The Pace Of Technology Implementation

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

ICT security issues and concerns are becoming more prevalent and increasingly complex as the pace of technology implementation continues to accelerate. How this phenomenon has affected the public sector and the private sector in our country. Discuss

Each e-government project has it’s own version of the framework, where elements within the four components may differ according to the individuals agency’s business or technical needs. List and explain the function of the components.

1.0 Introduction:

ICT is the technology required for information processing, in particular, the use of electronic computers, communication devices and software applications to convert, store, protect, process, transmit and retrieve information from anywhere, anytime.

Information and communications technology (ICT) is the sector that processes information (which includes capturing, transmitting, and displaying information) using electronic systems. The ICT sector continues to transform our economy and everyday life. Core industries in this sector include:

Communications systems including, Telecommunications, cable/broadband, broadcasting, and other program distribution systems.

Computer systems including, computer engineering, technical support, electronics, robotics, network engineering.

Software and digital media including, computer programming, computer and video games, simulations, computer animation, data management, web design, web portals, Internet security.

ICT is the technology required for information processing such as for the creation, manipulation, storage, retrieval and communication of information. They are of immense value in a world in which there is an "information explosion", and where knowledge is complex, ever-changing and cross-disciplinary in nature. Many of the skills of ICT are important aspects of Information Literacy, which relates to the ability to select, organise, analyse and use information effectively. Quick and effective access to information is regarded as essential for everyone in contemporary society; and the ability to construct knowledge from the information gathered has become crucial in Hong Kong’s knowledge-based society. Citizens in the 21st century need to understand and be able to use ICT in order to function efficiently in modern society. To maintain the competitiveness of Hong Kong in the world economy, we need to develop interest and nurture talent in our students in this area.

The importance of ICT does not lie in the technology as such, but in its enabling function for access to knowledge and for communication with others. Rapid advances in ICT have continued to drive economic change, restructure businesses, affect education and employment, and contribute significantly to growth and wealth creation.

2.0 Answer Question 1:

Ways severely harm your business’s effect

2.1 Virus:

Computer viruses may be benign and result only in amusement or slight annoyance. The best known examples of such a virus are some versions of the ‘Stoned’ virus which simply write "Your computer is stoned" on the monitor. Other viruses are more malignant and malicious, destroying or altering data. Once a virus is active in a host computer, the infection can spread rapidly throughout a network to other systems.

A virus may attach itself to other programs and hide in them. Or it may infiltrate the computer’s operating system. All computer operating systems, (for example, MS- and PCDOS, Unix and Macintosh OS) are vulnerable, some more than others.

Viruses enter computer systems from an external software source. Just as flowers are attractive to the bees that pollinate them, virus host programs are deliberately made attractive to victims. Often the attraction will be a new game made available for downloading from a computer bulletin board. Or it may be disguised as an executable file attached to an electronic mail message from a friend or business associate. Aside from viruses, there are other threats to user systems, including: Worm and Logic Bombs.

2.1.2 Worm:

Viruses are far from the only maverick programs that can disrupt a computer system. Worms are constructed to infiltrate legitimate data processing programs and alter or destroy the data. Often what people believe is a virus infection is, in fact, a worm program. This is not as serious because worms do not replicate themselves. But the damage caused by a worm attack can be just as serious as a virus, especially if not discovered in time. For example, suppose a worm program instructs a bank’s computer to transfer funds to an illicit account. The fund transfers may continue even after the worm is destroyed. However, once the worm invasion is discovered, recovery is much easier because there is only a single copy of the worm program to destroy since the replicating ability of the virus is absent. This capability may enable it to re-infect a system several times. A worm is similar to a benign tumour while a virus is like a malignant one.

2.1.3 Logic Bombs:

Writing a logic bomb program is similar to creating a Trojan Horse. Both also have about the same ability to damage data, too. Logic bombs include a timing device so it will go off at a particular date and time. The Michelangelo virus is embedded in a logic bomb, for example. Other virus programs often include coding similar to that used in logic bombs, but the bombs can be very destructive on their own, even if they lack the ability of the virus to reproduce. One logic bomb caused major problems in the Los Angeles water department’s system.

Logic bombs are usually timed to do maximum damage. That means the logic bomb is a favoured device for revenge by disgruntled former employees who can set it to activate after they have left the company. One common trigger occurs when the dismissed employee’s name is deleted from payroll records. On one occasion, a student left a logic bomb timed to explode and wipe out his university’s records well after he had collected his degree and was long gone. This example illustrates the pernicious nature of logic bombs which can be written literally decades before they explode.

2.1.4 Phishing:

The term phishing is a general term for the creation and use by criminals of e-mails and websites, designed to look like they come from well-known, legitimate and trusted businesses, financial institutions and government agencies in an attempt to gather personal, financial and sensitive information. These criminals deceive Internet users into disclosing their bank and financial information or other personal data such as usernames and passwords, or into unwittingly downloading malicious computer code onto their computers that can allow the criminals subsequent access to those computers or the users’ financial accounts. Since most people won't reveal their bank account, credit card number or password to just anyone, phishers have to take extra steps to trick their victims into giving up this information. This kind of deceptive attempt to get information is called social engineering.

A lot of people trust automatic processes, believing them to be free from human error. That's why many messages claim that a computerized audit or other automated process has revealed that something is amiss with the victim's account. The victim is more likely to believe that someone has been trying to break into his account than believe that the computer doing the audit made a mistake.

2.1.5 Pharming

"Pharming" is the process of redirecting Internet domain name requests to false Web sites to collect personal information. Information collected from these sites may be used to commit fraud and identity theft. Pharming refers to the redirection of an individual to an illegitimate Web site through technical means. For example, an Internet banking customer, who routinely logs in to his online banking Web site, may be redirected to an illegitimate Web instead of accessing his or her bank’s Web site.

Static domain name spoofing: The "Pharmer" (the person or entity committing the fraud) attempts to take advantage of slight misspellings in domain names to trick users into inadvertently visiting the pharmer’s Web site. For example, a pharmer may redirect a user to anybnk.com instead of anybank.com, the site the user intended to access.

2.1.6 Hacker:

A hacker is someone who likes to tinker with electronics or computer systems. Hackers like to explore and learn how computer systems work, finding ways to make them do what they do better, or do things they weren’t intended to do. There are two types of hackers:

White Hat: These are considered the good guys. White hat hackers don’t use their skills for illegal purposes. They usually become Computer Security experts and help protect people from the Black Hats.

Black Hat: These are considered the bad guys. Black hat hackers usually use their skills maliciously for personal gain. They are the people that hack banks, steal credit cards, and deface websites.

A hacker can easily hack in the computer to steal information and look into the private things. The benign hacker is the person who likes to get into his/her own computer and understand how it works. The malicious hacker is the person who likes getting into other people's systems. The benign hackers wish that the media would stop bad-mouthing all hackers and use the term 'attacker' instead.

2.2 Conclusion:

Viruses are designed to proliferate and propagate. This means each and every contact between your system and any other system is an opportunity for infection. That can include floppy disks and contacts via modem (or other network connection). Be especially careful of users who frequently use a number of different systems outside your company. Hacker is also dangerous to all the computer users, a hacker can easily hack in the computer to steal information and look into the private thing.