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IT Security has become the most important topic within the computer industry. The reason for this is that hackers, denial of service attacks, offensive website content and viruses have increased dramatically over the past two years.
The Internet was designed to share ideas, to create a “Global Village”. The Internet does a lot of great things for many people. It has been called the ultimate equalizer because it can provide a small company or school with access to a plethora of information that would have been available 10 years ago. Schools that had a modest library for research, now have the ability to gather important information from an endless variety of sources via the Internet.
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Unfortunately, the Internet is also a medium for unsavory people to peddle their wares. You can go online and do research at the Library of Congress just as easily as you can purchase pain pills, learn how to make a bomb, or view pornography. It always amazes me when a webpage says that you must be 18 to enter, yet does nothing to prove if you are 18 or not. Do you think a 16 year old will turn back at the sight of “Must be 18 to enter”? Web filtering helps keep students off of these types of sites. I hope that there will come a day when a system is developed that we have accurate online identification. In the meantime, I will keep a very watchful eye on my children’s online activities. It’s not easy having three children that like to go online, but it is important that they are net savvy; this technology has too much good to offer. It also has become a vital skill at work and school. I can’t just say no to the web. But I do say yes to keeping my children safe when they are on the Internet. Keeping students safe while providing them with online access is a responsibility that did not exist when the Internet was first introduced to the public. We are living in a different world now, compared to just 10 years ago. School security ten years ago was accomplished by patrolling the school grounds and escorting unknown people off campus. Simple. Line of sight security. How would you have protected your campus if drug dealers or pedophiles were invisible? How do you protect yourself now that Internet predators are invisible? |
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The facts:
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The facts are staggering. There are over
60,000 known computer viruses, more than 600 new pornographic pages that
go online everyday and the U.S. Department of Justice tells us that one
in five children between the ages of 10-17 will be sexually solicited
online. To protect your students, network, and federal funding, you need
an Acceptable Use Policy, a firewall, virus protection and a content filter
that constantly updates the ever growing list of prohibited websites.
Automatic URL filtering prevents students from intentionally or accidentally
visiting inappropriate web sites. Real time updates work best. Did you
know that typo-squatters build websites that prey on students that misspell
words? For example, if you misspell Yahoo, you can go to a gambling site;
or, put the wrong extension on the end of the address and you will find
offensive sites like www.whitehouse.org
and www.whitehouse.net.
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To Protect
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A proactive stance is necessary to prevent all kinds of Internet threats from occurring at your school. At a recent security conference, Bill Gates said that Microsoft has focused its research on IT security. If Microsoft has shifted their focus to IT security, shouldn’t it also be a concern for your school? The challenge that IT administrators typically face is that they are already overburdened with day to day tasks. Attack vectors and other security problems have grown in the past two years, while the typical IT budget has not. Therefore the IT person has a lot more work to do, but their time and tools have remained static. What are the options? Hire more people? Purchase additional products? Without good advice, your efforts and capital investment may be an expensive shot in the dark.
Here are some suggestions that IT Security experts have made:
Remember it is important to remain proactive in your security posture. An annual review of your successes and failures will help your school shape the best system for the future. Security is a process, not just a product.
Martin McLean is the Director of Sales at WebImmunity, a web security company.
