CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Attacks on computer by outside intruder are more publicized but the ones
perpetrated by insiders are very common and often more damaging. Insiders
represent the greatest threat to computer security because they understand their
organization’s business and how their computer systems work. They have both the
confidentiality and access to perform these attacks. An inside attack will have a
higher probability of successfully breaking into the system and extracting critical
information. The insiders also represent the greatest challenge to securing the
company network because they have authorized level of access to the file system.
In a quest for maximum profitability in a network, there is need to monitor the
activities performed such that the network activity in a real time would be tracked,
confidential information safeguarded and control over the daily activities of every
staff established. The question is: which and how would one develop the so much
needed system that would exhibit all these potentialities?
Network activity monitoring system is used to detect inside threats by monitoring
file access and process activity (Behr et al, 2009). It is a powerful tool that allows
one to track any local area network, giving you the most detailed information on
when, how and what your network users do on daily basis. If it is a library public
network, university or commercial organization network, Activity Monitor offers
efficient control. This work targets the monitoring of every activity of a user in a
computer network and maximizes the security for the organization or corporate
body.
1.1 Background of Study
The Benue State Internal Revenue Service (BIRS) is one of the State ministries
charged with the responsibility of accessing, collecting, and accounting for the
various taxes to the state government since 2010.
Tax revenue has been reliable from time, from where government rely for decision
making, and aids for development and administrative planning, hence the need for
optimum human resource of the organisation or ministry; for it’s considered to be
their most valuable asset if properly harnessed and are well motivated to perform
their assigned tasks so as to enhance the organisations goals and objectives.
Computer network activity monitoring system has become one of the vital tools in
d d h d f d d
providing evidence in cases such as computer misuse and fraud. Computers and
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other devices are being used increasingly to commit, enable or support unwanted
activity perpetrated against individuals, organizations or assets. Although it is most
often associated with the investigation of a wide variety of computer crime, network
activity monitoring system may also be used in civil proceedings. The discipline
involves similar techniques and principles to data recovery and a lot of information
is retained on the computer than most people realize. It’s also more difficult to
completely remove information than it is generally thought. For these reasons (and
many more), network activity monitoring system can often find evidence or even
completely recover lost or deleted information, even if the information was
intentionally deleted.
This system consist of two tier application – server and client whereby the activity
monitoring server can be installed in any computer in the entire local area network
and the client which is the remote spy software is installed on all the computers on
the network to be monitored.
1.2 Statement of Problem
The existing system used by BIRS has been a challenge to them. Amongst the
problems affecting the BIRS from maintaining a steady reliable accounting figures
and estimates are:-
The current system, staffs easily erase or add data in order to cover up their fraud
since there is no back up of the activity log. Frauds like computer fraud: – loss or
damage to money, securities resulting directly from the use of any computer to
fraudulently cause a transfer of money or other property from inside the premises to
a person at a place outside the premise.
The method of operation is not so efficient for both units in the department
(Operations and Reconciliation units). Both units cannot work at the same time, and
this is because the staffs in one of the unit (reconciliation unit) has to wait for the
staffs in the other unit (operation unit) to get their work to some extent before they
can process their own work, and while they are processing their own work, the staffs
in the operation unit has to pause their work a little, and with this manual of
operation in the department, rooms for corporate fraud is being created.
These are the more reasons, why the researcher embarked on this research.
1.3 Objectives of Study
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This seminar targets towards discovering what should be done to improve the
existing system, monitoring the daily activities of every user in a network and using
it to provide evidence to frauds or crimes committed using computer technology
which some people referred to as digital crime; that is crime committed using a
computer system.
The objective of this work is to develop a system that should be able to;
Detect active users.
Provide accurate evidence on corporate fraud when investigation is being
carried out in an organization.
Monitor the daily activities of every user in a network in real time.
Has a good memory management for efficient carrying out of activities.
1.4 Significance of Study
Therefore some of the significance and benefits of this work include:
Increased employers loyalty: -What ultimately creates the employers loyalty is
meeting and exceeding their expectation.
Maintaining system integrity.
Staying current on work status so as to know how well the organisation is
going.
Ensure proper handling of investigation in computing: This is the reason why
we need a careful, methodical process for gathering digital data in the first
place; and this is why we need network activity monitoring system.
Increased employer’s retention:-The employees are an investment. Generally,
it takes nine to twelve months or longer before an employee is a productive
asset to a company. If an employee leaves after a year or two, the company
has lost most of its investment.
Information empowered decision making: -Most managers, executives and
employers make decisions based upon all relevant information. There are
some actions that can have a profound effect on corporate decision making;
those actions are more easily justifiable when you have easily accessed the
users system.
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1.5 Scopes of the Study
Although a network activity monitoring system involves many things and activities
that can be run within it, yet due to lack of time and space, we were not able to use
this software in other operating systems apart from windows operating system (that
is from windows 7 to windows operating system of higher versions). Furthermore
this work did also not involve internet connectivity as well as detection of virus in a
network.
1.6 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some
of which are;
Lack of finance
Refusal of the Benue State Internal Revenue Service Makurdi, to give detailed
answers and in some cases no answer at all to some questions.
This project is limited to all the data associated with the information gotten
from the Federal Inland Revenue Service commission, and due to time factor,
not all the commissions were reached for sources of data and information.
1.7 Definition of Terms
NAMS (Network activity monitoring system): This is the system that is used
monitor the daily activity of every user on a network
Corporate fraud: This is the fraud committed by insiders in a large, publicly traded
(or private) corporation, and/or by senior executives.
Real time: Occurring immediately, this is used for such task as navigation, in which
the computer must react to a steady flow of new information without interruption.
LAN (local area network): This is computer network that spans a relatively small
area. Most LANs are confined to a single building or group of buildings.
Corporate decision making: This is connected with a corporation, this involves the
image of a company or organization where all its members involve taking critical
decision making (finance/planning/strategy)
Internal Auditor: An employee of a company charged with providing independent
and objective evaluations of the company’s financial and operational business
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activities, including its corporate governance. Internal auditors also provide
evaluations of operational efficiencies and will usually report to the highest level of
management on how to improve the overall structure and practices of the company
External Auditor: An external auditor is an audit professional who performs an
audit in accordance with specific laws or rules on financial statements of a company,
government entity, other legal entity or organization, and who is independent of the
entity being audited.
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