Creating a National Framework for Cybersecurity

✍ Scribed by Eric A. Fischer

• Publisher: Nova Science Publishers
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 102
• Series: An Analysis of Issues and Options
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Even before the terrorist attacks of September 2001, concerns had been rising among security experts about the vulnerabilities to attack of computer systems and associated infrastructure. Yet, despite increasing attention from federal and state governments and international organisations, the defence against attacks on these systems has appeared to be generally fragmented and varying widely in effectiveness. Concerns have grown that what is needed is a national cybersecurity framework a co-ordinated, coherent set of public- and private-sector efforts required to ensure an acceptable level of cybersecurity for the nation. As commonly used, cybersecurity refers to three things: measures to protect information technology; the information it contains, processes, and transmits, and associated physical and virtual elements (which together comprise cyberspace); the degree of protection resulting from application of those measures; and, the associated field of professional endeavour.Virtually any element of cyberspace can be at risk, and the degree of interconnection of those elements can make it difficult to determine the extent of the cybersecurity framework that is needed. Identifying the major weaknesses in U.S. cybersecurity is an area of some controversy. However, some components appear to be sources of potentially significant risk because either major vulnerabilities have been identified or substantial impacts could result from a successful attack in particular, components that play critical roles in elements of critical infrastructure, widely used commercial software, organisational governance, and the level of public knowledge and perception about cybersecurity. This book addresses each of those questions in turn.

✦ Table of Contents

CREATING A NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR CYBERSECURITY: AN ANALYSIS OF ISSUES AND OPTIONS......Page 3
NOTICE TO THE READER......Page 6
CONTENTS......Page 7
PREFACE......Page 9
SUMMARY......Page 11
WHAT IS CYBERSECURITY?......Page 15
WHERE ARE THE MAJOR WEAKNESSES IN CYBERSECURITY?......Page 19
WHAT COMPONENTS OF CYBERSPACE ARE AT RISK?......Page 20
CYBERSPACE AND CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE......Page 24
SOFTWARE DESIGN WEAKNESSES......Page 26
PROBLEMS WITH ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE......Page 27
Goals......Page 28
Extent of Problems and Response......Page 34
PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTION......Page 35
WHAT ARE THE MAJORMEANS OF LEVERAGE?......Page 37
STANDARDS......Page 38
Current Standards......Page 40
Strengths and Weaknesses of Standards......Page 45
CERTIFICATION......Page 47
Strengths and Weaknesses of Certification......Page 48
BEST PRACTICES......Page 49
GUIDELINES......Page 51
BENCHMARKS AND CHECKLISTS......Page 52
AUDITING......Page 53
ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE......Page 54
METRICS......Page 55
ECONOMIC INCENTIVES......Page 56
CURRENT EFFORTS......Page 59
Laws and Regulations......Page 60
Partnerships......Page 62
POLICY OPTIONS......Page 63
Models......Page 64
Options for Congress......Page 67
REFERENCES......Page 71
INDEX......Page 93