Computer security is the means by which the computer industry is combating computer crime. This topic was chosen because there is an ever-increasing dependency on computer systems. Any destruction or violation of these systems can cause more damage than ever before. New computer software/hardware is being developed everyday to help protect the computers of today and the systems of tomorrow.

Viruses are one of the biggest problems facing IT professionals. More than 45,000 different viruses invade Window’s based PC’s each year. Within the last year, several of these bugs have caused billions of dollars in damage. Even though Window’s is the world’s most popular operating system, its many features and ease of use, has left it vulnerable to many cyber threats. Companies such as McAfee and Norton have thousands of programmers working to kill all known viruses.

Another problem facing the computer industry is the group of people known as hackers, or crackers. By definition, a hacker is someone who gains illegal entry into a computer system that is not their own for the purpose of stealing and corrupting data. Hackers use your own computer weaknesses against you to gain access into you computer system. Most of the time, the computer user does not even know that there are ways into the system. This is because most of the weaknesses that are exploited are weaknesses that are widely distributed in commercial software.

The largest problem that is facing the computer industry as a hole is computer crime in general. The definition of a computer crime is any criminal act that uses a computer as a means of committing the crime. Unauthorized bank and wire transfers account for millions of dollars in losses each year. Computer crime is not always just for profit, sometimes the goal is just destruction.

One of the main solutions to computer security problems is a good combination of software and hardware. A business must keep its anti-virus software updated continuously. Software can also be used to restrict the access of users so that they are only using the parts of the system that they have to. This is necessary to prevent any destruction of valuable information either by accident or intentionally. There is also software designed to scan incoming e-mail and attachments for any destructive code. Having a high performance firewall will also help protect your network.

Another solution to the security problem is hiring professional IT security personnel. These people will be in charge of upgrading and maintaining the security software and hardware. This is important because hackers and other security threats will find ways around software, so it is necessary to continually upgrade to stay ahead. Another job of the IT professional is to provide ongoing training. Training should be on common security threats and way in which they can be avoided. This training is necessary to show employees commonly made mistakes so that they can be avoided as much as possible.

The last solution to the computer security problem that we are going to discuss is creating consistent security policies to restrict employee and customer access to sensitive areas. This is a combination of both software and hardware and the job of the IT professional. A company must maintain strict access to certain critical areas of its infrastructure. This is necessary so both accidental and intentional damage to these systems does not occur. By following the previous guidelines, it is possible for a business to avoid most of the possible security threats.

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