CYSE 201: Week 1 Journal Entry
Benjamin Frankart
9/4/2024
The NICE Framework is a framework devised for businesses and employers seeking guidance in structuring their Cybersecurity departments in a secure and effective way. To be more precise, it adds additional roles and responsibilities within the cybersecurity department, in total hosting 52 work roles, 7 role categories, 11 competency areas, and well over 2,000 TKS statements. These roles are organized into the following categories, Oversight and Governance (OG) (concerned with leadership roles primarily), Design and Development (DD) (science and ingenuity based, involves designing and testing new methods, etc.), Implementation and Operation (IO) (complementary with DD, not only implementing new ideas but ensuring the upkeep of systems and operations), Protection and Defense (PD) (analyzes and understands cyber threats and risks, deals with risks at hand, investigations, etc.), Investigation (IN) (on a national level, investigates cybercrimes, acts as detectives, collects and analyzes evidence, etc.), Cyberspace Intelligence (CI) (stays informed and deduces all details of foreign cyber programs, national and global security), Cyberspace Effects (CE) (works to actively engage and prevent cyber threats and risks in real time from global threats).
Although each of these fields is vastly important in ensuring the cybersecurity of not only companies, but to nations and individuals who depend on information security to maintain the core functions of society, I personally would like to focus my career on the Protection and Defense role. This field, to me, seems to encourage an engaging environment as the stakes are higher in regards to pending or ongoing attacks. Having a career dedicated to detecting, stopping, and ensuring effective end to cyber criminal activities affecting a certain company, agency, individual etc. Specifically, I would enjoy working as a Threat Analysis specialist, or as an Incident Response specialist. I would enjoy analyzing and deducing the nature and damage attacks that had occurred, as well as helping to ensure an end to any notable or specific attack patterns from cybercriminals. Furthermore, working with an Incident Response role would allow me to provide insight on the spot, as well as engage ongoing threats in a timely manner, something that I would find exhilarating.
Areas that I find the least appealing in the NICE Framework would most likely be the OG and DD roles. An Oversight position would most likely stress me out, as the work hours are demanding and you are certain never to be in high standing with everyone. It requires emotional and physical sacrifices, as well as time, and I feel these burdens would not aid me in being a sufficient manager. However, aiding managers and working within an OG department without intense oversight stipulations, could be a favorable career path for me. Although I see myself as creative in my own way, I believe a Design and Development career would not suit me well, as I find it hard sometimes to generate new ideas regarding certain tasks and systems. However, helping to produce the product of an idea would interest me in this field, as I can examine something for what it is and suggest notable changes, or simply do my part in producing and programming new systems/protocols etc.
CYSE 201: Journal Entry 2
Benjamin Frankart
9/9/2024
In many ways, the field of cybersecurity can relate to many of the other fields of science, one of the major reasons being the applicability of the seven principles of science to the field. Determinism, relativism, objectivity, ethical neutrality, skepticism, empiricism, and parsimony can all in some way describe the scientific approaches to the cybersecurity profession.
The principle of relativism relays the idea that all actions or events have unprecedented consequences and are all related in some ways, as there are also many other underlying factors. Relativism is often displayed through Cybersecurity in regards to computer hackers and other cybercriminal activities setting off a chain of further and more complicated hacking techniques. Every cybercriminal/hacking activity in cyberspace hosts unprecedented future consequences.
Determinism is the principle that most behaviors and human actions are predetermined, which helps to make certain decisions predictable in the light of other factors. In regards to Cybersecurity, it can be safe to assume that a system/device will eventually be the victim of a hack, simply because that device exists, has an internet connection, and contains valuable information at the interest of cybercriminals. This is why it is important to regularly update and maintain devices and systems to ensure the most possible security and to best prevent the inevitable.
Objectivity is one of the most important principles of modern science, as it ensures that science is only concerned with what is completely true, rather than holding an opinion or pushing an agenda. Given the role within the cybersecurity discipline in maintaining order and preventing cybercrimes, it can make it difficult to refrain from intertwining one’s own personal morals with their work. Especially cybercrimes of a graphic nature, which will be encountered often depending on one’s specialization, can often test a cybersecurity specialist in refraining from allowing their feelings and and strongly held beliefs to interfere with their task, which makes it just as important in cybersecurity, as it is with other science disciplines, to remain partial and objective.
The principle of parsimony is the concept that those of scientific professions should keep their explanations as simple as possible. In a field that speaks in code and programming such as cybersecurity, this is all the more important when communicating with those unfamiliar with the terminology. It is important to practice parsimony when relaying information to stakeholders of companies, or other individuals you may be assisting in the field, as a way of allowing them to understand what happened, what you have to do, what is at stake, etc. It is also important when relaying cybercrime studies in both a cyber and legal perspective.
Empiricism is the principle that those in the practices of social science will only base their studies on phenomena observable to our senses, as in they can be seen, heard, felt, etc. More importantly, the principle requires those working in these fields to rely only on empirical data, and never on guesses or personal estimations. Given that cybersecurity is studied as a social science, it applies these rules of empirical study by only using proven facts and evidence to connect, understand, and solve cases.
Ethical neutrality is the scientific principle ensuring that methods utilized when conducting social science research adheres to both commonly accepted and job specific moral standards, making certain that civilians and scientists involved are not subject to scientific malpractice or harmed in any way by the experiments. This principle also includes fairly and empirically studying a topic. In a discipline that deals extensively with privacy and information, it is important for cybersecurity professionals to execute this principle and handle all personal private data with care when conducting operations or research.
One of the most important baseline scientific principles is skepticism, as it fosters the very purpose for science and continuing scientific discovery. Being skeptical is questioning all claims made with scientific value, even claims that appear to be correct, as it reinforces the validity of the claims and desires rigorous testing to prove without a doubt that something is true. In a field such as cybersecurity, a field constituted by data and claims, one needs to remain skeptical of all information uncovered whilst conducting research. Rather than going with a hunch, it is better to test certain methods in practice against certain bugs or malware to ensure if they really will be effective, or ensure that certain telltale signs are of that particular virus and not a different attack altogether. Remaining skeptical will ensure you do your best work and stay prepared when engaging cyberthreats, as opposed to giving into incorrect and untested information and hypotheses that could lead to bigger problems.
CYSE 280: Week 3 Journal Entry
Benjamin Frankart
9/17/2024
The website PrivacyRights.org is a website run by an organization of the same name that promotes and advocates for consumer privacy rights on the web. Within the site are numerous advocacy articles, data reports, and educational pieces regarding privacy breaches affecting daily consumers in the U.S. One of the most useful assets of the site is the fact that it contains breach data and statistics, as well as useful information in general regarding common breaches, methods, etc., which can be useful for researchers seeking reputable sources on what makes breaches so common. Using the available data, researchers can observe trends of all categories, such as susceptible victim demographics, locations, targeted professions, and more, as well as information on pending federal action, lawsuits, and other legal happenings that may also be affecting the world of cybercrime.