Cybersecurity in the modern world

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Cybersecurity refers to a collection of methods, technologies and processes designed to protect the integrity of networks, programs and data from digital attacks. The purpose of cyber attacks is to obtain unauthorized access to confidential information, copying, altering or destroying it. They can also serve to extort money from users or disrupt business processes in the company.

Security threats form faster than our understanding of the possible risk in one aspect or another of the system. What used to pose no danger can now turn out to be a very serious and critical problem. However, there are a number of well-known threats that are worth keeping in mind and applying appropriate protective measures to prevent them from occurring.

Cyber threats can take various forms, the main ones being:

• malicious programs (A type of software designed to obtain unauthorized access to confidential information or damage a computer or data);
• social engineering (Methods that intruders can use to deceive a person in order to obtain confidential information or unauthorized access to an information technology system);
• Phishing (This is one of the most popular cyberattack techniques, which mainly involves tricking the user by sending fake emails).
• ransomware viruses (The main task of such software is extortion of funds, which is carried out by encrypting and blocking access to data or a computer system, in general, until the ransom is paid. In case of payment of the ransom, there is no 100% guarantee that the data and the system will be restored to its original state);

Recently, automated attacks are gaining popularity. They are lower in cost, but no less effective and complex. As a result, cybersecurity strategy requires adaptability, especially in government structures and corporate networks, where any impact from outside can be destructive.

In particular, there is a type of cyber threat that is aimed at state, secret, military, political or infrastructure assets of the whole people of any state. These threats include:

• Cyberterrorism (An attack is carried out on computer networks or infrastructure by terrorist organizations for the purpose of ideological and political propaganda);
• Cyber espionage (A type of attack on information technology, carried out by hacking and malware, to obtain secret state, strategic, political, economic and military information without prior permission to familiarize with this data);
• Cyberwar (A large-scale international attack, which is carried out by highly qualified specialists (hackers) working under the auspices of the state. Penetration into strategically important information systems of another country is carried out in order to compromise confidential data, damage infrastructure, disrupt communications, etc.).

Cybersecurity careers
Currently, the issue of protecting information on computer networks and mobile devices is more relevant than ever before. The topic of cybersecurity is already finding its place for children in computer science lessons in schools (tests are held, class hours) and for students in universities, and for the older generation in the workplace.

Most of the questions, of course, are for applicants who are going to enter a university, technical school or college and would like to connect their lives with the protection of information, as well as for students graduating from a university in the direction of cybersecurity.

Specialists in the field of cybersecurity, upon graduation from a higher educational institution, have the opportunity to get a job in:

• department of security of state structures, banking and commercial organizations;
• law enforcement agencies;
• IT companies;
• in companies engaged in the production and sale of components and computers for information security;
• services for organizing the protection of urban infrastructure.

The position that specialists in the field of information technology protection can hold:

• security system software engineer;
• specialist in the field of cryptography and steganography;
• consultant for the development of security systems in the organization;
• engineer-researcher of technical security systems;
• computer security expert (tester);
• engineer-designer of integrated protection systems;
• specialist in the organization and management of the security service;
• specialist in banking security.

Skills and skills that a graduate in the direction of cybersecurity can possess:

• identification of existing and potential threats to information security in computer networks;
• system protection monitoring and violation analysis;
• assess the effectiveness of existing systems and protection measures;
• organize and develop new cybersecurity systems;
• carry out maintenance, control and diagnostics of protection devices;
• use software tools to protect against unauthorized access and external impact on the security system.

The salary of a cybersecurity specialist can be as much as $ 300 or $ 100,000 - it all depends on the level of training, skills, knowledge and job responsibilities.

Cybersecurity Books
Is the topic of information technology security relevant, interesting, necessary? Then you should understand it in more detail, so we bring to your attention a number of books on cybersecurity. Unfortunately, or fortunately, the books are in English, since the translated books are already very outdated.

1. Practical Reverse Engineering: x86, x64, ARM, Windows Kernel, Reversing Tools, and Obfuscation (2014);
2. The Practice of Network Security Monitoring: Understanding Incident Detection and Response (2013);
3. Jeremy Swinfen Green. Cyber Security: An Introduction For Non-Technical Managers (2015);
4. Jane LeClair, Gregory Keeley. Cybersecurity in Our Digital Lives (2015);
5. Hacking: The Art of Exploitation, 2nd Edition by Erickson (2008);
6. Henry Dalziel. Introduction to US Cybersecurity Careers (2015);
7. Myriam Dunn Cavelty. Cybersecurity in Switzerland (2014);
8. The Art of Computer Virus Research and Defense (2005);
9. Reversing: Secrets of Reverse Engineering (2005);
10. James Graham. Cyber Security Essentials (2010);
11. Threat Modeling: Designing for Security (2014);
12. Android Hacker's Handbook (2014);
13. iOS Hacker's Handbook (2012);

As you can see by the year of release, the books were released a long time ago. Even two years for cybersecurity is a very long period of time. However, they contain information that is still relevant and will remain so for decades. And there is information that will be useful for the general development and understanding of the origin of certain things.

Cybersecurity films and TV series
You can also brighten up your leisure time by watching films on the topic of security:

1. Mr. Robot (2015)
2. Who am I (2014)
3. The Matrix (1999)
4. Cyber (2015)
5. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
6. Ghost in the Shell (1995)
7. Silencers (1992)
8. Hackers (1995)

Every year the topic of cybersecurity becomes more and more relevant and necessary in the modern world. Business owners need to form an effective IT security policy. For you personally - to be aware of what is happening, i.e. follow the news in the field of information security, as well as not forget that the virtual world, like the real one, requires attention to detail, even to those that sometimes seem quite insignificant.