When it comes to cyber attacks, prevention is better than cure. Being well prepared to face a threat plays an imperative role in successfully mitigating a cyber attack. But how do institutions such as banks know if they’re ready enough to handle an attack? The solution would be to conduct a cyber security drill.
It is with these objectives in mind that the Department of Computer Science and Engineering of the University of Moratuwa in collaboration with TechCERT, one of the technology partners of the department together with the IT and Communication Sectional Committee of IESL took the initiative to launch Cyber Security Drill 2011.
A cyber security drill is a simulation of a cyberspace attack on the infrastructure of a system, in this case the team focused on the banking sector. The project was intended towards evaluating the readiness of banks in handling a cyber attack.
Through this project the team’s primary objective of a Cyber-security drill was to create awareness among the banking personnel regarding the possibility of cyber-attacks and the severity of the outcomes of such attacks. The importance of a contingency plan to handle cyber-security attacks is also highlighted throughout the drill. By assessing the readiness of the bank in successfully handling the cyber-attack during the drill, the team were able to help identify the possible lapses in current policies of the bank that needed addressing.
The drill simulated a cyber-attack against seven Sri Lankan banks that took part, giving the participants an exhilarating experience in handling a live cyber-attack. The cyber security drill was conducted recently from 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM at eight drill locations including seven bank sites and the Exercise Control (EXCON) Centre set up at TechCERT Office. This two hour drill simulated some of the most common types of attacks that an organization providing online services would face. The Exercise Control (EXCON) Centre was the core of the simulation. All the participating banks connected to a virtual environment that was controlled by EXCON.
The drill achieved several positive outcomes including identification of readiness the participating banks to the drill, establishing the need for proper contingency plans, improving the familiarity with Network Diagnostic tools and other related software and communicating the importance of maintaining logs and having adequately trained personnel in place to handle information security. The drill was also able to initiate discussions within the banks about the most effective methods to avoid and mitigate information security threats. It was clear that the participating banks gained a lot of knowledge on how to identify and mitigate cyber-attacks. This was a great opportunity for them to put their contingency strategies under test, and refine them.
The Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) of the University of Moratuwa is no newcomer to the field of Information Security. It has long been a provider of guidance to state and private organization on Cyber security related issues and a key player in introducing technologies required for the task. CSE continues to take active participation in this arena by equipping Sri Lankan organization with the necessary know-how of being secure in the cyber world to protect the interests of their customers.
Cyber-attacks have been one of the biggest problems throughout the world during the past few decades. Cyber-attacks are used to collect sensitive information.
Among the thousands of cyber-attacks which were launched on some of the world’s popular banks some have been famous because of its target or the damage. Although Sri Lanka is relatively new to the cyber world, considerable number of incidents have been reported related to cyber-attacks. Phishing websites (fake websites that collects credentials from customers) targeting the Financial sector are increasing. Hacking Facebook, Google and yahoo accounts of individuals, are just the beginning. |
E-mail
