Unit 6 Individual Assignment For CIS222 Fundamentals Of Secu

Unit 6 Individual Assignment For CIS222 Fundamentals Of Securityunit

Explain the benefits of encryption. Explain the different ways encryption will play a role on the PCS corporate network and satellite offices. Give some examples of security problems that will be addressed by your encryption solutions. The CEO asked why we haven’t been using encryption all along if it is so easy. Other than hardware and software costs, provide a response to this question.

Paper For Above instruction

Encryption is a fundamental component of modern cybersecurity strategies, offering numerous benefits that enhance the confidentiality, integrity, and security of sensitive data. Its importance becomes evident especially in organizational contexts like PCS, where data traverses multiple networks and involves sensitive corporate and personal information. The benefits of encryption extend beyond simple data protection; they include safeguarding customer privacy, reducing the risk of data breaches, and complying with regulatory standards such as GDPR and HIPAA. Encryption also enforces data confidentiality in transit and at rest, making it more difficult for unauthorized individuals to access or manipulate information.

Within the PCS corporate network and across its satellite offices, encryption plays varied and crucial roles. For network communication, VPN encryption ensures secure remote access for employees and affiliates, creating a private, encrypted tunnel over the public internet. Email encryption protects sensitive correspondence from interception and unauthorized viewing. File encryption is employed to safeguard data stored on servers, laptops, and portable devices, ensuring that even if hardware is lost or stolen, the data remains protected. Additionally, encryption can secure communication between satellite offices and headquarter systems, ensuring that operational data, customer information, and strategic plans are shielded from eavesdropping or tampering.

Several security challenges can be effectively addressed through encryption solutions. For example, encryption tackles the issues of data interception during transmission, preventing attackers from reading confidential information such as employee credentials, financial data, or client details. It also helps mitigate risks posed by insider threats; encrypted data remains unreadable without proper authorization, thus reducing the potential damage from malicious or careless insiders. Furthermore, encryption assists in securing backups and stored data, protecting against ransomware attacks and ensuring business continuity even in adverse scenarios. It plays a critical role in defending against man-in-the-middle attacks, session hijacking, and data exfiltration by keeping data inaccessible to unauthorized entities.

The CEO's curiosity about why encryption hasn't been utilized more extensively despite its apparent ease warrants a discussion beyond the cost of hardware and software. Primarily, the challenge lies in the management complexity that encryption introduces. Implementing comprehensive encryption strategies requires specialized knowledge, ongoing key management, and staff training to ensure proper use and handling. Poor key management can lead to vulnerabilities, such as lost or compromised keys, which diminish the effectiveness of encryption. Additionally, legacy systems and applications may not support modern encryption protocols, leading to integration challenges. There can also be performance impacts; encryption and decryption processes consume computational resources, potentially slowing down network performance if not properly managed. Lastly, organizational resistance to change and a lack of awareness about encryption’s benefits may have historically delayed its adoption, underscoring the need for continued education and strategic planning.

In conclusion, encryption offers essential advantages for securing organizational data on PCS's network, protecting sensitive information from diverse threats, and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards. While the implementation involves costs and technical challenges, its role in establishing a resilient security posture is invaluable. Addressing these challenges through proper planning, training, and system integration can enable PCS to leverage encryption effectively, thereby safeguarding its assets and maintaining stakeholder trust.

References

  • Stallings, W. (2017). Cryptography and Network Security: Principles and Practice (7th ed.). Pearson.
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  • Fernandes, E., et al. (2015). Practical Challenges in Implementing Full Disk Encryption. Journal of Information Security, 6(2), 124-132.
  • Kochen, M., & Sturm, N. (2020). Managing Encryption Keys in Large Organizations. Journal of Cybersecurity, 6(1), taaa015.
  • Liu, X., et al. (2019). The Impact of Encryption on Network Performance: A Case Study. IEEE Transactions on Network and Service Management, 16(2), 579-589.
  • Gollmann, D. (2012). Computer Security. Wiley.
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  • Saxena, N., & Shrivastava, R. (2019). Challenges and Best Practices in Encryption Key Management. International Journal of Information Security and Privacy, 13(4), 1-16.

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