Since the offset of the computer age, that is, in the late 20th century, there was an increasing and upward trend in the demand for the use of computer primarily because of its gift to heavy loads of work and also the security it provides to the information. Unlike before, people don’t have to make use of stacks of folders and boxes to store files. There is no need of steel cabinet, locks and keys in order to stash these documents in an organized manner. Moreover, with the use of a computer, security measures are heightened to an innovative genre.
With the laws being passed aimed at increasing the computer’s security, the businesses would take it that making use of the computer technology would increase the confidentiality and integrity of their files. This happens because of the programs stored in the computers. From the most basic password protection, a certain intruder would find it hard to pore over confidential files. Also, should there be a local are network connection of computer groups, there would still be security through the existence of firewalls, which when activated, disallows the other users to gain access to your files.
Also, with the rise of legislations and rules aimed at providing a more secure computer environment, there is a greater chance for confidentiality to be achieved. Example of this is the Computer Security Act of 1987 wherein agencies were required to take special trainings so as to further strengthen the definition of security in the virtual environment. There are also regulatory boards which maintain and take attention on the usage, management and procurement of computer systems- this is specially intended to the government.
WHAT MAKES THE COMPUTER VULNERABLE? As much as the computer analysts and engineers try to make the computer a very safe place especially with the existence of the online space, making it safe from security threats is quite an impossible task. Nowadays, there are a million hackers worldwide trying to break into computers (Mandeville, 1999) wherein they would collect files. In some cases, not only documents are being collected but even cash and relevant data.
And in worst cases, the primary causes of these threats are even the insiders in a company for they are in a better and a knowledgeable position to do the hacking (Charney, 1993). There are thousands of spyware, viruses and worms which infect the computer system critically that when you fail to safe back up copy of your files, they would be gone into oblivion once infected. Also, another weakness to security is the lack of expertise of computer users. Since the reasons for a computers being unsecure is not only limited to the system itself, the external cause should always include the lack of knowledge of the user.
Though the computer is cornered with anti-virus programs and increased firewall efficiency, if the user is not ware of how to use it, it is still useless. Also, the incidence of robbery and theft of a certain computer system is another threat to security especially nowadays that laptops and notebooks are of common use. With this, not only the files will be stolen but even the access and passwords to other secure places if the user is not that cautious in storing information into his system (Info-security News, 1993).
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