Network security and management

In the past few years government and military organizations have widely adopted LAN, WAN and Internet to take advantage of advancement in technology. Computers are integral part of everyday operations. Organizations depend on them. A computer failure will have a critical impact on the organization. The term “Security” brings to mind all shorts of issues that refer to data protection and prevention of unauthorised access. The common motives for computer crimes could be lure for money, revenge, terrorism, fun, recognition or curiosity. Information systems can be attacked by outsiders who may penetrate a computer system or by insiders who are authorised to use the resources but misuse their authorization. An attacker may disrupt the information system of an organization (active attack) or gain access to its sensitive information (passive attack). Although no direct damage is done in a passive attack, any leak in information could have drastic repercussions for the organization. In simple words, security can be defined as: protecting information system from intended access. The goal of network management is to provide users with a quality of service. To meet this goal, network services plan involve strategic and technical planning of engineering, operations and maintenance of the network. The field of network security and management is constantly undergoing changes in technology, applications and hence the need for continually changing skills set on the part of academics. We will try to cover the various points with respect to organizational structure, policies and techniques of network security and management. Impact of various factors including management has been discussed on network security.