The Enemy Within - A System Administrator's Look at Network Security

Network security has always been a key player in the system administrator’s day-to-day duties: however, since the onset of the new self-propagating virus infections and the terrorist attacks of late the need and calling for more security has escalated beyond reason. Everyone is sending his or her administrators for training. Some long lost specializations have now found a new lease on life, such as the study and understanding of Steganography.

In case you are new to the field, Steganography in it most simplistic form is data hiding. Network security takes on many shapes and forms; it must conform to the environment that it commands. One often-overlooked method of breaching your network is the concept of SEPS. SEPS is an acronym for Social Engineering Psychological Subversion. This concept is not new and along with technology continues to evolve into a powerful enemy that attacks from within our networks. In order to face an enemy on the battlefield, we must look at the world through the eyes of the enemy. In order to define the
enemy, we must determine what the enemy wants and how to keep them from reaching it.