Website security reviewer
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Web Site Security Considerations - An Evaluation
An unfortunate fact is that there are lots of ways in which website security can be circumvented. For example, security dangers lurk insidiously that have an effect on Web servers and LANs (local area networks) on which Web sites reside, even by the regular use of a Web browser.
Web Masters shoulder the responsibility when managing the major risks. As soon as a Web server is set up at a site, a window comes into being in the local area network through which anyone who's on the Internet can peek. Of course, for the most part web site visitors look at only what they're supposed to look at, but a minority try to discover parts of the site which are not meant to be observable by the world. Dishonest visitors aspire to go further than merely look; they attempt to unlock the window and steal inside. The damage they can cause might be sheer vandalism, for example replacing the website's home page with one of their own which could say or display absolutely anything, or else it could be theft, like appropriating a contacts or orders list.
It's difficult to avoid the likelihood that complex computer software has bugs. No matter how systematically it is tested, there exists frequently some permutation of events or user actions, while it may appear infrequently, that brings about a fault. Software bugs give rise to gaps in system security. A Web server is complicated software that may quite possibly include a security defect.
It's not just the complexity of a Web server that may instigate a problem, but also its open architecture. Consider a CGI script as an illustration. A CGI script can be executed at the server in reply to a remote call from a client. It might be a request from an application or even the click of a button in a browser. If the CGI script includes a bug, there may be a risk of a security violation.
Network Administrators also have to cope with problems from Web servers on account of the risk they pose to the security of the local area network. Although there ought to be no unauthorised intrusions, admission must be granted to web site visitors. This means that access to the network should be regulated. The Administrator therefore has to perform a delicate balancing act. Even the most robust firewall can be undermined if the Web server is configured poorly. By the same token, normal use of the website may be unattainable if the firewall is configured poorly. Finding an ideal answer is even more difficult if an intranet is part of the system. Typically, the Web server then has to be configured to identify and validate domains and user groups, which are apt to have varying permission levels and access privileges.
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Almost everyone using a browser to surf the Web trust that they are doing so anonymously and in safety. This is not correct. Web browsers may process self-contained programs on the client computer which are resident on a web site. Current browsers display a warning and request permission to execute those programs. Described generally as "active content", e.g., ActiveX controls or Java applets, these programs, if malicious, might easily inject a virus or other hazardous software on the browser user's machine. After it is in the system it can cause all kinds of havoc and can be very hard to remove.
This is also a worry for Network Administrators. Web browsers make available a means for possibly malicious software to filter all the way through the local area network's firewall. When it is in the network, the damage it is able to inflict can go from clandestinely stealing confidential data to meaningless destruction.
Apart from the concerns surrounding active content, simply browsing the Web records a trail of the user's activities in the browser's history. This may be used by websites and installed software programs to determine a precise report of the user's behavior and interests. While this may be considered an invasion of privacy by some, it can be positively effective by providing relevant content instantaneously, thus relieving the user of the task of trying to find it.
Secrecy is a topic that concerns not just browser users but also Web Masters and Network Administrators in the actual transmission of information by means of the Web. TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) is the fundamental language of communication for the Net. When it was formed, security wasn't the principal aspect of its design. Both network and Internet transmissions should therefore not be considered as necessarily confidential. Whenever the browser on a local PC downloads a confidential file from the remote Web server, or the browser user fills out a form with personal information and clicks the 'Submit' button, the transmitted data could be intercepted without consent.
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