Network Security Fundamentals Report - Cyber Security Essentials

This report delves into the core principles of network security, emphasizing the importance of safeguarding networks, devices, and information in the modern technological landscape. It highlights the critical need for network security due to increasing cybercrimes and outlines the three driving forces behind it: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The report details various mitigation strategies, including multi-layered security approaches like end-to-end data encryption and multi-factor authentication to ensure data privacy and prevent unauthorized access. It also discusses the importance of a reliable infrastructure to ensure availability, the use of whitelisting to prevent malware execution, and the validation of GxP compliance to maintain data integrity. Further strategies include restricting administrative privileges, downloading security patches, and employing network segmentation to limit the impact of security breaches. The report provides valuable insights into establishing robust network security measures to protect against various threats and ensure the smooth operation of an organization's network.

Running head: NETWORK SECURITY FUNDERMENTALS
NETWORKING SECURITY FUNDERMENTALS
(Student’s Name)
(Professor’s Name)
(Course Title)
(Date of Submission)

NETWORK SECURITY FUNDERMENTALS 2
Introduction
Modern technology has created a system that allows individuals to connect to each
other through a network. This can be a problem if appropriate measures are not undertaken to
protect network users, their devices and information. Network security is what you would
refer to as a measure that aims at safeguarding a network and its legitimate users. Network
security also aims at increasing the performance of the network. With increasing cybercrimes,
it would be wise for an organization to mitigate these threats by implementing appropriate
network security measures (Huang, 2015).
Reasons for network security
The three driving forces as to why network security is needed are confidentiality,
availability, and integrity. Confidentiality is the approach of ensuring customer data remains
confidential at all times. Integrity pillar is the act of ensuring that data and information flows
are not altered via unauthorized methods. The reason as to why availability pillar in network
security is critical is that it ensures the organization network to be fully operational at all
times (Pardoe & Snyder, 2016).
Mitigation strategies
First, organizations need to employ a multi-layered security approach. This is
achieved by ensuring that data remains private and secure which is achieved by the end to
end encryption of data with no increase in latency or multi-factor authentication. Multi-factor
authentication allows an individual to access data only after presenting their credentials so
that they can login to where data is located. This ensures that data is never comprised when is
on transit. It also minimizes the chances of an intruder accessing organizational data.
Availability can be ensured by providing an ultra-high reliable infrastructure which
minimizes system downtime. Data or system unavailability is also brought about by viruses
or worms. To prevent Trojan horse, worms, and viruses execution is the application of

NETWORK SECURITY FUNDERMENTALS 3
whitelisting. This measure avoids execution of malware in a system by allowing execution of
the authorized applications only. This will also support in identifying attempts to execute
malware and disallow installation of unauthorized software (Laet & Schauwers, 2010).
To ensure integrity an organization needs to validate which are the part of GxP-
compliance so as to ensure protocols address data reliability and quality. In addition, an
organization needs to perform risk-based validation to account for electronic storage
locations.
Other mitigation strategies to ensure confidentiality, integrity, and availability is the
restriction of administrative privileges. This includes controlling what and where they can
access. Users with the privilege of accessing the operating systems and applications can make
unwanted changes to their configuration and bypass security measures enabling them to
access sensitive information that can cripple an organization. Also, it is very essential to
download security patches for operating system installed. Patching operating system includes
mitigating network devices to fix any vulnerability.
Lastly, an organization needs to employ network segmentation and segregation to
limit the impact of a security breach in a network. The aim of this method is to restrict the
extent of access to sensitive information and to ensure that the network continues running
even after an attack to a certain network segment (Stallings, 2017).

NETWORK SECURITY FUNDERMENTALS 4
References
Huang, S. C.-H. (2015). Network security. . Chicago: Springer Press.
Laet, G. D., & Schauwers, G. (2010). Network security fundamentals by Gert De Laet . New
York: Cisco Press.
Pardoe, T. D., & Snyder, G. F. (2016). Network security by Terry D Pardoe . New York:
Delmar Learning Press.
Stallings, W. (2017). Network Security Essentials : Applications and... by William Stallings .
Harlow: Pearson Press.