Understanding the Basics: Cybersecurity Fundamentals

Cybersecurity is a field that is crucial yet often perceived as complex and inaccessible. My goal is to break down these complexities into digestible pieces, starting with the very foundation of what it means maintain a secure digital footprint.

At the heart of cybersecurity is a balancing act between security and convenience. This balance is delicate; overly restrictive security measures can become a hindrance, leading users to find workarounds that compromise the very safeguards put in place. It’s a paradox where the pursuit of robust protection can inadvertently weaken it.

Understanding Information Security

Information security is about safeguarding data from unauthorized access, unlawful modifications, disruptions, disclosures, corruption, and destruction. It focuses on the data itself and not just the systems that store it. Protecting the data ensures its confidentiality, integrity, and availability — principles commonly referred to as the CIA Triad.

• Confidentiality: This principle ensures that sensitive information is accessible only to those with the necessary authorization.
• Integrity: This principle is about maintaining the accuracy and consistency of data across its lifecycle. Any alteration should be a deliberate, authorized process.
• Availability: This ensures that data and resources are available to authorized users when needed.

However, the CIA Triad isn’t exhaustive. The threat landscape is constantly evolving and additional elements have been proposed, expanding our protective measures into what some refer to as the CIANA Pentagon.

• Non-Repudiation: This element guarantees that actions or events, once executed, cannot be denied by the parties involved.
• Authentication: This is the process of verifying the identity of a user or system, ensuring that entities are who they claim to be.
• Authorization: This dictates the levels of access or actions permissible for a user or system.
• Accounting: This involves tracking user activities and resource usage, often for auditing or billing purposes.

Navigating Security Controls

To mitigate risks, various security controls are put in place. These controls can be technical, managerial, operational, or physical, each serving a unique purpose in the cybersecurity framework. They include preventative, deterrent, detective, corrective, compensating, and directive measures. The selection and implementation of these controls involves strategic decisions tailored to an organization’s specific needs and the overall threat landscape.

Embracing Zero Trust

Another fundamental concept is the Zero Trust model, which operates under the assumption that no entity, whether internal or external to the organization, should be automatically trusted. This requires a thorough evaluation of how access and privileges are granted and monitored.

Zero Trust architecture is built on two main components: the control plane and the data plane. The control plane encompasses adaptive identity verification, threat scope reduction, policy-driven access control, and the creation of secured zones. The data plane, on the other hand, focuses on the subjects or systems, the policy engine, policy administration, and the establishment of policy enforcement points.

Protecting your digital environment effectively requires an understanding of the fundamentals and fostering a culture that balances protection with practicality. Future posts will continue to develop the fundamentals with the goal of providing a foundation of knowledge in order to help navigate the basics of cybersecurity.

Matthew Peterson is a seasoned professional with a Master’s degree in Global Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management and a graduate certificate from the Pacific Coast Banking School. Currently, Matthew is expanding his expertise by pursuing a Security+ certification, underscoring his commitment to continuous learning and excellence in his field.

You can connect with him on LinkedIn or by visiting his website.