The Network Security Policies are the set of rules and regulations designed to secure the network environment. The policies are developed by the IT department and enforced via technical controls. The network security policy is a document that defines the network-wide guidelines for securing the network environment, equipment, and data. The network security policy is based on a number of factors, including:
Network topology:
The type of topology used in the network (i.e., hierarchical, peer-to-peer, or hybrid) determines how the policy should be created. For example, peer networks do not require a large amount of security, as they have a low level of trust between peers. On the other hand, hierarchical networks contain a high level of trust between workgroups; therefore, stricter security policies need to be implemented in this type of network.
Security threats:
The security threats that exist in your organization determine what kind of threats you must protect against; for example threats from within or outside your organization? Which workgroups are involved? What kind of data is at risk? How much money can losses cause to your organization?
What are The Network Security Threats?
Network security threats are the possible dangers that can occur within your network environment or computer systems and data can be compromised or destroyed by one or more threats. The threats can come from the inside or outside your organization, or both.
The following is a list of common network security threats:
A hacker
A hacker is someone who misuses computers by gaining unauthorized access to computer systems, modifying information, etc. In most cases, a hacker does not intentionally damage your systems; however, he/she might accidentally delete important files or damage some data due to untested software applications or malicious code such as worms or viruses.
A virus
A virus is a type of malicious code that infects executable files such as programs, documents, etc. Once the infected file is run on a computer system, it infects all other files on that system with copies of itself (or it). Worms are another type of malicious code that replicate themselves over networks via e-mail attachments and removable media devices such as CDs and floppy disks.
A worm spreads
A worm spreads through an entire network at a very fast rate, thus becoming an immediate threat because it can quickly bring down networks if not contained quickly enough.
A Trojan horse
A Trojan horse is basically a hidden program that appears harmless but has been created with malicious intent in mind; it pretends to do one thing while actually doing something else (i.e., giving an attacker remote access privileges).
An insider threat
An insider threat is basically when an authorized user uses his/her authorized privilege for malicious purposes (i.e., stealing data). The insider threat usually occurs within an organization when certain employees feel disgruntled or disgruntled due to a personal conflict with the company.
When the employee is not happy, he/she can unintentionally make some security mistakes (e.g., leaving files unprotected by passwords, leaving doors unlocked, etc.). Also, when an insider threat occurs, it can cause a lot of damage to the organization because they have privileged access to all areas of the network and they can gain access to all computer systems in your organization.
An application security threat
An application security threat is a program or software application that harbors viruses. The application is basically used as a carrier for viruses and worms; thus, if users run the application on their computers, it will infect the system with malicious code and spread it to other computers.