Tuesday, May 8, 2007

The Academic Essay.

Academic Essay

New Communication Tech

By Hannah Robertson

Student number: s2625445

“Phishing compromises Individuals safety and security. There should be more rules and regulations that control this phenomenon.” Discuss.

Phishing. Pronounced FISH-ing, it is the creation of a clone of an existing web page to trick a user into submitting personal, financial or password data (HTML reference 1). This is a relatively new term to the Internet world, as previously hackers were at the forefront of describing computer crime. Phishing is different to hacking in the way hacking deceives the user into entering and downloading a Trojan horse program, which in turn impairs the computer’s function (Parker 1998, p.165). Phishing does trick the user into entering their fraudulent website, however, Phishing takes personal information from the user once “baited” and can use this information to tap into users websites, or financial information. Phishing is most common through a spam email that is disguised as an email coming from a financial institution, but recently Phishing has become more prevalent in the Myspace Community. http://www.myspace.com/ is an interactive community where users are free to create their own personal “space” for interaction. Myspace has recently become a target for Phishing criminals who trick the users by redirecting them to a fake Myspace homepage where users would have to enter their details only to have it read by a 3rd party website who retrieves their log-in email and password (HTML Reference 3). While only resulting in annoying spam bulletins, and the deletion of profile content, this problem is compromising user’s security by enabling access to their passwords, which in turn, could lead to the gaining of other personal information such as banking details.

In the 1960s, a hacker did not have any nasty connotations (Fites Et Al 1989, p. 17). In 2007, Phishing is a word that is almost synonymous with annoying, useless and inconvenient bulletins, comments and emails. While people know about the dangers of hacking and Phishing, most individuals do not do enough to protect themselves from this crime. The Internet is decentralised, non-hierarchical, almost anarchic (Sterling 1993, p. 229) in nature, and while there are laws prohibiting this type of activity, the Internet needs to have more regulators to control the extent of the crimes committed. In saying this, most individuals can avoid this type of activity by simply acknowledging and protecting themselves from Phishing.

Fites Et Al (1989) noted that with virus attacks becoming more vicious “and result in more damage, legal action will be brought against the vandals”(Fites Et Al, 1989, p. 125). Myspace’s Phishing bug has resulted in massive vicious attacks. This has included the Phishers engineering a fake login form on Myspace’s own web site. Even security conscious individuals are at risk of becoming victims (Hart, 2006- HTML Reference 6). Why Myspace? Because, as Dan Hubbard, Vice President of Security and Research for Websense Inc, noted, “Teenagers and young adults, who make up the bulk of visitors to networking sites, are seen as easy targets because they are typically more trusting and less security-savvy” (Hart, 2006- HTML Reference 6). Parents could use the same computer for their banking, and then this is when Phishing becomes a serious crime. While oblivious teenagers are angered by mysterious bulletins they did not post, they choose to ignore the multitude of warnings on Myspace to simply “Change your password” (HTML Reference 7). Under the “Help” section of Myspace.com, there are helpful hints on how to report spammers, as well as the ability to report such offences by simply contacting their customer service through a message, at the URL http://collect.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=misc.contactInput&primarySubject=2&secondarySubject=37. Myspace openly encourages the reporting of fraudulent spam bulletins and fake Myspace login pages. Therefore, individuals are warned about the dangers of Phishing on Myspace, and are aware of the reporting abilities available. In saying that there should be more laws governing this, individuals can avoid this type of activity by following warnings.

Computer crime has dated back to about 1986, when the Computer Fraud and abuse act passed. Also, the Electronic Communication and Privacy act passed in 1986 (Sterling 1993, p 19), a positive step in the right direction to curb hacking. Since 1986, however, Hacking and Phishing has increased in size and proportion. The unauthorised use of other networks, computers and their information is a legal violation in the majority of legal jurisdictions in the western world (Parker 1998, p. 174). The Internet is certainly anarchic in every aspect, so why is there a lack of monitoring? The Australian Government has attempted to curb this problem, with credit and debit car skimming an offence, from Legislation introduced in Winter 2004 (HTML Reference 8). The Government had also promised to educate consumers about Phishing. This does not skirt the issue entirely. Internet savvy consumers have to listen to all warnings carefully. This is not always done. The Internet is one of quick, fast and easy access, and to “be careful” of the Phishing bug plagues the user with a terrible amount of inconvenience, something that these customers of banking sectors do not need. While these users may be seen as lazy, owners of websites with banking functions and targets of Phishing (such as Myspace), could do more to make Phishing more regulated by writing and petitioning to Government, and introducing anti-Phishing clients on their websites.

Why is Phishing a growing trend? According to Bruce Sterling, “People- especially clever teenage boys whose lives are otherwise mostly powerless…love this sensation of secret power and are willing to do all sorts of amazing things to achieve it” (Sterling 1993, p. 19). Jan Hruska has also noted in Computer Viruses and Anti-Virus Warfare that these hackers have “no sense of responsibility or remorse about what they do, and are prepared to exploit others to achieve their aims” (Hruska 1990, p. 54). It is a growing subculture of individuals who are excited by accessing individual’s private details in the Myspace world where individuality is exposed by the click of a button. Because the Internet is so anonymous in nature, these “Phishers” feel comfortable in knowing that their identity, as long as they are protected, are securely hidden. These Phishers are comfortable in that fact because they are so well experienced with Computers and Networks, it is hard to feel anxious at all. This is why the Internet needs to be regulated more, with the help of users, the legal system, and site owners.

The Computer world is growing faster than any other Trend in the universe. People are more Technologically savvy than ever, and with the growing need for personalities to be exposed on Myspace, comes the threat of the Phishing bug taking over Individual’s details, and causing great inconvenience in their everyday Cyber lives. Individuals need to protect themselves from such bugs by always following warnings, and perhaps choosing an Anti-Phishing Web browser, such as Mozilla Firefox. Mozilla checks websites frequently that is associated with Phishing. This is placed on a list that is updated frequently, and warns the user of the danger by placing a pop-up warning box if there is a suspicious website (HTML Reference 10). The Internet needs to be monitored a whole lot more than it is in today’s society, with it’s anarchic nature, and the legal system needs greater “Internet Police” to avoid this situation. In the words of August Bequai, “In shopping for security, do so intelligently”(Bequai 1983, p. 222), that is, always pay attention to quality Anti-Phishing programs, such as Mozilla, and follow all warnings in using social network sites such as Myspace. With the aid of a better-regulated Internet community, we can all work in harmony to prevent Phishing.

References

  1. “Word Spy- Phishing” 2003, http://www.wordspy.com/words/phishing.asp, accessed 2nd May 9:03am
  2. Parker, Donn B, Fighting Computer Crime: A new Framework for protecting information 1998. Publication: New York ; Chichester [England].
  3. “Phishing on Myspace”http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/10/27/HNphishingmyspace_1, accessed 2nd May 9:07am
  4. Philip Fites, Peter Johnston, Matin Kratz. The Computer Virus Crisis. Publication: New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, c1989.
  5. Sterling, Bruce. The Hacker Crackdown: Law and disorder on the electronic frontier. Publication: [London] : Viking, 1993.
  6. Hart, Kim “Phish Hooked” 2007- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/15/AR2006071500119_2.html accessed 2nd May 9:17am

7. FAQ- Myspace.com. http://www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=misc.faq&Category=3&Question=44, accessed 2nd May 9:20am

  1. Law Planned to make Phishing an offence. By Online Staff at The Age, http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/05/20/1084917693354.html accessed 2nd May 9:30am
  1. Hruska, Jan, Computer Viruses and Anti-Virus Warfare. Publication: New York : Ellis Horwood, 1990.
  1. “Firefox 2 Phishing Prevention” http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/phishing-protection/ accessed 2nd May 9:43am
11. Bequai, August, How to prevent Computer crime: A guide for managers. Publication: New York : Wiley, c1983.
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