Information Assurance Practitioner

The security of an organizational data is providing new challenges every day. There are nefarious unscrupulous people who enjoy cracking into computer systems for no other purpose than to say they can and there are those with an agenda we can only imagine. Stolen or altered data can disrupt operations and inflict damage to organizations operations and reputations; which in turn hurts the business and the employees who work there. Organizations most valued assets are their people and the data they process. Information assurance is important work and it is necessary to protect that which is vital to the operations of the company. I have a passion for obtaining new knowledge that is why I have chosen the information assurance field of study; it is constantly changing and is challenging work. New technologies are being developed to prevent and protect organizational people and its data. The security of an organization is the responsibility of every individual who processes data. It is up to management to set the standards and policy for the organizational policy. The CEO or information owners down to the help desk personal who interact with the users of the system; all play an important part in protecting organizational assets. It starts with how the data flows and the processes it must endure to insure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data; also known as the CIA triad. In today’s world of cyber criminals, it is even more important to integrate security into our daily computing lives; at home and work. The CIA triad is the foundation of information security. Confidentiality is the access control process for the information system and the data it processes. The prevention of unauthorized disclosure of data and resources can be accomplished in many different methods; training of the individual users in the proper ways of protecting their computing systems and access controls implemented by system administrators. Integrity ensures that the data has not been altered and is presented to the user as validated data. Methods for validating the integrity of data can be complex while data is in transport; hashing algorithms, VLANS and tunneling protocols are a few examples used for preventing data from being altered. Availability is the prevention of loss to data, resources and processes. This can be accomplished via encryption algorithms, user management; only those authorized for access can gain access. There is so much technology, methods and processes involved in managing risk for an information system it is a necessity to manage the multiple documents for the information systems, users and the data being processed. The documents that record the security posture for an information system are living documents and must be updated as new changes are introduced and upgrades are approved and implemented. With a Bachelors degree in Information Assurance and Forensics, it is my desire to continue in the information security field of study. I am currently studying for a Certified Information System Security Professional certification and need two more years of experience in the security field to be eligible for a full certification I’m proud to have served my country in government and military in my role as a contractor in protecting our data and information systems from being compromised, defaced, stolen or altered. And if given another chance, for however a brief period, I would do so as often as I’m called upon.

Network Security Engineer

Skiatook, OK