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A digital circuit board within a computer is still an electric circuit board. However, it will not process continuous, electric voltage levels.
"Analog" recording and reproduction of images and sound uses electrical voltage controlled devices (circuit boards) to record and process those, say in the example of "sound", the variable air pressure waves as continuous electrical pulses at various voltage levels (an analog signal). The higher the amplitude of the sound, the higher the voltage level. Electrical circuits are designed to process this constant, continually changing electric voltage signal. The analog recording is an almost complete and continuous electrical reproduction of the various changes in air pressure created by the original real life sound and the resulting waveform ("analogous" to the physical wave form).
At its most basic, the digital electric circuit will either have an
electrical charge to process or there will be no electrical charge to process.
Digital data can be represented by the presence or absence of an electrical charge, or it can be represented by the length of time between the pulses of the charge, by the presence or absence of light pulses in a fiber optic cable, by pits and grooves in a plastic CD, by the presence and absence of sound carried over a copper telephone wire, or by the frequency of the data set when modulated into a radio frequency. By reducing the real world analog state to the digital state, we can create accurate models of the analog state, manipulate the data as a mathematical equation and store the information in a manner that is not easily subject to dissipation or degradation. Any data such as audio, film, graphics, telephone signals, text, video and radio waves can be rendered in a digital representation or format.
Data preserved in a digital format is a mathemetical representation of the variable analog signal (the letters on a screen, a recorded sound, a photo or a video).
Credfinrisk.com is compatible with all Internet browsers (which is nothing more that a software application that runs on the desktop or laptop computer). Microsoft Windows 2000, XP and Vista operating systems come with MS Internet Explorer already installed. One can also download other web browsers for the MS Windows operating system (including Apple Safari). The Apple, Inc., Mac desktop and laptop computers run the OS X operating system (Tiger is the most recent version). Linux and other open software operating systems are available as an operating system for the personal computer but are primarily used as the operating system on corporate servers (the most recent and popular Linux-based operating system for personal computer is named Ubuntu).
Browsers and updated browser software can be obtained from:
Search Engines:
Browser and application add-on software can be obtained from:
In addition to the computer itself, the development of the Internet / World Wide Web has increased the capabilities and accuracy of the the discipline of credit analysis substantially. Searching the Internet allows one to tap into essential information sources, both primary and secondary, that will be essential to conduct a credit analysis. The World Wide Web has several levels that can be accessed: the Visible (easily accessed by all and crawled and indexed by search engines), the Opaque (not indexed or linked), the Private (accessed by password only) and the proprietary (pay-to-access only).
Every website (which is actually stored on a server / computer connected to the Internet) has a website address or
URL or Domain Name. The Domain Name System (DNS) links all of these indivudual connections together into the World
Wide Web. The DNS converts the domain name request into an IP (Internet Protocol) address. You will often see the IP
address displayed in your Web browser when you are connecting to a particular website. Standard conventions used in domain
names include:
.ac - Educational institution
.co - Commercial organization
.com - Commercial organization
.edu - Educational institution
.gov - Non-military government organizations
.int - International organizations
.mil - Military government organizations
.net - Networks
.org - Non-profit organization
The addition of a "country" in the domain name indicates where the server is located (for instance, .uk for the United Kingdom;
.de for Germany).
You will also see file extensions added to URLs, which indicate the type of file displayed in your web browser that is being presented by the server
in response to a typed request or clicking on an icon on a website page:
.html or .htm - Hyper Text Markup Language is the standard and basic type of file that displays text and photo web pages.
.jsp - JavaScript file, which is an executable file within the web browser and is used to make the presentation non-static
or interactive.
.xml - Extensible Markup Language adds more functionality to HTML by better describing the information the web page presents.
.php - returns specific information from a database in response to a request.
.exe - This is actually an executable program that will open and load into your computer if you click on it.
.jpg and .gif - Photograph files.
Network Neutrality is the issue that broadband providers will treat specific Internet traffic flowing over their lines with preference compared to other Internet traffic, content providers, web services, etc. If there is a preference system than the traffic provided by one content provider would be provided at a faster rate by the network owner / operator because that content provider has a business / economic relationship with the broadband provider / network owner / operator.
As a Home Page it is not much to look at but it is the top search engine in the world.
Next to the search box you will see the "Advanced Search" option. If you click on the link to open the Advanced Search page you will view a list of options designed to improve the search result.
EDGAR
In the United States, all publicly traded companies, foreign and domestic, are required to file registration statements, periodic reports, and other forms electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commision through EDGAR (the SEC's Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system). Anyone can access and download this information for free.
U.S. Government
The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal
Register by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government. It is divided into 50 titles that represent
broad areas subject to Federal regulation. Each volume of the CFR is updated once each calendar year and is issued on a
quarterly basis. The Federal Register is available from 1994 onwards.
www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html
The Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR) is a currently updated version of the Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR). It is not an official legal edition of the CFR. The e-CFR is an editorial compilation of CFR material and
Federal Register amendments produced by the National Archives and Records Administration's Office of the Federal Register
(OFR) and the Government Printing Office. The OFR updates the material in the e-CFR on a daily basis.
ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&tpl=%2Findex.tpl
Regulations.gov is a source for all regulations (or rulemakings) issued by U.S. government agencies:
USA.gov is the U.S. government's official web portal and is an inter-agency source for official information and services from
the U.S. government.
www.usa.gov/
The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) is a source of official information from all three branches
of the Federal Government.
www.gpoaccess.gov/
Thomas.gov provides legislative information from the Library of Congress.
www.thomas.gov/
RSS (real simple syndication or rich site summary) is a
defined standard based on XML with the specific
purpose of the distribution and syndication web-based content, which in most cases is recent news reports or press releases from
companies, exchanges, markets, etc. (RSS news feed). Each item in the RSS feed typically contains a headline, article
summary and link to the online article. Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0 or later can handle an RSS feed on its own or there
are programs (FeedDemon, Feedster) that allow one to aggregate and view various RSS feeds that one is interested in
subscribing to. The purpose of RSS is that readers can quickly scan headlines and read condensed articles of interest
provided in a single location thus users can generally review more information in a shorter time frame. Additional
information is then access by clicking on the link to the original web page (there is no spam with RSS).
Credit and Financial Analysts are very susceptible to computer security issues due to:
The profession of being a credit or financial analyst is by nature intertwined with the public. You want to have your abilities known, you want to have access to public and private information and you want to make the public or other companies and analysts aware of your availability. The World Wide Web is an ideal medium for the purpose of public exposure, however it brings an accompanying set of risks.
A knowledgable computer technician can compromise a single computer or a network by:
Computer viruses
At any given moment there are dozens of viruses circulating accross the web as e-mail attachements (script, macro and polymorphic worms) or written into a software application (trojan and backdoor) or take advantage of a discovered and exploitable weakness of a software application or operating system. It is not personal against you, it is the way of the world and you can never be too careful. Analysts who even rigorously follow a systematic program and conscious review of their computer still get infected.
Do not neglect having an anti-virus program installed on your computer and make sure it is updated periodically. The application automatically starts when the computer is turned on and the operating system boots up, and then usually continues to opearte in the background as long as the computer is on. An anti-virus program functions by scanning the code of an application and comparing the code against a database of known virus coding. Thus, the anti-virus program is only as good as the listing of known codes in its library so it must be updated regularly. This is normally accomplished by using the anti-virus program installed on your computer to open a web browser and connect to the software developer's web site. One must usually identify which version of the anti-virus application one has installed and then one must download an updated .DAT file.
Scareware
These are pop-up ads or messages that notify you that your computer is infected or offer a free computer scan. Do not click on the pop-up dialog box, it is a scam. Your anti-virus software provider will not send you a pop-up and say "Click-Here". If you are redirected from a legitimate site do not click on the new site. Just save any open documents or files running in any legitimate program that you have open and then power off the computer.
It is important that the anti-virus program that you have installed on your computer be able to access, scan and filter any e-mail attachment. However, the first line of defense is common sense. Look for these signs first:
Some anti-virus programs will only work with Microsoft Outlook Express and some programs will only work with POP3-compliant e-mail applications.
Never accept an unsolicited E-mail that claims it is from a company that produces anti-virus software and that a fix is attached to the E-mail. Always go directly to the site of a reputable company to download fixes.
Never preview a suspect E-mail attachment as a virus can launch just by previewing the file. If it looks suspect to you then just delete it. A reliable business contact or friend will always resubmit a message to you at a later date (do not be embarrased to make the second request).
How to remove the Preview Pane on Microsoft Outlook Express:
Spam E-mail
Do not reply to spam e-mail when they offer the opportunity to Un-subscribe. Many spam e-mails arrive at your computer due to the fact that the sender used a program that creates acronyms and places them in front of a legitimate @yourISP.com. They get lucky and reach your e-mail account. By un-subscribing, or even responding to complain about the e-mail, you confirm that they have contacted a legitimate e-mail address. Your e-mail account is then provided to other spam marketers.
How to set the e-mail filter on Microsoft Outlook Express:
E-mail Encryption
E-mail encryption may come in handy if for some reason you have to send a credit card number to a colleague by regular e-mail. The strength of an e-mail encryption program is first measured by the bit level standard of the encryption key. Typically, these programs use an algorithmic program to scramble a message by substituting a pre-defined letter, series of alphanumeric letters and numbers, and adding extraneous letters, numbers and symbols for each letter and number in your message. A Key is necessary to reverse the encryption. If the program uses only 8-bits, then there are only 256 possible algorithmic key patterns. Today's standard's of 128-bit or 256-bit algorithmic keys require immense computing power to decipher without a key (all codes are eventually able to be broken). The encryption program is further defined by whether it employs public key or private key encrytion.
Software program downloads
Viruses can be included in zipped, compressed files. It is important that the anti-virus program that you have installed on your computer be able to access and scan compressed files (and sub-directories of compressed files) before you unzip the file.Free programs downloaded form the World Wide Web may contain trojan or backdoor files. Rather than destroy the operating system or files, some of these programs locate data and passwords within your files and then transfer that data to whomever is designated within the trojan program. These trojan programs can even be designed to open a port to an outside source and then your computer can be utilized as a server. Less malicious trojan programs (stealthware or spyware) track and record web site visitation and then transfer the data to the server of the company designated in the program (usually a marketer).
Firewalls
Software firewalls function by scanning and screening all data coming into a computer (usually an internet connection through which internet traffic is screened) and all data leaving the computer.
If you have a telephone dial-up modem connection to your ISP, you are allocated an IP address from a pool of available IP addresses that the ISP maintains for customers just like you. These addresses (dynamic IP address) are per dial-in session only and not so beneficial to hackers as when you terminate the connection the IP address is then rotated and assigned to another dial-in customer. Thus, the hacker cannot access your computer through that address again. Rather, hackers are searching for static addresses that are assigned to an always-on DSL / cable modem connection to your desktop computer or server. It is in this type of internet connection that it is so important to have a firewall in place.
When purchasing a firewall for an always-on broadband connection, make sure that it includes the standard NAT (Network Address Translation). An NAT will mask an IP address.
When a static address is identified, this gives someone the knowledge that there is time to do a port scan: probing the available TCP and UDP ports over which computers communicate (there are 65,550 possible ports). E-mail data is transferred through ports 25 and 110 and World Wide Web data is accessed through port 80. The firewall application must be capable of monitoring all data through these ports, be configurable so that certain data is filtered and not automatically passed through, and should be sophisticated enough in closing all TCP and UDP ports, including port 5000 (the Universal Plug and Play port; a hacker will transmit data disquised to represent a device notification message when in reality it is designed to circumvent security features). In addition, some firewall programs produce logs that identify the IP of the probe, and in some instances can trace the probe right to the actual source.
Intrusion detection applications operate by comparing activity and system requests to predefined patterns. The problem with these applications is that once someone is already into a network and maintains an activity pattern similar to what any employee may do on the network, then there is no indentification that the network has been compromised. Thus, it is important that at a minimum the firewall be capable of performing stateful packet inspection, which is the ability to scan all data coming through the internet connection. It should be noted that SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) transaction traffic passes directly through intrusion detection and anti-virus scanning applications. Thus, encrypted data traffic passes without review. If you wish to have your computer or network review SSL-encrypted data then it must first be decrypted by a separate hardware and specific application.
Conversely, a firewall also monitors outgoing data. As indicated above, free software programs downloaded from the World Wide Web may include trojan sub-programs. These can be of a malicious (collects data or opens TCP ports) or intrusive (monitors your usage or solicits advertising when you are connected to the internet) manner. If the anti-virus program installed on your computer fails to locate the trojan application, then the firewall must be capable restricting which applications may connect to a remote server (for instance your web browser and your e-mail client) and also be capable of prompting you with an alert message that a connection has been requested (for instance, personal information located on one's computer can be disguised as HTTP traffic data and if you did not initiate the request then you will know that something is wrong).
The most recent operating system versions from both Microsoft and Apple, MS Windows XP and Mac OS X (including 10.2 Jaguar), include basic firewall applications.
Wireless Networking
If you maintain a wireless network within your business or residence and it is not protected then you run the risk that anyone could log on to your network. This means that they could use your ISP account to view the internet, they could set up an anonymous e-mail account through your ISP connection, a trojan application could easily be installed on your computer and they could also have access to the hard drive (and the files) of each computer connected to the network. Your first line of defense is to make sure that WEP (Wired Equivalent Pivacy, a static, shared key encryption architecture) is enabled. WEP is part of the 802.11b / Wi-Fi standard. If WEP is disabled or unintentionally not configured properly then your network is completely open. Unfortunately, it is not a very strong security protocol and is easily sidestepped by more accomplished technicians. In order to have a secure wireless network within your residence, home office or studio or commercial studio / business you will have to invest in additional hardware and software, which adds some additional complexity to your network configuration.
VPN (Virtual Private Network)
A VPN still relies upon the very public Internet structure of open telephone lines and backbone service. A VPN can be created between networks or between individuals and a network. For individual desktop computers and/or portable devices the SSL (Secure Sockets Layer, the same protocol used for secure web-based purchase transactions) security protocol is used for the network connection. Establishing a VPN between networks requires a more complex, proprietary application.
On-line Financial Transactions
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a protocol that encrypts web pages in order transfer data (in this case your order request and credit card number). Most information sensative e-commerce web site transactions employ SSL. Always look for the Lock icon on the botton right-hand corner of your web browser (the lock is a golden color on MS Internet Explorer and a gray color on Netscape Navigator). The presence of the icon indicates that the web site employs SSL. Secondly, retain a credit card that you use for on-line purchases only (it will be easier to track if compromised and to resolve disputes).
Creating Passwords
Microsoft SP2 update for MS Windows XP and Microsoft SP3 update for MS Windows XP are both designed to improve the security of computers connected to the Internet that also have the Microsoft Windows operating system. The updates are designed to fix several already well-known intrusion techniques, improve the security features of the Internet Explorer web browser, provide a security center and add a firewall, however it will not detect existing viruses or spyware / adware nor filter and block spam. One must still rely upon third-party software applications in order to provide properr security. In addition, one must manually turn off the MS firewall if one already has a firewall installed, a feature of the SP2 package that can actually be exploited. If one has a computer with the MS Windows operating system then one may also have the Automatic Update feature which can automatically download MS Windows updates.
To determine if Windows XP SP3 is already installed: Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties. If Service Pack 3 is listed in the System section, SP3 is already installed on your computer and you don't need to do anything else.
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/help/learn-how-to-install-windows-xp-service-pack-3-sp3
Microsoft Update update.microsoft.com/
Microsoft Security www.microsoft.com/security/default.aspx
