Detecting & Preventing Threats Flashcards

All 8 cards in this deck

Give two ways a password system can be made more secure.

Any two of: lock the account after a set number of wrong attempts; require long passwords that mix letters, numbers and symbols; make users change their password at regular intervals; ask for a second factor, e.g. a code sent to the user's phone; at each login, ask for only a few characters of the password, picked at random.

What are biometric security measures?

Measures that identify a person from a unique physical feature, such as a fingerprint, face or iris. The scan is compared with reference data stored when the user set it up.

Why are biometrics well suited to mobile devices?

Any two of: phones have built-in fingerprint sensors and cameras; unlocking is quick, so users are less likely to switch the lock off; a fingerprint or face cannot be forgotten, guessed or watched over someone's shoulder like a PIN.

What is CAPTCHA used for?

To check that a user is a human and not an automated program (bot), using a test a person can pass but a bot cannot, e.g. picking out distorted letters or images.

What kinds of attack does CAPTCHA help to prevent?

Automated attacks by bots, e.g. creating large numbers of fake accounts, or trying thousands of passwords on a login page.

How does an email confirmation confirm a user's identity?

The website sends a link or code to the registered email address, and the user must use it to finish creating the account or approve an action. This proves they have access to that email account.

What are automatic software updates?

Updates that the operating system or software downloads and installs by itself, without the user having to do it. They often include patches that fix security flaws.

Why do automatic updates give better security than manual updates?

Any two of: users may forget or put off manual updates; the device is protected as soon as a fix is released; updates come from the trusted official source rather than a possibly infected download.