Cyber security, Technology, and Society

Journal 1:

When choosing a major for my college degree, I struggled for the longest time. Trying to pick a major that would lead me into the career I would have as an adult, as a high school senior, was a huge decision. After many different major changes, I finally chose the one that interested me the most from the beginning, cyber security. One of the main reasons I chose cyber security as my major was because of the unlimited growth that comes with it. I enjoy learning and being able to grow in what I do academically and in jobs/careers. With the cyber security technology, there is a huge growth potential in this career path and for learning opportunities. With the world becoming more technologically advanced, the opportunity to stay engaged and to have multiple challenges with cyber security technology, never ends. Another major factor that made me interested in cyber security, was knowing I had the ability to solve puzzles in my career. I am able to solve logical and technical challenges, it is something I enjoy as it keeps my brain busy. Every situation that I will face in my future career will require me to solve puzzles, which is something I look forward to. The satisfaction of solving one these puzzles will help me to grow and become better at every other one I face. The rewarding work, is another one of the main factors, even if this career will keep me on my toes. Being able to be a “hero” in my career is something I look forward to as well. Knowing that I am the one behind protecting people’s livelihoods and personal privacy, will be so rewarding to me and to them. I am looking forward to cyber security and all that it offers, it is a career with guaranteed growth, the ability to learn and solve logical puzzles, and all in all a rewarding career.

Journal 2:

When it comes to the different majors offered at Old Dominion University, there is a variety of majors to choose from. That being said, there is a good amount of majors that are similar to cyber security. Cyber security is a major that is intended for students with an interest in network, mobile security, digital forensics, etc. One of the first majors offered at ODU that is similar to cyber security is Information Technology. With information technology, you learn about risk management, protecting data and information systems from unauthorized users. This is similar to what you learn when studying to obtain a cyber security degree. Unlike an information technology major, cyber security deals with protecting data from internet hacks. However, both of these majors focuses on protecting data nevertheless. Another major that ODU offers that is similar to cyber security is computer science. Computer science is a major that teaches students about devices, networks, databases, etc. This major is similar to cyber security because of the involvement of computers. These two majors can be similar as a cyber security major needs to have a deep understanding of computers and networks, which both include. Another major that is similar to cyber security is Database administration. With database administration, you learn a variety of skills that are similar to cyber security. Some of those skills include: database design, security, secure data, etc. Both of these majors are similar due to the fact that they both involve securing data and providing security. The last major that is similar to cyber security is cyber crime. Cyber crime is a major that is for students interested in information technology and law enforcement. This major is very similar to cyber security as the same things are taught, the main difference is that cyber crime is more for students that are interested in the law enforcement side of cyber security. All of these majors are similar to cyber security as they all have similarities that are taught between them.

Journal 3:

When it comes to storing electronic information about individuals, there are a lot of ethical issues that can arise. Almost everyone can agree that personal privacy is important especially when it comes to personal information. When storing personal information about individuals, it is important to keep that trust between the individual and the system they are putting their information into. However, it becomes an issue when a user’s information and personal privacy is invaded. Most of the time, an individual won’t know until it is too late. This leads into the first ethical issue that can arise, personal privacy. When information is distributed on a large scale, and transferred in big amounts, there is that hidden possibility of disclosing private information and violating the privacy of users or groups of individuals. This is called accidental disclosure and it can be shared to unauthorized users, which is a huge issue. Another ethical issue that can arise when storing electronic information is inappropriate use of data. This can happen when there is a data/privacy breach. A privacy breach is when data or information involves improper or unauthorized use or disclosure. When a user’s information is being used inappropriately or being shared without permission, it can be used in many ways. One of the main negative outcomes is identity theft, which is the use of another person’s private information that identifies them, usually for financial reasons. Another negative outcome that involves more people and more information being shared is Cyber terrorism. Cyber terrorism is the unlawful attack and threat of attack against computers and networks and in the information stored in there. Lastly, another inappropriate use of data would be phishing scams. Phishing scams are when an attacker sends a fraudulent message to an individual to reveal sensitive information. These are all examples of how an individual’s information can be used for inappropriate use. Another ethical issue that can arise is a person’s information being sold and used for unethical purposes. A person’s personal information can be sold, which is a violation of privacy. When an individual stores their personal information, they trust that the information they are storing is protected and won’t be shared. A person’s personal information such as: name, address, phone number, and email, are all types of information that can be sold. The last ethical issue that can arise is unauthorized access to systems. This ethical issue is a combination of all the other ethical issues I stated. Unauthorized access to systems refers to an unauthorized individual gaining access to things such as: an organization’s data, networks, devices, and private information. There are many causes to this, for example one of the causes could be having a weak password or having a password that is shared among many people. Another cause could be compromised accounts being used to gain access to other secure systems. All of these ethical issues can arise when storing electronic information about individuals. Personal privacy, inappropriate use of data, personal information being sold, and unauthorized access to systems, are just some of the ethical issues that can arise.

Journal 4:

With the world becoming more and more technologically advanced, anyone with a device can deal with the cyber security risks that are involved when it comes to putting information online. It is an ever growing process and is becoming harder to deal with. In the United States, a majority of people with stable incomes, have a device that can connect to the internet. This Can come with many issues involving privacy and protecting information. For example, when an individual puts private information online, they usually have a password to protect the sensitive information. This is the cause for one of the main problems in the United States, which is password theft. Password theft is when a hacker figures out a victim’s password and has access to potentially private information. This is just one of the main issues when it comes to cyber security risks, however there are certain things that can be done to prevent it. Notifications for renewal of old passwords may be given out to individuals, to prevent hackers from figuring out these passwords. The United States cyber security risk rate is high, however there are other countries in the world with slightly higher cyber risk rates. In China, the rate for malware infection is quite high. Malware infection is when there are vulnerabilities in a device that always have malware access to that device. With China being highly populated, that means that the risk of a cyber related crime is much higher. The United States and China both have a high amount of cyber attacks each year, whether it be big or small. One of the main issues they deal with is phishing. Phishing id when a cyber criminal sends a text message/ email to an unsuspected person in order to gain unauthorized access.They both have ways of dealing with these types of cyber crimes. For example, both countries use antivirus software and security software. However, there are certain countries that rarely have cyber crime issues. For example, North Korea is one of the only countries that have well developed cyber crime activities. With it being highly restricted and totalitarian country, there is no leeway when it comes to internet usage. Therefore, when there is internet usage the chances of cyber risk occurring is almost non-existent. North Korea uses illegal cyber operations in order to maintain the internet usage for their citizens. All in all, many countries around the world all have cyber risks, while some have different types of cyber risks. 

Journal 5:

Create cyber security training courses to teach individuals everything there is to know about cyber security

YouTube account that has videos that teaches college students the basics on cyber security 

Boot camp for individuals that want to get into cyber security

Ethical hacking, or known as “penetration testing”

Render information on the amount of vulnerabilities a company has

Security auditing, helping companies prepare for audits

Ethical hacking

Create a secure app that filters out and blocks spam/phishing emails

Unmatched application security testing

Rate companies security systems and inform them if it needs some improvement

Information security company, create a company that protects sensitive information

Teach individuals how to configure firewalls

YouTube security analysts

Journal 6:

Workplace deviance is the desire to cause harm to an organization, more specifically a workplace. When workplace deviance happens within a cyber security setting, it is harder to detect as it most likely would take place online. If an employee felt the desire to cause harm to a cyber security/technology business, a way to do this would be downloading sensitive information and selling it to other companies for financial gain. The cause for employees feeling the desire to cause harm to cyber security companies could be for many reasons. One of the main reasons would be if that employee were to be fired or if they were to get into some trouble at work. In some companies, the employees have a significant amount of access to sensitive information, meaning that if they were to become disgruntled enough, they are able to use that sensitive information to their advantage. Another example would be, if an employee were to interfere with the security systems of a company, it would then leave that company open to any cyber attacks. This would then leave the company at high risk of a cyber criminal hacking the company.  Cyber technology gives these employees the opportunity to engage in workplace deviance as it is much harder to catch a person doing harmful acts behind the computer screen than to catch them in person. With this in mind, it is important for companies to understand that their employees do have access to sensitive information. Some ways to prevent workplace deviance, would be to ensure that the employees they hire do not have a history of acting off of malicious intent. A way to do this would be to conduct background checks on their employees before hiring. Another way would be to limit the amount of access an employee has to the sensitive information of the company. However, with all this in mind, a company or business needs to understand that workplace deviance can happen anywhere and it can be harder to detect within cyber companies.

Journal 7:

When owning a business, it is highly important to have a secure cyber security set up. The private information that makes up the business needs to be maintained within the company. Having a secure set up can prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to sensitive information. Having a cyber security program in a business can be highly expensive. It is important for businesses to have an idea on how much is needed to have a secure and safe business. The first cost for a business would be having to pay a cyber security company to come in and set up the security systems on the computers. This cost would arise if a business is unaware on how to set up the system, therefore having a trained professional doing it would ensure that it is a secure system. The second cost that comes with having a secure security set up would be paying to have a cyber security risk assessment done. The risk assessment would identify the various types of information that could be easily accessible to cyber criminals. The most important information that comes out of the risk assessment is the identification of possible vulnerabilities within the business. Another cost that can come up would be having a cyber security company monitor a business to ensure that their information is safe. The cyber security professionals would monitor the business daily, meaning that the chances of a cyber attack occurring is very low. Having a strong cyber security set up for a business is key when it comes to preventing cyber attacks. The costs of damage from data breaches on businesses is extremely expensive. When it comes to small businesses, the cost of a data breach could completely ruin the company. Budgeting money to have a strong security set up could prevent a business from experiencing expensive cyber attacks.

Journal 8:

Many people around the world own computers and laptops. When it comes to individuals knowing if their computer is safe, most of the time they do not know. The first step is knowing if the computer is infected with a virus, and there are a few ways to tell. The first way to tell would be if the computer and the performance is slow, this could mean if opening up applications takes a long time. Another way to tell would be if there are frequent system crashes or error messages. The most common way to tell is if there are many pop up windows or messages that occur frequently. Now when it comes to knowing if the computer is safe, there are also many ways to tell. The first way would be testing the computer’s settings to see if there are any problems. There are free programs that will check how strong your passwords are, shared folders, and check account settings. The second way would be to have updated browser plug ins. Making sure that these are up to date will prevent the computer from a cyber attack. A third way would be to test the computer’s firewall, making sure that it is not visible to anyone. Another way would be to go through and manually permanently delete files that are stored within your computer. Making sure that the computer has anti-malware and an actual password to get into the device are a couple of other ways to ensure that the computer is safe. All of these ways show how safe a computer is. It is important to recognize the few ways that show if a computer is infected with a virus. If nothing is detected and everything that was stated above was done, then the computer is safe to use.

Journal 9:

The world is increasingly becoming more technologically advanced, meaning there are many individuals that use technology everyday. One of the most used pieces of technology is the computer and there is a large percentage of individuals that use it all over the world. The computer has made the world a safer place in many ways, especially in our daily lives. Many cars all over the world have a security system installed into the car that alerts individuals if anybody is attempting to steal the car. This computer system helps the owner of the car to feel more secure leaving it parked anywhere. Another example would be the use of computers in medical facilities. What a medical profession cannot do, a computer can when it is used in a hospital. Without the use of computers in medical facilities, procedures such as whole-body scans would not be performed. This helps patients safer because it would be able to alert them if anything were to be found. Lastly, computers, and technology in general, has greatly influenced the education system. With the use of computers, it helps individuals research more information, which would then allow themselves to consume more valuable knowledge. If there were to be no computers/technology, then individuals would not be able to learn important information or skills that could lead them into becoming medical providers. With individuals having access to computers and the ability to learn skills, there are more people becoming doctors, nurses, and other important careers that make the world a safer place. With there being many ways that computers make the world safer, there are some ways it can make it a less safer place. Individuals all over the world use technology almost daily. This means that there is that possibility that they become dependent on their computers. This would then give cyber criminals the opportunity to attack. Ever since technology has become a part of people’s daily lives, that is only when cyber crimes have become more of a problem. Another way would be that the use of computers can give criminals access to sensitive information. For example, if a child predator and a child were to have access to a computer, the predator would be able to contact this child. Another way would be, a stalker using a computer to figure out private information on a certain individual. Lastly, the use of computers can make the world a less safe place if certain individuals become too addicted. If there are many people that are addicted to staying home and being on the computer, that means there are less people going out and studying to become a part of high-demand careers, such as firefighters, doctors, EMTs. The use of computers has its positives and negatives towards if it makes the world a safer place. If the computer is used in a positive and normal way, then it can make the world a safer place.

Journal 10:

Cyber engineers use electrical engineering and computer science to protect and monitor everything that occurs within the cyber world. Engineers play a huge role in making cyber security networks safer. Engineers that create these networks are always finding ways to improve them and to make them as safe as possible. They create new and improved cyber networks all the time. They also make sure that nothing that could harm anybody is happening within the networks. If there were to be any vulnerabilities or weak areas within the networks, the engineers would fix it to ensure that everyone using it is safe. In our current world, cyber attacks are extremely common as more and more individuals are using technology everyday. A way that they are able to prevent this is by identifying threats and vulnerabilities. Another thing that engineers do is pinpoint the location of cyber attacks, making it so they are able to track them. Once they find the actual threat, they apply their skills to develop and implement solutions. For engineers, their main task is to ensure that these attacks don’t occur. Another way that they make cyber networks safer is by constantly running tests and testing networks to make sure they are up to date and that they are safe to use. Engineers also work in certain industries that use cyber networks as a way of keeping that industry safe. For example, if an engineer is working in public services they like to ensure that their services are reliable. An engineer can also work in national security or military operations to ensure that communication that occurs between them is highly safe. All of the tasks that cyber engineers do help with the prevention of cyber criminals gaining unauthorized access to important or sensitive information. Engineers play a huge role in keeping the cyber world safe and secure.

Journal 11:

Cyber crime is criminal activities that occur within the cyber world. Criminal justice is the delivery of justice for those who have committed any type of crime. With cyber crime and criminal justice, there are many similarities and there is an overlap between the two. Individuals that work within the cyber security world, are technically considered the law enforcers within the cyber world. They are making sure that no cyber crimes occur and they work to prevent them, just like how an individual working in criminal justice would. A person working within the criminal justice system also can work within the cyber world. Sometimes there are crimes that require them to investigate using the internet on electronic devices. What they are doing on these electronic devices, is what a cyber crime professional would do when they are completing their work. Both criminal justice and cyber crime professionals work closely with criminals and legal professionals. Again, their main objective is prevent crimes from occurring, whether it be physically or within the cyber world. There is also an overlap when it comes to requirements to work within these professions. Both cyber crime and criminal justice professions require knowledge on computer science and forensics. The only main difference is where both of these professions complete their work. This overlap between the two professions relates to the other disciplines discussed in the class. In the class, we talk a lot about the overlap between two different professions or elements. For example, we have talked about how there are overlaps within cyber security risks in other countries compared to the U.S. There are many similarities between cyber security or cyber crime systems within two different countries. For example, some countries use the same types of systems to prevent certain cyber crimes. The use of anti-malware systems is used within many countries all over the world.

Journal 12:

When it comes to cyber interactions between offenders and victims, there are many ways where there could be interactions between the two. One of the most popular used tactics used by offenders is using the cyber world to interact and communicate with under aged victims. The cyber world in this case would definitely impact interactions between the two because it is allowing the offenders to commit crimes. Online child predators can use the cyber world to create fake accounts posing as children in order to get closer to actual children using the internet. With the world becoming more technologically advanced, more children are using the internet and the cyber world everyday. This is an important factor and offenders and criminals are aware of this. The cyber interactions impact victims in a way that could potentially affect them for their entire life. Another way that cyber interactions impact communication between offenders and victims is by scamming and phishing. An offender can pose as an individual’s boss, for example and can get sensitive information from a victim. An offender can also send emails to many other individuals that have a link, once the victim clicks on the link, the offender is then able to access all their private information. It is becoming increasingly more and more common for crimes to be committed through the cyber world, therefore individuals need to be careful. Offenders will continue to use the cyber world and cyber interactions because they are aware of what victims store on their and the fact that underage individuals are on the internet as well. If a cyber criminal were able to get a victim, that victim would experience many hardships from it as it can be extremely hard to jump back from a cyber criminal stealing private information. It would also affect a child horribly, if they were to be a victim of cyber interactions.

Journal 13:

Many businesses all over the world use technology and the internet as a huge part of their company. They can use it to store private information of the company, it can be a way to sell products to customers, or it can be a way that the employees communicate with one another. This is not uncommon, especially with technology becoming more a part of individual’s lives, as it becomes more and more advanced. This goes to say that businesses that use technology as part of their daily work day, are more of a target for cyber criminals and cyber crime. Businesses are aware of this and pay many cyber security companies in order to prevent it as much as they can. When a cyber criminal hacks a company, especially a small company, it can cost that business thousands of dollars and it can take years for them to recover. This is why cyber policy is becoming more used by companies. Cyber policies are essentially rules and regulations that are applied to companies in order to prevent internet and technology risks. They are boundaries that are set which especially help prevent threats as well. As companies approach these cyber policies, they should be approaching them with open minds and arms because everything is there in order to protect these companies. Everything that is in the cyber policies, are there to make sure that no company or business has to deal with the stress that comes when they are involved in a cyber crime. When it comes to the “short arm” of predictive knowledge, that refers to how a person views a situation and what the ethical conduct of each situation is. There is no definite way to know what goes on behind the decision making process, therefore when companies are approaching cyber policy, that is what needs to be taken into consideration