Computer Science

Pack — 6 Security, privacy and data integrity (AS Level)

50 min read

Pack — 6 Security, privacy and data integrity

Question-and-answer mirror of Jigsaw. Every concept in Jigsaw appears here as a !question with a collapsible !success answer.

How marks are set

  • 9618 | — the highest mark tariff that concept has ever carried in a 9618 paper. Answer points = that tariff + 2 spare, newest mark scheme first, older ones filling the gaps.
  • 9608 | — same rule, using 9608 tariffs. In the 9618 syllabus, untested in the current series.
  • Inferred | — not tested in either series. Tariff estimated from how 9618 marks comparable questions.
  • SME | — from the Save My Exams notes. Tariff estimated the same way. Weigh against the mark schemes.

One bullet = one mark, unless the bullet begins … (an expansion of the point above it).

6.1 Data Security

6.1.1 Security, privacy and integrity of data

Question

State the meaning of privacy of data.

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State the meaning of integrity of data.

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Explain the difference between data security and data integrity.

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Describe the difference between the security and privacy of data.

Question

Draw one line from each measure (firewall, double entry, presence check, access rights, password) to indicate whether it keeps data secure or protects the integrity of data.

Question

State what is meant by data integrity and give one example of how this is implemented in a database.

Question

Describe the difference between the security and integrity of data.

Question

Explain the difference between the security and privacy of data.

Question

Give one example, for a school LAN, where privacy of data is a key concern.

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Complete the table by identifying the most appropriate term for each description. Each term must be different.

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State what is meant by data integrity and give an example of how a database manager can ensure it.

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Explain the difference between the security, privacy and integrity of data. Give an example of each.

Question

Explain what data privacy requires of an organisation collecting personal data.

6.1.2 The need for both security of data and security of the computer system

Question

Explain how data backup and disk-mirroring allow a company to recover from data loss. (Max 2 marks each.)

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Describe two methods of preventing accidental loss of data.

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An employee states: “Encryption prevents hackers breaking into the company’s computers.” Explain why this answer is incorrect.

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An employee states: “The use of passwords will always prevent unauthorised access to the data stored on the computers.” Explain why this answer is incorrect.

Question

Explain why a company needs to secure both its data and its computer system.

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Explain why passwords are stored in encrypted form in a database.

6.1.3 Security measures for computer systems

Question

Explain how a digital signature is used to authenticate a digital document during transmission over a network.

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Draw one line from each security feature (firewall, pharming, anti-virus software, encryption) to its most appropriate description.

Question

Describe how a firewall protects the data on a computer.

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Authentication methods help protect a server against hackers. Identify one other security measure and describe how it works. (1 mark measure + max 2 description.)

Question

State how each of the following security measures can be used to protect computer systems: firewall, encryption, passwords.

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Complete the table by identifying and describing two types of software that can be installed on a computer to prevent threats over a network.

Question

Employees have a username and password, and access rights set to read-only or read/write. Identify one other software-based measure that could restrict access to the data.

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A user downloads a computer program from the internet. State what should be included as part of the download to make sure the program is authentic.

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Computer systems can be protected by physical methods such as locks. Describe two non-physical methods used to improve the security of computer systems. (1 mark for the method + 2 for description, ×2.)

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Give the definition of the terms firewall and authentication. Explain how they can help with the security of data. (Max 2 marks each.)

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Describe what is meant by a digital signature.

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Give two examples of when a virus checker should perform a check.

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Complete the table of security measures and descriptions.

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Complete the table by identifying the most appropriate term for each description. Each term must be different.

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Give two physical security measures that protect a computer system, and state what each prevents.

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Describe what is meant by biometric authentication and state why it is more secure than a password.

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State the difference between symmetric and asymmetric encryption.

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State the difference between a hardware firewall and a software firewall.

6.1.4 Threats posed by networks and the internet

Question

Describe the following threats to a computer system: a phishing email and spyware. (Max 2 marks each.)

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Complete the table by identifying one threat to computer and data security posed by networks and the internet. Describe the threat and give a method of prevention. (1 mark threat + 1 description + 1 prevention.)

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Explain what is meant by a virus and by pharming.

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State one difference and one similarity between pharming and phishing.

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Give two similarities and one difference between spyware and a virus.

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Identify two threats to the data that are posed by networks and the internet.

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Explain the term computer virus.

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Explain why connecting a stand-alone computer to the internet increases the risk to its data.

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Describe two ways a hacker exploits a system, and two effects of a successful attack.

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Explain what is meant by phishing and describe two methods of preventing it.

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Explain how a pharming attack redirects a user, and give one way of preventing it.

6.1.5 Methods that restrict the risks posed by threats

Question

Explain how the data security risks of malware can be restricted.

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Identify and describe one method of restricting the risks posed by an unauthorised person intercepting data whilst it is being transferred across the internet. (1 mark method + max 2 description.)

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Describe what is meant by two-factor authentication.

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Other than installing software, describe three ways a company can reduce the risk posed by threats.

6.1.6 Security methods that protect the security of data

Question

Complete the table by identifying one method of keeping files secure during electronic data transmission and one method of keeping them secure on the computer. State how each method protects the data. (1 mark method + 1 matching description, ×2.)

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Identify two methods a DBMS can use to protect the data in a table from unauthorised access. Explain how each method protects the data. (1 mark method + 1 matching explanation, ×2.)

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Identify one security method that can protect program code from unauthorised access during email transfer, and explain how it protects the code. (1 mark method + 2 explanation.)

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Explain how encryption can protect the security of data during transmission.

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Describe the ways in which access rights can be used to protect the data in a database from unauthorised access.

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Describe three security measures that a bank could implement to protect its electronic data. (3 pairs: measure + description.)

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Explain how encrypting the source code can keep it secure on a laptop.

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Give three ways that a developer can ensure users’ details stored in a database on his computer are kept secure.

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Explain how regular backups protect the security of a company’s data.

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Describe how access rights are assigned and state the three levels of access.

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Explain how data transmitted on a wireless network is encrypted.

6.2 Data Integrity

6.2.1 How validation and verification protect the integrity of data

Question

Data verification is one method of protecting the integrity of data. Describe one other method.

Question

State the difference between data verification and data validation.

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Describe how data validation helps to protect the integrity of the data. Give an example in your answer.

Question

Describe how data verification helps to protect the integrity of the data. Give an example in your answer.

Question

State why a car registration number might be incorrect even after it has been validated and verified.

Question

An employee states: “Data validation is used to make sure that data keyed in are the same as the original data supplied.” Explain why this answer is incorrect.

Question

Complete these two sentences about data validation and verification.

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State two ways of maintaining data integrity at the input stage. Use examples to help explain your answer. (1 mark per way + 1 mark for an example.)

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State two ways of maintaining data integrity during data transmission. Use examples to help explain your answer.

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Describe what is meant by verification.

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Give a brief description of each of the terms validation and verification.

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Explain why a system uses both data validation and data verification.

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Explain why a single field may have more than one validation check, using an example.

6.2.2 Methods of data validation

Question

The table contains three algorithms that perform data validation. Identify the method of data validation for each. Each method must be different.

Question

The car registration must be 1 letter, then 3 numbers, then 2 letters. A presence check is already used. Describe two other ways it can be validated.

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The field RiderLevel can only have the values Beginner, Intermediate or Advanced. Describe two methods of validating it.

Question

A presence check is one validation method. Describe two other validation methods that can be used to validate non-numeric data.

9608 | Calculate a modulus-11 check digit [4]

A Patient ID is a seven-digit number. The DBMS adds a modulus-11 check digit as an eighth digit, using the weightings 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1, with 6 as the multiplier for the most significant digit. Show the calculation of the check digit for the ID beginning 786531.

Question

Name and describe two validation checks that a DBMS could carry out on each primary key value a user keys in for a PatientID. (1 mark name + 1 mark description, max 2 checks.)

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Write the validation type for each validation description in the table.

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Put one tick in each row to indicate whether the measure is validation or verification.

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Name and describe two other types of validation check that could be appropriate for this data capture form. (1 mark check + 1 mark description.)

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Explain the difference between a limit check and a range check, giving an example of each.

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Write pseudocode to perform a length check that ensures an input x is exactly 8 characters long, outputting “Invalid” otherwise.

Question

Name and give an example of each of the validation checks in the syllabus.

Question

State what a check digit is, what kinds of error it detects, and give two contexts where it is used.

6.2.3 Methods of data verification during data entry and data transfer

Question

Complete the description of parity check when Computer A transmits data to Computer B.

Question

Complete the table by identifying and describing two methods of data verification that can be used during data transfer. (1 mark method + 1 matching description, ×2.)

Question

An example of a tutor ID is NK16C6. Explain how data verification can be used when the tutor ID is entered into the TUTOR table.

Question

Explain how data can be verified using a checksum.

Question

Draw one line from each verification method to indicate whether it is used during data transfer or data entry.

Question

Describe two ways that a car registration number can be verified when it is entered into the database.

Question

A computer system uses even parity, with the least significant (rightmost) bit as the parity bit. Complete the byte 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 _.

Question

A parity block uses even parity. One of the four data bytes has an error in one bit. Circle the bit that has been altered during transfer.

Question

Describe how a parity block check can identify a bit that has been corrupted during transmission.

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Give a situation where a parity block check cannot identify corrupted bits.

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Explain how you identified the error.

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A data block is received containing errors. Identify and circle two bits which must be changed to remove the errors, and explain how you arrived at your answer.

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Describe how the data logger calculates the parity bit for each of the bytes in the data block, using odd parity with bit position 0 as the parity bit.

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Describe how the computer uses the parity byte to perform a further check on the received data bytes.

Question

Explain what is meant by a parity check. Give an example to illustrate your answer.

Question

Parity is not the only method to verify the data has been sent correctly. Name and describe one other method of data verification during data transfer. (1 mark name + max 2 description.)

Question

Describe one way of ensuring that the integrity of the data is retained during the transmission stage. (1 mark for the name + 3 for the description.)

Question

Explain why a single parity bit cannot locate an error, but a parity block can.

Question

State what happens after a verification method detects an error during data transfer.

Question

Explain why transmission errors occur, and state two limitations of a parity check.

Question

Describe double entry checking and a visual check.

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