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Information Security

Lesson Overview

This lesson provides an introduction to information security and the importance of using secure practices to protect information. You will learn about three main topics:

  1. Information Security
  2. Security Practices
  3. Importance of Security

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Information Security Puzzle***l p***r Each day, you may deal with payroll and salary information, distribution lists, trade secrets, financial reports, customer data and much more. This information is valuable to your organization and must be kept secure.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l b***r ***l i***r ***l e***r Information security***l /e***r ***l /i***r ***l /b***r  is the process of protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information.  ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l b***r Instructions***l /b***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Complete the puzzle by dragging and dropping the pieces to learn more.***l /i***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Confidentiality***l /i***r  ensures that only people with a need to know have access to information.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Integrity***l /i***r  ensures information does not improperly change.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Availability***l /i***r  ensures information is available when it is required.***l /p***r ***l br/***r IntroductionFactThree ComponentsInstructionsSummary
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***l p***r Maria works for the Finance department and deals with sensitive payroll information as a part of her job. In order to protect this sensitive data, her department puts in place security processes.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l b***r Instructions***l /b***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Click Begin to start the activity. Then, match each security process to the element of information security by dragging and dropping. Hover over each choice to see its text in full.***l /i***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Maria has special authorization to view payroll data from her manager.  In order to view this data, she must log in to a secure database using a unique password.  Access to the payroll database is provided to a limited number of people on a need-to-know basis.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Confidentiality***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Incorrect. Please try again.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Maria has special authorization to make changes to data in the payroll system.   All changes in the system are tracked by an audit trail, which keeps record of all the actions performed by a user.  ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r  Integrity***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Incorrect.  Please try again.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r The payroll system is protected against attacks that could render the system or data unusable.  Additionally, payroll system data is backed up to a secure server.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Availability***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Incorrect. Please try again.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r The Finance department is maintaining the ***l i***r confidentiality***l /i***r  of sensitive information, such as employee salary rates and bonuses, by password-protecting the database and limiting the number of employees able to view payroll data.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Integrity***l /i***r  is maintained by only allowing authorized personnel to make changes to system data and by tracking all changes made to the system.  This process protects information from improper or unauthorized changes.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r Defending the payroll system from attacks, such as malicious software or viruses, and backing up data to a secure server helps to ensure the ***l i***r availability***l /i***r  of information. This means information will be available when it is needed for time-sensitive tasks such as payroll and expense reimbursement.  ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r sampleActivity: Security PracticesReturnSummaryInstructionsSubmitBegintrue
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***l imageTermWidget***r ***l widgetTitle***r ***l /widgetTitle***r ***l activityInstructions***r ***l p***r ***l b***r Instructions***l /b***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l p***r ***l i***r Click on each image to learn more about how poor information security practices affected each person.***l /i***r ***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /activityInstructions***r ***l pageContent***r ***l p***r Imagine the consequences to your personal life and financial health if someone secretly gained access to your personal information, such as your social security number, credit card numbers or health information. Imagine the consequences to your business or place of work if someone gained unauthorized access to the information and systems you work with every day.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /pageContent***r ***l imageItem***r ***l itemImage***r ../assets/ho001_009_d.png***l /itemImage***r ***l itemText***r ***l /itemText***r ***l contentArea***r ***l text***r ***l p***r My organization conducts thousands of online transactions per hour, with an average of $100,000 of revenue per hour.  We got knocked completely offline by a virus a few weeks back.  We were down for over an hour before we got it isolated.  It was an expensive loss for our business and left us with a lot of frustrated customers.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /text***r ***l image***r ***l /image***r ***l audio***r ***l /audio***r ***l /contentArea***r ***l /imageItem***r ***l imageItem***r ***l itemImage***r ../assets/db01_002_d.png***l /itemImage***r ***l itemText***r ***l /itemText***r ***l contentArea***r ***l text***r ***l p***r I accidentally left my work laptop at a restaurant while on a business trip, and it was stolen.  I lost everything, including my client lists, contracts and product details. Since my hard drive wasn't encrypted to protect my data, my company may be in breach of contract with some of my customers.  I never could have imagined how this would set me back, not to mention all the legal issues it has opened up.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /text***r ***l image***r ***l /image***r ***l audio***r ***l /audio***r ***l /contentArea***r ***l /imageItem***r ***l imageItem***r ***l itemImage***r ../assets/do001_014_d.png***l /itemImage***r ***l itemText***r ***l /itemText***r ***l contentArea***r ***l text***r ***l p***r Someone racked up over $10,000 in false charges when my credit card number was stolen.  It happened right after shopping at a small clothing boutique in my neighborhood.  I'm still sorting it all out.  I'll never go back to that store again.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /text***r ***l image***r ***l /image***r ***l audio***r ***l /audio***r ***l /contentArea***r ***l /imageItem***r ***l imageItem***r ***l itemImage***r ../assets/dav01_02_d.png***l /itemImage***r ***l itemText***r ***l /itemText***r ***l contentArea***r ***l text***r ***l p***r I let a co-worker use my password to log in to our point of sale system.  They ended up stealing cash and customer information from the register, and I got the blame.***l /p***r ***l br/***r ***l /text***r ***l image***r ***l /image***r ***l audio***r ***l /audio***r ***l /contentArea***r ***l /imageItem***r ***l instructionsBoxTitle***r Introduction***l /instructionsBoxTitle***r ***l briefInstructions***r ***l /briefInstructions***r ***l instructionsBtnText***r Instructions***l /instructionsBtnText***r ***l /imageTermWidget***r ***l activityAudio***r ***l instructionAudio***r ***l /instructionAudio***r ***l contentAudio***r ***l /contentAudio***r ***l /activityAudio***r ***l altTags***r ***l closeAlt***r ***l /closeAlt***r ***l instructAlt***r ***l /instructAlt***r ***l submitAlt***r ***l /submitAlt***r ***l playPauseAlt***r ***l /playPauseAlt***r ***l muteUnmuteAlt***r ***l /muteUnmuteAlt***r ***l replayAlt***r ***l /replayAlt***r ***l stepPrevAlt***r ***l /stepPrevAlt***r ***l stepNextAlt***r ***l /stepNextAlt***r ***l restartAlt***r ***l /restartAlt***r ***l /altTags***r
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Information is a valuable asset to any individual or business, and it should be properly protected.

Poor information security practices can cost an organization customers and competitive edge, and they can even increase the cost of doing business. Additionally, your organization could face substantial regulatory and legal consequences in the event of a security breach.

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Congratulations! You have completed the Information Security lesson. The Security Awareness Education (SAE) Portal tracks the completion of the lesson and unlocks the next lesson in the course.

To move on to the next lesson, click Exit in the top right navigation bar of this screen to return to the SAE Portal. Then, follow the directions you learned in the Course Navigation lesson to return to the Course Menu page, where you may select the next activity from the list.