International Journal of Advanced Research in
Computer Science & Technology (IJARCST 2015)
113
Vol. 3, Issue 1 (Jan. - Mar. 2015)
ISSN : 2347 - 8446 (Online)
ISSN : 2347 - 9817 (Print)
www.ijarcst.com © All Rights Reserved, IJARCST 2014
State of Cyber Security: Emerging Threats Landscape
I
Alhaji Idi Babate,
II
Maryam Abdullahi Musa,
III
Aliyu Musa Kida,
IV
Musa Kalla Saidu
I
F.C.E. (Tech), Potiskum, Yobe Nigeria
II
ATBU, Bauchi Nigeria
III
Middlesex University London, United Kingdom
IV
F.C.E. (T) Potiskum, Yobe Nigeria
I. Introduction
The perceived beneits of Computer technology were affected
greatly by the increasing concern with internet crime today.
This truly presents a major challenge to Security of the internet
world. Cyber Security can essentially be deined ‘as the body of
technologies, practice with coordinated series of actions, designed
to defend Networks, Computers, System Application Programs
and data from an Attack, Damage or Unauthorized Access’ [20].
Cyber Security experts classiied Cyber Emerging threats as
malicious attacks, network attacks, and network abuse. Malicious
attack is any effort to exploit another person computer and infect
the system resources through Virus, Trojan horses, Spyware etc.
Network attacks are intended actions meant to damage or disturb
data information low of the Computer System on a Network
Service account, which causes effects such as Denial of Service
(Dos), Session Hijacking, Email Spooing etc. [5]. Network abuse
is fundamentally an exploit to the point of interaction of a network,
and it could be utilized by actions such as spam, phishing, pharming
etc. [17]. Cyber-attacks are widely, viewed as criminal action led
by means of the Web. These exploits can incorporate taking an
Organization’s intelligent property, seizing online bank accounts,
designing and circulating Viruses on different Computers, posting
secret Business Data on the Web and destroy a nation’s basic
national Infrastructure. Internet threats are seen as the highest
failure to business and revenue loses of all Organizations [27].
As put on by Tatum, Cyber Attack can be deined as…
“An attempt to undermine or compromise the function of a
computer-based system, or attempt to track the online movements
of individuals without their permission; Attacks of this type may
be undetectable to the end user... or lead to such a total disruption
of the network that none of the users can perform even the most
rudimentary of tasks” [35].
This deinition clearly described the manifestation of how serious
of the problem with Cyber Attacks, and because of the increasing
sophistication of these kinds of network attacks, a research by
International Telecommunications Union (ITU) reveals an
estimated survey report of about $1trillion was lost to Cyber
related frauds globally in 2012, out of which $390billion was
accounted for justiication [16].The initial phase of this research
will encompass an extensive literature review on the increasing
sophistication and maliciousness of Cyber Security emerging
threats that create unique challenges to federal information
systems and government wide cyber security efforts. The review
will critically discusses the current state and future forecast of
States of cyber Security, the existence of internet threats landscape
in administering government agencies. It will also put down some
recommendations needed to combat the threats. An administrative
and IT Stakeholder’s Policies which if completely executed will
work ind in the ight against internet crime. These policies were
recommended as a tool in ighting against the current and future
risen cases of Cyber related crime.
II. Research Methodology
The data for this research were derived from secondary sources:
previous researches and analyses of scholars; books, Journals,
Conference proceedings, white papers and Government
publications on cyber security that are related to the current trend
of cyber emerging threats. As the study involved an extensive
literature review which critically analysed the present state of
cyber security: emerging threats landscape. It lays down the policy
to enhance cyber-Security and the critical steps to acquiring the
know-how on how to deal with the emerging cyber threats; and
the content analysis approach was utilized for analysis.
Threat Landscape
The Persistent growth of internet threats in the world today
standout amongst the greatest challenges to Cyber Security in
the 21st Century; this research inds out that the dissemination
of threats in the 21st century is from a wide number of sources.
These emerging threats show themselves and get to be extremely
destructive focusing on Government intellectual property, Financial
Organizations, and Industries etc. Crafting from this explanation
threat actors can speciically be viewed as ‘element that cause or
help in attaining digital incident’ (Verizon, 2013). The work of
Abstract
Computer Security has become a major challenge in the present years due to the continuous global technological development
and the different possibilities for the use of computer. Cyber threats are growing at an alarming rate and at the same pace with the
online use of Personal Computers and mobile devices. This work surveys the state of Cyber Security emerging threats landscape,
through the overview of related works reported between 2011 and 2013 in the literature by stakeholders and experts in Information
Technology (IT) industry. Different type of Cyber emerging threats such as malicious attack, network attack and network abuse have
been identiied with speciic interest on virus, Phishing, Spam and insider abuse to mention but a few. It has been established that
these Cybercriminals tools are exhibiting common level of sophistication and advancement as the advances in Computer and mobile
technologies. The available countermeasures are found to be satisfactorily effective, yet Cyber criminals are creating new measures
to overcome Security mechanism. It is also envisaged that as the technologies advances, a resultant proliferation of cyber threats
will be witnessed. Thus, a few government and Information Technology (IT) stakeholders’ strategic policies to help in combating
cyber threats were presented.
Keywords
Cybercrime; Attack; Landscape; Threat; Malware