Officer Ward

Officer Ward
Cyber Defender & Detention Center Security Officer

Officer Ward believes that most people who disrespect the privelages of Cyberspace are more ignorant than criminal, and that most cyber criminals can be rehabilitated into faithful cyber citizens through education about the dangers of delinquency in Cyberspace.

Working closely with Commander Omni and the Cyber Defense Academy, Officer Ward hopes to secure Cyberspace for everyone.

Favorite Quote:

It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible, but also for what we do not do
- John Baptiste Moliere

Favorite Food:

Cupcakes

Interests:

Coaching softball, fishing, catching cyber criminals

November 29 2007

Echoes in the System

Judging from how Nils responded to the news of his former partner's failure, I've been scouring the system for clues as to what the real plan is. I am finding suspicious code popping up all over the place. I can find nothing definitive, but I can say that the spam attack won't be the last.

Something big is coming. I am reinforcing our defenses but I could really use a helping hand here.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyberspace Updates

November 19 2007

Cyber Crimes: Denial-of-Service attacks

In light of the recent attack, I'd like to provide everyone with some more information about denial-of-service attacks.

In a denial-of-service attack (DoS attack), attackers will try to make a computer or Internet service unavailable to its users. They do this by making a server do more work than it can possibly handle, usually by sending it too many requests or flooding a network with fake traffic. This prevents people from using the computer or Internet service. Or, it makes the server work so slowly that it becomes useless. DoS attacks can prevent a Web site or server from functioning well or at all, as you may have noticed when the Academy server was attacked yesterday!

Symptoms of a DoS attack can include unusually slow access to a network, the inability to open a Web site, or a large increase in the amount of spam emails received. A DoS attack can also include malware, so we are thoroughly checking the Academy's servers for any malicious code that may have been installed during the attack.

For more detailed information on DoS attacks, visit MySecureCyberspace or Wikipedia.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyber Crimes

November 14 2007

Security Breached

M.C. Spammer launched a full out attack against our email servers. Our security measures against such assaults failed to activate. This was probably the result of the Red Death.

After we thwarted the attack I checked in on my wards. Sparky and Jax were scared and confused but Ex-Commander Nils was positively gloating. It put a crimp in my victory celebrations.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyberspace Updates

November 8 2007

Suspicions

I've been checking and rechecking our logs. There is something wrong here. I think our friend in the Red Death costume may have left us a gift. The frustrating thing is that I can't figure out what it was. I put the entire faculty on alert.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyberspace Updates

November 5 2007

Cyber Criminal Profile: M.C. Spammer

Knowledge is the best weapon against cyber crime. It's important to know as much as you can about cyber criminals so you can learn how to defeat them.

Alias: M.C. Spammer
Real Name: Unknown
Location: Email
Primary attack: Spam
Weakness: Spam filters, the cold shoulder

M.C. Spammer's cyber weapon of choice is spam, and he will try to send out as much of it as often as he can. His spam emails try to fool innocent people into opening them with free travel offers and fun I.Q. tests. He'll email you anything to get a quick buck, steal your personal information, or infest your computer with malware.

M.C. Spammer is very annoying but relatively harmless. To defend yourself, use a spam filter to prevent most of his attacks and learn how to recognize the ones that get through so you can delete them right away. Also, be careful to whom and what sites you give your real email address, as this can leave you open for his attacks.

Keep it up, Cyber Defenders! We'll catch him!

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyber Criminals

November 2 2007

Red Death

At the Halloween Ball there was a character dressed like the Red Death from the Edgar Allan Poe short story. I thought he was a cadet. But later that evening when I was closing the school for the night I saw him again. I chased after him but he vanished. I checked the school's systems but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

It reminded me of the shadow I'd been chasing all summer.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Cyberspace Updates

November 1 2007

Trick or Treat

I feel sorry for my detainees who have to spend Halloween in my cells. So I set up a Halloween party especially for them in the activity room. I asked some of the older cadets to drop by during the Halloween Ball, and we had a grand old time.

This year one of them came as the Red Death from the Edgar Allan Poe poem. It was a beautiful costume. I couldn't tell which one of them he was.

posted by Officer Ward
topic: Miscellaneous