Cyber Security

What Cyber Security covers

Cyber Security is examined in Paper 2, Computing concepts. It covers cyber security, common threats and penetration testing, social engineering: blagging, phishing and shouldering, malware: viruses, trojans and spyware and methods to detect and prevent cyber security threats.

The 4 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Cyber security, common threats and penetration testingWhat cyber security protects, pharming, weak passwords, misconfigured access rights, removable media and unpatched software, and penetration tests that simulate insiders and external attackers.Open →
• Social engineering: blagging, phishing and shoulderingWhy social engineering works, blagging, phishing, smishing and shouldering with examples, the warning signs of a phishing email, and how people and organisations defend against it.Open →
• Malware: viruses, trojans and spywareViruses, trojans, spyware and keyloggers, how malware reaches a computer, anti-malware software and firewalls, and everyday habits that keep a user safe.Open →
• Methods to detect and prevent cyber security threatsBiometrics, strong passwords and password rules, CAPTCHA, email confirmation, automatic updates and two-factor authentication, and choosing the right measure for a stolen phone.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Cyber Security further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Phishing vs Pharming

  Phishing: tricking a person into giving private information through a fake email or text. Pharming: secretly redirecting a website's visitors to a fake copy of the site.

• Virus vs Trojan

  Virus: malicious code that attaches to files and spreads when they are copied or run. Trojan: malicious code disguised as useful software so that users install it.

• Blagging vs Shouldering

  Blagging: using an invented scenario to persuade a victim to give information. Shouldering: observing a victim type a PIN or password from close behind them.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What is cyber security?

   Model answer

   Cyber security is the processes, practices and technologies that protect networks, computers, programs and data. Cyber security guards against attack, damage and unauthorised access.

2. 2

   What are the main purposes of cyber security?

   Model answer

   Cyber security keeps data confidential and stops it being changed or destroyed. Cyber security also keeps systems available to the people entitled to use them.

3. 3

   What is pharming?

   Model answer

   Pharming is a cyber attack that redirects a website's traffic to a fake website. Users think they are on the real site and may enter their login details.

4. 4

   How does pharming differ from phishing?

   Model answer

   Pharming can redirect users to a fake site without them clicking anything suspicious. Phishing is tricking users into giving information, usually through a fake email or text.

5. 5

   Why are weak and default passwords a security threat?

   Model answer

   Weak passwords can be guessed or cracked quickly by software. Default passwords are often published online, so attackers can simply look them up.

6. 6

   What are misconfigured access rights?

   Model answer

   Misconfigured access rights give users more access than they need, or leave data open to anyone. An ordinary user might be able to read or delete sensitive files.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Cyber Security revision questions

What does Cyber Security cover in AQA GCSE Computer Science?

4 subtopics: cyber security, common threats and penetration testing, social engineering: blagging, phishing and shouldering, malware: viruses, trojans and spyware and methods to detect and prevent cyber security threats. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Cyber Security organised?

By the AQA 8525 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.