Chapter 14. Network Security
Uncertainty is the only certainty there is, and knowing how to live with insecurity is the only real security. | ||
--John Allen Paulos |
We've all heard the sensational stories of large databases being hacked and people's medical records, charge cards, banking account information, and other sensitive data being compromised and released for anyone with an interest in using that information for some unethical purpose. However, there are breaches of network security that happen daily and may not make the news outlets for all to hear. These are those little quiet events that happen to individuals, listed under the heading of "identity theft." With the Internet, large amounts of data can be collected on any person. The insidious thing about it is there is no warning that you are being tracked or spied upon. There is no way for the individual under scrutiny to know that someone has an interest in who they are and any other information about them that can be garnered from searches on the Internet. With such information, an unscrupulous person can set up a parallel identity and begin assuming that unsuspecting person's life. The stories that eventually come to light in a case of identity theft are when the victims of such a crime have had their lives totally ruined.
Network threats are real and constant. It is unfortunate that so many individuals seek to prey on innocent and trusting people, but it falls upon those entrusted with that information to safeguard it as ...
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