Computer & Society

Q.       Write short notes on: - Control Information.

Ans.:  Control Information: In business and accounting, information technology controls (or IT controls) are specific activities performed by persons or systems designed to ensure that business objectives are met. They are a subset of an enterprise's internal control. IT control objectives relate to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data and the overall management of the IT function of the business enterprise. IT controls are often described in two categories: IT general controls (ITGC) and IT application controls. ITGC include controls over the Information Technology (IT) environment, computer operations, access to programs and data, program development and program changes. IT application controls refer to transaction processing controls, sometimes called "input-processing-output" controls.

Q.       Describe the application areas of computer.         

Ans.: Computers are so popular that you can find their applications in almost every corner. You need to know about computers if you want to perform your tasks effectively in this information age.

Computers in Education: The capability of interacting with learners makes computers as powerful tools for enhancing the process of learning. In addition, computers also play an important role in searching information and school administration. In this unit, we will introduce how computers are used as learning and teaching tools, and as administrative tools

Computers in Recreation: Recreation is another area of computer application. You can play electronic golf at home. You can play chess with the computer as your opponent. Some software combines entertainment and education. In this unit, we will describe different types of computer games and explain why they have 'intelligence', edutainment and special movie effects produced by computers.

Computers in Business Applications: Computers are widely used in business nowadays. In this unit, we will introduce their uses in banking, supermarkets and transaction payments.

Computers in Office Applications: The advance of computer technology supports a range of improved office activities. In this unit, we will introduce the applications of computers in various general office works.

Computers in Industrial Applications: Although drafting tables and T-squares are still around, more and more engineers and architects are designing products with computers. In this unit, we will introduce the use of computers in design, manufacturing and transportation.

Computers in Scientific Applications: Computers are used extensively in science. For example, meteorologists use computers to study the formation of tornadoes. Computers can also be used to simulate automobile accidents on screen. In this unit, we will introduce the use of computers in modeling and simulation, and weather forecasting.

Q.       Briefly explain the application of computer in Business. 

Ans.: Communication/networking: The world may have grown smaller in the internet age, but only because the power of communication has grown by leaps and bounds. The top computer uses in business include e-mail communication, and networking platforms such as video and web conferencing, social networking, and various other online chat tools. Even faxing, which has become increasingly obsolete in light of new technologies, is still a relevant business use of the computer.

Search engines and browsing: Computers have provided us with instant access to a world of information. To stay competitive, businesses must utilize search engines such as Google or yahoo to obtain real time information and news and conduct research.

Financial transactions/e-commerce: Retail purchases, credit card transactions, automatic debits… can all be processed over computers, and through the internet today. Banks, credit card companies, and other financial institutions are some of the best examples of computer uses in business. E-commerce is a rapidly growing industry, promising to become one of the top computer related professions in the future.

Storage, archival and retrieval: Thousands and thousands of manuscripts, files, charts or other document types can be stored on a tiny microchip. In the old days, businesses needed file cabinets or warehouses to store pertinent records and data. Today, data management is easy, thanks to computers and computer products that enable businesses to organize, store, and easily retrieve critical information.

Design and presentation: Just a few short decades ago, artists were still creating business documents by hand. The advent of graphic design, digital photography and printing technology has enabled businesses to display information more clearly and artistically.

Organization: The ease with which databases, spreadsheets and data can be compiled on a computer has certainly improved the efficiency and management practices of businesses worldwide. Many offices now uses computer programs to handle scheduling, accounting, billing, inventory management, contact management, etc.

Document processing: Word Processing, for letters, manuscripts, proposals, etc. has revolutionized the business world. Today, many professionals would actually feel lost without simple editing tools such as spell check.

Telecommuting and remote business: Portable laptop computers, smart phones, wireless internet, air cards and hub spots are the wave of the future when it comes to computer uses in business. Today, business can be conducted remotely from almost anywhere.

Marketing: So much of marketing has gone online. Social media marketing, website development, blogging, advertising, e-newsletters have all become swift means of marketing in an increasingly globalized society.

E-learning, web-based training and software packages: Electronically supported training programs are made possible by computers. Educational software, web training programs and virtual classrooms are all highly utilized in the business world; enabling professionals to learn new skills advance their careers.

Q.       Write down the application of computer in Stock Exchange.         

Ans.: Traders had to wait to allow stock-market brokers to update before they may open business the following day. Computer can perform job efficiently with greater accuracy than it was done manually in the past. Computer and Computer-drive trade has significantly affected the stock exchange. Computer and telecommunications technology, besides opening a wide market in over the counter dealings;, has also given rise to trading on an international level. Networked computers allow trading to occur around the clock and the securities trading on one major stock exchange can now significantly affect the trading on others. Technologies also now allow for “day trading,” a high-risk business in which numerous computerized trades are made during a single day, with large gains possible.

            Another form of computerized trading is high-frequency trading, in which computer programs analyze the market and execute trades at high speed to reap momentary financial benefits. Such trades often involve very small gains that are magnified by the amount of shares traded and the number of trades made.  Traders engaged in high-frequency trading are typically employed by well-capitalized firms and hold shares for brief periods of time, usually selling all shares by the end of a trading day.

Q.       What is E-commerce?

Ans.:  E-commerce: Electronic commerce, or e-commerce, is currently a topic of wide-spread interest in the business sector. E-commerce id defined as the use of telecommunications or wide area networking to carry out business activities and financial transactions. However, in the age of the internet, intranet and extranet, e-commerce is more than just buying and selling products online.  It also includes on-line process of developing, marketing, delivering and servicing products, and services purchased by global Internet communities.

Q.       Briefly describe the three basic categories of application of E-commerce.

Ans.: Three basic categories of application of E-commerce: The Inter4net, intranet, and extranet provide vital electronic commerce links between the components of a business, customers, suppliers, and business partners. Three basic categories of electronic commerce applications are:

·         Business-to-consumer Commerce: In business-to-consumer commerce, business must develop attractive electronic marketplaces to sell products and services to consumers. For example, companies may offer multimedia Web sites that provide virtual storefronts and virtual shopping malls, interactive order processing, and secure electronic payment systems.

·         Business-to-Business Applications: Business-to-business category of electronic commerce involves both electronic business market places and direct market links between businesses. For example, many companies offer the business community a variety of marketing and product information on the World Wide Web.

·         Internal Business Process: All business functions and many business processes are influenced by electronic commerce activities. For example, many inter-networked enterprises are customer-to-driven and market-driven. They continually monitor and evaluate online information of their customers, suppliers, and competitors from their Web sites and discussion groups.

Q.       Mention the security systems of computer communication.         

Ans.: Many people have access to the network system, often form remote locations. However, to begin with, network operating systems provide basic security features, such as user identification and authentication, probably by password. Sophisticated network systems can permit network supervisors to assign varying access rights to individual users. All users, for example, could access word processing software, but only certain users could access payroll files. Some network software can limit how many times users can call up a particular field and generate an audit trial of who looked at which files. One fundamental approach to network security is to dedicate on computer, called firewall, whose sole purpose is to talk to the outside word. A firewall will provide an organization with greatly increased security because only one network computer is accessible to people outside the network, and that one computer accepts only appropriate access.

                  Data being sent over communication lines may be protected by scrambling the messages – that is, putting them in code that can be broken only by the person receiving the message. The process of scrambling messages is called encryption. The American National Standards Institute has endorsed a process called the Data Encryption Standard (DES), a standardized public key by which senders and receivers can scramble and unscramble messages.

Q.       A potential drawback occurs when you rely on internet news groups as sources of information. Describe the problem.      

Ans.: The problem with using an Internet newsgroup (or Wikipedia, for that matter) as a source is that the facts are not supported. You need to use other sources to verify them. If the newsgroup article contains a link, follow the link, and use the primary source for your information.

           

            A newsgroup is not as quick as an email or even a mailing list. Very ofter there will be a dealy of the least a day, oftern longer, before a response is given. Another disadvantage to a newsgroup is that the information on them is submitted by people who may have no real idea of what they are talking about, so you need to be aware to this potential flwo and keep your mind open to alternatives, and to be prepared to do some more backgrouond research oif it is important.

            A serious disadvantage to newsgroups is that they can sometimes attact people who you whould’s give the time of day to if you wher to meedt them in person.

Q.       What is computer virus?

Ans.: Computer Virus: A virus is a parasitic program that infects another legitimate program, which is sometimes called the host. To infect the host program, the virus modifies the host the store a copy of the virus. It can replicate itself and spread from one computer to another. The term "virus" is also commonly, but erroneously, used to refer to other types of malware, including but not limited to adware and spyware programs that do not have a reproductive ability. Malware includes computer viruses, computer worms, Trojan horses, most rootkits, spyware, dishonest adware and other malicious or unwanted software, including true viruses.

Q.       Describe the types of compute virus.

Ans.: Virus types: A sophisticated virus can spread undetected for a long time. A boot virus attacks boot sector of a disk. Viruses affect files with extensions EXE, COM, SYS, DRV, OVR, OVI, BIN, Some common viruses are Jerusalem, Stone (Marijuana), Dhaka virus, Vienna, CIH virus, April First etc.

Q.       Describe symptoms of infection by computer virus.          

Ans.: Symptoms of infection:

·         Deleting files

·         Corrupting screen displays

·         Corruption data

·         Slowing down operation of a system

·         Displaying unwanted messages etc.

Q.       How can we control the viruses of computer? Explain.     

Ans.: Viruses are most commonly passed via diskettes. In addition to that, viruses use many other means to propagate – bulletin boards, local area networks, and electronic mail, if a personal computer has driven a modem or a network connector, it is vulnerable. Furthermore, viruses are rampant on some college campuses, a source of considerable annoyance to students. Use the following common sense approaches to new files:

·         Never install a program unless the diskette comes in a sealed package.

·         Be especially wary of software that arrives unexpectedly form companies with whom one has not done business.

·         Use virus-scanning software to check any file, no matter what the sources, before loading it onto hard disk.

·         If diskette was used in another computer, scan it to see if it caught a virus.

Q.       What is antivirus?

Ans.: Antivirus: A program that scans a computer’s disks and memory for viruses; when it detects viruses, it removes them. Some antivirus programs can help the user recover data and program files that have been damaged by a virus and can actively scan files as they are being copied from a disk or downloaded from the Internet.

Q.       How a computer can be protected from virus attack?

Ans.: Some useful tips of which if followed properly will protect your computer system against virus attack.

·         The first to take against computer virus is to install an antivirus utility program in your computer. Make sure the antivirus program you installed has easy to apply, regular updates. This will protect the system against the rapid and almost daily changes of computer virus. Also ensure regular updating of your antivirus.

·         If your computer BIOS has settings that allow you to disable boot-sector writes, it is advisable that you enable it. This will protect programs from writing to your computer registry. Remember to disable it anytime you want to install windows program or any other program that has to write to your registry.

·         Always scan all removable media like flash drives, floppy drives etc., before opening them in your computer.

·         Run full hard disk scan at intervals, this will remove any virus programs that find their way in.

·         It’s also a good idea to stay up to date on the latest news about viruses.

Q.       How computer virus can harm an individual and an organization?             

Ans.: A computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without permission or knowledge of the user. The term comes from the term virus in biology. A computer virus reproduces by making, possibly modified, copies of itself in the computer’s memory, storage, or over a network. This is similar to the way a biological virus works but nothing to do with human beings. There are many viruses operating in the general Internet today, and new ones are discovered every day.

Unauthorized software can often contain viruses with the potential to damage individual computers and entire networks. Viruses can cause partial or complete data loss, which is devastating to most companies.

            So in this way computer virus can harm an individual and an organization.

Q.       Define ergonomics.

Ans.: Ergonomics: The study of the physical relationship between people and their tools. In the world of computing, ergonomics seeks to help people use computers correctly to avoid physical problems such as fatigue, eyestrain, and repetitive stress injuries.

Q.       What do you understand by piracy?

Ans.: Piracy: When you purchase software, you are actually purchasing a license to use it, not the actual software. The license is what tells you how many times you can install the software, therefore it's important to read and understand it. If you make more copies of the software than the license permits, you are pirating and thus breaking the law. Whether you are casually making a few copies for friends, loaning CDs, downloading or distributing pirated software from the Internet, or buying a single software program and then installing it on multiple computers, you are committing copyright infringement — this is software piracy.

Q.       What do you understand about ethics in use of computer?            

Ans.: Ethics is a set of moral principles that govern the behavior of a group or individual. Therefore, computer ethics is set of moral principles that regulate the use of computers. Some common issues of computer ethics include intellectual property rights (such as copyrighted electronic content), privacy concerns, and how computers affect society. Therefore, computer ethics promotes the discussion of how much influence computers should have in areas such as artificial intelligence and human communication. As the world of computers evolves, computer ethics continues to create ethical standards that address new issues raised by new technologies.

Q.       When a business connects its own network to the internet what kind of risk does the business create for itself?                 

Ans.: Business network will faces a lot of risks: Loss of information/ Data Theft, Worms, Trojan Horses, Viruses and Malicious Code, Denial of Service Attacks, Hackers.

Loss of information/ Data Theft: Once an attacker gains control of the user computer, he or she may gain access to all the files that are stored on the computer, including personal or company financial information, credit card numbers, and client or customer data or lists. Needless to say, in the wrong hands, this could do serious damage to any business. If the data is altered or stolen, a company may risk losing the trust and credibility of their customers. In addition to the potential financial loss that may occur, the loss of information may cause a business to lose crucial competitive advantage over its rivals due to the loss of information. With the importance of information to the success of any business, the loss or theft of data could be disastrous.

Worms: A third type of malicious code is known as a worm. A worm is a type of virus that can replicate itself across all the different nodes or connections that make up a network. Worms can contain harmful payloads, but they generally cause most of their damage by tying up the network, using up valuable memory and wasting valuable processing time.

Trojan Horses: Another form of malicious code is the Trojan horse. A Trojan horse is similar to a virus in the way it is transmitted; however, unlike a virus, a Trojan horse does not replicate itself. Rather, it stays in the target machine, inflicting damage or allowing somebody from a remote site to take control of the computer. A Trojan horse often masquerades as a legitimate program, but once installed on the victim machine performs an illicit, damaging program.

Viruses and Malicious Code: Computer viruses are probably the most widely-known form of Internet security attack. A virus is a piece of software programming with the unique ability to replicate and spread itself to other computers. Malicious code in general refers to computer programs that are written specifically to cause mischief or, worse, cause damage to infected computers. A virus or script like this can enter a victim computer either through email, by downloading infected software from the Internet, or by using infected media such as floppy disks or CD-ROMs. With the wide use of email, malicious viruses and scripts have the capability to reach almost anyone who is connected to the Internet.

Denial of Service Attacks: The simultaneous attacks earlier this year against Internet giants like eBay and Yahoo were the first time that many people had heard of denial of service attacks. Denial of service attacks are outages caused when an attacker uses one or many computer systems to force another system offline by attempting to overload it with useless traffic. A denial of service attack is a form of gridlock on the network? By unleashing a torrent of useless messages, an attacker can paralyze a business? web server. Such an attack can render a web site useless for extended periods of time, resulting in the potential loss of customers, which can be disastrous for small businesses that rely on online customers.

Hackers: The term hacker was originally used to refer to a self-taught computer expert who is highly skilled with technology, programming, and hardware. Many hackers employ these skills to test the strength and integrity of computer systems for a wide variety of reasons: to prove their own ability, to satisfy their curiosity about how different programs work, or to improve their own programming skills by exploring the programming of others.  The term hacker has been adopted by the mass media to refer to all people who break into computer systems, regardless of motivation; however, in the media the term hacker is often associated with people who hack illegally for criminal purposes. Many in the Internet security community strongly disagree with this use of the term.

Q.       What do you mean by data theft?

Ans.:  Loss of information/ Data Theft: Once an attacker gains control of the user computer, he or she may gain access to all the files that are stored on the computer, including personal or company financial information, credit card numbers, and client or customer data or lists. Needless to say, in the wrong hands, this could do serious damage to any business. If the data is altered or stolen, a company may risk losing the trust and credibility of their customers. In addition to the potential financial loss that may occur, the loss of information may cause a business to lose crucial competitive advantage over its rivals due to the loss of information. With the importance of information to the success of any business, the loss or theft of data could be disastrous.

           

Q.       Describe the ways of preventing threats of computer and communication technology.

Ans.: Preventing computer and communication theft:

a. When you first get your computer, you should always write down its serial number and model number. You can find those on the bottom of your computer tower or on the bottom of your laptop. You should also write down a customer support phone number for the manufacturer of your computer. That way, if anything happens to your PC, you can call them right away for assistance. They will always ask you for the serial and model numbers, so it’s very important to have that information on hand.

b. You should always keep the receipt for your computer and any other equipment that may have come along with it. Your receipt is vital in these kinds of situations.

c. If you have a laptop, you may want to think about getting a lock for it. Attaching it to a lock will help keep it safe while you’re traveling through airports or even while you’re at work or in a local coffee shop. There are many different laptop locks you can purchase. A few companies you may want to check out are Kensington, Targus and Compucage.

d. If you travel a lot with your laptop (like the person who asked today’s question), chances are, you spend a lot of time at the airport. We’ve gone over this before, but again, always keep a close eye on your laptop while you’re going through the metal detector. That’s a prime opportunity for thieves to take your personal belongings. You should also keep your laptop with you at all times while you’re waiting on flights and when you’re on the plane. Never let it out of your sight!

e. If you’re using a personal computer, you may even want to go as far as having your name engraved on it, along with your contact information. That way, if anything does ever happen to it, it’ll be easier to identify.

f. You should always keep an updated backup of all your important data on an external drive. If you have all of that information on something that is separate from your computer, you’ll save yourself a lot of time and stress if anything ever does happen to your PC.

g. Another good thing to do is create a password for your computer. That way, if it is stolen, no one will be able to access it unless they figure out your password. When you’re doing this, make sure you create one that is not easy to identify. Including a jumble of both letters and numbers that still make sense to you is the best way to go.

h. You should also encrypt or even password protects any personal information you put onto your computer. Doing that will help keep your data even more secure.

Q.       Describe the major methods that could be used for identity theft.             

Ans.: Identity theft: Your identity and personal information are valuable. Criminals can find out your personal details and use them to open bank accounts and get credit cards, loans, state benefits and documents such as passports and driving licenses in your name.

            Major methods that could be used for identity theft:

Shoulder Surfing: A trick known as shoulder surfing is as simple as watching someone enter personal identification information for a private transaction, such as ATM machine.

Snagging: In the right setting, a thief can try snagging information by listening in on a telephone extension, through a wiretap, or over a cubicle wall while the victim gives credit card or other personal information to a legitimate agent.

Dumpster Diving: Other techniques are as simple as stealing mail containing personal information. A popular low-tech approach is dumpster diving. Thieves can go through garbage cans, dumpsters, or trash bins to obtain cancelled checks, credit card statements, or bank account information that someone has carelessly thrown out.

Social Engineering: This method is not as sophisticated as it sounds, but can still be effective. In social engineering, the ID thief tricks victims into providing critical information under the pretext of something legitimate. The thief can call an unwary victim.

High-Tech Methods: Sophisticated ID thieves can get information using a computer can Internet connection. For instance Trojan horses can be planted on a system or a person’s identity may be snagged from unsecured Internet sites.

Q.       Discuss the different kinds of threat to hardware.              

Ans.: Hardware problems are all too common. We all know that when a PC or disk gets old, it might start acting erratically and damage some data before it totally dies. Unfortunately, hardware errors frequently damage data on even young PCs and disks. Here are some examples.

Power Faults: Your PC is busy writing data to the disk and the lights go out! Is everything OK? Maybe so, maybe not; it's vital to know for sure if anything was damaged. Other power problems of a similar nature would include brownouts, voltage spikes, and frequency shifts. All can cause data problems, particularly if they occur when data is being written to disk (data in memory generally does not get corrupted by power problems; it just gets erased if the problems are serious enough).

Age: It's not magic; as computers age they tend to fail more often. Electronic components are stressed over time as they heat up and cool down. Mechanical components simply wear out. Some of these failures will be dramatic; something will just stop working. Some, however, can be slow and not obvious. Regrettably, it's not a question of "if", but "when" in regard to equipment failure.

Incompatibilities: You can have hardware problems on a perfectly healthy PC if you have devices installed that do not properly share interrupts. Sometimes problems are immediately obvious, other times they are subtle and depend upon certain events to happen at just the wrong time, and then suddenly strange things happen! (Software can do this too!)

Malicious or Careless Damage: Someone may accidentally or deliberately delete or change a file on your PC when you're not around. If you don't keep your PC locked in a safe, then this is a risk. Who knows what was changed or deleted? Wouldn't it be nice to know if anything changed over the weekend? Most of this type of damage is done unintentionally by someone you probably know. This person didn't mean to cause trouble; they simply didn't know what they were doing when they used your PC.

Magnetic Zaps: Computer data is generally stored as a series of magnetic changes on disks. While hard disks are generally safe from most magnetic threats because they are encased within the computer compartment, floppy disks are highly vulnerable to magnets. The obvious threat would be to post a floppy disk to the refrigerator with a magnet; but there are many other, more subtle, threats.