There are six principles of science, relativism, objectivity, parsimony, skepticism, ethical neutrality, and determinism. Relativism means “how all things are related”, which can be applied to cyber security by describing the fields connected to the practice. This includes the health care system, social system, educational system, critical infrastructure system, and more. These systems are all related in their various needs for cyber security. Objectivity is “how scientists study topics in a value-free, unbiased manner”. Science itself exists to advance knowledge, not forcibly establish proof of opinions. Ethical concerns in cyber security can relate to this. For example: how should companies inform their clients of severe data breaches without igniting panic?
Parsimony means that “scientists must keep their levels of explanation at a simple level of understanding”. Parsimony can be utilized in cyber security by avoiding jargon when speaking with clients. Not every client is well established in common cyber security terms, so it is important to avoid conversing with clients as if they possess an advanced knowledge of cyber security or computers in general. It can also relate when it comes to documentation, such as taking notes in a knowledge base or in incident response. Keeping a simple step format and providing lots of detail on how that information was acquired can make a huge difference in advancing a company’s knowledge. It can also avoid repeat explanations of how an incident occurred if it is housed in a simple-to-understand document.
Empiricism means “scientists can only study behavior which is perceivable by the five senses.” The scientific knowledge we have today would likely look very different if science were based on hunches. This is the importance of empiricism; it establishes that science comes from that which is real and able to be experienced. This can relate to cyber security by taking the time to carefully investigate the source of cybercrime instead of following hunches. For example: Just because Marty, a long-time office employee, did not get a promotion following the recent position changes, doesn’t mean that Marty is automatically behind a recent company data breach. This is an example of a hunch or an assumption, when there must be investigation in place in order to determine the true source of the breach.
Ethical neutrality refers to “how scientists must adhere to ethical standards and practices while conducting research”. This is especially important in cyber security, as clearly cyber security can be used for ethical and malicious purposes. Black-hat hackers, for example, directly violate ethical standards and use their skills for malicious purposes. They employ malicious code, disrupt online services, or exploit vulnerabilities for their own personal or financial gain. White-hat hackers or ethical hackers utilize these same skills but for defense; they craft their systems with well-informed code and design in order to keep hackers out. Since they are well-versed in hacker knowledge, they know exactly what black-hat hackers may be after most of the time, so they can even create and utilize honeypots to further put their skills to ethical use.
Determinism means that “behavior exists, is determined or influenced by preceding events.” Many aspects of human behavior can be determined by preceding events; an example of this would be getting stung by a bee. After just that one bad experience, you may now be afraid of bees as a whole, fearing you’ll relive that one bad experience. This can relate to hacking in several ways. For example, many people would not take the route of black-hat hacking had there not been a preceding event that caused them to behave this way. An example of a preceding event may include financial hardship. This event may motivate black-hat hackers to electronically steal money from individuals or profit off of their malicious hacking services for financial gain. Had this preceding event of financial hardship did not occur, this hacker may not have been inclined to steal money through malicious acts.
Each of these principles can relate to cyber security and several other similar fields. From the importance of facts and ethics to the reason certain behaviors occur, we can refer to the scientific principles in almost any cyber security scenario. Having a strong basis for science makes for the most beneficial method of discovery, and I believe it is very beneficial to implement these same strategies into different fields like cyber security.
Kendal Taylor