarfing is the theft of information from a wireless device through a Bluetooth connection. Bluetooth is a high-speed but very short-range wireless technology for exchanging data between desktop and mobile computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other devices. By exploiting a vulnerability in the way Bluetooth is implemented on a mobile phone, an attacker can access information without leaving any evidence of the attack.

Let’s move on to the process description. According to a ZDNet UK article, attackers are exploiting a problem with some implementations of the object exchange (OBEX) protocol, which is commonly used to exchange information between wireless devices. An attacker can synchronize with the victim’s device (this is known as pairing) and gain access to any information or service available to the legitimate user. Some articles claim that bluesnarfing tools are widely available on the Internet, along with information about how to use them.

That will bring us to our next point. I’ll tell how to protect yourself from Bluesnarfing. Operating in invisible mode protects some devices, but others are vulnerable as long as Bluetooth is enabled. The only way to protect yourself from a bluesnarf attack is to turn off Bluetooth on your mobile device.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Bluesnarfing is the theft of information from a wireless device through a Bluetooth connection. An attacker can synchronize with the victim’s device and gain access to any information available to the legitimate user. And the only way to protect yourself from a bluesnarf attack is to turn off Bluetooth on your mobile device.

Thanks for listening!

19. Cash poisoning

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about сache poisoning. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of term “сache poisoning”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the differences between cache poisoning and other forms of DNS poisoning. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of this term. Cache poisoning is the corruption of an Internet server’s domain name system table by replacing an Internet address with that of another, rogue address. It’s also called domain name system (DNS) poisoning or DNS cache poisoning.

Let’s move on to the process description. When a Web user seeks the page with that address, the request is redirected by the rogue entry in the table to a different address. At that point, a worm, spyware, Web browser hijacking program, or other malware can be downloaded to the user’s computer from the rogue location. Cache poisoning can be transmitted in a variety of ways, increasing the rate at which rogue programs are spread. One tactic is the placement of compromised URLs within spam e-mail messages having subject lines that tempt users to open the message (for example, “Serious error in your tax return”). Images and banner ads within e-mail messages can also be vehicles by which users are directed to servers that have been compromised by cache poisoning. Once an end user’s computer has been infected with the nefarious code, all future requests by that user’s computer for the compromised URL will be redirected to the bad IP address – even if the “victim” server resolves the problem at its site. Cache poisoning is particularly dangerous when the targets are well-known and trusted sites, such as those to which browsers are pointed when automatic virus-definition updates are performed.

Now let’s move on to our next point. Cache poisoning differs from another form of DNS poisoning, in which the attacker spoofs valid e-mail accounts and floods the inboxes of administrative and technical contacts. Cache poisoning is related to URL poisoning. In URL poisoning, also known as location poisoning, Internet user behavior is tracked by adding an identification (ID) number to the location line of the browser that can be recorded as the user visits successive pages on the site.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Cache poisoning is the corruption of an Internet server’s domain name system table by replacing an Internet address with that of another, rogue address. Cache poisoning is particularly dangerous when the targets are well-known and trusted sites, such as those to which browsers are pointed when automatic virus-definition updates are performed.

Thanks for listening!

20. Caller ID spoofing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about the caller ID spoofing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of term “caller ID spoofing”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “caller ID spoofing”. Caller ID spoofing is a service that allows a caller to masquerade as someone else by falsifying the number that appears on the recipient’s caller ID display. Just as e-mail spoofing can make it appear that a message came from any e-mail address the sender chooses.

Let’s move on to the process description. Caller ID spoofing is provided as a service by a number of vendors. Here’s one example of how it works: A customer pays in advance for a certain number of calling minutes. To set up a call, the customer opens a Web form and enters their phone number, the recipient’s phone number, and the number chosen to appear on the recipient’s caller display. The service then patches the call through between the caller and recipient phones as stipulated. Caller ID spoofing has been available for years to people with a specialized digital connection to the telephone company. Collection agencies, law enforcement officials, and private investigators have used the practice, with varying degrees of legality. However, the advent of VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) service makes it simple for the average person to falsify a calling number, and as Internet telephony has become more common, so has caller ID spoofing.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. Frequently, caller ID spoofing is used for prank calls. For example, someone might call a friend and arrange for “The White House” to appear on the recipient’s caller display. However, criminal uses of caller ID spoofing, such as identity theft and vishing, have also increased significantly.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Caller ID spoofing is a service that allows a caller to masquerade as someone else by falsifying the number that appears on the recipient’s caller ID display and it is provided as a service by a number of vendors. It is used for prank calls, for example. However, criminal uses of caller ID spoofing, such as identity theft and vishing, have also increased significantly.

Thanks for listening!

21. E-mail spoofing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about e-mail spoofing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of term “e-mail spoofing”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of term “e-mail spoofing”. E-mail spoofing is the forgery of an e-mail header so that the message appears to have originated from someone or somewhere other than the actual source.

Let’s move on to the process description. Distributors of spam often use spoofing in an attempt to get recipients to open, and possibly even respond to, their solicitations. Spoofing can be used legitimately. Classic examples of senders who might prefer to disguise the source of the e-mail include a sender reporting mistreatment by a spouse to a welfare agency or a “whistle-blower” who fears retaliation. However, spoofing anyone other than yourself is illegal in some jurisdictions. E-mail spoofing is possible because Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), the main protocol used in sending e-mail, does not include an authentication mechanism. Although an SMTP service extension (specified in IETF RFC 2554) allows an SMTP client to negotiate a security level with a mail server, this precaution is not often taken. If the precaution is not taken, anyone with the requisite knowledge can connect to the server and use it to send messages. To send spoofed e-mail, senders insert commands in headers that will alter message information. It is possible to send a message that appears to be from anyone, anywhere, saying whatever the sender wants it to say. Thus, someone could send spoofed e-mail that appears to be from you with a message that you didn’t write.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. Although most spoofed e-mail falls into the “nuisance” category and requires little action other than deletion, the more malicious varieties can cause serious problems and security risks. For example, spoofed e-mail may purport to be from someone in a position of authority, asking for sensitive data, such as passwords, credit card numbers, or other personal information — any of which can be used for a variety of criminal purposes. The Bank of America, eBay, and Wells Fargo are among the companies recently spoofed in mass spam mailings. One type of e-mail spoofing, self-sending spam, involves messages that appear to be both to and from the recipient.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. E-mail spoofing is the forgery of an e-mail header so that the message appears to have originated from someone or somewhere other than the actual source. It is illegal in some jurisdictions. It may be possible because SMTP does not include an authentication mechanism. Although most spoofed e-mail falls into the “nuisance” category and requires little action other than deletion, the more malicious varieties can cause serious problems and security risks.

Thanks for listening!

22. Identity theft

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about identity theft. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of term “identity theft”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about how to prevent it. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of term “identity theft”. Identity theft is a crime in which an imposter obtains key pieces of personal information, such as Social Security or driver’s license numbers, in order to impersonate someone else. The information can be used to obtain credit, merchandise, and services in the name of the victim, or to provide the thief with false credentials. In addition to running up debt, an imposter might provide false identification to police, creating a criminal record or leaving outstanding arrest warrants for the person whose identity has been stolen. Identity theft is categorized in two ways: true name and account takeover.

Let’s move on to the process description. True name identity theft means that the thief uses personal information to open new accounts. The thief might open a new credit card account, establish cellular phone service, or open a new checking account in order to obtain blank checks. Account takeover identity theft means the imposter uses personal information to gain access to the person’s existing accounts. Typically, the thief will change the mailing address on an account and run up a huge bill before the person whose identity has been stolen realizes there is a problem. Although an identity thief might crack into a database to obtain personal information, experts say it’s more likely the thief would obtain information by using old-fashioned methods. Retrieving personal paperwork and discarded mail from trash dumpsters is one of the easiest ways for an identity thief to get information. Another popular method to get information is shoulder surfing – the identity thief simply stands next to someone at a public office and watches as the person fills out personal information on a form.

Now let’s move on to our next point. To prevent identity theft, experts recommend that you regularly check your credit report with major credit bureaus, follow up with creditors if your bills do not arrive on time, destroy unsolicited credit applications, and protect yourself by not giving out any personal information in response to unsolicited e-mail.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Identity theft is a crime in which an imposter obtains key pieces of personal information, such as Social Security or driver’s license numbers, in order to impersonate someone else. True name identity theft means that the thief uses personal information to open new accounts. Account takeover identity theft means the imposter uses personal information to gain access to the person’s existing accounts. That is why it is very important to protect yourself by not giving out any personal information in response to unsolicited e-mail

Thanks for listening!

23. Dumpster diving and shoulder surfing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I am going to talk about “Dumpster diving and shoulder surfing”. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

My presentation consists of 3 sections. Firstly, I will tell you what Dumpster diving means. Secondly, you will hear what shoulder surfing is. And lastly, I will talk about how to prevent these kinds of stealing personal information. Do feel free to interrupt me if you have any questions. I hope my presentation won’t be too long and that you will find it interesting.

To begin with let’s try to understand what dumpster diving means. Dumpster diving is looking for treasure in someone else’s trash. (A dumpster is a large trash container.) In the world of information technology, dumpster diving is a technique used to retrieve information that could be used to carry out an attack on a computer network. Dumpster diving isn’t limited to searching through the trash for obvious treasures like access codes or passwords written down on sticky notes. Seemingly innocent information like a phone list, calendar, or organizational chart can be used to assist an attacker using social engineering techniques to gain access to the network.

Moving on to another point of my presentation let’s talk about what shoulder surfing is. Shoulder surfing is using direct observation techniques, such as looking over someone’s shoulder, to get information. Shoulder surfing is an effective way to get information in crowded places because it’s relatively easy to stand next to someone and watch as they fill out a form, enter a PIN number at an ATM machine, or use a calling card at a public pay phone. Shoulder surfing can also be done long distance with the aid of binoculars or other vision-enhancing devices.

Let’s now turn to the last point of my presentation about how to prevent these kinds of stealing personal information. To prevent dumpster divers from learning anything valuable from your trash, experts recommend that your company establish a disposal policy where all paper, including print-outs, is shredded in a cross-cut shredder before being recycled, all storage media is erased, and all staff is educated about the danger of untracked trash. To prevent shoulder surfing, experts recommend that you shield paperwork or your keypad from view by using your body or cupping your hand.

To sum up I’d like to say that we shouldn’t worry all the time about whether our personal information is got stolen or not but at least we should follow some precautionary measures.

Thanks for listening!

24. Directory harvest attack and dictionary attack

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The topic of my presentation today is directory harvest attacks and dictionary attack. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

To start with, I’ll give the definitions of directory harvest and dictionary types of attacks. Then I’m going to talk about the technique used to perform these attacks, and finally I will give some information about solutions to prevent such attacks.

Let’s begin with definition of DHA. A directory harvest attack is an attempt to determine the valid e-mail addresses associated with an e-mail server so that they can be added to a spam database. The attack is usually carried out by way of a standard dictionary attack, where valid e-mail addresses are found by brute force guessing valid e-mail addresses at a domain using different combinations of common usernames.

Now let’s move on to the methods of DHA attack. A directory harvest attack can use either of two methods for harvesting valid e-mail addresses. The first method uses a brute force approach to send a message to all possible alphanumeric combinations that could be used for the username part of an e-mail at the server, up to and including those of length n characters (where n is some preset positive integer such as 15).

The second and more selective method involves sending a message to the most likely usernames – for example, for all possible combinations of first initials followed by common surnames.

In conclusion I’d like to say, that the DHA approach explains how a new e-mail address can start receiving spam within days or hours after its creation. Various solutions have been developed toward repelling these attacks. Some of the most effective involve slowing down the rate at which the attack can take place, rather than attempting to filter out the entire attack. This can be done by limiting the number of e-mail messages per minute or per hour at which a server can receive messages, legitimate or otherwise. So-called spam filters, programmed to identify character and word combinations typical of spam, can also be effective, although they occasionally reject legitimate messages.

Thanks for listening!

Дополнительно: Dictionary Attack

The topic of my presentation today is dictionary attack. To start with, I’ll give the definition of dictionary attack. Then I’m going to point out why this type of attack is so successful, and finally I will give some information about solutions to prevent these attacks.

Let’s begin with definition of dictionary attack. A dictionary attack is a method of breaking into a password-protected computer or server by systematically entering every word in a dictionary as a password. A dictionary attack can also be used in an attempt to find the key necessary to decrypt an encrypted message or document.

As I said before, now I’m going to explain why these attacks considered to be so successful. Dictionary attacks work because many computer users and businesses insist on using ordinary words as passwords. Dictionary attacks are rarely successful against systems that employ multiple-word phrases, and unsuccessful against systems that employ random combinations of uppercase and lowercase letters mixed up with numerals. In those systems, the brute-force method of attack can sometimes be effective, although this approach can take a long time to produce results.

To summarize, I’d like to tell that vulnerability to password or decryption-key assaults can be reduced to near zero by limiting the number of attempts allowed within a given period of time, and by wisely choosing the password or key. For example, if only three attempts are allowed and then a period of 15 minutes must elapse before the next three attempts are allowed, and if the password or key is a long, meaningless jumble of letters and numerals, a system can be rendered immune to dictionary attacks and practically immune to brute-force attacks.

25. Evil twin

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The topic of my presentation today is evil twin hacking method. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

To start with, I’ll give basic information about evil twin. Then I will tell how this attack is performed by hacker and which mistakes the end-user makes. And finally I will give some information about solutions to prevent these attacks and I’m going to mention why these attacks became so widespread.

Firstly, let’s define what evil twin actually means. In security, an evil twin is a home-made wireless access point that masquerades as a legitimate hot spot to gather personal or corporate information without the end-user’s knowledge. It’s fairly easy for an attacker to create an evil twin, simply by using a mobile Internet device — such as a laptop or smartphone — and some readily-available software. Let’s move on to how hacker performs this attack. The attacker positions himself in the vicinity of a legitimate Wi-Fi access point and lets his Internet device discover what name (SSID) and radio frequency the legitimate access point uses. He then sends out his own radio signal, using the same name.

To the end-user, the evil twin looks like a hot spot with a very strong signal; that’s because the attacker has not only used the same network name and settings as the “good twin” he is impersonating, he has also physically positioned himself near the end-user so that his signal is likely to be the strongest within range. If the end-user is tempted by the strong signal and connects manually to the evil twin to access the Internet, the evil twin becomes the end-user’s Internet access point, giving the attacker the ability to intercept sensitive data such as passwords or credit card information.

Finally, to conclude with I’d like to highlight some advices dedicated to prevent this type of attack. To protect yourself from evil twin network connections, experts recommend that you only use public hot spots for Web browsing and refrain from shopping or banking. To protect corporate data, experts recommend that when wireless, you only connect to the Internet through a VPN and always use WEP or WPA encryption. Evil twins are not a new phenomenon in wireless transmission. Historically they have been called base station clones or honeypots. What’s different now is that more businesses and consumers are using wireless devices in public places and it’s easier than ever for someone who doesn’t have any technical expertise to create an evil twin.

Thanks for listening!

26. Greynet

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The topic of my presentation today is greynet. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

To start with, I’ll give basic information about greynet and examples of its use. Then I will discuss the differences between types of greynet applications. And finally I will give some information about dangers of greynet and mention the difficulties related to its removal.

Greynet is a term for the use of unauthorized applications on a corporate network. A greynet application is a network-based program that corporate network users download and install without permission from their company’s IT department. Common examples of greynet applications include instant messaging, peer-to-peer collaboration and conferencing programs, streaming media players, and RSS readers.

Many greynet applications, such as instant messaging and collaboration programs, have legitimate business use and help boost user productivity. Other greynet applications, like peer-to-peer file and music sharing programs, pose serious security risks and can drain network resources. User-downloaded programs also can include malicious programs like spyware components for tracking and reporting information without the user’s knowledge. Greynet usage by employees is thought to be a major contributor to the growth of spyware-related incidents.

All greynets, even those that benefit the end-user, can be detrimental (malicious) to a company network. Because they use corporate bandwidth, the programs often have negative effects on overall network performance. They introduce security risks, including client code vulnerabilities and new avenues for attack, and can lead to data loss and property or identity theft. Greynets can be difficult to eliminate because many use encryption and port agility (the ability to dynamically send and receive traffic across any open network port), which makes them difficult to detect and block.

Thanks for listening!

28. Hijacking. Browser hijacking.

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The topic of my presentation today is hijacking and browser hijacking. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

To start with, I’ll give basic information about hijacking and its methods. Then I will discuss the differences between types of hijacking. And finally I will give some information about the methods, dedicated to prevent users from getting into trouble and exposing their PCs to hijack attack.

Hijacking is a type of network security attack in which the attacker takes control of a communication – just as an airplane hijacker takes control of a flight – between two entities and masquerades as one of them. In one type of hijacking (also known as a man in the middle attack), the perpetrator takes control of an established connection while it is in progress. The attacker uses a program that appears to be the server to the client and appears to be the client to the server. Another form of hijacking is browser hijacking, in which a user is taken to a different site than the one the user requested.

There are two different types of domain name system (DNS) hijacking. In one, the attacker gains access to DNS records on a server and modifies them so that requests for the genuine Web page will be redirected elsewhere – usually to a fake page that the attacker has created.

In another type of Web site hijack, the perpetrator simply registers a domain name similar enough to a legitimate one that users are likely to type it, either by mistaking the actual name or through a typo. This type of hijack is currently being employed to send many unwary users to a pornographic site instead of the site they requested.

To defend computers from hijacking special anti-spyware tools (spyware removers) should be used. These programs scan the system in similar way as antivirus software does. However, they have special parasite signature databases, which allow them to detect and eliminate most privacy risks. Powerful spyware removers include real-time monitors that prevent the installation of known risks and unauthorized system modification.

Thanks for listening!

29. IP spoofing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about IP-spoofing.

My presentation will consist of 4 parts: Firstly I would like to introduce you with the problem. Then I will describe the way IP spoofing works and what consequences it has. Following that I will tell you about ways to avoid such attacks. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me when I finish the presentation.

As you might know, while browsing the internet you are vulnerable to different kinds of attack which cause to stealing personal information. But how does it happen?.. One of ways to do it is IP spoofing. IP spoofing, also known as IP address forgery (подделка) or a host file hijack (похищение), is a hijacking technique in which a cracker masquerades as a trusted host to conceal (скрывать) his identity, spoof a Web site, hijack browsers, or gain access to a network.

Now let’s find out how it works. The hijacker obtains the IP address of a legitimate host and alters packet headers so that the legitimate host appears to be the source.

When IP spoofing is used to hijack a browser, a visitor who types in the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of a legitimate site is taken to a fraudulent (мошеннический) Web page created by the hijacker. For example, if the hijacker spoofed the Library of Congress Web site, then any Internet user who typed in the URL www.loc.gov would see spoofed content created by the hijacker.

But why is it dangerous for users? Should they worry? The answer is YES because if a user interacts with dynamic content on a spoofed page, the highjacker can gain access to sensitive information or computer or network resources. He could steal or alter sensitive data, such as a credit card number or password, or install malware . The hijacker would also be able to take control of a compromised computer to use it as part of a zombie army in order to send out spam.

Well, let me move to the next point of my presentation and give you the information about how users or administrators can protect themselves. Web site administrators can minimize the danger that their IP addresses will be spoofed by implementing (осуществление) hierarchical or one-time (одноразовый) passwords and data encryption/decryption techniques. Users and administrators can protect themselves and their networks by installating and implementating firewalls that block outgoing packets with source addresses that differ from the IP address of the user’s computer or internal network.

In conclusion I would like to say that users must be so vigilant while providing the personal information or filling in forms on the web-sites. Nowadays there are many kinds of different malware techniques such as IP-spoofing, and so if we don’t want to face with information leakage, we should be vigilant while surfing the internet and perform sensitive information.

Thanks for listening!

30. Smurfing

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about one kind of attacks called smurfing.

My presentation will consist of 3 parts: First I would like to introduce you with the problem. Then I would like to speak about how Smurfing works and what consciences it has. Following that I will say about ways to avoid smurfing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

Let me start with the explanation of the term. Smurfing is the attacking of a network by exploiting Internet Protocol (IP) broadcast addressing and certain other aspects of Internet operation.

And here I would like to give some information fro better understanding of how smurfing works. Well, Smurfing uses a program called Smurf and similar programs to cause the attacked part of a network to become inoperable (недействующий). The exploit of smurfing, as it has come to be known, takes advantage of certain known characteristics of the Internet Protocol (IP) and the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP). The ICMP is used by network nodes and their administrators to exchange information about the state of the network. ICMP can be used to ping other nodes to see if they are operational. An operational node returns an echo message in response to a ping message.

And finally we have reached the main part. A smurf program builds a network packet that appears to originate (исходить) from another address (this is known as spoofing an IP address). The packet contains an ICMP ping message that is addressed to an IP broadcast address, meaning all IP addresses in a given network. The echo responses to the ping message are sent back to the “victim” address. Enough pings and resultant echoes can flood the network making it unusable for real traffic.

Moving to final part of my presentation, I would like to say how administrators can avoid facing Smurfing. One way to defeat smurfing is to disable IP broadcast addressing at each network router since it is seldom used. Another proposed solution, to fix this as well as other problems, is network ingress (вход) filtering which rejects the attacking packets on the basis of the forged (поддельный) source address.

Thanks for listening!

31. Snooping

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about snooping.

My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to give you the definition of the term. Then I would like to take a brief look on how it works. Following that I will tell you about positive and negative sides of snooping. Finally I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

As I’ve said I’ll start with the definition. Snooping, in a security context, is unauthorized access to another person’s or company’s data. The practice is similar to eavesdropping (подслушивание) but is not necessarily limited to gaining access to data during its transmission.

Now let me speak about how it works. Snooping can include casual observance of an e-mail that appears on another’s computer screen or watching what someone else is typing. More sophisticated snooping uses software programs to remotely monitor activity on a computer or network device.  Malicious hackers (crackers) frequently use snooping techniques and equipment such as keyloggers to monitor keystrokes, capture passwords and login information, and to intercept (перехват) e-mail and other private communications and data transmissions.

Moving to the final part of my presentation I would like to say that snooping is not always illegal and bad action. Corporations sometimes snoop on employees legitimately to monitor their use of business computers and track Internet usage; governments may snoop on individuals to collect information and avert crime and terrorism. An for example, a snoop server is used to capture network traffic for analysis, and the snooping protocol monitors information on a computer bus to ensure efficient processing.

In conclusion I can say that although snooping has a negative connotation in general, sometimes it may be useful for law enforcement and for employers to find out what is going wrong.

Thanks for listening!

32. Botnet.

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The aim of my presentation is to give you information about botnet.

My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to describe what botnet is. Then I would like to take a brief look on different types of downloads. Following that I will tell you about ways to avoid unexpected downloads. Lastly I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

Let us begin with the definition of the term. A botnet (also known as a zombie army) is a number of Internet computers that, although their owners are unaware of it, have been set up to forward transmissions (including spam or viruses) to other computers on the Internet. Any such computer is referred to as a zombie – in effect. According to a report from Russian-based Kaspersky Labs, botnets — not spam, viruses, or worms — currently pose (в настоящее время предоставляет) the biggest threat to the Internet.

Moving to another part of my presentation I’ll speak about principles of work and how computers get infected. Computers that are co-opted to serve in this unaware army of the “walking dead” are often those whose owners fail to provide effective firewalls and other safeguards. A zombie or bot is often created through an Internet port that has been left open and through which a little Trojan horse program can be left for future activation. At a certain time, the zombie army “controller” can unleash (развязать) the effects of the army by sending a single command, possibly from an Internet Relay Channel (IRC) site.

And so what are consequences and why malicious people do such attacks? As computers that form a botnet can be programmed to redirect transmissions to a specific computer, such as a Web site that can be closed down by having to handle too much traffic – a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack – or, in the case of spam distribution, to many computers. One more reasons for a zombie master who creates a DDoS attack may be to cripple (повреждать) a competitor. The motivation for a zombie master sending spam is in the money to be made. Both of them rely on unprotected computers that can be turned into zombies.

In conclusion I would like to say that nowadays our computers require good protection from different types of attacks. When thousands of threats appear every day we have to have powerful antivirus-software to avoid infections by viruses and others kinds of attacks.

Thanks for listening!

33. Types of piracy

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The point of my presentation is to give you information about different types of piracy.

My presentation will consist of 4 parts: First I would like to introduce you with the problem and give the definition. Following that I will tell you about why people break the low. Then I would like to take a brief look on different types of piracy. I’ll Finally I am going to summarize what we’ve discussed. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

Piracy is the term used to describe the enormous world of illegal file sharing, downloading, and counterfeiting associated with the Internet. Software piracy is the illegal copying, distribution, or use of software. It is a profitable “business”, it has caught the attention of organized crime groups in a number of countries. Software piracy causes significant lost revenue for publishers, which in turn results in higher prices for the consumer.

But how do people know what they are available to do with purchased software? When you purchase a commercial software package, an end user license agreement is included to protect that software program from copyright infringement. Typically, the license states that you can install the original copy of software you bought on one computer and that you can make a backup copy in case the original is lost or damaged.

But sometimes people violate the agreement, and so they become perpetrators. Now I would like to say what types of piracy exist and how people break the rules.

There are many types of piracy, but I would like to speak about some of the most popular.

I will say some words about some kinds, and 2 kinds will be explained in details. Types of software piracy include:

Soft-lifting: Borrowing and installing a copy of a software application from a colleague.
Client-server overuse: Installing more copies of the software than you have licenses for.
Hard-disk loading: Installing and selling unauthorized copies of software on refurbished (восстановленный) or new computers.
Counterfeiting: Duplicating and selling copyrighted programs. The free world of the Internet allows counterfeiting pirates to set up websites that are nearly identical to legitimate dealers. This allows the pirates to sell digital or hard copies of software to which they have no legal right. To avoid purchasing counterfeit software, purchase only from the original seller, or check the product’s official website for a list of reputable, approved dealers.
Online piracy: Typically involves downloading illegal software from peer-to-peer network, Internet auction or blog. (In the past, the only place to download software was from a bulletin board system and these were limited to local areas because of long distance charges while online.)
End-user: Most software programs are meant to be installed on one computer only; sharing discs or programs across computers constitutes (составляет) what experts call end-user piracy. Many people argue that a program should be able to run on all of its owner’s computers; a person certainly does not need to buy a duplicate CD for every CD player he owns. Yet as of the early 21st century, end-user piracy remains mostly illegal and could result in legal consequences for businesses and employees.

Piracy may give the appearance of not causing any harm, but this is untrue. Illegally downloading the music of a favorite artist results in that musician not being paid residual monies for his or her work. Moreover, illegal downloads can be fraught with spyware and viruses capable of destroying hard-drives and ruining computers. In the case of end-user or counterfeit software, users without a legal copy are unable to receive program support or updates from the manufacturer.

Thanks for listening!

34. Moral and financial aspects of piracy

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. The topic of my presentation today is Moral and Financial aspects of piracy.

To start with, I’ll give my opinion on what the current state of piracy in the world is now. Then I’m going to talk about moral and financial aspects of piracy and finally I’ll come to the conclusion, where I’ll sum up what I about the problems of piracy from financial and moral aspects degrees.

Nowadays the piracy became inseparable part of our life. Whatever you do in The Internet may be easily considered as piracy. So, what is the moral aspect of the piracy? In most cases of definition of this term, the piracy is considered to be a theft. Theft leads to the violation of the human moral principles. On the other hand, the piracy is just copying of some product without withdrawing the original one. Other arguments that say using pirated software is morally wrong include the loss of revenue to the creator of the software, and that without software being paid for creators will give up designing new software and there will be less software being created in the future

Specific to piracy, a combined general deterrence and rational choice perspective would predict that individuals engage in piracy because of the potential benefit of gaining the copyrighted works without a financial cost. The problem with this view is that the people, who participated in creation of illegally shared product are likely continue to suffer from the financial losses associated with file sharing. Likewise, file sharers who prefer to download movies are not accepting of the idea that the activity causes financial harm to the screenwriters and the individuals who work behind the scenes. This dilemma is hardly solvable, but many modern artists believe in internet sharing and even get benefits of such type of their art sharing. The method is pretty simple – user/listener decides how much money he will give for the album, starting from $0 and ending with user’s limit of money generosity.

To the conclusion I want to say, that moral and financial aspects of piracy may be interpreted differently by both sides of market. Users, illegally downloading files from the Web, believe that they have every right to do that and do not bear any responsibility. Authors and copyrighters reasonably believe that every downloaded file causes money loss and persons, performing such action, must be punished to the full. There is no middle or neutral zone of this dilemma, there’s only your choice, which side you take.

Thanks for listening!

35. Types of spam

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, Types of spam. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “spam”. Then I would like to take a look at the main types of spam. Following that we should talk about the security. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “spam”. Spam is flooding the Internet with many copies of the same message, in an attempt to force the message on people who would not otherwise choose to receive it. Most spam is commercial advertising, often for dubious products, get-rich-quick schemes, or quasi-legal services. Spam costs the sender very little to send – most of the costs are paid for by the recipient or the carriers rather than by the sender.

Let’s move on to the types of spam. There are two types of spam: 1)Cancelable usenet spam refers to spam email in which a single message is sent to 2 or more usenet groups. This type of spam is directed at “lurkers”, or individuals who read newsgroups but who either do not or infrequently post or give their email addresses away. Cancelable usenet spam reduces the utility of newsgroups by forcing through advertising, and as such decreases the ability of administrators and managers of newsgroups to manage accepted topics. This spam is run at a low cost to those sending out spam. 2)Email spam refers to spam email that is directed at individual users with direct addresses; email spam lists are usually created by scanning usenet postings, sterling Internet mailing lists or searching the Web for addresses. A variant of this form of spam is sent directly to mailing lists and email discussions that are used by public and private forums. Email spam costs individuals submitting spam email money; for example, ISPs and onine services need to pay to transmit spam directly to subscribers. In addition, there are three main components to all types of spam:

·         anonymity: the sender’s identity and address are concealed

·         mass mailing: spam email is sent to a large number of recipients and in high quantities

·         unsolicited: the individuals receiving spam would otherwise not have opted to receive it

That will bring us to our next point – security. Here are some very important rules: Be extremely careful with your e-mail address. Be very careful about entering it onto any web form, if it is not a compulsory field and you are not familiar with the website then don’t give it out., Don’t respond to spam e-mail.  If you do you are letting the spammers know that your e-mail address is live and active. They can then continue to spam you or even sell on your address to other spammers!, Get an alternative account, If you do use web forums or other online forms then it may be wise to get another e-mail address that you can use for these. Never buy anything from a spammer!  Never buy anything from spam e-mail. You are only helping the spammers to send out more e-mail and make money from it! Get a spam filter or spam blocker.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Receiving spam is a common complaint of many Internet users. In fact, spam email has become an increasingly bothersome problem as individuals spreading spam email find easier ways to invade users’ email accounts, leading to the necessity of such tools as spam filters and spam blocker features.

Thanks for listening!

36. Spambot

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, Spambot. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “Spambot”. Then I would like to take a look at the methods to foil spambots. Following that we should talk about the types of spambot. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “Spambot”. A spambot is a program developed for the collection of a number of email addresses from the Internet in order to build mailing lists for the transmission of junk mail, also known as spam. A spambot is a particular type of web crawlers that can gather email addresses from websites, newsgroups, discussion groups from posts and chat-room conversations. Since the email addresses have a well defined structure, it is very easy to make a spambot. A number of legislators in the U.S. have been appointed to develop laws that would outlaw the spambot.

Let’s move on to the methods to foil spambot. One such technique is known as “address munging”, which is deliberately an e-mail so it can be a human reader (and / or a web browser used by a person) but not a spambot. This activity led to the development of sophisticated spambots that can recover e-mail from the series of characters that seem to have been ‘broken’, or displaying the text in a web browser and then collect email addresses from the displayed text.

Another technique to thwart the spambots is to publish the text of the e-mail as an image on the page, enabling users to view e-mail address. Although this method proves effective in combating the spambot is not compatible with the standard of accessibility of websites, as well as prevent the possibility of using the link – i.e., users can not click on the address to send an email.

That will bring us to our next point – types of spambot. E-mail spambots harvest e-mail addresses from material found on the Internet in order to build mailing lists for sending unsolicited e-mail, also known as spam. Such spambots are web crawlers that can gather e-mail addresses from Web sites, newsgroups, special-interest group (SIG) postings, and chat-room conversations. Because e-mail addresses have a distinctive format, spambots are easy to write. Forum spambots surf the web, looking for guestbooks, wikis, blogs, forums and other types of web forms which it can then use to submit bogus content.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. A spambot is a software program used to assist in spamming. On the Internet, spam is any kind of automated unwanted message. Spam is most often used to advertise, but can also be used to harass users or interrupt service. A spambot program be used to gather emailaddresses for spamming, to send spam, or to post spam on a messageboard. Less frequently, a spambot can also refer to a program that filters spam.

Thanks for listening!

37. Hackers and crackers

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I will tell you about the meaning of the words hacker and cracker.
My presentation is made up of two main parts. I’ll begin with the definition of hacker. Then I’ll give you the definition of cracker. And I’ll finis with some typical facts. If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them at the end of my presentation.
Now let’s speak about hacker. Hacker is a term used by some to mean “a clever programmer” and by others, especially journalists or their editors, to mean “someone who tries to break into computer systems.” Indeed a “good hack” is a clever solution to a programming problem and “hacking” is the act of doing it. Eric Raymond, compiler of The New Hacker’s Dictionary, defines a hacker as a clever programmer. He deprecates the use of this term for someone who attempts to crack someone else’s system or otherwise uses programming or expert knowledge to act maliciously.  He prefers the term cracker for this meaning.
So, let’s move on the definition of the word cracker. A cracker is someone who:

·         breaks into someone else’s computer system, often on a network;

·         bypasses passwords or licenses in computer programs;

·         Intentionally breaches computer security.

A cracker can be doing this for profit, maliciously, for some altruistic purpose or cause, or because the challenge is there. Some breaking-and-entering has been done ostensibly to point out weaknesses in a site’s security system.
As we can mention, the term “cracker” is often confused with “hacker”, but such point of view is not right. Hackers generally deplore cracking. However, as Eric Raymond, compiler of The New Hacker’s Dictionary notes, some journalists ascribe break-ins to “hackers.”
In conclusion I’d like to say, that in our days the word “hacker” used only for persons, who has the malicious intent. So, that’s why we really should differentiate the term “hacker” from “cracker”.

Thanks for listening!

38. Black hat, white hat, grey hat, ethical hacker

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today in my presentation I’m going to explain the meaning of the terms “black hat”, “white hat”, “grey hat” and “ethical hacker”.  If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them at the end of my presentation.
I’d like to start with the definition of the term “black hat”. Black hat is used to describe a hacker (or, if you prefer, cracker) who breaks into a computer system or network with malicious intent. The black hat hacker takes advantage of the break-in, perhaps destroying files or stealing data for some future purpose. The black hat hacker may also make the exploit known to other hackers without notifying the victim. This gives others the opportunity to exploit the vulnerability before the organization is able to secure it.
Now, let’s turn to the meaning of the term “white hat”. White hat describes a hacker (or, if you prefer, cracker) who identifies a security weakness in a computer system or network but, instead of taking malicious advantage of it, exposes the weakness in a way that will allow the system’s owners to fix the breach before it is can be taken advantage by others. Methods of telling the owners about it range from a simple phone call through sending an e-mail note to an administrator.
While white hat hacking is a hobby for some, others provide their services for a fee. Thus, a white hat hacker may work as a consultant or be a permanent employee on a company’s payroll. A good many white hat hackers are former black hat hackers.
Terms “black hat hacker” and “white hat hacker” come from old Western movies, where heros often wore white hats and the “bad guys” wore black hats.
Now I’d like to look at the term “gray hat”. Gray hat describes a cracker (or, if you prefer, hacker) who exploits a security weakness in a computer system or product without malicious intent in order to bring the weakness to the attention of the owners. The goal of a gray hat is to improve system and network security. However, by publicizing vulnerability, the gray hat may give other crackers the opportunity to exploit it.
At last I’ll give you the definition of “ethical hacker”. An ethical hacker is a computer and network expert who attacks a security system on behalf of its owners, seeking vulnerabilities that a malicious hacker could exploit. To test a security system, ethical hackers use the same methods as their less principled counterparts, but report problems instead of taking advantage of them. Ethical hacking is also known as penetration testing, intrusion testing, and red teaming. An ethical hacker is sometimes called a white hat.
To sum up, I’d like to say, that in a similar but distinct category, a hacktivist is more of a vigilante: detecting, sometimes reporting and exploiting security vulnerabilities as a form of social activism.

Thanks for listening!

39. Encryption

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today the topic of my presentation is encryption. If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them at the end of my presentation.
So, encryption is the conversion of data into a form, called a ciphertext, that cannot be easily understood by unauthorized people. Decryption is the process of converting encrypted data back into its original form, so it can be understood.
In order to easily recover the contents of an encrypted signal, the correct decryption key is required. The key is an algorithm that “undoes” the work of the encryption algorithm. Alternatively, a computer can be used in an attempt to “break” the cipher. The more complex the encryption algorithm, the more difficult it becomes to eavesdrop on the communications without access to the key. Simple ciphers include the substitution of letters for numbers, the rotation of letters in the alphabet, and the “scrambling” of voice signals by inverting the sideband frequencies. More complex ciphers work according to sophisticated computer algorithms that rearrange the data bits in digital signals.
Encryption/decryption is especially important in wireless communications. This is because wireless circuits are easier to “tap” than their hard-wired counterparts. Nevertheless, encryption/decryption is a good idea when carrying out any kind of sensitive transaction, such as a credit-card purchase online, or the discussion of a company secret between different departments in the organization. The stronger the cipher , the harder it is for unauthorized people to break it.
In recent years, a controversy has arisen over so-called strong encryption. This refers to ciphers that are essentially unbreakable without the decryption keys. While most companies and their customers view it as a means of keeping secrets and minimizing fraud, some governments view strong encryption as a potential vehicle by which terrorists might evade authorities. These governments, including that of the United States, want to set up a key-escrow arrangement. This means everyone who uses a cipher would be required to provide the government with a copy of the key. Decryption keys would be stored in a supposedly secure place, used only by authorities, and used only if backed up by a court order. Opponents of this scheme argue that criminals could hack into the key-escrow database and illegally obtain, steal, or alter the keys. Supporters claim that while this is a possibility, implementing the key escrow scheme would be better than doing nothing to prevent criminals from freely using encryption/decryption.
In conclusion I’d like to say, that encryption is rather useful thing for providing information security. So, many companies shouldn’t ignore it.

Thanks for listening!

40. Authentication, authorization and accounting

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I’m going to be talking about authentication, authorization, and accounting. At first I’ll give some background information about the term AAA, and then I’ll spend some time talking about each component of this term. If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them at the end of my presentation.
As I have said, at first I’d like to give you the definition of the term AAA. Authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) is a term for a framework for intelligently controlling access to computer resources, enforcing policies, auditing usage, and providing the information necessary to bill for services. These combined processes are considered important for effective network management and security.
Begin with authentication. Authentication provides a way of identifying a user, typically by having the user enter a valid user name and valid password before access is granted. The process of authentication is based on each user having a unique set of criteria for gaining access. The AAA server compares a user’s authentication credentials with other user credentials stored in a database. If the credentials match, the user is granted access to the network. If the credentials are at variance, authentication fails and network access is denied.
Now, let’s move on authorization, which follows after authentication. Authorization is the process of enforcing policies: determining what types or qualities of activities, resources, or services a user is permitted. Usually, authorization occurs within the context of authentication. Once you have authenticated a user, they may be authorized for different types of access or activity.
The final plank in the AAA framework is accounting. Accounting measures the resources a user consumes during access. This can include the amount of system time or the amount of data a user has sent and received during a session. Accounting is carried out by logging of session statistics and usage information and is used for authorization control, billing, trend analysis, resource utilization, and capacity planning activities.
So, as we have seen in this presentation authentication, authorization, and accounting services are often provided by a dedicated AAA server, a program that performs these functions. This program can help different organizations avoid unauthorized and malicious users to get into system.

Thanks for listening!

41. Disaster recovery plan                              План восстановления после катастрофы

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about a, so called, disaster recovery plan. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “disaster recovery plan”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “disaster recovery plan”. A disaster recovery plan (DRP) – sometimes referred to as a business continuity plan (BCP) or business process contingency plan (BPCP) – describes how an organization is to deal with potential disasters. Just as a disaster is an event that makes the continuation of normal functions impossible, a disaster recovery plan consists of the precautions taken so that the effects of a disaster will be minimized, and the organization will be able to either maintain or quickly resume mission-critical functions. Typically, disaster recovery planning involves an analysis of business processes and continuity needs; it may also include a significant focus on disaster prevention.

Let’s move on to the process description. Firstly – the best way to recover fast – is using backups. For example, a number of companies provide online backup services for subscribers whose computers are connected to the Internet, automatically copying selected files to backup storage at the service provider’s location, – the ways of making backup copy and restoring it if needed may be very convenient now days. Secondly – using encryption mechanisms. Thirdly – using antivirus software and updating databases in time of course. Firewall is needed as well. Disaster recovery is becoming an increasingly important aspect of enterprise computing. According to Jon William Toigo (the author of Disaster Recovery Planning), fifteen years ago a disaster recovery plan might consist of powering down a mainframe and other computers in advance of a threat (such as a fire, for example, or the sprinkler system), disassembling components, and subsequently drying circuit boards in the parking lot with a hair dryer. Current enterprise systems tend to be too complicated for such simple and hands-on approaches, however, and interruption of service or loss of data can have serious financial impact, whether directly or through loss of customer confidence.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. Appropriate plans vary from one enterprise to another, depending on variables such as the type of business, the processes involved, and the level of security needed. Disaster recovery planning may be developed within an organization or purchased as a software application or a service. It is not unusual for an enterprise to spend 25% of its information technology budget on disaster recovery.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. A disaster recovery plan consists of the precautions taken so that the effects of a disaster will be minimized, and the organization will be able to either maintain or quickly resume mission-critical functions. As devices, systems, and networks become ever more complex, there are simply more things that can go wrong. As a consequence, recovery plans have also become more complex.

Thanks for listening!

42. Online backup                                           Интерактивное резервное копирование

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about online backup. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “online backup”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “online backup”. Online backup is a method of offsite data storage in which files, folders, or the entire contents of a hard drive are regularly backed up on a remote server or computer with a network connection. This is sometimes called Web-based backup.

Let’s move on to the process description. A number of companies provide online backup services for subscribers whose computers are connected to the Internet, automatically copying selected files to backup storage at the service provider’s location. The rationale behind online backup is simple. By frequently (or continuously) backing up data on a remote hard drive, the risk of catastrophic data loss as a result of fire, theft, file corruption, or other disaster is practically eliminated. With a high-speed Internet connection and a Web browser interface, the remote files and folders appear as if they are stored on an external local hard drive. Encryption and password protection help to ensure privacy and security. In a database, an online backup, more often called a hot backup or dynamic backup, is a backup performed on data even though it is actively accessible to users and may currently be in a state of being updated.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. For the home and small business computer user, online backup services may be unaffordable if the intent is to totally back up a hard drive on a frequent basis. This problem can be mitigated by backing up only the most critical or often-changed files online, and using physical offsite backup methods for less important or infrequently changed files. For medium-sized and large enterprises or for particularly valuable data, the cost of online backup can prove to be a wise investment.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. By backing up data on a remote hard drive, the risk of catastrophic data loss is practically eliminated. For the home and small business computer user, online backup services may be unaffordable, but online backups can provide a convenient solution because they do not require downtime, as does a conventional offline (cold) backup.

Thanks for listening!

43. Chaffing and winnowing                                     Добавление шелухи и отсеивание

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about chaffing and winnowing. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at the end of the presentation.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of terms “chaffing and winnowing”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the consequences. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of terms “chaffing and winnowing”. Chaffing and winnowing are dual components of a privacy-enhancement scheme that does not require encryption.

Let’s move on to the process description. At the source, each legitimate message packet is assigned a unique serial number and a message authentication code (MAC). Every serial number and MAC is known to the receiver in advance. Then the bogus packets are added at the source; this is the chaffing process (chaff is the undesirable part of a plant such as wheat that is separated during milling). The chaff packets have the same format as the legitimate ones, and they also have reasonable serial numbers, but they have invalid MACs. At the destination, the chaff packets are removed by comparing MACs. This is called winnowing. If an incoming packet has a bogus MAC, it is discarded; if it has a legitimate MAC, it is accepted. Thus, the original message is recovered.

That will bring us to our next point – the consequences. It is impossible to tell the difference between the legitimate packets and the chaff except by comparing MACs at the destination.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. The technique consists of adding false packets to a message at the source (sender end of the circuit), and then removing the false packets at the destination (receiver end). The false packets obscure the intended message and render the transmission unintelligible to anyone except authorized recipients.

Thanks for listening!

44. Decipher                                                                                                Расшифровка

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. Today I would like to talk with you about what is decipher. Please feel free to interrupt me if there are any questions.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of terms “decipher, decrypt, and decode”. Following that we should talk about the differences in these three much the same terms. Then I would like to give an example of how they are realized. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “decipher”. All three terms – decipher, decrypt, and decode – mean to convert ciphertext into the original, unencrypted plaintext. Decrypt is actually a generic term, covering both the other terms, that simply means to unscramble a message. The root prefix crypto is from the Greek kryptos, meaning hidden or secret.

Let’s move on to the differences. Although decipher and decode are frequently used interchangeably, in the strictest sense, a distinction can be made between the two. Both terms refer to a system of encryption in which message data is replaced with other data to make it unreadable. The crucial difference between decipher and decode lies in the level of substitution used: in some security contexts, a message encrypted through the use of a cipher works with substitution at the level of letters; to decipher means to unscramble a message that uses substitution at the letter level.

That will bring us to our next point – the process example. According to some accounts, Julius Caesar developed a cipher to encrypt messages so that they could be sent without fear that the messenger would betray him. Caesar replaced each letter in his message with the one three positions ahead of it in the alphabet, so that, for example, “A” became “D,” “C” became “F” and so on. Only someone in possession of Caesar’s encryption rule (or key) could read the message, by performing the opposite operation: substitute each letter with the one three positions before it in the alphabet. Caesar’s encrypted message is an example of ciphertext and the unencrypted message an example of plaintext; the mathematical formula (shift by 3) used for encryption and decryption is a simple example of an algorithm.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. In contexts where a distinction is made between decipher and decode, to decode means to unscramble a message in which text is transformed through the substitution of words or phrases, since, in this context, encoded messages are encrypted at the level of words or phrases.

Thanks for listening!

45. Desktop management                                                 Управление рабочими местами

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Ms X and I’m a 3d year HSE student. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about desktop management. Please feel free to interrupt me if there are any questions.

First I would like to talk about the meaning of the term “desktop management”. Then I would like to take a look at the process description. Following that we should talk about the next step of DM solutions. Lastly we are going to sum up what we’ve discussed. I would like to talk to you today about my topic for not more than 3 minutes, because that’s the time-limit.

Let’s now turn to the meaning of the term “desktop management”. Desktop management is a comprehensive approach to managing all the computers within an organization.

Let’s move on to the process description. Despite its name, desktop management includes overseeing laptops and other computing devices as well as desktop computers. Desktop management is a component of systems management, which is the administration of all components of an organization’s information systems. Other components of systems management include network management and database management. Traditional desktop management tasks include installing and maintaining hardware and software, spam filtering, and administering user permissions. In recent years, however, security-related tasks have become an increasingly large part of desktop management.

That will bring us to our next point – the evolution of DM. As a result, an increasingly large proportion of administrative resources have been devoted to security-related tasks, such as patch management, fighting viruses and spyware, and controlling greynet applications (programs installed without corporate approval, such as instant messaging, file sharing programs, and RSS readers). Desktop Management Interface (DMI) is a new industry framework for managing and keeping track of hardware and software components in a system of personal computers from a central location. DMI was created by the Desktop Management Task Force (DMTF) to automate system management and is particularly beneficial in a network computing environment where dozens or more computers are managed.

So, in conclusion I would just like to sum up the main points again before your questions. Desktop management is a comprehensive approach to managing all the computers within an organization, it includes installing and maintaining hardware and software, spam filtering, and administering user permissions. As a result of security needs DMI, a new industry framework, is highly devoted to security-related tasks.

Thanks for listening!