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Introduction

The Internet Theresa Jn. Baptiste - St. Lucia Managing Information Technology Security isn't simply a technology issue, it's a business issue. Discuss In any given organization information technology generally refers to laptop and desktop computers, servers, routers, and switches that form a computer network, although information technology also includes fax machines, phone and voice mail systems, cellular phones, and other electronic systems. A growing reliance on computers to work and communicate have made the control of computer networks an important part of information security. Security days as just a technical or technology issue are done. It is becoming a central concern for leaders at the highest level of many organizations and governments, transcending national borders. Customers are demanding the highest security, as worries about privacy, the protection of personally identifiable information, and identity theft grow. Business partners, suppliers, and vendors are requiring it from one another, particularly when providing mutual network and information access. Networked efforts to steal competitive intelligence and engage in extortion are becoming more prevalent and widespread. Security breaches and data disclosure increasingly arise from criminal behavior motivated by financial gain. ...read more.

Middle

Most large organizations have their own local computer network, or intranet, that links their computers together to share resources and support the communications of employees and others with a legitimate need for access. Almost all of these networks are connected to the Internet and allow employees to go "online." Information technology security is controlling access to sensitive electronic information so only those with a legitimate need to access it are allowed to do so. This seemingly simple task has become a very complex process with systems that need to be continually updated and processes that need to constantly be reviewed. There are three main objectives for information technology security: confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data to the organization. Confidentiality is protecting access to sensitive data from those who don't have a legitimate need to use it. Integrity is ensuring that information is accurate and reliable and cannot be modified in unexpected ways. The availability of data ensures that it is readily available to those who need to use it (Feinman et. al., 1999). Information technology security is often the challenge of balancing the demands of users versus the need for data confidentiality and integrity. ...read more.

Conclusion

Security Polices can be written as a high-level to allow for broad interpretation, or at a low-level to provide specific guidance. A good security policy has a mixture of both, allowing for innovation in appropriate areas and providing numerous details in critical areas. A network security policy should be easy for all users to understand and adaptable to the needs of the organization, especially as security and vulnerability assessments reveal weaknesses that need to be corrected. To be effective, a policy must be communicated to all network users, consistently enforced, and strongly supported by the organization's leadership. On the other hand if the company's data is not protected and everybody has access to everything, ultimately it is the business that bears the consequences of a poorly secured system. It is difficult to say that a case of internal fraud or financial misstatement is a purely IT issue. However, such incidents are preventable through well defined permission structures allocated to appropriate business users. Since the business bears the risk it is logical that they should be fully engaged in the design of the solutions to prevent the occurrences of such risks. ...read more.

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