Computer systems and the data they hold face many kinds of attack. This lesson describes the main cyber security threats in the 0478 syllabus, explaining what each one does and how it is carried out so you can recognise and describe them accurately.
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Attacks on access and traffic
A brute-force attack tries to gain access to an account by repeatedly guessing passwords until the correct one is found, often using automated software.
Data interception happens when an attacker uses software such as a packet sniffer to capture data as it travels across a network.
A distributed denial of service attack floods a server with so many requests from many computers at once that it cannot respond to genuine users.
Hacking is gaining unauthorised access to a computer system, which can lead to data being stolen, changed or deleted.
Check you've got it
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1. What best describes a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack?
2. Which type of malware can copy itself and spread across a network without any user action?
3. How does pharming differ from phishing?
4. Which threat relies on manipulating people rather than attacking technology directly?