Securing Data on a Network (Edexcel IGCSE ICT): Flashcards
Exam code: 4IT1
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What is the purpose of a password on a network?
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Cards in this collection (18)
What is the purpose of a password on a network?
A password acts as a digital lock to prevent unauthorised access to an account, and authenticates a user to the network.
Why are passwords stored in encrypted form in a database?
So that even with unauthorised access to the database, a hacker would not be able to gain the individual passwords of users.
Define firewall.
A firewall is a barrier between a network and the internet that prevents unwanted traffic from entering by filtering requests to ensure they are legitimate.
What is the difference between a hardware firewall and a software firewall?
A hardware firewall protects the whole network, while a software firewall protects the individual devices, monitoring the data going to and from each computer.
Define encryption.
Encryption is a method of scrambling data so that unauthorised users cannot understand it, using keys and complex mathematical algorithms.
How does symmetric encryption work?
The sender uses a key to encrypt the data before transmission, and the receiver uses the same key to decrypt it.
What is the main weakness of symmetric encryption?
The challenge of securely sharing the key — if an unauthorised user captures it, they can decrypt all intercepted messages.
How does public key encryption work?
The receiver openly shares a public key which the sender uses to encrypt the data, and only the receiver's private key can decrypt it.
Why is public key encryption used for passwords and bank details rather than large files?
It is slower than symmetric encryption, so it is used for more secure and smaller data transactions, while symmetric encryption is faster and suits large amounts of data.
What do WEP and WPA stand for?
WEP is Wireless Encryption Protocol and WPA is Wi-Fi Protected Access.
Why is WEP less secure than WPA?
With WEP every device uses the same key, so eavesdropping software can intercept data packets and identify the key, whereas WPA gives each device a different key and uses new keys for every packet.
Eavesdropping software known as packet can intercept data packets and identify a WEP key.
Eavesdropping software known as packet sniffers can intercept data packets and identify a WEP key.
Define virtual private network (VPN).
A VPN allows users to remotely connect to private local area networks, with all data sent and received encrypted.
Give three common uses of a VPN.
Remotely accessing a company's network when working from home, making secure payments, hiding web activities, and bypassing geolocation rights management or online censorship.
Name the four file access rights.
Read (view contents only), write (change contents or create new files), delete (remove files) and execute (run applications).
Define transaction log.
A transaction log is a secure file on a network that keeps a record of every action performed by devices on that network.
True or False?
Transaction logs directly protect a network from attack.
False.
Transaction logs do not directly protect a network — they help administrators monitor and identify unusual activity.
Name four things recorded in a transaction log.
Device and data access, timestamps, user IDs, and successful and failed login attempts.
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