Vulnerability Assessment

As computer technology has developed, network technology has also advanced remarkably. The fact brings us convenient lives so far. We are enable to get cash any time by using the ATM, and we use credit cards almost anywhere, thanks to the development of an on-line network system. Our lives tend to be computerized. At the same time, computer crime, such as stealing a company’s valuable information, or breaking into a system to manipulate an account, is increasing. Therefore, network security is considered as one of the most important issues today. SATAN is one of the tools for uncovering networks’ security holes and available free over the Internet. Satan might help a lot for network security administrators who worry about invasion of networks by unscrupulous parties. However, I don’t think this kind of product should be available free to anyone. It should be under control of some authorities, because some bad people could possibly use Satan as well.

Satan stands for Security Administrator Tool for Analyzing Networks. It is software designed to collect data and report that security holes or vulnerabilities on networked computer site. Satan gets into a site the same way an intruder would.

Satan could prove administrators who rarely have the time to monitor all the security and virus warnings that are periodically dispatched. By running this one application, an administrator could learn of myriad security holes and have an opportunity to repair them. And the fact is that the software mimics an intruder provides a truer version of how secure a system is from outside attack.

Satan could certainly be effective software and an excellent device for analyzing potential security hazards in a network. At the same time, it can be taken that Satan could also make it easier to learn how to break into a system. It may become a bible for hackers instead of a supportive tool for network administrators. In fact, Dan Farmer, one of the Satan’s developers, acknowledges the potential for nefarious application. This assumption is frightening many administrators and information technology executives.

While the tool has several concerns, most people tend to welcome Satan. One of their common opinions is that the software points out to the user vender community what needs to be fixed.

I don’t think it’s good idea that this kind of software is available for anyone, because I believe there is no such thing as a free lunch. What if some networks are invaded by hackers or scriptkiddies who modified Satan or got some ideas how to break into a network. Whose responsibility is it? One of the reasons the software is raising strong concerns is its ease-of-use capabilities. The Satan graphical use interface is so easy to use that less experienced hackers could use it. We know that everybody is not moral, some people are unscrupulous. Some of the best and brightest programmers have put on black hats, and pick up a baseball bat and break automobile windows instead of hitting balls. I think that program’s distributor should take in a sale fashion that sells Satan as merchandise.

Satan is not a video game or normal file that we usually download from on-line networks. It’s about network security that is considered as one of the top priority issues since our lives were computerized.

Network security is bigger and bigger issue now. Missile can be defensive weapons, and offensive weapons as well. We should be sensitive to this kind of free software before it turns into a nightmare.