South Korean Websites Hit by Distributed Denial-of-Service Attacks

March 4, 2011 - PRLog -- Recently, South Korean broadcasting and communication regulator, Korea Communications Commission (KCC) reported cyber-attacks on around 40 websites related to government bodies and other companies. The affected websites include those of the office of the President, the ministry of foreign affairs, defense ministry, unification ministry, the tax office, the military authorities and the parliament. Websites of seven banks including Kookmin Bank and office of the spy agency have also been reported to have suffered the attacks.

The attacks have been identified as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Internet security company AhnLab has cautioned against another possible DDoS attack. The government has issued a cyber security alert. Cyber security professionals associated with government and Internet security companies are working to deal with the latest challenge.

DDoS attacks are aimed at causing disruption in the services of the website. Attackers initiate simultaneous requests to the web server from several compromised computers, making it difficult for the site to provide usual services to the legitimate website users. Information technology (IT) security professionals are examining the severity of the attack. South Korea had faced similar attacks on government websites in 2009.

Attackers usually gain control over several computers and install attack tools. The compromised systems are than used to attack and infiltrate other computers.  Users must install anti-virus and anti-malware programs to protect their computers from virus and malware attacks. E-learning, online degree and training programs may help in creating cyber security awareness among Internet users.

Websites serve as an interface for communication between the organizations and the customers. Databases connected to the website may have confidential customer and business information. As such, they are prone to intrusion attempts from cybercriminals. The purpose of the attack may be to disrupt services or steal confidential information. Hiring cyber security specialists such as computer science degree holders, penetration testers, computer forensics experts, security analyst and auditors may help in prevention, timely detection and mitigation of security flaws.

Websites of government bodies have repeatedly faced cyber-attacks in the recent years. To meet the future requirements of cyber security professionals, industry and academic institutions may collaborate to devise online university degree programs on various subjects related to cyber security. Government must encourage research on cyber security in educational institutions, Universities and research institutions to devise new mechanisms and technologies for enhancing the security of the IT infrastructure.

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EC-Council University is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico and offers Master of Security Science (MSS) degree to students from various backgrounds such as graduates, IT Professionals, and military students amongst several others. The MSS is offered as a 100% online degree program and allows EC-Council University to reach students from not only the United States, but from all around the world.

EC-Council is a member-based organization that certifies individuals in cybersecurity and e-commerce skills. It is the owner and developer of 16 security certifications, including Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Computer Hacking Forensics Investigator (CHFI) and EC-Council Certified Security Analyst (ECSA)/License Penetration Tester (LPT). Its certificate programs are offered in over 60 countries around the world.

EC-Council has trained over 80,000 individuals and certified more than 30,000 members, through more than 450 training partners globally. These certifications are recognized worldwide and have received endorsements from various government agencies including the U.S. federal government via the Montgomery GI Bill, Department of Defense via DoD 8570.01-M, National Security Agency (NSA) and the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS). EC-Council also operates the global series of Hacker Halted security conferences.

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iClass is EC- Council's online training delivery platform. Students can attend live, or recorded training sessions for courses such as Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Certified Security Analyst (ECSA) or Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI).