Many current Computer_systems have only limited security precautions in place. This '''computer insecurity''' article describes the current battlefield of computer security exploits and defenses. Please see the Computer_security article for an alternative approach, based on Security_engineering principles. ==Security and systems design== Most current real-world computer security efforts focus on external threats, and generally treat the computer system itself as a Trusted_system. Some knowledgeable observers consider this to be a disastrous mistake, and point out that this distinction is the cause of much of the Insecurity of current computer systems - once an attacker has subverted one part of a system without fine-grained security, he or she usually has access to most or all of the features of that system. {{fact}} Because computer systems can be very complex, and cannot be guaranteed to be free of Defects, this Security_stance tends to produce insecure systems. The 'trusted systems' approach has been predominant in the design of many Microsoft Software products, due to the long-standing Microsoft policy of emphasizing functionality and 'Ease_of_use' over Security. {{fact}} Since Microsoft products currently dominate the desktop and home computing markets, this has led to unfortunate effects. However, the problems described here derive from the security stance taken by software and hardware vendors generally, rather than the failing of a single vendor. Microsoft is not out of line in this respect, just far more prominent with respect to its Consumer Marketshare. It should be noted that the Windows_NT line of operating systems from Microsoft contained mechanisms to limit this, such as services that ran under dedicated user accounts, and Role-Based_Access_Control (RBAC) with user/group rights, but the Windows_95 line of products lacked most of these functions. Before the release of Windows_2003 Microsoft has changed their official stance, taking a more locked down approach. On 15_January 2002, Bill_Gates sent out a memo on Trustworthy_Computing, marking the official change in company stance. Regardless, Microsoft's latest operating system Windows_XP is still plagued by complaints about lack of local security and inability to use the fine-grained user access controls together with certain software (esp. certain popular Computer_games). ===Financial cost=== Serious financial damage has been caused by computer Security_breaches, but reliably estimating costs is quite difficult. Figures in the billions of dollars have been quoted in relation to the damage caused by Malware such as Computer_worms like the Code_Red_worm, but such estimates may be exaggerated. However, other losses, such as those caused by the compromise of Credit_card information, can be more easily determined, and they have been substantial, as measured by millions of individual victims of Identity_theft each year in each of several nations, and the severe hardship imposed on each victim, that can wipe out all of their finances, prevent them from getting a job, plus be treated as if ''they'' were the criminal. Volumes of victims of Phishing and other scams may not be known. Individuals who have been infected with Spyware or Malware likely go through a costly and time-consuming process of having their computer cleaned. Spyware and Malware is considered to be a problem specific to the various Microsoft Windows Operating Systems, however this can be explained somewhat by the fact that Microsoft controls a major share of the PC market and thus represent the most prominent target. ===Reasons=== There are many similarities (yet many fundamental differences) between computer and Physical_security. Just like real-world security, the motivations for breaches of computer security vary between attackers, sometimes called Hackers or crackers. Some are teenage thrill-seekers or Vandals (the kind often responsible for defacing web sites); similarly, some Web_site_defacements are done to make political statements. However, some attackers are highly skilled and motivated with the goal of compromising computers for financial gain or espionage. An example of the latter is Markus_Hess who spied for the KGB and was ultimately caught because of the efforts of Clifford_Stoll, who wrote an amusing and accurate book, The Cuckoo's Egg, about his experiences. For those seeking to prevent security breaches, the first step is usually to attempt to identify what might motivate an attack on the system, how much the continued operation and information security of the system are worth, and who might be motivated to breach it. The precautions required for a home PC are very different for those of Banks' Internet banking system, and different again for a Classified military network. Other computer security writers suggest that, since an attacker using a network need know nothing about you or what you have on your computer, attacker motivation is inherently impossible to determine beyond guessing. If true, blocking all possible attacks is the only plausible action to take. ==Vulnerabilities== To understand the techniques for securing a computer system, it is important to first understand the various types of "Attacks" that can be made against it. These threats can typically be classified into one of these seven categories: ===Exploits=== Software flaws, especially Buffer_overflows, are often exploited to gain control of a computer, or to cause it to operate in an unexpected manner. Many development methodologies rely on testing to ensure the quality of any code released; this process often fails to discover extremely unusual potential exploits. The term "exploit" generally refers to small programs designed to take advantage of a software flaw that has been discovered, either remote or local. The code from the exploit program is frequently reused in Trojan_horses and Computer_viruses. In some cases, a vulnerability can lie in a certain programs processing of a specific file type, such as a non-executable media file. ===Eavesdropping=== Any data that is transmitted over a network is at some risk of being eavesdropped, or even modified by a malicious person. Even machines that operate as a closed system (ie, with no contact to the outside world) can be eavesdropped upon via monitoring the faint electro-magnetic transmissions generated by the hardware such as TEMPEST. The FBI's proposed Carnivore program was intended to act as a system of eavesdropping protocols built into the systems of Internet_service_providers. ===Social engineering and human error=== A computer system is no more secure than the human systems responsible for its operation. Malicious Individuals have regularly penetrated well-designed, secure computer systems by taking advantage of the carelessness of trusted individuals, or by deliberately deceiving them, for example sending messages that they are the system administrator and asking for passwords. This deception is known as Social engineering. ===Denial of service attacks=== Denial_of_service (DoS) attacks differ slightly from those listed above, in that they are not primarily a means to gain unauthorized access or control of a system. They are instead designed to render it unusable. Attackers can deny service to individual victims, such as by deliberately guessing a wrong password 3 consecutive time and thus causing the victim account to be locked, or thay may overload the capabilities of a machine or network and block all users at once. These types of attack are, in practice, very hard to prevent, because the behavior of whole networks needs to be analyzed, not only of small pieces of code. Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks are common, where a large number of compromised hosts (commonly referred to as "Zombie_computers") are used to flood a target system with network requests, thus attempting to render it unusable through resource exhaustion. Another technique to exhaust victim resources is though the use of an attack amplifier - where the attacker takes advantage of poorly designed protocols on 3rd party machines, such as FTP or DNS, in order to instruct these hosts to launch the flood. There are also commonly vulnerabilities in applications that cannot be used to take control over a computer, but merely make the target application malfunction or crash. This is known as a denial-of-service exploit. ===Indirect attacks=== Attacks in which one or more of the attack types above are launched from a third party computer which has been taken over remotely. By using someone else's computer to launch an attack, it becomes far more difficult to track down the actual attacker. There have also been cases where attackers took advantage of public anonymizing systems, such as the tor onion router system. ===Backdoors=== Methods of bypassing normal Authentication or giving remote access to a computer to somebody who knows about the Backdoor, while intended to remain hidden to casual Inspection. The backdoor may take the form of an installed program (e.g., Back_Orifice) or could be in the form of an existing "legitimate" program, or executable file. A specific form of backdoors are Rootkits, which replaces system binaries and/or hooks into the function calls of the operating system to hide the presence of other programs, users, services and open ports. It may also fake information about disk and memory usage. ===Direct access attacks=== Image:PersonalStorageDevices.agr.jpg Someone gaining physical access to a computer can install all manner of devices to compromise security, including Operating_system modifications, software worms, Keyboard_loggers, and Covert_listening_devices. The attacker can also easily download large quantities of data onto backup media, for instance CD-R/DVD-R, tape; or portable devices such as Keydrives, Digital_cameras or Digital_audio_players. Another common technique is to boot an operating system contained on a CD-ROM or other bootable media and read the data from the Harddrive(s) this way. The only way to defeat this is to encrypt the storage media and store the key separate from the system. ''See also:'' Category:Cryptographic_attacks ===Reducing vulnerabilities=== Computer code is regarded by some as just a form of Mathematics. It is theoretically possible to prove the Correctness of computer programs (though this is usually too difficult to be practicable outside very limited circumstances) though the likelihood of actually achieving this in large-scale practical systems is regarded as unlikely in the extreme by most with practical experience in the industry -- see Bruce_Schneier et al. It's also possible to protect messages in transit (ie, Communications) by means of Cryptography. One method of encryption —the One-time_pad —has been proven to be unbreakable when correctly used. This method was used by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, though flaws in their implementation allowed some Cryptanalysis (See Venona Project). The method uses a matching pair of key-codes, securely distributed, which are used once-and-only-once to encode and decode a single message. For transmitted computer encryption this method is difficult to use properly (securely), and highly inconvenient as well. Other methods of Encryption, while breakable in theory, are often virtually impossible to directly break by any means publicly known today. Breaking them requires some non-cryptographic input, such as a stolen key, stolen plaintext (at either end of the transmission), or some other extra cryptanalytic information. Social engineering and direct computer access (physical) attacks can only be prevented by non-computer means, which can be difficult to enforce, relative to the Sensitivity of the information. Even in a highly disciplined environment, such as in military organizations, social engineering attacks can still be difficult to foresee and prevent. In practice, only a small fraction of computer program code is mathematically proven, or even goes through comprehensive Information_technology_audits or inexpensive but extremely valuable Computer_security_audits, so it's usually possible for a determined cracker to read, copy, alter or destroy data in well secured computers, albeit at the cost of great time and resources. Extremely few, if any, attackers would audit applications for vulnerabilities just to attack a single specific system. You can reduce a cracker's chances by keeping your systems up to date, using a Security_scanner or/and hiring competent people responsible for security. The effects of data loss/damage can be reduced by careful backing up and Insurance. ==Security measures== A state of computer "security" is the conceptual ideal, attained by the use of the three processes: #Prevention, #Detection, and #Response. *User_account Access_controls and Cryptography can protect systems files and data, respectively. *Firewalls are by far the most common prevention systems from a network security perspective as they can (if properly configured) shield access to internal network services, and block certain kinds of attacks through packet filtering. *Intrusion_Detection_Systems (IDS's) are designed to detect network attacks in progress and assist in post-attack Forensics, while Audit_trails and logs serve a similar function for individual systems. *"Response" is necessarily defined by the assessed security requirements of an individual system and may cover the range from simple upgrade of protections to notification of Legal authorities, counter-attacks, and the like. In some special cases, a complete Destruction of the compromised system is favored. Today, computer security comprises mainly "preventive" measures, like firewalls or an Exit_Procedure. A firewall can be defined as a way of filtering network data between a host or a network and another network, such as the Internet, and is normally implemented as software running on the machine, hooking into the Network_stack (or, in the case of most UNIX-based operating systems such as Linux, built into the operating system kernel) to provide realtime filtering and blocking. Another implementation is a so called Physical_firewall which consists of a separate machine filtering network traffic. Firewalls are common amongst machines that are permanently connected to the Internet (though not universal, as demonstrated by the large numbers of machines "cracked" by worms like the Code_Red_worm which would have been protected by a properly-configured firewall). However, relatively few organisations maintain computer systems with effective detection systems, and fewer still have organised response mechanisms in place. ===Difficulty with response=== Responding forcefully to attempted Security_breaches (in the manner that one would for attempted physical security breaches) is often very difficult for a variety of reasons: * Identifying attackers is difficult, as they are often in a different Jurisdiction to the systems they attempt to breach, and operate through proxies, temporary anonymous dial-up accounts, wireless connections, and other anonymising procedures which make backtracing difficult and are often located in yet another jurisdiction. If they successfully breach security, they are often able to delete Logs to cover their tracks. * The sheer number of attempted attacks is so large that organisations cannot spend time pursuing each attacker (a typical home user with a permanent (eg, Cable_modem) connection will be attacked at least several times per day, so more attractive targets could be presumed to see many more). Note however, that most of the sheer bulk of these attacks are made by automated vulnerability scanners and Computer_worms. * Law_enforcement_officers are often unfamiliar with Information_technology, and so lack the skills and interest in pursuing attackers. There are also budgetary constraints. It has been argued that the high cost of technology, such as DNA testing, and improved Forensics mean less money for other kinds of law enforcement, so the overall rate of criminals not getting dealt with goes up as the cost of the technology increases. === Further reading === There are Operating_systems designed specifically with security in mind, such as the operating system OpenBSD, which is widely considered one of the most heavily code-audited operating systems available. There is an extensive culture associated with electronic security; see Electronic_underground_community. == See also == * Computer_forensics * Computing * Cryptography (aka Cryptology) * Data_remanence * Defensive_programming * Defensive_computing * Full_disclosure * Hacking * Protection_ring * Physical_security * RISKS_Digest * Security_engineering * Software_Security_Assurance * Auditor_Security_Collection * Data_recovery * Microreboot * Restartability * Crash-only_software * Antivirus_software * OpenAntivirus * Computer_virus * Spyware * Adware * Worms * Trojan horse * Malware * Virus_hoax * List_of_computer_viruses * List_of_computer_virus_hoaxes * List_of_trojan_horses * Timeline_of_notable_computer_viruses_and_worms * Turing_completeness * Black_hat * Security_through_obscurity * Spam * Melissa worm, ILOVEYOU * Category:Spyware_removal — Programs that find and remove spyware * Palm_OS_Viruses == References == *Ross J. Anderson: ''Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems'', ISBN 0-471-38922-6 *Bruce_Schneier: ''Secrets & Lies: Digital Security in a Networked World'', ISBN 0-471-25311-1 *Cyrus_Peikari, Anton_Chuvakin: ''Security Warrior'', ISBN 0-596-00545-8 *Jack_Koziol, David_Litchfield: ''The Shellcoder's Handbook: Discovering and Exploiting Security Holes'', ISBN 0-7645-4468-3 *Clifford_Stoll: ''The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage'', an informal -- and easily approachable by the non-specialist -- account of a real incident (and pattern) of computer insecurity, ISBN 0-7434-1146-3 *Roger_R._Schell: The>Internet Rules but the Emperor Has No Clothes ACSAC 1996 *William_Caelli: Relearning>"Trusted Systems" in an Age of NIIP: Lessons from the Past for the Future. 2002 *Noel_Davis: Cracked! story of a community network that was cracked and what was done to recover from it 2000 == External links == *Participating With Safety, a guide to electronic security threats from the viewpoint of civil liberties organisations. Licensed under the GFDL. *Article "Why Information Security is Hard - An Economic Perspective" by Ross_Anderson *Macintosh Security *The Information Security Glossary *The SANS Top 20 Internet Security Vulnerabilities *Citations from CiteSeer *Amit_Singh: A Taste of Computer Security 2004 Category:Cryptography Insecurity Category:Software_engineering_disasters Fr:Risques_en_sécurité_informatique