Having learned about intrusions by exploits in this module, the case study will examine the circumstances of a highly publicized data breach (actually a series of breaches) referred to as Operation Aurora that occurred in the second half of 2009 against dozens of large companies. The aim of this case study is to highlight the extent and impact of real intrusions. Operation Aurora was a series of cyberattacks during the second half of 2009 against dozens of large companies including Google, Adobe Systems, Juniper Networks, Rackspace, Yahoo, Symantec, Northrop Grumman, Morgan Stanley, and Dow Chemical. The attack was named “Operation Aurora” by security company McAfee because that name was in part of the file path on the attackers’ machine that was included in malware samples studied by McAfee. Many security incidents are not disclosed, but Google publicized the intrusion and claimed that China was responsible. Google alleged that the Chinese government used the company’s service to spy on human rights activists. Google also stated that over 20 other companies had been attacked. Assignment: Write a 2 to 3 page paper answering the following questions 1.Unusually, Google publicly disclosed the intrusion and named other companies that had been attacked. Other sources have reported that more than 34 organizations were targeted. List several of the companies reported to have been involved. 2.Describe the suspected method of intrusion. In particular, explain the vulnerability that was exploited by the Hydraq (also known as Aurora) Trojan Horse. The vulnerability affecting Internet Explorer was identified by Microsoft in an advisory on January 14, 2010. 3.What was the affect or loss reported by Google? 4.What evidence was reportedly used in attribution of the intrusions?

ORIGINAL WORK ONLY!

Infographic or visual diagram delivered as a PDF ONLY!

The head of the IT security department expressed her concerns about series of data breaches that occurred in the company and mentioned that many employees ignored their system security warnings.

You have been asked to provide a summary of information to the entire team about data breaches and suggest proactive and preventative measures for warding off viruses. Your presentation will be sent out to all company employees, so the information must be clear, concise, and informative.

To prepare your presentation, use your personal computer to perform the following tasks:

• Identify whether you have an anti-virus software running on your machine and from which company.
• Identify if a firewall is enabled on your machine and if you need Windows® firewall running in addition, if that anti-virus software is installed on your machine.

Include the following in your summary:

• Definition of a data breach
• Ways to determine if your system was infected with a virus
• At least three preventive measures against data breaches, both physical or digital
• Instructions on locating anti-virus and firewall software
• Instructions on what to do if a virus has infected your computer