Fail-safe systems
 Combining
techniques to protect your hard-earned data
The security of your CMMS data is constantly at risk because of mechanical
or electrical breakdown, human error, or malicious acts such as hacking
or computer viruses. Although there is no such thing as a 100 percent fail-safe
solution, you can minimize your losses through proper preparedness. This
article discusses ten ways in which to protect against security breaches.
Backup protection
The most fundamental means of securing your data is to backing it up.
There are many reusable media from which to choose. Diskettes are inexpensive
but have limited capacity and low speed. They are recommended for small
storage requirements or incremental back-ups.Tape is probably the most
economical, but it is slower than other methods. Removable or external
hard drives are very expensive if multiple versions are kept in backup.
Zip drives are cheaper and have lower capacity. A variation of the removable
hard drive, a jaz drive is an example of a higher capacity and faster version
of the zip drive.
All but the first can store more than one gigabyte of information on
each drive or cartridge. Compact disks and optical disks can store more
information, but are more expensive and not generally reusable.
To avoid the pain that most of us have experienced when a hard disk
crashes or data is suddenly lost, make sure that you devise an effective
backup model that allows you to reconstruct the data from several months
ago. As well, make sure that users are storing their data on the network
not just their hard drive because it is far easier, cheaper, and more reliable
to backup centrally. This is also true for users with laptops, or those
dialing in remotely.
To avoid the pain that most of us have experienced
when a hard disk crashes or data is suddenly lost, make sure that you devise
an effective backup model that allows you to reconstruct the data from
several months ago.
Redundancy
NASA, the military, and nuclear power plants are famous for spending
big dollars on redundant systems. But in our fast-paced business environment
where our dependency on computers is increasing steadily, reasonably-priced
redundancy schemes are very much in demand. This is probably true for your
CMMS. How long could you survive with your network down?
Three of the more popular means of ensuring redundancy are as follows:
Load sharing--The most obvious approach to redundancy is to have
identical hardware and software running in parallel, each at fifty percent
or less of capacity. If one unit goes down the other assumes the entire
load. However, any data lost on the unit that is inoperable must be obtained
from a back-up source.
Mirroring--Although there are many
variations on the theme, the key to mirroring is that data is duplicated
simultaneously and identically on two separate units. A unit can be a hard
drive, central processing unit, whole computer, and so on.
RAID--Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks (RAID) technology
spreads identical data across an array of disk drives for improved
performance and redundancy. The user, however, sees only one logical
drive at any given time. If a single drive in the array fails, the logical
drive continues to function without loss of data, and with only a slight
loss in performance until the drive is replaced.
Authentication
To protect your CMMS and other software applications from unwanted
access, the computer must first verify that you are who you say you are.
Some examples of authentication techniques are briefly described below.
Note that greater
security is achieved through a combination of methods.
Passwords are the simplest and not very reliable as a standalone
solutions. They must be changed often to avoid copying and users often
forget their passwords token--anything from a simple metal disk to a sophisticated
smart card or transponder that identifies and authenticates a legitimate
user
Digital signatures are a popular security method for Electronic
Data Interchange. They validate sender and receiver and are legitimate
through third-party certification biometrics. They use a unique personal
characteristic such as fingerprint, voice, palm print, retinal or iris
scan, or face scan to authenticate the user. The prices have dropped to
allow for home or office LAN application
Virus protection
It is hard to believe that thousands of people worldwide have created
computer viruses--software whose sole purpose is malicious in nature. A
virus is a software program that reproduces itself and is distributed via
diskettes, a network, or the Internet. It can infect the boot sector of
a hard drive, attack the partition table, or attach itself to any .exe
or .com file. Every virus has a trigger such as a specific date or the
running of a certain program.
The best way to combat viruses is to scan software received from an
external source such as a diskette given to you by a friend or a file downloaded
from the
Internet. Virus detection and disinfection software is available for
protecting your network, laptop, and remote computer.
To protect your CMMS and other software applications
from unwanted access, the computer must first verify that you are who you
say you are.
Audit trail
In general, there are three levels of sophistication for audit trails,
either built into the CMMS, running as third-party software, or included
with the operating system. The most basic is a summary of who has logged
in and out of the CMMS and network. The next level logs all changes to
the database, and the most sophisticated audit trail keeps a record of
every keystroke for every user. The latter log occupies considerable disk
space for a large number of users, or transaction-intensive environments.
Error checking
In order to prevent security breaches due to human error, the CMMS
and other applications should be written with error-checking capability.
A simple example, would be to block a user from entering erroneous data
or performing a potentially inappropriate action such as deleting data.
Firewall
Any network or standalone PC that provides access to the external world
requires protection from unwanted entry. A firewall is a device that filters
and checks all data flowing to or from another computer, network, or the
Internet. This is an expensive but necessary addition to your CMMS in order
to allow safe access remotely or via the Internet.
A virus is a software program that reproduces
itself and is distributed via diskettes, a network, or the internet. It
can infect the boot sector of a hard drive, attack the partition table,
or attach itself to any .exe or .com file.
Encryption
One of the most secure methods of protecting your data is encryption.
This involves encoding data using an algorithm that can vary in sophistication
depending on the level of security required. A key to the algorithm
is then required to decode the data. Encryption is especially critical
to ensure data integrity and confidentiality on the internet, if widescale
electronic commerce is to become a reality.
Physical security
One of the simplest and most effective means of securing your hardware
and software is to keep it locked. Network equipment should be locked in
a room with carefully controlled access. Laptops should be anchored and
locked to a desk when in use, and stored in a locked cabinet at the end
of the day. Offices should be kept locked at all times, and access controlled
using security guards or an authentication system.
Business recovery planning
When preventive measures above fail, there must be a plan in place
to recover from the loss. Business Recovery Planning is discussed in detail
in the March, 1998 column.
Copyright May 1998 Plant Services on the WEB
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